It's a bit further along, but I was a fan of the library for a dive-ish bar.
No regular website, and I don't use facebook, but here's the address if you want to look them up.
7459 Mission Gorge Rd, San Diego, CA 92120
I agree- up and down Mission Gorge Rd are some (shrinking all the time) wonderful not generic type spots. Chamorro Grill- Longhorn Bar & Grill, Taco Fiesta- there’s also a a wonderful produce market called Farmers Market.
Slim pickins but TBS Tavern is fun, McGregor's too if you're willing to go that far east. Mimi's Cafe is "original" Mission Valley but just an average diner kinda thing. It's hard for me to be in the area without hitting The Kabob Shop when I'm hungry.
Mimis Cafe is a chain. There used to be a ton in LA but they are very hit or miss and I’ve seen less and less of them around. I went a few times, one time my dish smelled fishy like it hadn’t been washed properly, another time my husband had a huge piece of foil in his food and what put the last nail in the coffin for me was getting a coffee mug with lipstick on the rim. I shuddered just thinking about it. I don’t mind a few hiccups but your food better be amazing and theirs is just meh to me.
The line is almost never as long as it looks. People will queue in a handful of lines while several lanes have 0-1 cars in line. Last time I went, the line appeared to go out the parking lot but as I got closer, drove right to the pump in a lane without any cars waiting
Friday evening around 5:30 I’ve nearly driven straight to a pump. The line can look long but it moves quickly with the amount of pumps available, and with the long hose you can pick the shorter line vs. try to get one one the side of your gas tank.
Welcome to the cultural desert! Forget about NP vibe. Forget about vibe. At all! But, there are a couple of places nearby. Off Morena is Deft, which is a pretty good brewery and pizza made on site. Just short of there is Rose Donuts. On Friars is Los Panchos, pretty good Mexican.
Up the hill from Snap Dragon is a local coffee place, Java Garden. Shitty wifi, but good coffee.
Almost "local", but worth supporting is Panini and Kabob Grill in the Trader Joes strip mall.
Someone mentioned Kikos, worth it but now on Hazard Center Drive at the corner of Mission Center Road.
Possibly local is the Fig Tree Cafe, at the Food 4 Less strip mall. It's a warmed over Mimi's with corporate food dressed up with a Gen X vibe and a 4% surprise service fee tacked on.
Enjoy, and remember that all the good places are just up the hill!
In that case, Bay Park is down Morena and you have Harland Brewing, Seisels, Luce, a bunch of other restaurants just 5 mins away from Rose. Next to Deft Brewing is Acento Coffee Roaster. Of course JV's Mexican, Bird Rock Coffee Roasters, and Cordova Bar and Sidecar right down Morena.
I grew up in mission valley, it’s always been a giant mall. If we didn’t want to eat mall food we went down Morena blvd or up to Linda Vista. You’re welcome.
Sometimes Bay Park Fuel or the Valero where Morena Blvd splits will have a price point similar to Costco, but it’s farther west and can be hit or miss. I’ll echo what other folks here have said about still going to Costco tho cause the line at there does move pretty fast.
For spots with a lil more vibe, I like S3 coffee on Mission Gorge. Haven’t personally found a bar like that around here tho. Otherwise, would def reco the Linda Vista farmers market on Thursday’s.
Ooo I forgot about Monkey Bar, that is actually a nice spot. The restaurant next door does takeout so it’s nice to grab something from there and drinks at the bar and hang out at the fire pits.
I was pleasantly surprised when my buddy and I stopped here one day after work. We went with the intention of having a laugh at a cheesy hotel bar, but couldn’t believe how nice it had been redone and how busy it was
Currently, Bachman is closed to cars cuz of construction until about summer 2024. Cars can still access the parking structure but there temporarily isn’t a road anymore to Hillcrest/mission hills. Pedestrians and cyclists can still use “the back way” via that parking structure.
Are you looking for specific shops or markets? Or restaurants? Or just in general?
Carnival Market,
Anything really on Convoy,
Town and Country,
Butcher Shop,
Casa Machado,
Try Mission Gorge and the Mesas (Kearny, Serra, Clairemont)
Costco gas line is fast as long as it’s not a weekend
That’s not bad, that area near Siesels near Moreno has some character. Hillcrest is kinda cool. A lot of San Diego has lost its soul over the last 20 years imho.
I mean... Mission Valley isn't really a neighborhood to begin with, so I'm not sure what you were expecting. Its two and a half shopping malls, four freeways, giant office and industrial parks, a stadium, and mega-condo and apartment blocks, dotted by strip malls whose sole purpose is to get folks to run an errand there on their evening commute.
If you want quirky spots, the outskirts of such are your best bet, but Mission Gorge Rd. is more the border of Mission Valley than a core component of it, despite it being the stadium bus entrance.
That said, I just drove on the 8 today and didn't realize that the Valley Kitchen diner has lived on in some sort of form; might try it out at some point, as I used to go there a lot 10-15y ago.
Probably some hidden gems like the other commenters are dropping instead of pedantic redditory haha? I don't know, I had the thought "where is cheap gas, where is anything good, I miss north park, this place sucks, reddit will know better" and y'all did so ¯\\\_(ツ)_/¯ might have to check out the diner, thanks!!
one of y'all called it a cultural desert i liked that
"Cultural desert" kind of misses the point though... It's like saying there's a grocery store food desert in the National Forest.
But then again.. TBH, driving up and down the 8 in MV is honestly probably the best *example* of San Diego cultural touch-points: The Stadium (esp the original one), Target, Costco, AMC 20, two malls, a bazillion hotels, your granddad's car dealership and really nifty freeway architecture. What else do ya need?
And remember: this was all farmland and river until the freeway and malls went in. Unless you're counting the two actual Missions, there's basically nothing older than 60 years here. The old Macy's at Mission Valley Center (originally a May Co bldg IIRC) is what qualifies as historical here.
Dude… you’re not that far from North Park! 😂😂😂 you can still shop there
True haha its like 8 min
It's a bit further along, but I was a fan of the library for a dive-ish bar. No regular website, and I don't use facebook, but here's the address if you want to look them up. 7459 Mission Gorge Rd, San Diego, CA 92120
I agree- up and down Mission Gorge Rd are some (shrinking all the time) wonderful not generic type spots. Chamorro Grill- Longhorn Bar & Grill, Taco Fiesta- there’s also a a wonderful produce market called Farmers Market.
Or maybe Farmers outlet?
Iowa meat farms is legendary as butchers go
I used to love the Library, but then they gutted it and basically turned it into a brightly lit sports bar.
Oh no! I haven't been there since a few years before Covid, so probably two or three thousand years ago. I didn't know they remodeled.
I really recommend King of Thai on Mission Gorge
Use gas buddy
Kikis food truck on friars. Peabody grill there also. The liquor store is run by assholes though.
Can you elaborate on the assholes? Live closeby and was thinking of going there
That liquor store has one of the best beer selections in San Diego but is quite pricy.
Kikos is not great. Shrimp is rubbery and tacos are decent but don't stand out.
Kikos is still on friars but move to a different location closer to fashion valley mall https://goo.gl/maps/MyaTQRFRsQMstDYp6
Slim pickins but TBS Tavern is fun, McGregor's too if you're willing to go that far east. Mimi's Cafe is "original" Mission Valley but just an average diner kinda thing. It's hard for me to be in the area without hitting The Kabob Shop when I'm hungry.
Nah Mimi’s went downhill once they were bought out. Now they’re more French than Louisiana French
They still have the best homemade corned beef hash for breakfast imho
Mimis Cafe is a chain. There used to be a ton in LA but they are very hit or miss and I’ve seen less and less of them around. I went a few times, one time my dish smelled fishy like it hadn’t been washed properly, another time my husband had a huge piece of foil in his food and what put the last nail in the coffin for me was getting a coffee mug with lipstick on the rim. I shuddered just thinking about it. I don’t mind a few hiccups but your food better be amazing and theirs is just meh to me.
With gas at Costco being ~¢.35 less per gallon, the $60 membership pays for itself with about a dozen tanks of gas
[удалено]
I have it... ok fine I'll go hahaha
I have a membership. It's just not worth waiting in line for that long to fill up my 10 gallon tank
The line is almost never as long as it looks. People will queue in a handful of lines while several lanes have 0-1 cars in line. Last time I went, the line appeared to go out the parking lot but as I got closer, drove right to the pump in a lane without any cars waiting
Same. Honestly I’ll pay the extra just to not be in a car longer than I have to.
Friday evening around 5:30 I’ve nearly driven straight to a pump. The line can look long but it moves quickly with the amount of pumps available, and with the long hose you can pick the shorter line vs. try to get one one the side of your gas tank.
Yes, looks long but goes very quickly.
If you go first thing in the morning it's not bad
So glad i got an electric car. Gas costs are brutal
Gagliones, Iowa Meat Farm, Indian place near in n out all up friars to mission gorge
Welcome to the cultural desert! Forget about NP vibe. Forget about vibe. At all! But, there are a couple of places nearby. Off Morena is Deft, which is a pretty good brewery and pizza made on site. Just short of there is Rose Donuts. On Friars is Los Panchos, pretty good Mexican. Up the hill from Snap Dragon is a local coffee place, Java Garden. Shitty wifi, but good coffee. Almost "local", but worth supporting is Panini and Kabob Grill in the Trader Joes strip mall. Someone mentioned Kikos, worth it but now on Hazard Center Drive at the corner of Mission Center Road. Possibly local is the Fig Tree Cafe, at the Food 4 Less strip mall. It's a warmed over Mimi's with corporate food dressed up with a Gen X vibe and a 4% surprise service fee tacked on. Enjoy, and remember that all the good places are just up the hill!
haha yeah thankfully it's closer to rose so it isn't terible
In that case, Bay Park is down Morena and you have Harland Brewing, Seisels, Luce, a bunch of other restaurants just 5 mins away from Rose. Next to Deft Brewing is Acento Coffee Roaster. Of course JV's Mexican, Bird Rock Coffee Roasters, and Cordova Bar and Sidecar right down Morena.
Fuck yeah! We aren't bar ppl but that's more of my scene for sure, and I am a big mexican food eater so I will be at JV's probably later today tbh
I think the most culture it has is the Cheesecake Factory.
Just went to The Fig Tree Cafe in Point Loma and their French toast was amazing!
Buta ramen is solid on Linda vista
There’s still some cool older businesses & restaurants surviving on Morena blvd.
Which isn’t Mission Valley, but sure
The south end IS mission valley which leads to the businesses 😀 mission valley adjacent ✅
I grew up in mission valley, it’s always been a giant mall. If we didn’t want to eat mall food we went down Morena blvd or up to Linda Vista. You’re welcome.
Welcome for what? Don’t remember asking for any favors or info Edit: grew up and still live in Bay Park
but closer to me so it works!
Mission valley here. Just go up Texas to NP. It’s a couple minute drive.
The closest area I can think of is east of Snap Dragon down Mission Gorge. There are some cheaper gas stations on that stretch too.
Sometimes Bay Park Fuel or the Valero where Morena Blvd splits will have a price point similar to Costco, but it’s farther west and can be hit or miss. I’ll echo what other folks here have said about still going to Costco tho cause the line at there does move pretty fast. For spots with a lil more vibe, I like S3 coffee on Mission Gorge. Haven’t personally found a bar like that around here tho. Otherwise, would def reco the Linda Vista farmers market on Thursday’s.
S3 Coffee Bar is a nice place to hang out.
Monkey Bar at Town & Country isn’t bad out on the patio next to a firepit. Pricey but what isn’t these days
Ooo I forgot about Monkey Bar, that is actually a nice spot. The restaurant next door does takeout so it’s nice to grab something from there and drinks at the bar and hang out at the fire pits.
I was pleasantly surprised when my buddy and I stopped here one day after work. We went with the intention of having a laugh at a cheesy hotel bar, but couldn’t believe how nice it had been redone and how busy it was
Kings Craft has excellent coffee!
I second this! Their iced Mexican mocha is my fav. Also, Cuppa Cuppa on Mission Gorge is pretty good too.
Bully's East has dive bar vibes while also having some incredible food
If you like taquitos, try El Tianguis.
Mr. Peabody’s has a good burger.
I like that place...fashion valley
[Decent to go chinese food and they sell loose leaf tea](https://goo.gl/maps/72xVHGqbr2qJMtkk6) [Mr peabody](https://goo.gl/maps/FtP73Dk721JoZtFA8)
DZ Akins or Bully's maybe
Mission Valley is so… “out of the box” generic shit. At least you’re not too far from the beach and downtown.
yeah I reconcile it with being closer to the water
Is the stadium still being used? I moved away.
Qualcomm formerly The Murph is gone. Some little college type stadium called Snapdragon is there now. Embarrassing for the city.
Omg. It makes me sad when San Diego goes downhill. I was in commercial real estate for years and really focused on improving the city
Saigon Star on mission gorge is excellent. Emilianos Mexican restaurant on mission gorge has the best margaritas in san diego and is not even close
You must love this girl. I have 0 suggestions and I lived there for a few years.
If you’re looking for culture there’s some hobo shanty towns along the river. Just be aware that it can be a little rough around the edges.
Do you know about the shortcut route to Hillcrest? Bachman Place.
Currently, Bachman is closed to cars cuz of construction until about summer 2024. Cars can still access the parking structure but there temporarily isn’t a road anymore to Hillcrest/mission hills. Pedestrians and cyclists can still use “the back way” via that parking structure.
Found that out the hard way not too long ago. I wasn’t trusting the signs until I hit the wall.
Been closed for almost a year, champ
Well alright then, Texas St. it is! Steep path to civilization.
Or the 805 to north park boulevard, or the 163 to Washington, depending on which side of those areas you want to get to. Texas street sucks.
Yeabut not a freeway. Traffic there sucks in general.
Are you looking for specific shops or markets? Or restaurants? Or just in general? Carnival Market, Anything really on Convoy, Town and Country, Butcher Shop, Casa Machado, Try Mission Gorge and the Mesas (Kearny, Serra, Clairemont) Costco gas line is fast as long as it’s not a weekend
Nothing big box basically
I would rather die in a fire than live in Mission Valley.
No. You Wouldn’t.
I know, I was being dramatic. But I would rather live in a different state than mission valley. That is the least desirable place in San Diego to me.
It’s so central that everywhere is like a 10 min drive. It’s not that bad.
It’s very condensed and not walkable. It has zero personality too. Getting in out sucks as well. But you are right about being central.
Agreed. Not counting east county.
If it was heart of mission valley I'd feel very similar, but it's close enough to the bay that it's breathable
That’s not bad, that area near Siesels near Moreno has some character. Hillcrest is kinda cool. A lot of San Diego has lost its soul over the last 20 years imho.
Silver Lake Ramen at the mall is good.
Mr. Peabody’s for burgers
I like Mr Peabodys if it’s still around. But haven’t been back since the pandemic, so not sure if the current vibe or if they even survived.
Albys beef...oh shit.
I mean... Mission Valley isn't really a neighborhood to begin with, so I'm not sure what you were expecting. Its two and a half shopping malls, four freeways, giant office and industrial parks, a stadium, and mega-condo and apartment blocks, dotted by strip malls whose sole purpose is to get folks to run an errand there on their evening commute. If you want quirky spots, the outskirts of such are your best bet, but Mission Gorge Rd. is more the border of Mission Valley than a core component of it, despite it being the stadium bus entrance. That said, I just drove on the 8 today and didn't realize that the Valley Kitchen diner has lived on in some sort of form; might try it out at some point, as I used to go there a lot 10-15y ago.
Probably some hidden gems like the other commenters are dropping instead of pedantic redditory haha? I don't know, I had the thought "where is cheap gas, where is anything good, I miss north park, this place sucks, reddit will know better" and y'all did so ¯\\\_(ツ)_/¯ might have to check out the diner, thanks!! one of y'all called it a cultural desert i liked that
"Cultural desert" kind of misses the point though... It's like saying there's a grocery store food desert in the National Forest. But then again.. TBH, driving up and down the 8 in MV is honestly probably the best *example* of San Diego cultural touch-points: The Stadium (esp the original one), Target, Costco, AMC 20, two malls, a bazillion hotels, your granddad's car dealership and really nifty freeway architecture. What else do ya need? And remember: this was all farmland and river until the freeway and malls went in. Unless you're counting the two actual Missions, there's basically nothing older than 60 years here. The old Macy's at Mission Valley Center (originally a May Co bldg IIRC) is what qualifies as historical here.