- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Movies |
- All
Nathan's Smokehouse & Deli
Categories: Nightlife Bars Restaurants Steakhouses Restaurants Delis Bars, Steakhouses, Delis [Edit]
524 Island Ave(between 5th Ave & 6th Ave)
San Diego, CA 92101
Neighbourhoods: Gaslamp, East Village
(619) 544-1524
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Music:
- Background
- Best Nights:
- Fri, Thu, Sat
- Happy Hour:
- Yes
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Smoking:
- Outdoor Area/ Patio Only
- Coat Check:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Good For Dancing:
- No
- Ambience:
- Dive-y, Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Caters:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Dogs Allowed:
- Yes
54 reviews for Nathan's Smokehouse & Deli
Review Highlights
-
"Trip-tip or pulled pork sandwich." In 5 reviews -
"Expect standard Mexican food, proudly branded "Boar's Head..." In 2 reviews -
"The beer selection (at the time of my visit) was a standard..." In 3 reviews
Loading...
54 reviews in English
-
Review from brooke e.
Seattle, WA
4/30/2012
It doesn't get better than Nathans.
My mom surprised me with ribs from here on my birthday... the meat was just falling off the bones. We also got the baked beans and the mashed taters... never have I tasted such great bbq!
I highly suggest this restaurant if you are looking for some good food... just be forewarned that you will probably be in a food coma after! -
Review from Brian G.
Sun Valley, CA
5/16/2012
It was ok...the food was not great, service was horrible due to their understaffing and the beer selection sucks. Other than that the spot is pretty cozy and "hip" probably it's only +1
P.s. no soap in the bathroom! -
Review from Dave N.
Coronado, CA
5/1/2012 1 Check-in Here
Went there for lunch a few days ago - in a word...meh.
Probably some of the most uninspiring BBQ I've ever eaten. Had the pulled pork sandwich with onion rings. It was OK. Their "secret special sauce" wasn't anything to write home about.
And not to nitpick about the decor - but what's up with the Captain Geech Shrimp Shack motif? What the heck does that have to do with BBQ?
Bottom line: not the worst BBQ I've ever had...but far, far from the best. -
Review from Shannon M.
Burbank, CA
3/30/2012
Please take down your "Yelp Loves Us" sign...this is extremely misleading. Maybe this is just my opinion, but "three stars" does NOT represent Yelp Love. It means you are alright.
I have so many complaints about this place. Obviously they have a great location since they are in the Gaslamp district, but other than that there is nothing great about Nathan's. The portions are really small, and it makes the prices seem way too high for the quality and amount of food that is offered.
I ordered the greek salad and it was drenched in dressing. I assume some responsibility for this, I should have ordered the salad with dressing on the side. But I had no idea Nathan thought serving lettuce and olives in a balsamic vinaigrette bath would be appetizing to people.
Then I had the pulled pork sandwich, which I didn't finish it because the pork had a weird flavor. I can't figure out what it was, but I know that I have had MUCH better tasting pulled pork in Texas and Tennessee.
If you are in San Diego, I recommend skipping Nathan's... -
Review from Frederick L.
San Diego, CA
5/6/2012 1 Check-in Here
This is a really nice deli with a great look. A little off the beaten path buy worth the drive downtown and the walk from your parking spot. The bar is fantastic and the service is quick and friendly.
-
Review from Ryan N.
San Diego, CA
2/12/2012
Very Poor.
Apparently tourists WILL pay whatever you put on the menu. $15.95 for a tri tip platter and 2 sides showed up as a 1/4 pound total of overcooked, dry tri tip with mushrooms and onions (who does that? this isn't Philly), decent potato salad and literally, not virtually, literally 2 tablespoons of baked beans. And no bread.
I really wanted ribs, but there was no way in hell that I was going to pay $19 for a half rack or $28 for a full rack, and I'm glad I passed.
They had one server for the entire restaurant who was obviously overworked, while a dishwasher sat around behind the bar occasionally washing a glass (but for some reason never grabbed my finished plate in the 10 minutes I was waiting for the check) and another guy ran around giving checks to the overworked server to run. Apparently he was too important to do anything else, such as taking people's orders.
Stay away from this place - your money is better spent elsewhere. -
Review from Jake G.
Gaslamp, San Diego, CA
2/10/2012
C'mon Nathan...lol..How do you charge someone $14 for a piece of texas toast, with 6 oz of fast food grade tri-tip with canned mushrooms and 'gravy', and a little container of bland baked beans??!! I guess I should have known better than to go to a 'smoke house' with only 3 meats on the menu. I'd avoid this place like the plague, many more quality bbq places in San Diego. Don't waste your time here.
I gave them two stars because the hostess was nice:
Food - 1/2 Star at best
Service: 1 1/2 star -
Review from veronica a.
Alhambra, CA
4/20/2012
Meat fell off bones, great service. Order the Mexico City Tacos with Tri-Tip. Great and accommodating work by our waiter Ryan.
-
Review from tim l.
San Diego, CA
4/6/2012
Location and good customer service are all this place has going for it. The servers/bartenders were great, and I feel bad writing this review, but here it is:
First off, this place is way overpriced. The food was ok, but it is not BBQ at all. I ordered a tri-tip sandwich, which was more like a philly cheese steak without the cheese in terms of how the meat was cut and cooked. I actually had to dip it into gravy and mashed potatoes to make it taste better (the potatoes were actually kinda good). I mean, a tri-tip is usually thick slices of steak. Not thinly cut, dry strips of meat.
My buddy had the pulled pork and he said the same thing: It wasn't BBQ, the sandwich was small for 11 bucks, and the meat was dry.
On their menu, a rack of ribs is like $26. The HALF rack was $18 for god's sake. If you're not a local, there is a place called Phil's BBQ is about ten minutes away, and they offer much bigger, meatier portions of food for about half the price. -
Review from Sharee D.
2/23/2012
Popped in here on my last trip to the SD - must say, I greatly enjoyed the pulled BBQ pork sandwich!!! The bun was super soft and super buttery - the pork lean and tender with excellent BBQ sauce. Onion rings were OK - wouldn't say they blew up my skirt!
Atmosphere is kind of funky - its like 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea collided with a St. Louis Rib Shack LOL!!! nautical? really? OK I get it, it's SD but still weird, regardless. Service was fantastic - our server was super friendly, attentive and offered us local information. Root Beer tasted funky like the lines were dirty - Ice Tea was RIGHT ON. Also tried the tri-tip nachos... meat was thin shaved so the flavor of the meat got lost in the mix of other ingredients so I wouldn't go out of my way to hit the nachos again. Chips were very fresh and the portions overall were decent.
Would I eat here again? probably would give it another go... -
Review from Sarah K.
San Diego, CA
11/27/2011
Today we decided to go for a wander around the Gaslamp district, the aim being we would have some good food and then wander around the shops some more.
We ended up going to Nathan's Smokehouse & Deli and sat outside as we had seen there was an offer going on for 7.99 Pulled pork sandwiches and tri-tip sandwiches together with domestic beers at only 3$.
Hubby went for the pulled pork sandwich whilst I went for a tri-tip sandwich (again we swapped half way through each. The beers we had were longboards.
The location was great and given that there was a sticker in the window which said "People love us on Yelp" we had really been expecting great things.
NOT impressed.
Firstly we went into get seated as the lady directed us indoors, yet we wanted to sit outdoors. Her and the two guys in there were more interested it seemed in finishing their conversation than getting us seated.
Second thing, the tri-tip sandwich had way too much grease.
Thirdly the pulled pork was overly sweet.
Fourth thing was that the Coleslaw didnt really smell all that fresh.
Fifthly the server took an eternity to come out with the check. We had almost gone in to pay as we were getting sick of waiting.
Lastly, despite the offers the check was still 27$ for what I would say was 1 star food. (7.99 each for the meal, 3 dollars each for the beer plus tax).
All in all very disappointed. We were left feeling deflated. Great spot for a beer. Avoid the food. -
Review from Adam C.
San Diego, CA
11/13/2011
2 stars. Gaslamp location gets 1 star. Service is the second star.
Food was just ok, nothing special. Prices are just ridiculous for the portion size. So this place tries to get all fancy with a nice looking plate, but really guys, just give me more food. I was expecting something on par with Phils BBQ for the price, but this wasnt Phils...
About half the portion size of Phils (look at my pic, im fat, I want some food man!) The taste was ok, but definitely not smoked, perhaps smoked flavoring added. I honestly dont think this place will be around too much longer because it looked dead. They need to fix the portion size and fix the price. Paying 16 dollars for a tri tip plate is just silly since its maybe 6 oz of tri tip.
Enough with these 3rd rate wanna be BBQ places, youll find me a Phils BBQ from now on. -
Review from Mar W.
La Verne, CA
12/30/2011
A decent place for a lunch of pulled pork sandwiches and a good, mustardy potato salad. The bun was nicely toasted and it's nice that they serve their sandwiches with coleslaw over the meat. The pork, although tender, was not very smoky in flavor. There was a hint of star anise or cinnamon in the bbq sauce itself so it tasted like a Chinese braised pork more than a US barbeque in my opinion.
The restaurant is less than a block from 5th Avenue so it's very convenient when you're around the Gaslamp. The layout is open with a nice casual, laid back vibe. Even got 20% off the lunch bill simply by getting a card from the "sign dancer" at the corner of the intersection at Island. Service was good and attentive.
Just wish the food itself was more memorable. -
Review from Matt R.
2/3/2012
Food was super salty, super greasy, and service was horrible. The waitress didn't check on us once between getting our food and paying. Decent beer list though.
-
Review from Ervin S.
Castro Valley, CA
2/16/2012 1 Check-in Here
Off the main street but sooo yummy! Open steak sandwich was good but was just a tad bit warm. I like my food hot, temp wise. Great service and nice setting.
-
Review from Scott D.
8/8/2011 1 Check-in Here
I tried Nathan's this weekend since I was craving BBQ and it was in the Gaslamp District within easy walking distance from the hotel and the San Diego Yelpers were giving this place a lotta love.
I thought my pulled pork sandwich was tasteless. Meh; I've experienced better. I know I'm in the Big City, but $55 bucks (before tip) for lunch for 4 people is ridiculous. The Bartender/Waiter was gracious and responsive as a server (which makes this place a two star instead of a one star place). -
Review from Annette G.
San Diego, CA
9/11/2011
Wow. I love supporting local businesses in downtown but I don't think I'll be going here again. The bf and I headed over to try it out. He loves bbq so a new place we could walk to was a bit exciting.
I had a very bland salad. Nothing to write home about. My boyfriend had ribs which he said were "tough, had hardly any meat and slathered in way too much sauce."
Salad, Rib Meal, 2 Beers = $50 Whaatt?!? I think if the cost wouldn't have been more similar to the meal quality then I'd give this another star. We could have driven to Phil's and had the same meal for much, much less. -
Review from Justtwo B.
Los Angeles, CA
8/23/2011
Only items you need to order...
1. Chips with guacomole
2. Trip-tip or pulled pork sandwich
3. Beer
And you are set....
Service was good and the server was quite cute...damn, didn't get her name! -
Review from Stephanie B.
San Diego, CA
7/15/2011
Food is fan-flipping-tastic!! About time we get a restaurant in SD who knows how to cook true BBQ (pulled pork, tri-tip and ribs). YUMMMMMMM.
PLease support this new restaurant and try it out. It will be worth it. Get the pulled pork sandwich! -
Review from Steve F.
Escondido, CA
1/24/2012
This place brings it all together! The BBQ pulled pork was as good as i have ever tasted but it's not just the food that made us enjoy the evening. The service was great and extremely friendly. The wait time was a little long but we all forgot about that 2 minutes after we tasted the food that we ordered. Already made plans for next Friday night with a bunch of my friends to be back here.
-
Review from Cecilia S.
San Francisco, CA
7/11/2011
*For late night grub only* (I'm not sure what their normal dining experience is like..)
The line next door at Gaslamp Pizza was wayyyy too long, and we were starving! We saw the sign that said $5 for 3 street tacos, so we decided to give it a try. The tacos were DINKY! They added a bunch of spicy sauce on top of our tacos, so I couldn't really even taste what I was eating. We asked for one of each (chicken, carnitas, and carne asada), and everything just tasted the same... I guess I can't really expect too much from 3 tacos for $5...
The staff was nice, but that alone won't cut it for me. Not sure if I'll be coming back to this one. -
Review from Katie A.
Simi Valley, CA
1/1/2012
Do not eat here! Rip off! The food was all subpar. We sampled burgers, fries, salads, soup, and the meats. All the food turned out to be McDonald's quality with through the roof prices! Never again! How are they still in business.
-
Review from Don N.
Vancouver, WA
10/23/2011
We saw the sign for ribs and this seemed like a nice change. My coworker Tony had the pulled pork sandwhich, he gives it a four out of five. I had the full rack of ribs, first half rack was moist and perfect, second half was dry and not enjoyable. The waitress/bartender ( from Ireland by way if Boston) was friendly and she reported my comment to the manager. He never came over and I said nothing else.
I asked the name of the place and she instantly paid for my last beer since I wasn't happy with the second rack. This was a nice recovery as I was more unhappy with the lack of concern than I was with the food at this point. She made up for it so I would give them another shot.
This place is in the Gas Lamp tourist area so prices are a few bucks higher here and finding street parking is no fun.
I think the manager should be trained in handling any negative customer comments personally. I suppose the reality here is most people are only visiting and managers figure you won't be back.
This technology of instant rating is a powerful tool for the consumer and managers need to understand that tourists read these reviews and have many choices to fill their stomachs. One bad review is enough to send others to their next choice. -
Review from Lisa C.
San Diego, CA
8/1/2011
My friends and I went out this past Sat. night to celebrate a birthday. Barbara greeted us and told us that the kitchen was closed but when Nathan found out it was our friend's birthday, we were presented with a full menu.
For starters, try the wings and guacamole. I had the open faced chicken with mashed potatoes and it was delicious!
The drinks were good and the music sounded like it could have been a fun place to hang out late.
My only suggestion is to not close the kitchen early! Keep it going and add the tacos later cuz you'll make more money staying open.
Can't wait to go back! YUMMY!!! -
Review from Jim C.
Forest Grove, OR
We both had the open-faced pulled pork sandwich. They were close to perfect, tender and balanced in flavor. The sides were good and the selection of beers very good. Although it was not crowded, the service was friendly and speedy.
-
Review from PaulSEGAL ..
San Diego, CA
7/13/2011 1 Check-in Here
Hard working owner Nate works very hard to please people. Killer outside patio smack dab in the middle of DOWNTOWN cool area just off 5th Ave @ Island.
happening bar scene. I like the outdoor area -
Review from Michael S.
San Diego, CA
11/6/2011
Thanks for feeding OccupySD! Can I call in an order and have it delivered to the Occupiers?
-
Review from Will S.
San Diego, CA
1/15/2012
We live in downtown San Diego and tried out Nathan's for the first time last week. I ordered the chili and the pulled pork. I'll get right to the point - the food was horrible.
The pork tasted like BBQ made by someone who has never eaten BBQ. The meat (without BBQ sauce) literally had a funny taste.
The chili was all tomato and hardly any meat. I added tobasco sauce to the chili and was surprised with the watery consistency of the tobasco so I poured a little into my spoon and tasted it - and sadly discovered they cut it with vinegar.
The almost meatless chili and diluted tobasco sauce lead me to believe they are cutting food quality to reduce costs. considering how bad the BBQ was its no surprise Nathan's is having trouble making money .... But trying to save money by cutting corners with the food will only make the customers you do have go somewhere else. The only bright spot were the servers. They were very attentive and friendly. -
Review from simon b.
San Diego, CA
6/12/2011
I had the opportunity to go to broken border this weekend.
I would highly recommend it the food is great seasoned to perfection.
I was shocked by how strong the drinks were it's the best deal on fifth.
If you're lucky enough to have Angela as your bartender I recommend the Bloody Mary or her Mojito. -
Review from David S.
Downtown, San Diego, CA
8/20/2011
This food was just as bad as when it was Broken Border a couple months ago. It tastes exactly how you would expect a crappy Mexican food place turned "Smokehouse" to taste. Like crap. Having lived in the South and in Texas, I know what BBQ and smoked food should taste like, and this was a FAR cry. I ordered what I think was supposed to be smoked tri-tip but tasted more like it was served out of a can. My wife ordered the baby back ribs which were terribly over cooked and completely smothered in bbq sauce in an effort to hide that fact. Neither item was smoked, and if they were it was for all of 10 minutes because the meat lacked the tell-tale smoke ring around the outside. Their menu is pitiful, and completely lacking any kind of vegetables or variety. I could go on about how awful the food was, but I'll stop there. If that dude on the corner would focus his attention to making better food, he might have more people coming in without him having to harass them.
Overall: SUPREMELY disappointing. -
Review from Adam G.
CANYON CNTRY, CA
1/3/2012
Nathan's smokehouse fails pretty spectacularly at everything it sets out to do. Closer to a sports bar then a smokehouse, but closer to smokehouse prices and below most sports bars in food quality. 3 bucks for soft drinks, horrible soups and salads and sub par burgers at best. Not worth the price or the time for the slow service.
-
Review from Erica C.
La Puente, CA
6/19/2011 1 Check-in Here
Came here for a last call drink with my boyfriend. The bartender was super nice and gave him free samples of their Stone smoked something or another, which he LOVED and ended up getting a glass of! We sat out side while he enjoyed his beer and a cigar watching the craziness of downtown. I started seeing a lot of people get the 3 for $5 street tacos and HAD to have them! YUmm...3 carne asada tacos with cilantro, onion and chili definitely topped my drunken night off!
-
Review from Mike M.
Moreno Valley, CA
7/3/2011
Had the beef ribs, very good. Waiter was very engaging
-
Review from Andrew T.
San Diego, CA
7/22/2011
Fail. How does a BBQ place run out of ribs at 5pm on a Thursday night during comic con?
-
Review from Albert B.
Santa Rosa, CA
9/7/2011
Went there over the Labor Day Weekend. My friend made reservations for about 20 or so of us and we ended up with almost twice that many. Simon, was very much involved in making sure that we all got served, and handled the chaos beautifully. I had the Combo smoked platter with rings and it was very good.
-
Review from Dre O.
Alhambra, CA
10/17/2011 1 Check-in Here
Came here before the Dodgers/Padres game. The food wasn't anything spectacular, tri tip didn't seem to have much flavor. Not a bad place to hang out at before taking in a game at PETCO. The waitress, some Asian-Am girl really knows her baseball.
-
Review from matt H.
San Diego, CA
3/2/2011
Broken border is just around the corner from my work and when lunch rolls around every day, this is my top option. The menu here is very diverse from chimichangas (amazing) to turkey club sandwiches (my favorite).
The staff is amazing and I don't have any complaints here. Good food. Good serving sizes, great selection of drinks, hours are perfect (open till 4am fri-sat) and great atmosphere.
If you are looking for food in the gaslamp you won't be disappointed here. -
Review from Jason W.
San Diego, CA
Updated - 8/23/2011 1 Check-in Here
So, I guess this place has changed owners names or chefs or whatever, decent food for sure. Shame the other place didn't last.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
-
5/8/2011
Ok, so after the Targa Trophy event, my brother and I went to this place after a sign thrower told… Read more »
-
-
Review from Brandon L.
San Diego, CA
7/26/2011 1 Check-in Here
Wasn't thrilled on the "BBQ" food or the "craft beer" selection. Country music was a plus.
-
Review from Jenni G.
San Diego, CA
5/16/2011
Unfortunately I didn't have a good experience here ... I live downtown and hate to see how quickly restaurants come and go, so I hate to leave a bad review but I have to be honest.
We wandered in on a Sunday afternoon. The place was pretty empty, one table of guests outside, another inside, and a few people at the bar. It took a little while to get menus which should have been a warning sign.
The $5 bloody marys and $5 for 3 street tacos were a pretty good deals and the tacos were pretty tasty although they most likely would have been even better if the waitress brought them to the table as soon as they were ready or the kitchen could figure out how to time the cooking better so all food was ready around the same time. We were sitting by the kitchen so I saw when the plate was placed in the window and as time ticked by, kept hoping that it wasn't ours. It was.
The $15 open-faced Reuben is pretty much the reason I won't be going back. Total rip off. Skimpy on everything except for the sub-par bread and barely warm. I'm assuming that's cause they were rushing since our tacos were done 10 minutes before then they also made some thanksgiving sandwich first with cranberry and gravy. The waitress had no idea that she was serving me something with gravy and red sauce instead of thousand island and sauerkraut and after I finally got her attention to let her know, she mumbled something about that wasn't what she ordered and blamed it on the kitchen.
She also walked by the table at least 4 times while my empty soda cup sat on the edge. Eventually we flagged her down and asked for more. My hubby also ordered another bloody mary that sat on the bar forever so he cancelled it since we finished our food and figured it was watered down.
Blah. What a disappointing experience and meal. Horrible service, overpriced sammie. Second star only for the $5 specials. Sorry Broken Border.
