Baci Restaurant

Over the past two years this restaurant has become my absolute favorite. Its «down the hill» from my home near the USD campus. It is just delightful. I’ve likely been there 20 times over the past two years and have never come close to a bad experience. From the Caesar Salad with the crisped prosciutto flowers; to the wonderful different pasta dishes (try the lamb ragu or the gnocchi.) to the always excellent Osso Buco this place always hits the mark.
We have friends that swear by this place. Despite how close it is to home, it was just not a restaurant that I ever thought to go to. One night they asked us to join them. We keep going back.
They have an excellent wine list, but we tend to bring our own and pay corkage. No judgments there.
Can’t wait to go back.

This place had awesome food and great wine. I had the chicken parmigiana and my girlfriend had the gnocchi. It was absolutely amazing!
The service here was interesting. It seemed as though they had regulars that they took better care of then us the whole time we were there…
It wasn’t bad service and everyone was very nice, but I felt as though we were kind of put to the side and ignored more then the other guests dining that night.

My husband and I had the best meal and service. The table next to us tried to bad mouth the service We could not understand. All the staff was at our beck and call all night never rushed us. We enjoyed every minute. Ended with a nice conversation with the owner. Would definitely return again and again!

Baci is one of the few places I will eat Italian food in San Diego. As my taste buds are accustomed to home cooked Italian food and from dining across Italy. Be sure to save some bread to make «la scarpetta»
Grazie amici Dai!

If you’re looking for that special place for that very special night with the one you love, look no further then Baci’s. Like Anthony’s or Mr. A’s, Baci’s is a San Diego institution. Tony and Maria have been greeting guests on Morena Boulevard for over thirty years. Each meal I’ve had has been perfect. The food. The service. The atmosphere. Years past, Baci’s was one of a few upscale Italian restaurants in San Diego. Now, with all the competition in San Diego’s current restaurant market, Baci’s is still your best bet. I’d suggest the veal chop topped with roasted garlic or the salmon served with white wine and capers. The rack of lamb is superb as well. One final note. When Tony greets you as you arrive, you’ll know immediately that what sets Baci’s apart is the ‘heart’ this man brings to his restaurant. And check out Tony’s new bar and grill, Luce, next door. One of the best burgers I’ve ever had. Especially now that The High Dive, down the block, has raised their prices. Why have a mediocre bar burger at High Dive when you can get the real deal for the same price just a few blocks further north up the road. There is valet parking. And both restaurants are always busy. So plan accordingly.

Baci is my go-​to for special occasions – birthdays, engagement parties, graduations – and for a casual meal. Tony and Maria have established a great venue with a superb menu and atmosphere. The service is excellent.

Warning: Do not believe all the 5 star reviews!!!
Came here with my family thinking that we were going to get some amazing authentic Italian food and boy were we disappointed. Before I start, I just want to point out that the customer service is great. However the food is not.
We ordered:
Uni Spaghetti: this had ZERO uni flavor, tasted like I was eating buttery pasta. On top of that I encountered multiple shell type things that were a nasty crunch in my mouth.
Linguine Alle Vongole: the clams were so smelly they were pretty much inedible and made the rest of the sauce taste bad. Definitely not fresh.
Swordfish: just very plain tasting and not worth the $ 35 price tag.
Penne Arrabiata: surprisingly the best dish of the night because it’s just penne and tomato sauce which is hard to mess up. Still something I could easily make at home.
After trying all the food here, I was absolutely shocked at the 5 star reviews given to this place. Probably from family and friends of the owner. The only good thing here was their complimentary garlic bread. This restaurant is also pretty fancy so the prices are expensive.

I got invited to have a fancy dinner at «old school» Italian restaurant last week. I never heard of Baci till then and i had no clue that this establishment been around for over 30 years!
We got sited at the round table in the middle of the first room, the lighting in the restaurant was very deem. We had multiple waiters serving us, i also noticed that most of the staff were 55 and older and they were all dressed in tuxedos. Very classy!
Since we had 6 people in our party we all decided to try different items that our waiter (and Unilocalers) recommended and then share around.
What we tasted:
Burratta — wrapped in prosciutto, very sort and mild in flavor, service on the bed of arugula with color beets. Definitely recommended.
Calamari — nothing special, regular breaded calamari rings, small potion. Don’t bother.
Seabass — hands down the favorite meal of the night, buttery and flaky fillet, perfectly cooked. Can’t say nought how delicious the dish was!
Scallops — 3 large diver’s scallops with a while wine sause, served with mashed potatoes. Creamy, soft and succulent. Second favorite dish.
Sea Urchin pasta — very buttery and saucy, surprisingly flavourful, portion was on a smaller side. Everyone enjoyed it.
Veal Picatta — veal plate was covered in a thick white sauce. There were 3 large veal medallions. Dish tasted very lemony, the veal was soft. Overall OK, but it wasn’t a favorite.
Pappardelle al Sugo D’Agnello — least favorite dish of the night.
Dessert: Tiramisu — perfect ending to our fantastic dinner. Large dessert, enough to share.
Overall it was an enjoyable dinning experience with very attentive service. I would go back there on a date or a special occasion.

I love love love baci!
The location is very weird. It’s in a strange location. There is street Parking but they also offer valet for $ 3 and of course you tip the guy.
When you walk in the set up is really old school looking. Old fashion. The host is the wife of the owner. She’s pretty cool and she is the one to seat your party. The wells have rewards of what get won in the past. The bar is particularly small but you can work with it.
I adore the win here. I got the house wine and it was perfect. I also had the Malbec and it was delicious. Goes good with the uni we ordered. Also order the clam spaghetti and it was wonderful! Everything is good here. The seafood spaghetti and the lamb dish. Thy all have special names but I forgot what it’s called.
If it isn’t too cold outside I would suggest you to sit outside. Thy have a outside patio and it’s so nice.

The Worst place ever… the customer service seems to be all upscale level, but when we complained about the food: specifically the $ 39 Filet Mignon. It didn’t taste good. We told our server that it tasted like they just boiled the meat instead of grilling it. The server responds that they pan fry their filet mignon? Blah, blah… and he just walks away… really…
We eat steak all the time and Flemings being our favorite steak place. Even cheese cake factory makes better steak and pasta dishes than them.
Don’t be fooled by their so-​called «4 Diamond» awards on their wall. I wouldn’t be surpirsed if they’re fake.

Where do I begin? This place is so over the top delicious. By far, they’ve got the best swordfish I’ve ever had. It’s super thick and cooked to perfection, every time. Their pasta sauces are extraordinary (especially the arrabbiata) and their service is impeccable. We always feel super well taken care of, every time we go. Ambiance is classic, warm, cozy. This is one of my favorite restaurants in San Diego.

I like eating here bc I feel like one of the guys who is about to get «whacked» in a godfather movie.
The filet mignon is exceptional and the waiters wear tuxedos and keep it pretty fancy.
Not the greatest location, but worth the visit.

The food was bland and I expected far more from this place.
I attended on 3−17−15 and the waiters were nice enough. I ordered Lamb Parpadelle and it was very bland noodles. I ended up leaving it there after eating less than half.

I’d give it 10 stars !!! From the moment we walked thru the doors, the attention of the staff was beyond expectations. In a city of rushed, easy-​to-​be-​ignored-​by people, the service of these professionals was most impressive. We had the most delicious hot, buttered garlic bread, the calamari frita, penne pasta with pink sauce, chicken masala and sole piccata. Last but absolutely NOT LEAST was the most delicious tiramisu ever to pass my lips. The best dining out experience I’ve had in months. In addition, Anthony Quinn’s nephew is an employee here (or so he says, lol). To be sure, this is a little bit of heaven !!!

How this place has stellar reviews (especially outside Unilocal) I’ll never know. We went the other night and disappointment was just all over the place.
Appetizers:
Special with buffalo mozzarella and prosciutto was very good
Fried calamari is fine but its just a standard nice calamari… where its not super battered and deep fried like you get at a sports bar… but if you’ve had good calamari then this is just blah… nothing special about it
Carpacchio is again very blah… nothing special just as traditional as you could make it
Entrees:
Lamb tortellini was undercooked but the sauce was really really good… meat inside needed more flavor
Veal parmesan was again an okay but very standard dish… no spice no special flavor nothing you’d think about after you left
Some pasta with truffle oil, it was mediocre all I could taste was the truffle oil and «something else» the something else being the rest of the dish which couldn’t stand to the truffle oil but only just a little to let you know they didn’t work well together
Pasta with red sauce and all the seafood… pasta was undercooked (I know I’ve said this twice now but I’m not talking al dente etc I’m talking about chewy not enjoyable pasta) and all the seafood was overcooked… rubbery calamari and clams, dry fish, just a horrible dish… we ate about one bite each and left the rest… they didn’t ask if something was wrong with it but when they were clearing asked if we wanted it to go… we said yes just to play along with the game.
Drink:
Went with a $ 50 bottle and an $ 80 bottle both recommended by the waiter… asked for two bold bottles… first one was very pinot noir… not a bad bottle of wine but not what we asked for… the second bottle was just bad… he poured it into the decanter before letting me taste it so I almost felt pressured to drink it… and the taster wasn’t horrible… it wasn’t what we asked for… a very dry earthy red… but it wasn’t bad… it just opened horribly.
Also go a couple drinks… a gin and vermouth drink off the menu which was really nasty and a dirty martini… also not good. They seem to think vermouth is a mixer not a spritzer.
Dessert:
The desserts were the highlight of the meal. Chocolate cake was really chocolaty in a good way. Crème Brulee was a little standard but well done still. I can’t find the menu and don’t remember the other one we got but it was good…
Total was like $ 500… not worth it at all. People need to stop just writing things are good when they don’t know what they’re talking about because it’s just a waste of other people’s time and effort.

VERY OLD SCHOOL is an understatement. What isn’t understated is their food — reason why I ate there 2 NIGHTS IN A ROW! Service is impeccable. As were the fried calamari and the gnocci my son devoured. But I… I HAD to have an encore of their monkfish «bouillabase» — 2 huge chunks of PERFECT monkfish in brodo kissed with cream and saffron, and accompanied by cozze e vongole. Perfectly CHARRED bread to sop up that deliciousness came with it. I will be craving this dish for years to come. The fact that they called my son by his name on day 2 and tended to him as VIP, gave them the last star. As well as the BEAUTIFUL wine list! Buon Appetito!

Just have to add a little PS. Some of the reviews are from years ago, before the remodel. Both the décor an the food got so much better. I always liked Baci but stopped going there for awhile a few years ago because I found the décor so dismal.
Now it is a beautiful updated place with a romantic glow… and of course you always have Philip to look at…

Absolute perfection
My wife and I went here on an anniversary date. We had Italian in mind and stumbled upon this one
Right from starter, bread crisp, pasta sauce everything was perfect and amazingly made
Hats off to the chef, tuxedo waiters and ambience

This place is AMAZING!!! Cheeseboard is über good!!! they give you some garlic bread on the table and it is out of this world good! We had the chicken and it was very well made. Also the pasta had a nice surprise flavor that keeps you wanting more and the utmost BEST was the filet mignon. The muchroom sauce is epic uniqueness that tastes wonderfully good. Def check this place out for that romantic night out. Be prepared to spend $ 200 at a minimum for all the goodness they have to offer.

Absolutely delicious Italian food that isn’t heavy.
I had a fantastic dining experience here, the patio dining area was open and spacious, service was excellent and the food impressed.
Highly, highly recommend their live uni appetizer. At $ 17 it’s a steal, fresh dived daily from Point Loma, can’t get any fresher than that.
Steamed mussels were amazing, the tarragon in the broth really livened up the dish.
Favorites:
+Live Uni Appetizer (Ricci Appetizer)
+Steamed Mussels
+Swordfish
+Veal Osso Buco
+Pappardelle al Sugo D’Agnello
+Pistachio Gelato
The dish that impressed me most was definitely the swordfish. The most tender and moist delicately cooked piece of fish you will ever eat. Pan seared, then a high heat oven for a crispy bread crumb top, then a low heat oven to finish cooking.
Definitely give this place a try!