Striders

Off Track betting in Downtown SD?! Hells yea! The upstairs betting area is pretty sick. The amount of TV’s is unreal and it’s easy to place a wager. You don’t have to wait too long if you know how to use the self bet kiosks. They have a full bar with lots of beers on tap. From a betting and drinking stand point this place is a 4.5. (Drinks are a little expensive)
From a food standpoint, this place is a 2. The food is okay in every sense of the word. However, the food priced at a high end rate that it simply does not meet. Do yourself favor. Eat a lunch before you arrive, then just drink and place bets.

Our first time at Striders. We walk in… Very cool vibe… Love all the TV’s. Perfect for the sports fan… Upstairs… Horse racing heaven! Awesome choices of craft beers. Staff is so nice and friendly. Food presentation is impressive and according to the two males accompanying me since I’m not eating, the burgers and fries are great. We will be back!

Had a great time betting on horses! I had no idea what was going on but Ricca my server guided me in the right direction. She was so much fun and knowledgable about the food! I got the mussels which were pretty delicious.
This place is so much different than anything else in the gaslamp. Thank you Ricca! I’ll be back. This would be an awesome bachelor party place.

I am still in the gestational period of playing the horses but this place and the staff could not be more friendly and accommodating! The venue is nice (you don’t even know compared to some OTB’s I’ve been to) and the food is great! There are plenty of televisions to be able to see all the action at all the tracks and the staff at the ticketing counter are excellent and informative if you have betting questions. Specific shout out to Ricca, Phil, and the my guy who always gives us a warm welcome George!
Risotto balls with marinara are delicious!

I sure hope the Chef keeps the Mediterranean Menu… and this is the best place in San Diego!

Went to Taco Tuesday (on Tuesday) and it was damn GOOD!!! Awesome $ 2.50 Tacos (and BIG TACOS) great Margs, beers, and cheese plates (love me a cheese plate), wings… wicked good food… easy parking which is huge downtown… very clean, GREAT people and dog watching… LOVE this place!

Looking for a place to enjoy?
Watching sports
Drinking cocktails
Delicious food
Great service
This is the place
Try it and you won’t regret

Great place to watch sports and drink cocktails. They have awesome happy hour specials too!

My first time at Striders… I was impressed. The ambiance is impressive, spacious, relaxing, and welcoming. Whitney, behind the bar, showed how well she can manage the entire bar and still give individual attention to her guests. She was on point and very sweet to me. Devonte was accommodating as well. He took control of the patio and specifically set up a hockey game for me outside. He went out of his way to work on the audio as well. He made me feel welcome. I would highly recommend Striders for guests of all ages. Nice beer list, vino, patio, great place to watch a game… I’ll have to try the food next time.

Stopped in here a couple times now and so far not very impressed. The location is nice and the venue itself is pretty cool but to us it was lacking a little «umph».
First off, to advertise as a gambling facility it’s so hit-​or-​miss when you can actually bet on horses from our experiences thus far. It might help to be a little more clear on when that takes place on what days so people don’t come expecting what they’re advertising. We stopped in last Monday I believe and were told by the hostess that you can’t bet Monday’s or Tuesday’s. We then walked back at the end of last week at around 5:00 and asked the hostess prior to going up if the bets were still going on. She asked the other hostess and she said «yes». So, we go up and order some wine and ask about how to bet. The bartender says that the bets were over for the day. AGH! Seriously sort of frustrating. More frustrating because the place was so slow and boring and on all the TV’s upstairs they didn’t even have the Cavaliers game on during the semi’s…what?!
Anyways, the bartender lady was friendly so no complaints on the service itself but just hasn’t been a very exciting place so far. Since we live close we’ll probably give it another try maybe on a weekend and see what’s up. My suggestion would be to have the staff all on the same page with what’s going on and on what days so in turn customers will know what’s going on.

Striders is a fun option with an atmosphere catered to sports lovers, and even more in particular for those who are into HORSE RACING!~
I came by this past weekend and caught The Kentucky Derby and what an awesome spot with it’s modern and horse racing themed décor. Striders is located in downtown right by Gaslamp and across from the Convention Center. They offer off track betting which is perfect for those who want to place some bets without having having to venture to the tracks or casinos. The wagering booths are upstairs and there are a plenty of TV’s on each level with live broadcasting of all of the different horse races. I recommend making reservations especially on busier days because it gets packed here. The service here was good and exciting vibes all around.
This place is the perfect venue for those who want to catch some horse races and enjoy their savory food and crafty cocktails! =]]

No stars. Worst places ever! The day I went there was a event going on with horses and crazy stuck up people and the least that the two staff members at the back could have done was polite and do there work. But instead my sever took 15mins to take my order and over 20 mins of me waiting and even at one point raising my hand to get there attention to check so I can leave. Food was gross the yellow tail tacos, they were not fully cooked. I would not recommend this place! First time here and last time. Yuck.

Never tried the food. Way understaffed for lunch time during a large convention event.
Sat down got drinks, ordered our food and didn’t see our waitress for over half an hour. Got up and left.

It’s a nice venue but I was not impressed with their food. Drinks were fine.
The salad (which was not cheap) was just spinach, strawberries, a few walnuts and maybe cheese. I say maybe because I didn’t taste any. And the salad was supposed to be an entrée. Big disappointment. There was barely dressing so it was without any flavor.
I tried someone’s flat bread pizza. It was okay. Again, not much flavor.
The buffalo wings weren’t bad. and the happy hour price was okay. $ 6 for 5 or something like that. Nothing spectacular but not bad.
That salad is what really left a bad taste in my mouth.

Struggled to justify 3 stars rather than 2. The layout is great for a sports bar, plenty of TVs, on-​site horse race betting is a great concept. People are friends, wait staff friendly but a little unpolished.
Food is the big question mark here. They were out of one of the 4 entrees on the menu (odd for a new restaurant). I’m accustomed to the higher prices at downtown restaurants, but some of the dishes were priced about 50% higher than they should have been…$ 19 chicken was decent but should have been priced around $ 12, etc.

Great place to watch the game! Atmosphere is casual, fun and trendy!!! You can dress it up or come casual. Just come ready for great customer service and a great time!!!

This place has amazing ambiance, great servers, the food is pretty awesome. AND you can watch your favorite football/​basketball/​baseball games as well as HORSE RACING! Great idea for off track betting!!! Soooo nice too!!!

Finally, something different to do downtown…
Located just off the beaten path and a safe distance from the bro-​vomit that lines the streets of the Gaslamp, Striders is as unique of an experience as I’ve had in downtown SD. I will admit, we at first thought we had accidentally stepped into Heaven’s waiting room due to the amount of elderly people at the downstairs bar, but we kept walking and went up the stairs to the 2^nd level. The kind gentleman at the betting counter was extremely patient with my partner and I — neither of us had bet on horses before. After about 10 minutes of asking questions and looking completely bewildered, we threw some singles at him and yelled a few numbers and were handed a betting slip for the next race!
We didn’t win, but we did get very drunk. Andrew (I think?), the bartender, definitely knows how to make a drink. He was super nice; I ordered a Mint Julep despite not liking mint, and then complained about the mint. Instead of asking why I would make such a stupid decision, he comped the drink and made me something else (Tequila on the rocks! At his recommendation.)
Didn’t try the food but that gives me an excuse to go back and throw some more money at the horse guy in the back!

Looooooooved the food over there !
We were very happy with the food .
The service was great. Nice that they had valet parking… Wonderful experience!

On our way to the San Diego Bay Food & Wine Festival last weekend, our group decided to make Striders our meeting place for a few pregame cocktails. Not only was it one of the closest bars to our next destination but it was also a great excuse to check out one of SD’s newest spots.
Okay, this place is gorgeous. A bit off the beaten path but this is definitely for the better in my eyes. The beer system is top notch, the bar is comfy, there are several different areas to cozy up in and it’s a great change of pace from the rest of the downtown scene. The best part of Striders has to be the amount of TVs and the off track betting. Wait? Rewind. Off track betting? Yes! If you like playing the ponies there’s no longer a need to run to one of the local casinos or even Tijuana as there is now a killer place smack dap in the heart of the city to place your bets — pretty rad!
Seeing that I was on my way to stuff my big ol’ belly at the event, I didn’t jump into the menu at all but the setting alone is reason enough for me to return and give it a shot. I took a look at the menu listed on their website and they’re definitely doing things right. There is even some speculation of a brunch menu popping up sometime soon. Sounds like a plan to me!