Urban Solace

Brought my girlfriend here for her birthday dinner; she had been wanting to try this place for awhile. Located in a central location of North Park, there are plenty of options to follow up a romantic dinner or casual lunch with friends. Everything we ordered was delicious, farm fresh, and humanely butchered. Definitely will return here since the atmosphere is very nice and quiet. The staff is very polite and pleasant!

Their food is delicious and fresh! You can’t get better than this! The menu is not too crazy so it’s easier to make a decision! I loved their fries! This place is awesome!!!

I can see how this place has such high reviews and I respect that, but I was not thrilled. For starters, the entire restaurant has an «oh, it’s pretty nice in here» kind of feel, but it feels a bit dated or unoriginal.
The service was aggressive. The lady we had was fine, but didn’t come across as friendly, or professional, or anything really. The service wasn’t buttoned down, it was more chain restaurant like.
The food was hit or miss.
The biscuits were great, the watermelon salad was great, the shrimp snd grits were fairly good, the sea bass was bad. The fish was dry and served with a bunch of random stuff on the plate that I tried once but didn’t go back for a repeat bite.
It’s expensive too. Appetizers are $ 14 – 18, entrees are $ 23 – 30.
All in all it was an expensive middle of the road meal that could have been achieved else where for $ 35 less.

This is hands down my favorite place in SD. Period. The food is so fresh, and delicious. When I first came here I had the sweet potato chestnut gnocchi with wild mushroom, and it was the best thing I’ve ever put in my mouth (sorry ex boyfriends) I was sad to see they took it off the menu however, they replaced it with a dumpling dinner that’s still amazing, not as good but I’ll take it.
You can’t go wrong ordering anything here. I feel as though the chefs cook with love, and you can definitely taste it. Not only that, the bartenders mix with love, as their cocktails are top notch. If I could give them 12 stars I would.
My only complaint is bring back the sweet potato gnocchi !!! I’ll eat here everyday if you do!!!

I’ve been here for dinner and brunch, and overall, this is a great restaurant doling out creative comfort food with an emphasis on using natural foods. It’s North Park, so ya already know parking is every woman for herself.
Food:
–Vanilla scented beet salad: OMG… first you get the sweetness of the beet and then the vanilla just floats through like a cloud in your mouth. It’s just magical and I wish there was more of it! I was going to order the salad as a light dinner until I saw how tiny the portion was :(It’s definitely a pricey dish for what you get.
–Hangar steak: The sauce that comes with the steak is sweet and just divine! The hubs wasn’t crazy about this dish, but I loved the sweet potato hash that came with it.
–Steak Eggs Benedict: The hubs really liked this dish, especially the ancho chile Hollandaise sauce. I thought it was just okay – not bad, but not amazing either. We subbed grits for house potatoes and they were the blandest grits e-​v-​e-​r!
–Grilled four cheese sandwich with tomato fennel soup: I like the addition of the tomato and basil since it adds freshness to the sandwich. I really like the soup too, although to be honest, I think the tomato soup from the Whole Foods hot bar is comparable for a cheaper price.
Service has been good, nothing to complain about there. I’d say definitely give this place a try if you’re looking for a restaurant committed to using higher quality ingredients, but be prepared to pay for it too.

The ambiance is cool, I’d give this place a 3.5 stars if I could. The food was just okay and over priced, the flavors weren’t cutting it out for me, I tried my friends dishes as well and I just wasn’t wanting to come back for any of the dishes we got.
However, the biscuits and the homemade jam blend they have is crack, if they would let me just order that to go/​pick up– I would be strolling through again and again. So order the biscuits when you go, it is def worth it.

amazing food. friendly staff. great ambiance. what more do you want in a restaurant.
beef cheek– my go to
mussels — I don’t like mussels but these I’d kill for and that days A LOT.
busicuits — if anything just come and have a beer and a busicuit
tried the goat cheese dip — I think it’s a new item and very much a great addition

Came here on a Saturday for what they call their «Saturday Blunch» before catching a soccer match over at Qualcomm Stadium. Reservations are recommended but if you get there right when they open, they’ll probably be able to seat you with relative ease. When you walk in, the restaurant opens up into this huge airy and open space. There’s also outside seating if that’s your preference.
The menu is a modern take on your traditional brunch items. To start, we got a skillet of duckaroni. It’s basically mac and cheese with duck confit and baked breadcrumbs on top. Super cheesey, delicious and decadent. The duck paired very well with the cheese and they used a good ratio of pasta to cheese.
For the entrees, we got 2 of their benedicts: the steak and wild sockeye. I was a bit disappointed with my salmon because it was a bit undercooked in the middle and I didn’t get that much salmon. The steak benny looked to be cooked to a medium rare, as requested. However, the eggs were poached a bit too long. When I took a fork to them, I was expecting yolk to just come running out of them, but it looked like they were pretty much soft boiled. I wish their kitchen could be a bit more consistent, especially early in the day when there isn’t even a big rush.
So after all that, why am I giving it 4 stars? Simple. The BUTTER PECAN CINNAMON ROLL. Seriously. This item will redeem any and all shortcomings that the menu may have. It’s a monstrosity to behold; you’re definitely gonna want to split it unless you like risking early onset diabetes, then by all means, you do you! Freshly baked and slathered in cream cheese icing and coated with butter and pecans, the roll itself is devilishly flaky and soft. Even with all that icing on it, they somehow manage to dial in the sweetness just right so it’s not too much of a sugar attack on your palate. Take a bite and it’s like a party in your mouth and everyone’s invited. I’d definitely come back just for this and a cup of coffee and I’d be perfectly content.

We ate the food so fast that I wasn’t able to take a photo… Whoops! Tucked off the busy University Ave in North Park, friends living locally took us here for a memorial day holiday brunch. The bf and I were so stuffed that we didn’t eat for the rest of the day. It was certainly not a gluten free meal. However, the slight stomach discomfort (while I don’t have Celiacs, I’m likely a bit gluten intolerant based on trial/​error). Ps — yes, they totally have gluten free options. Our eyes just got big looking at other people’s plates.
Starter: cinnamon roll with cream cheese frosting and an extra dollar for butter pecan sauce. One was large enough for the four of us to share. My guilty pleasure when I was younger was honestly Cinnabon and this fulfilled all those cravings since I haven’t eaten one in multiple years.
Lunch:
— EBLT: egg, bacon, lemon-​thyme aioli, tomato on egg bread. Just the right size for normal human beings. Did not try, but looked heavenly.
— The madame: a lovely take on the croque madame with a sunny side up egg sitting atop egg bread smothered in mornay sauce (oh ya, containing copious amounts of ham and some fontina). I would only eat about ²⁄₃ of a half before my stomach was totally full.
— Hash skillet (forgot the fancy name for this): great take on a traditional skilled with the poached eggs’ warm yolks running all over the place adding another layer of flavor to the meat and potatoes.
Overall for four of us with coffee/​juice, 4 mains and a starter — we consumed a good amount of food for an overall reasonable price. Plus, there was great service and a the places has a lovely atmosphere! I would totally be back for another meal on another visit.

Visited on a Sunday with friends for the Bluegrass Brunch and had a great time! We were seated out on the patio and enjoyed listening to the music – we felt as though we were transported to a different place given the ambiance and great tunes.
We started with the warm cheese biscuits which were everything I could possibly hope for. So fresh, chewy and UGH delicious. I went with the Kitchen Sink Biscuits and gravy which did NOT disappoint. I prophylactically popped some Tums and went to town on this dish. Despite having gravy, sausage, bacon and fried eggs, it didn’t make you feel sick considering it could be a lethal combination. My husband had the butter-​pecan French toast which were equally delicious.
I cannot wait to come back on my next visit to San Diego!

We found this place on Unilocal looking at nearby breakfast places with good ratings. There was no wait when we called in, which is why we chose this place over Snooze. We chose to sit outside on the patio.
We ordered the biscuits for the appetizer. I ordered the belly benedict (aka pork belly benedict). My friends ordered the steak benedict and the Madame. Overall, the food was good. The only gripe I had about my dish was I think I got an extra fatty part of the pork belly. I couldn’t eat half of one of the pork belly slices because it was too fatty. All of our meals came out to $ 59 without tip, so pretty reasonable.
Our server was Katie. She was super attentive and patient enough to thoroughly answer some questions we had about dishes and recommendations. The food arrived very quickly as well. I would come back the next time I return to San Diego!

WHY DIDN’T I COME HERE BEFORE!!! For Mother’s Day, I wanted nothing more than to come here and try their Bluegrass Brunch. My husband and I LOVED it. The ambiance, service, and menu were incredible. Food at a high quality for me, and some awesome bluegrass and beer for him.
To start, we shared a cinnamon roll with pecan sauce. If you come here, YOU NEED TO TRY THIS. It is UNBELIEVABLE. Get the sauce for an extra $ 1 — it’s worth it. I had the grilled cheese with tomato soup and my husband had the biscuits and gravy (complete with brown sugar slab bacon and sausage). Both WONDERFUL. They don’t require further detail or explanation. For those healthy folks out there, do yourself a favor and come here on «cheat day.» I can’t wait to go back… and let’s just say I know where we’re going for Father’s Day!

Came here yesterday for Mother’s Day. The veggies were so good last time that I’ve been craving them. So this is where I chose. I wish I hadn’t.
Ordered a pork chop since the vegetarian selection was fairly non-​existent. I get that veg people like this place, but I’m not entirely sure why.
Pork chop was as dry and as tasteless as wood. I took two small bites and pushed it aside. The corn pudding was good but not memorable like my last visit. The S’mores dessert was good but also seemed different somehow. The carrots were not cut or prepared the same. And the stout selection was poor. Two bottles and that’s it. No stout this time on the rotating tap. Rasputin Stout tasted okay, but I had a massive headache all night. I was not drunk, so that was uncalled for.
WORST PART: I needed to use the restroom. Was it clean? NO. I’ve been in some serious scary bathrooms, but this was bad. Literally, poop smashed on the floor and tracked everywhere. That has only been present in one other bathroom I’ve been in and that place got shut down. But yesterday was freaking Mother’s Day! I know unisex bathrooms are a big IFFY when it comes to cleanliness since men use them too, but you’d think that they would manage their cleaning much better — especially when there are lots of ladies and children present. This was beyond unacceptable. I did tell the manager who was grateful for the insight. And I want to mention, if you were there yesterday and you saw it, or the one who did it, or the one who stepped in it and tracked it everywhere, and YOU DIDN’T SAY ANYTHING? YOU are disgusting too.
I will NEVER EVER EVER EVER come here again. The food’s not good enough to return, it’s inconsistent, improperly prepared, beer selection is lacking and the bathrooms are vile.

Delicioso !!!
Excelente servicio
Ya quiero regresar para probar más cosas del menú

I haven’t been to Urban Solace in years. Too long. I met a colleague for a much needed after work happy hour recently. Everyone at the bar was lined up drinking out of this lovely looking ‘coffee mug’. It was the happy hour mule special. Ok, we’ll take two!
These mules were FANTASTIC. Yes, mules are popular and often pretty good at most places. But this Kentucky Mule was really good. And although not in the traditional copper mug, I still loved it.
We stayed long enough, and had enough mules that dinner time rolled around. I went pretty boring with just a burger and fries, but both were great. Service was great. And Mules were great.
I love to see a restaurant with longevity, sadly something that isn’t easy to do anywhere at anytime. Urban Solace is a gem in North Park.

Yep. FIVE stars for this place!!!
It’s been a while since I’ve been to North Park or San Diego in general. Lucky for me, my best friend lives in the area. After a grueling 30 plus hours of running he Ragnar Relay, I was ready for some real food on Sunday. We checked out a few menus then came Urban Solace — an instant win.
With a California/​Modern twist on Southern comfort food for the Sunday Bluegrass Brunch, Urban Solace has found a niche and done it well. Because I can drink like a fish and so can my bestie, we opted for the carafe of mimosa because when they’re going for $ 8 a pop and you know you’ll have at least two, the $ 33 carafe is a smart decision.
Meals: bestie had one of the best grilled cheese sammies I’ve ever tasted. It came with tomato soup and this definitely wasn’t Campbell’s y’all. It was the real deal. And it also had some yummy yummy French fries. I opted for the twist of your standard BLT. My egg was runny and just how I love a fried egg. Chewy bacon and of course, those bomb (dot)com fries I mentioned. I wanted to regret my decision when I saw another group with the giant cinnamon roll but nope… my food was way too good.
The décor is slightly rustic and leaves room for natural light. As we sat at the bar, there wasn’t much service necessary but they did check on us and were friendly. I would absolutely go back here for the Sunday Bluegrass Brunch!

Urban Solace is great for brunch! Some «must try» items include their hangar steak benedit and cinnamon bun. I love that they have local bands come play throughout the week. It’s a great way to relax and enjoy your meal.
Their menu selection is huge so you can’t really go wrong. They also have many drink options. I’d definitely recommend you to try it if you are down! The servers are really nice and accommodating. They checked on us multiple times to see how we were doing. To my knowledge they allow reservations except on Sundays. I would recommend calling in beforehand because you could potentially wait up an one hour.
Definetly come here if you are looking for a new brunch place to try in San Diego!

I came here on a Saturday around noon time for some brunch. To my surprise, there was no wait! We were seated immediately and from the get-​go I really enjoy the vibe and ambience of the place. You have a nice large bar to your left with a Will Ferrell Ron Burgundy Portrait on the wall and to your left some tables and pictures iconic San Diego landmarks. I get seated with my friends and the selection of food on their menu is quite nice as well. We came for brunch; they call it their «BLUNCH» which is clever wordplay heh.
I order the Belly Benny and my girlfriend orders the hangar steak Benny. Seriously both of these are on point, I cannot rave about it more! When you break open the poached eggs on top of the braised pork belly, omg, orgasmic… the taste complimented each other so well. The potatoes on the side was a bonus, seasoning was very good, only thing that I could complain about would be I was too full at the end. Seriously five stars and I would definitely recommend my friends come here!

I came here for the first time today with my friend. We were looking for a quick place to get some food for lunch and I had this place bookmarked for a while since I saw it had so many reviews, I thought why not?!
We called in around 3:30pm and the lady said that they close at 2:30 and re-​open at 4 for dinner.
We were pretty much the first ones to get there so there was no wait at all for a Sunday afternoon.
I’m not sure why Unilocal has it at $$ when it should really be $$$.
It’s a pricier place for dinner.
I had mussels which were $ 14 and my friend ordered the Quinoa Veg Burger $ 13.50, corn pudding $ 3.50 and tomato fennel soup. Everything was really good especially the mussels.
Most dishes on their menu were priced $ 25+
Desserts are $ 9
It looks like they have a large menu for drinks but we didn’t get to try any.
Our server was really nice and attentive.
I was definitely happy to get this place off my bookmark list, but I’m not sure if I’ll go out of my way to come here again. It’s not something that I would crave.

My 1^st experience here and definitely will not be my last. I came here the other night for dinner with my family. We made reservations earlier that evening and was able to book a time for later on that night. Upon walking in I was pleasantly surprised by the décor and ambiance of the restaurant. Nice, cozy setting with modern and rustic touches throughout. I loved the books along the wall and you gotta appreciate Mr. Ron Burgundy on the wall near the bar. There is plenty of seating and tables indoors and I noticed there was an outdoor seating space as well.
Anyway, our server, Derek, was very helpful and attentive! He welcomed the first timers and briefly went over the menu and also answered our questions about a few dishes. I ordered the 8oz hanger steak and the Soup of the Day ‘Sweet Potato Chipotle Soup.’ The steak was soooo good! Juicy and flavorful… my tastebuds were thoroughly enjoying the experience. The sweet potato hash complimented the steak very nicely. I highly recommend this dish!
Overall, I really enjoyed my experience and would recommend it to anyone and everyone! Be sure to make a reservation and arrive early just in case parking becomes a pain (which it can). I was looking at other Unilocal photos and I’m interested in checking this place out for brunch. I’ll have to come back for more good food!

Came here for a late Sunday brunch after my best friend insisted that she wanted to have breakfast at noon. First vibes came off as one of those «trendy» and «hip» establishments, were its cramped and tries to appeal to the younger crowd. I am not gonna be negative about the ambiance, this review will solely be on the food since the service was decent and we were served promptly considering it was a popular place.
My friend ordered the «Kitchen Sink Biscuits and Gravy» which were one of the signature brunch items and I took the lunch route by ordering the Roasted Pork Loin sandwich and the Creamy Tomato Fennel soup. First thought on my «sandwich» is why it came in a burger bun? Why call that a sandwich and call the Veggie Quinoa Burger a burger when its served with the same type of bread? First off, the pork was pretty dry and the sandwich was uneventful, it could’ve helped bring the taste out if it was combined with perhaps a little kick of spice or a stronger sauce that could meld well with the meat.
I could’ve sworn that there was almost no arugula on my sandwich, I think I only tasted the pork loin bits, a mayo sauce and some cheese, but really not much going past that. The fries and the tomato soup were the best items I got, the tomato soup was really tasty and the fries tasted great when fresh and hot but didn’t work too well when cold. By the expression on my friend’s face when trying her «Kitchen Sink.» breakfast entrée, I could tell there really wasn’t anything special about it, and when I tried her biscuit, I was convinced that the food perhaps was really not worth all the hype. At one point, I was scooping up her egg yolk with the rest of my sandwich to try and bring some flavor into it.
Urban Solace was great to come and try but really nothing to rave about. Perhaps I would like to come and try their famous cinnamon rolls next time since they were conveniently all out when we were there but overall wasn’t impressed. Not to mention, the parking here was a hassle on a Sunday morning, so that in itself is another reason why it makes it hard for me to want to return.

Located in the heart of North Park, Urban Solace takes me back to the south and makes me feel like I’m actually on Bourbon St. in New Orleans! It’s a fun and cool place to gather your family and friends for a nice Bluegrass Brunch or dinner.
They have a wide array of foods to choose from where their meats are all naturally produced — «hormone and antibiotic free». Their seafood adheres to the Monterey Bay Aquarium «Watch List», while their produce/​non produce items are sourced from local farms through Specialty Produce. They hand make their syrups for their cocktail list and have a large selection of sustainable, organic or bio dynamic West Coast produced wines. They also do have natural soda on tap and don’t use any High Fructose Corn Syrup at all.
With a wide selection of menu items, it certainly is hard to pick which one to eat because they all sound so delicious! During my recent experience here, my girlfriend and I chose to have Blunch here to celebrate my birthday. Reservations are helpful especially on weekends when everyone is out and about. You also have the choice to sit inside or out on the patio where the noise level is average, but can get loud especially when they have a band playing. For food entrees, I chose their Grilled Rare Albacore Tuna Sandwich which was amazing and my girlfriend had their Portobello Benny and that was just as good as well! To end our fabulous Blunch, our delightful server surprised me with a nice cute little mason jar filled with vanilla ice cream, yum! So good!
Overall, it was a great experience and I will definitely come back again!

Gave this place a second try for dinner and glad we did! The fried oysters were exactly delicious as the first time we had them (mouth watering as I’m writing and thinking about them). They’re so perfectly battered and fried!
I tried the duck confit, and oh my yum! So tender and flavorful! Would highly recommend BUT I would substitute the corn pudding for another side. I usually LOVE all things corn, but just did not care for this one — there was something off putting about the texture and taste.
We also tried the wings (which I was told was phenomenal, I gave my share up bc the other people in my party seemed to really enjoy them and I’m not crazy about wings), the beet salad (recommend), and the pork belly (I personally didn’t like this due to the smokey taste, but my husband did).
Again, would go back for the fried oysters, and now also the duck!

I really love this place. I’ve been only three times since it opened and each time, its been progressively better.
I’ve sampled the Bluegrass Brunch (shrimp & grits, please!), though I think I’d like to revisit that since it’s been so long. But I’ve also been for dinner (the chicken and dumplings are delicious, but a tad pricey for the portion, but those cheese biscuits are worth the price of admission), and most recently for a Saturday brunch which introduced me to their most glorious cinnamon roll.
THE CINNAMON ROLL. If you do nothing but skim this review, THE CINNAMON ROLL. With the butter pecan sauce. Spiritus sanctus amen.

Really wanted to love this place. The food was delicious. But a day later my stomach is still churning from the food. My husband and his iron clad stomach are also hurting still.
Bummer.