Duck Dive

One of my personal missions for this year is to visit the beach more often. I remember a prior happy hour visit to Duck Dive where I took my *favorite* overhead shot while a cool ocean breeze ruffled my hair. With a new California and Baja menu at Duck Dive, we accepted a media invitation to revisit this popular Pacific Beach spot. BEACH DAY! Caitlyn was our friendly server for the day.

Mezcal Me, Maybe? $7 and the Peach Bramble $7

What's not to love about having a few drinks during your meal? Dennis's mezcal drink had a hint of smokiness without overpowering the passion fruit flavor! The grapefruit influence was more subdued because we couldn't really taste it! My girlie drink was very peachy and it seemed to have that invigorating fruity appeal you'd find while browsing Bath and Body Works. Has THAT ever popped into your mind during sippy time? A first for me! Both cocktails were on the sweeter side which left me very content.

We also saw these HUGE punch bowls... not for kids though! Online it shows 2-for-1 on Saturdays and Sundays from 3-9pm. Bring your crew out if you get one of these since it serves 3-6 people each! 

Poke Taco 11

I remember the odd strength of wasabi in the poke tacos from our previous visit so I was delighted to gave this newer recipe a shot. The wonton shells were crispy fried like before and dressed with a unobtrusive amount of greens. Unfortunately, this poke version left a slimy feeling on my tongue. Maybe there was just too much mayo in the mix but I felt the tuna was overpowered once again.

Baja Calamari 12

This calamari saved the appetizer day. We enjoyed how it was fried without being oily or heavy. I even found myself eating the battered jalapeños although one mouthful hit me especially hard while I was taking notes! And here I thought I was finally able to handle a little spice... nope! As an accent, the limes worked best because we weren't into the mayo-ish dip. This dish was perfect size for sharing with a group, especially at half off during happy hour!

Chorizo Burger 14

Here is Dennis's chorizo burger entree minus three fries. I had to sample some while they were HOT! That egg looked yolk-tastic and was so jiggly. I felt a bit hesitant because we dislike the Slaters 50/50 mixed patty but one bite here became a non-stop chomp into juicy savory meat heaven. I had to remind myself to STOP so Dennis could try his own entree! The compilation of ingredients gave lots of flavor and the end result was fantastic yet a mess maker! To the side were skinny fries with just enough potato to fried yumminess ratio and great seasoning to boot! I think this will be my go-to meal here (and in the area)!

Surf & Turf 25

Now for a fancy dinner option... steak and lobster. The lobster tail meat was cooked tender though I wish it were bigger. Lobster portions are NEVER enough for me. I didn't need the side of butter or lemon, for my tastes at least, but did engage in licking my buttery fingers afterwards! The other half, the steak, was cooked to a perfect medium rare and coated with their house mole. That thicker sweet tinge of flavor would be fabulous with chicken but I wasn't quite sure about the steak combo, which hid the natural meat flavor. I'd try the chicken mole next time, which was recommended by one of the staff.

Churros Con Caramel 11

For the finale, out popped piping hot churros with a viscous molten caramel in the middle! The core sweetness was mellow but that hot lava inner layer could burn your tongue if you're not careful! We found the chocolate sauce to suffice as a cooling method of the churro. Dennis ranked this dessert high on his list of churros, as long as we first scraped off extraneous sugar. There was an abundance of runaway sugar inside the bag as well! 

In the back was a large underwater surfing mural. The perspective was very cool!

Bar was in the middle and there were plenty of big screens around for sports watching. It was still packed at 5pm when we arrived, following their popular brunch crowd that ended at 3. Sundays do get quieter as the sun sets, then booms again with the PB nightlife. I'm into the chill day crowd so that's when you'll find me back again, scarfing on another burger!

Disclaimer: We were invited to dine here and our food was complimentary (we covered our drinks). We were not otherwise compensated and all opinions stated are our own.