Kitchen 1540
1540 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA 92104
Phone 858-793-6460
www.kitchen1540.com
Kitchen 1540 is what the San Diego food scene has been waiting for, an innovative restaurant and chef who have a passion for food. Chef Paul McCabe is doing exactly that showcasing his love for cooking and quality ingredients. The menu is well rounded with something that everyone can enjoy. Two personal favorites of mine on the regular dinner menu are the Scottish Salmon served with preserved lemon spaetzle, sweet & sour pomegraranate sauce and a fennel salad. Also the stone seared foie gras where Chef Paul’s whimsical nature comes into play putting blood orange pop rocks(yes, the candy) on the stone. You can hear them popping as the dish comes to the table.
On my most recent visit I had chef Paul prepare an off menu tasting. He put together twelve impressive courses that had many stand out components that caught my attention right away (popcorn puree, olive oil powder, BBQ consommé, nitro beets) The menu itself had my name printed a top a little personal touch that Chef Paul likes to add. The food overall was very impressive hamachi and pork cracklings, scallop chicken skin crouquant and popcorn puree. The absolute stand out of the night was the pork belly in a BBQ consommé. It could have been at any three star Michelin restaurant, it was that good. The pork belly had a nice crisp skin and the warm fat just melted in your mouth. Combined with the consommé and you have a refined play on baby back ribs. The only draw back of the night was the portion size of each dish. I was with three other diners and we went through three baskets of bread and ordered an additional foie dish before dessert. Also the dessert was very uninspired it did not match the creativeness that chef Paul put forth with the savory courses. Even with these minor drawbacks Kitchen 1540 is well ahead of its competition. This is a restaurant that we foodies in San Diego and especially North County will certainly appreciate.
Patio Day & Night
Mojito Raviolo/ Gin & Tonic Cube
Foie Gras Cookie, Huckleberry Skewer
Foie Gras Cookie
Hamachi, Pork Cracklings, Steelhead Roe, Fennel
Scallop, Popcorn Puree, Chicken Skin Crouguant, Maple
Nitro Beets, Caramelized Yogurt, Pistachio
Cauliflower, Uni, Truffles
Monk Fish, Chorizo, Potato, Salsa Verde
Pork Belly, BBQ Consomme, Winter Salad
Pork Belly, BBQ Consomme
Elk, Molasses, Boniato, Blackberry
Goat Cheese, Lemon Curd, Rosemary, Olive Oil Powder
Flexible Chocolate, Curry, Coconut
And for the average diner they can be assured that ordering straight off the menu will guarantee a wonderful meal as well (with more generous sized portions). Fabulous! The food was wonderful. The service could have used A LOT of training (not attentive, I had to finally stand up and walk over to them to get something, they stood around chatting among themselves at the front of the restaurant infront of the kitchen, had to request cream 3 times). But don’t let than dissuade anyone, the food is worth the hassle.
I haven’t enjoyed a restaurant this much since Marius at Le Meridien in Coronado being run by Rene Herbeck. I shed a tear when it closed. Their closing was mostly, I believe, becuase San Diego was not ready for such innovation, quality and perfection.
I forgot to mention, my dessert was very uninspired and quite predictable. It was a very so-so way to end such a wonderful meal.