I went to San Diego a few weekends ago for the Latitude (Latins with attitude) conference and had the ultimate pleasure of dining at the ONLY happening spot in downtown San Diego, and probably the rest of San Diego…Cloak and Petal.
I literally drove up and down downtown San Diego, and this was the only place I found that was really poppin. It made me feel like I was back in a hip bar/restaurant in LA, in a very good way. No, I’m not the kind of person that wants to escape the scene, I honestly love it. I love the energy and find it to be really fun, and this places was everything and more. Not only was the atmosphere good, but I loved the decor and the food as well.
We tried some really amazing dishes that night. Starting with these beautiful oysters you see here, garnished with radish, ponzu and scallions. Can’t go wrong with this.
I was surprised when my husband agreed to go with the blistered shishito peppers, decorated with ponzu, garlic, butter, and bonito flakes. Honestly, even if you are a meat eater, these are bomb! So tasty, I swear I could have ate the whole thing myself.
Next up was the a5 wagyu tartare, which comes with seabean, jidori egg, nikiri shoyu, sesame and crispy baguette. A very beautiful dish.
This next dish is a specialty that is actually not on the menu, it was provided courtesy of Cloak and Petal. I believe the correct term for it is oshizushi which means pressed sushi. Its layered sushi that takes longer to prepare than regular sushi. We devoured every last bit of it.
As for the rolls, there are quite a few good ones that make it hard to choose. We went with the 5th & Laurel roll mainly because of one ingredient….truffle. Also with spicy hamachi, avocado, fresh hamachi, yuzu, micro greens and flower. We liked it for its clean taste, however we didn’t quite taste the truffle. I don’t think it’s because they didn’t use enough, but I think perhaps it left the kitchen before the truffle was added. It was still enjoyable either way.
Next, we decided to go through the Nigiri list and try almost everything. If you’re into nigiri, you will not go wrong with this. The sushi was fresh and buttery. Love buttery fish. Next time I want to aim for ONLY buttery fish. But I believe a good nigiri is a good nigiri. I don’t see how it changes much from restaurant to restaurant, and I suppose if you are using high quality ingredients, it shouldn’t. My husband loves ordering nigiri, but my only regret is that I didn’t order more of their specialty rolls and dishes. I saw them on other people’s tables and it all looked so yummy. Do you get what I’m trying to say? I feel like you can find nigiri at most places, but a restaurants unique dishes can only be found there. To really get a feel for that place, you gotta try all the stuff that makes them different. That would be my recommendation to you.
I did, however, go with the american wagyu nigiri because THIS is something I’ve never had before. It was quite interesting, but also a lot like eating a fatty toro too. I would recommend trying it.
For dessert we went with the Cotton Cheese Cake. The lightest and fluffiest “cheesecake” you’ll ever eat. It had more of a texture of a really fluffy cake as opposed to a creamy consistency, with a lemony flavor, and caramelized pineapple.
If you are looking for one of the hot spots in San Diego, Cloak and Petal is definitely where you need to go. If you go, let me know what you think! And if you’ve been here, what are some of your favorite dishes here? Would you ever eat raw wagyu nigiri? Comment below!
