CUCINA enoteca Del Mar

Food is incredible. I have loved virtually everything I have tried. Service is very friendly. Wife and I are regulars here now. I recommend the Shrimp Spaghettini (if you like capers), also the lamb panini and their various pizzas are phenomenal.

I’m reluctant to give such a low rating since I had a excellent experience at Cucina Urbana downtown. The only reason I didn’t give one star is because our waitress was friendly.
I chose Cucina Enoteca for my mom’s birthday dinner because I had come a few months earlier and had a delicious meal and liked the ambiance. However, this time the food was subpar. My mom’s pasta was so undercooked we had to send it back. We are Italian and we are very comfortable with «al dente» — but this was hard and brittle pasta. Further, the rigatoni bolognese was nowhere near as good as I remembered. And it was only lukewarm when it was served. My mom waited until everyone else was almost done with their food to get her pasta, and it was only slightly better than before.
I thought, it’s OK, the restaurant will probably try to make up for the pasta incident with a nice dessert for her birthday, on the house. What came out was some sort of hard cookie the size of a small pita chip, with a tiny scoop of cream no bigger than the size of a tablespoon. They brought it out with 5 spoons. We all had a good laugh and took a picture because it was so comical.
Not the experience I was hoping for my mom’s birthday. I won’t be coming back.

Been here a lot and Come a lot mainly fir drinks etc. Sunday evening and dinner. Good good as always. Service has gone downhill. Wait ages for service. Comes and dumps plates wherever and you have to arrange and find space. Order a drink and wait 10 plus mins for it. A shame. Maybe too popular now. Needs some competition.

If you’re looking for wealthy older women you can’t go wrong here. Our office had a happy hour here so I was fortunate enough to sample a wide range of enoteca’s appetizers and desserts.
The seating areas consists of long community tables (be ready for saucy older ladies horning in on your table) and «odd and ends» seating in various places throughout the dining room floor.
I started with the Red Sangria. For me, out of all my beverages this was the weakest. Good choice or non-​drinkers or people not looking to get hammered. The rest of the Happy Hour was a mix of appetizers. I’ve written down the items that I found pleasing.
Chicken liver pâté
Burrata
Various formaggi + salumi boards.
Fries
Brussels sprouts
Desserts —
After a few adult beverages people just shared dessert family style. Of course anyone with a fork that saddled up to the table also got a free bite.
Spiced pear tiramisu was my favorite.
Chocolate Budino tasted like a big bowl of chocolate ganache.
— Fun happy hour.
— Not a kid place.

Hipster hangout! Steel chairs and tables with industrial metal table tops, sheets of brown paper for placemats and young women dressed as if they had just got out of their college sociology class. No nonsense gals who were friendly and happy as long as things keep moving. Okay with me! Bring me that Chef’s OldPal (chamomile rye + vermouth + aperol + luxardo) there be no problem with me hon. (I’m still old enough to still be her father right?)
I was there for the intermezzo menu (Available 2 — 5pm) where everything was half off. Yeeee Haaaaw!
I had the polenta board (creamy mascarpone polenta + wild boar ragu). She placed this chop board in front of me with a cup of stew and a cup of polenta saying, «Wait and I will make it for you.» I thought, «Really? Looks like it’s all ready to go, but I’m on your side! Do it!» She delivered the rest of the food then came back to me and to my horror slathered all the delicious polenta out onto the board. «Haven’t you had basic microbiology?», I thought. «That board is teaming with microflora!» She opened up the polenta heap with a little trough and poured in the ragu. It was delicious!
Well, the polenta was delicious and the ragu was okay. The ragu was similar to Jamie Oliver’s Oxtail ragu (
) — only Jamie’s tastes better. This one was a tad salty and the wild boar was kind of dried out. I think they made a pretty good sauce (little salty okay?) and then tossed in the pre-​cooked pork. Overall, it was good, but it could have been easily better.
I left around 6:30 and the parking lot was packed out and the place was filling up with the hipsters. Slender young men with the careful «unshaven look» faces to suggest that independant «I’ll make my own way» look; slick back hair as if they just stepped out of the showers at the gym. «I don’t belong here», I thought, and got into my truck and left. I’ll be back though. I think that soch girl is sweet on me.

We had such a wonderful experience at Cucina Enoteca! I came here to celebrate after a half marathon, and this was the perfect spot to do so. It’s got such a fun and friendly ambiance!
Our server was very nice and attentive. I asked for a carafe of sangria, which they don’t normally offer on the menu, but he made it happen! And it was some of the best sangria I’ve ever had! We weren’t very hungry, but they offer a great small bites selection. We had the Brussels sprouts and rosemary focaccia bread, both were perfect and delicious!
Everything about out experience here was wonderful and I can’t wait to go back! Oh and they have a wish wall in the women’s bathroom. Sounds weird but check it out, it’s awesome!

Beautiful atmosphere! Delicious food and attractive service. We’ve got sort rib pasta, Brussels sprouts and cucina burger! Everything came out fast and tasted awesome. Will definitely come back and try something else!

Today was the first time my boyfriend and I got to check out this place, we were super exited, and it was just as great as we expected. Great vibe beautiful and staff was super friendly. The food was incredible and the cucumber cocktail is now my favorite! Highly recommend this place casual yet classy and great pricing. What’s not to love
We were treated so nicely by our server Bella she was super sweet and completely ontop of everything, and this is coming from a server of 5 years. Patrice who works there recommended this place and we will most definitely be back!

Came for NYE pre fixed dinner which seemed pretty reasonable actually ($ 68 pp) but was pleasantly surprised that they allowed you to also order off the regular menu even on such a festive night. We were a party of 4 which is pretty ideal because we could order a lot of variety of dishes. We were stuffed and spent only about $ 60 per couple??! Seriously was so pleased since most holiday meals can get pretty pricey and we definitely would have spent more than double had we opted for the prefixed meals. Our server, kelly, was awesome and had great recommendations. Of course we stayed for the countdown and our dinner even included a complimentary champagne toast. Will remember this restaurant for holidays. Perfection!
Highlights: gnocchi, deep fried squash blossoms

We went here for dinner on Christmas Eve, which turned out to be a excellent choice! We sat at the bar and all 3 bartenders were very attentive, friendly and provided great suggestions.
We started off with the brussels sprouts — YUM! They were cooked to perfection — nice & crispy and were served with a sauce that had a nice kick. My husband ordered the Osso Bucco and I had the Short Rib Pappardelle — both were amazing! We skipped dessert but they had a variety of options that looked pretty tasty. We will definitely return!

I went her yesterday for our office Christmas party. It was decked out nicely. The patio area was reserved for our group. It was partially enclosed (the majority of it was) which was nice because it had been raining off and on.
The seating was nice. Couch-​like booths… a few cute hammocks. a full bar. and cozy heating devices on the ceiling. We were all quite comfortable as it was plenty chilly yesterday.
We had the BEST food! Creamy Cheesy Polenta (past delicious), carrot hummus (very interesting, yet delicious) meatballs in marinara sauce topped with mozzarella (so, so good), lamb ragu (I passed on it. I have to be in the mood for lamb & I wasn’t yesterday. it got rave reviews… kinda wished I went for it) A wonderful cheese tray with assorted breads (wonderful selection and tasty), a wonderful mushroom & pepperoni Flatbread.(I stuck with the mushroom… it was delicious) Then. for dessert we had chocolate dipped Madeleines (tasty.good quality chocolate), brownies bites topped with walnuts (a nice fudgy treat. a bit cake like with just enough fudge. perfect balance which is rare) and later they brought out biscotti with white chocolate dipped sauce. I wish they had brought that our first for dessert because I had decided before they brought it that I wasn’t going to eat any more food.
The service was friendly and impeccable. Fresh food was brought out often and the servers and bartender made us feel at home. The restaurant itself was immaculate and classy. I have had Cucina Urbana bookmarked here on Unilocal for quite a while. I’ll definitely make it down there soon as this is their sister restaurant. I also going to make it my business to return to this restaurant again as well.
In short, this place is top notch. I’d recommend this restaurant to anyone.

We came here for dinner recently. We had about 8 people. Awesome décor, great place to accommodate large parties.
For my entrée I ordered the veal with lentils. The entire dish was a bit too salty. I can do with less salt
We shared a few appetizers family style. We ordered:
Brussels sprouts, Ragu and polenta board and Stuffed blossoms. The Brussels sprouts were good especially with the sauce it comes with. The Ragu and polenta board was my favorite. They brought it out in two bowls and they spread it on the board for you. It was an interesting and unexpected presentation. Loved it. The blossoms were very strange and lacked flavor. We also shared a chopped salad. This may be the best salad I’ve ever had. It had bits of cured meats that really stood out.
Overall, the service was great. I may come back and try some other items. But really, the only item I really enjoyed are the house salad and the Ragu/​polenta board.

Sunday Happy Hour Happiness. We wandered in based on great Unilocal reviews, and WIN!
Ambience: Hipster and eclectic. It’s like Anthropologie exploded here. Filled with lots of cute little details like a «wish wall» in the women’s bathroom to put your wishes into the world.
Service: fast and friendly
Drinks: assorted reds and whites by the glass, also have the option of opening a bottle from their cute shop, house sangria, and a full bar with some house cocktails
They also have a cute wine shop at the entrance with suggestions/​descriptions of their offerings. Also a plethora of adorable candles/​kitchen entertaining items.
Food:
The stars: burnt Brussels sprouts (yum yum yum. The char actually enhances the flavor of the Brussels sprout) and carrot hummus (a nice spicy kick to offset the sweetness of the carrots)
The margherita pizza was also solid with fresh mozzarella

I love this place! Everything I tried on the menu was delicious. Prices are decent and atmosphere is great. If you are single and looking for a scene put on your fancy shoes and head to the community tables downstairs. If you are with your family, like I was, the patio upstairs is perfect, more laid back, quaint and spacious .
My favorite dishes: giant meAtball, polenta with Ragu and shrimp puttanesca pasta. The kids chicken and vegetables was a hit too and big enough for two kids. Kids menu photo attached

Ok, They redeemed themselves! Uriel was the Busser that I was talking about. Love him! Kelly was our fantastic server.
I was just back there with another GF the other night and the minute Uriel saw me, he told me they had Brussels and that he had something for me. He had our server bring them over as a gift for being out the last time. He didn’t have to do that or even remember for that matter, That is customer service that people will remember. In fact, My other GF and i plan to have our dual B-​Day evening begin there once again. The community table are the perfect way to start an evening of cocktails and some great grub before heading down the road for some stronger Tracs cocktails and music. See ya soon Cucina.

From the front, I thought the entrance looked like a store. Don’t be fooled, this is it. You walk in to a wall of wine and you are escorted to your table after a small labyrinth of wine.
I have to say, the décor was pretty hipster typical. Enough with the shabby chic! And while it was nicely done, I am pretty over the whole burlap and mason jar thing. Its been done, its not that great. Please move on. There was a strong of plastic ponies by the stairs, which I thought was cool considering the proximity we were to Del Mar Race Track.
My server was wonderful. She was informative, attentive and gave sincere suggestions.
The food was really delicious. I got a pizza and my friend got a stuffed squash blossom. While that doesn’t sound very appealing the flavors were really well balanced. The brunch looked good and the prices on the drinks were really reasonable. If you like wine, you should make your way here. There is more wine here than for, like 8 times more.
An off putting side note, the young hostess was wearing a short dress, which would be fine if she knew how to move in it without showing everyone the cash and prizes. I don’t want to see a strangers private parts while I am eating a meal.
I’d definitely like to go back, and hopefully by then they will change the dress code.

Love this restaurant! The food here was soo good. First off, I really like the interior and design of this restaurant and that was part of the reason I chose this place.
I went for happy hour because I really wanted to try the burnt Brussels sprouts for 3.75 which is a good deal. Having made Brussels sprouts, I’m surprised that the burnt didn’t mean it was bitter. The sauce it came with reminded me of an American version of sriracha, it was kinda weird, but it worked. They were delicious!
My bf got the Margherita pizza which was $ 7 for hh as well. It was a simple classic pizza, the dough was good and it was well made.
I got the short rib pappardelle and that was really good too. The short ribs were very tender, the carrots were marinated well and were good (even though I don’t like carrots). The pasta was good. I just wished it was a larger portion.
These 3 dishes were enough to fill both of us up. The staff was really nice, I would def recommend coming here!

Food: 4.5
Atmosphere: 4.5
$ 1 drinks on Saturday happy hour gives it a bump to a 5!
Run through the meal:
1. Lamb Ragu + Polenta board: absolutely delicious. The presentation was interesting, and the polenta was delicious. Oh did I mention that the lamb ragu just absolutely melted in your mouth? Highly recommended.
2. Gnocchi with prosciutto. Pretty good. This was probably the most underwhelming thing we ordered tonight. The gnocchi was tender, but I thought the prosciutto would have been better if they cut it into smaller pieces.
3. Spicy coppa pizza: pretty good. I didn’t think it was especially amazing, but I’ve had some pretty amazing pizza! The spices are nicely balanced and it gives the meal a nice heartiness. The crust was nicely textured, and it is highly recommended.
4. Spiced crumble with buttermilk gelato: very delicious. it was a nice balance of «fall”-ness to it that gave the fruit a nice contrast with the gelato. Highly highly recommended.

Great little stop for Happy hour, it starts at 3pm and there’s ample parking since it’s in a plaza with other shops. The place is HUGE! So seat yourself anywhere you want for happy hour. The ambiance is also really nice, a bit rustic with tons of wine racks everywhere. The place is very open, I like that a lot.
I came here with my girlfriend and we had a great time. The happy hour special that day was polenta with lamb ragu so we got that, it was really good and we couldn’t finish it, it was so much. Basically, you’re getting the full size portion but for half price since it’s happy hour. We also got the parmesan fries (there’s a lot and we didn’t finish that either!) and margherita pizza (didn’t finish that either!) so we took everything to go at the end. I like that they do full portions of everything for happy hour, but at half price, very cool.
I got the white sangria to wash it all down and it was really good. Our waitress was really nice and even had us take a sneak peek of the desserts, but we were so full, we decided against it. Next time.

I heart Happy hour!
here’s the happy lowdown at Cucina
there’s a deal every day of the week!
my favorite is monday… meatball monday!!! or wed ragu w/​polenta
always great service at the bar (i prefer to sit at the bar here)…the bartenders make everyone feel super special
Mon 5 – 6
Tues-​Sun 3 – 6
drink
red/​white 7
moretti draft 4.
seasonal sangria 6
well drinks 6.
food
brussels sprouts 3.75
parmesan fries 3.5
margherita pizza 7
daily specials
monday
spaghetti + meatball 10.
meatball pizza 10.
CUCINA meatballs 5.
tuesday
select chef’s whim crostini 3. ea or 3 for 8.
glass o’ bubbles 5
aperol spritz 6
no corkage on bubbles (all night)
wednesday
½ price polenta + ragu
thursday | ½ price pizza
friday
½ price vasi
saturday
post a picture of yourself on social media using #CUCINAselfie and ‘geotag’ our location, then receive your first ‘homegrown cocktail’ for $ 1. just show your server your posted pic.
sunda
no corkage on all wine bottles (all night)