Nick’s At The Beach

This is less of a review and more of a notice (though I did enjoy the ambiance and talking to the staff). Nick’s at the Beach is closing down soon, and right now they are doing $ 3 U-​Call-​Its. It’s a great opportunity to potentially try some top shelf liquor for a good price. This only lasts until they run out of booze, or until the end of the month, from my understanding.
Also, the view from the sports bar upstairs is great. Quaint, comfortable, and I imagine would be very beautiful during a sunset. It’s a great departure from the standard bro atmosphere that occupies a lot of drinking establishments in PB, so if you’re looking for a change and some cheap drinks, stop in before it’s too late.

How have I never written a review of Nick’s? This seems so weird to me…
Nick’s is home base in PB, as far as I’m concerned. Drinks, food, pool, music, outdoor searing without homeless peeps gettin’ up in your grill. And it’s just a few steps from the beach, literally. It may be the perfect PB hangout.
The food is fine; nothing remarkable or remarkably bad. They have decent beer, a full bar and a totally casual ambience so you can roll in directly from the beach in your flip flop and cover-​up, or clean up your act and show up ready to hit the town for a pre-​gamer. They’re also open late which makes them idea as a place to end the evening. EIther way, it’s always a fun crowd.
My favorite thing to do at Nick’s is get a pitcher and sit out on the deck. It’s pretty spacious, and there’s table service so you can order a bunch of food to share with your friends.
Seriously, though — Nick’s is an institution. If you haven’t been, go.

Stopped in for dinner and this was one of the few places open late within walking distance of our hotel. The staff was very nice and alerted us of a big group upstairs watching a college football game, so we sat downstairs.
We enjoyed delicious seafood dinners, with some of the FANTASTIC garlic knots, and washed it all down with refreshing beers.
The restaurant is great — it’s just that as soon as you walk outside into the PB chaos you wish you were back at your hotel already.

I’ve recently moved to the Pacific Beach area and have been trying out the local restaurants/​bars and came upon Nicks. Not only does it host the best college football team in the country (Bear Down), it also has a great vibe.
But lets start from the beginning…
I walked in thinking it would be a casual restaurant where maybe a few friends and I could have a burger and watch the game. Disappointed a bit thinking it would be more of a sports bar, the waiter pointed to his right and said «You want to go behind the wall with the mirror.»
…I was intrigued. What was behind this mysterious wall?
I climbed the staircase, showed the security my ID and was struck by a crowd of UofA Alum on the edge of their seats praying for the Tulsa — Colorado State game not to go into OT to prevent any missed coverage of the eminent domination of UNLV.
Our waitress was excellent (wish I remembered her name) and kept the pitchers coming. I had a Philly-​Steak Sandwiches which was good. Anyone who is expecting an actual Philly Cheesesteak needs to just go walk out the door. It was good, and it came out quick after we ordered.
I think I’ve found my new local spot… Thanks!

I’ve come here on Tuesday Nights for the Adult Tricycle Races and I must admit… its hilarious. The bar really is primarily upstairs near the pool tables, so we headed right up to sign up! Unfortunately, I guess you need to sign up in advance of the day of the races? We got there and there was a wait list till next week :(
It was still the most entertaining thing to watch, cause most people were already hammered. There were people falling off the tricycles, running into the pool tables and stumbling when having to spin with a baseball bat being held to their forehead.
I don’t care if you know the people playing, you end up cheering for them anyways, especially when they struggle with the flip cup/​quarters part of the race.
Also, its a good place to go watch a sports game… say you don’t want to deal with the chaos that is millers field, just go to Nicks!
The downstairs environment has a much different feel than the upstairs, its much darker and pretty quiet, so im sure it would be a nice place to grab a relaxing dinner.
Although I haven’t tried the food, so don’t quote me on that, I like alcohol too much to waste my time filling my stomach with things like «nutrients» for my body… that’s for amateurs.

I hit Nick’s on the occasional Wed. for trivia fun time to challenge my brain cells and enjoy a Stella with friends. I gotta say Nick’s has grown on me over the years. Considering Nick’s consistency of outstanding/​above avg. food, service, and the great times she’s given me, this review is way overdue. My server Kerry always greets me with a beaming smile, and the doorman gives me a friendly fist bump when I roll in. It’s that kind of warmth that keeps me coming back. Come to think of it, I’ve never, ever had bad service, sent back a meal, or had a problem with a bill here.
The menu & atmosphere cater to just about any mood. Want a nice steak dinner with a date? Stroll into the lower floor where it’s quiet, dimly lit and romantic. Want to throw back some suds, face down in some hot wings or bar food while watching the big game? Head upstairs where there’s a plenty of room & big screens in every conceivable corner. Either by accident, or design, I have some of the best memories of my life here, and for that I’m possibly biased. But for me Nick’s is the perfect place to relax, unwind and share a warm, smile-​filled great time amongst friends, and that includes the staff!
Do try:
Hot wings!
Spinach Cobb Salad
Oysters on the half-​shell
Pulled Pork Sliders!
Tater skins!
ANY of the Nicks Nuggets
Any of the Burgers
Drinks:
Stella on draft
Booker Bourbon
Scooby Snacks

I wanted to give Nick’s a chance but my experience was simply average.
I made a reservation through Unilocal,requesting the upstairs patio. When our party of ten arrived, they didn’t have anything set up. They informed us that the upstairs patio was «first come, first served». Completely disappointing. They couldn’t call to ask if we wanted the downstairs outdoor area or an inside booth?
It took them 15 minutes to set up (again, even though we had a reservation). When we were seated, our server Kelly was excellent. She was punctual, friendly, and had great timing. We were never low on drinks and she wasn’t bothersome.
The food was average. Stay away from the oysters! Burgers are your best bet here.
Try Nick’s if you’re in the area but it’s nothing to rave about.

Maybe I came at an off time but my experience at Nick’s seems to be different that a lot of these reviews. My girl friend and I started off with the shrimp scampi which was tasty and surprisingly spicy! Things went downhill from there. The dirty martini was just bad, I asked for more olive juice but it didn’t help matters. I had the crab legs, which tasty like freezer and defiantly not like they had been near an ocean anytime recently. She had the seabass which kinda tasty a little cardboard-​like. But I’m thinking it was just an off night at Nick’s?

Had a friend in town and he wanted to come here for the oysters. It was a Monday afternoon so it was pretty dead in the neighborhood. When we got up stairs the waitress took our drink order. I was only having a soda, but the man and his friend ordered a Stone IPA. The waitress recommended they order a pitcher. Fast forward to later when we got the check, we were a little surprised to be greeted with an $ 18 bill for the pitcher. It just seemed a little steep for a pitcher price and I guess I would have expected maybe a little bit of a heads up that the upsell was so high.
Anyway, we sat on the patio and the man and I split the buffalo chicken sandwich while our friend had oysters and a salad. All in all the food was mediocre. While I appreciated that they were slow and only had one employee working the floor, there were only two other tables and if we needed anything we pretty much had to go inside and get it. I would have expected just a little more on the service front.
Anyway, they have a little parking area and the view is nice on the patio on a sunny day. It’s certainly not the best food or service, but it does the trick to fill a meal.

Took a road trip down to San Diego and had some friends who are local to PB show us around. We diverted over to Nick’s like lemmings after deciding Open Bear was a tad too busy. Turns out Nick’s was almost as packed being Memorial Day weekend, but I don’t regret ending up here at all.
We went straight upstairs to the open air patio and got to soak in some sun and enjoyed the cool breeze as we got a few pitchers of beer. A great place for socializing in a relaxed environment. The wait staff and bartenders seemed under staffed during this holiday evening, but they took care of business. I think it was this one Asian girl serving the entire patio area, but she did a good job, even coming by to check on us. Maybe I was distracted by the eye candy and the good company surrounding us (including my beer) that I didn’t notice how long it was between her checking up on us, but either way it was a good experience.
I didn’t get to indulge but the happy hour specials looks awesome. The closest thing we (SJ) have that resembles Nick’s HH is St. John’s Bar & Grille which I frequent and you should try if you’re in Nor Cal. Nick’s is now on my list of recommendations or places to visit in San Diego. As I write this review, I wish I was back on that patio!

Stopped by here on a Monday night after doing some shopping at Ralph’s next door. I was drawn in by the large patio on the roof which has a beautiful view of the ocean. I ended up sitting at the bar since happy hour was still going on. The happy hour deals were really good for food and drinks and for draft beers you get a tall for the price of a pint. Great selection of local and craft brews on tap.
Monday also happens to be half price burgers, chicken and quesadillas all night long and I mean are you kidding me? I got a great blackened chicken sandwich with tots for like $ 4.50. This wasn’t a happy hour sized portion either oh no! Full on dinner and it was freaking amazing.
The ambiance and feel of the place is mellow but classy. I didn’t get the usual PB rats and locals all eying you down while you try to drink which was a nice change of pace. The bartender was really cool and talkative which was sweet because it had been a long Monday.
They have activities during the week as well like tricycle races, haha, and trivia night on Wednesdays so I’ll definitely be back later this week to have some more great food and ride a child’s tricycle!!!

TUESDAY Tricycle races!!!
Makes me feel like a kid again. There are teams that get pretty competitive but it is a GOOD TIME. My pointer is to lean your body into the turns and wear comfortable shoes. Its fun to beat boys!
The cocktail servers, and staff are so nice. Great neighborhood spot

My girlfriend and I visit Nick’s fairly often and our experiences have actually been mostly positive. For the most part it is a good local place that serves food later than anywhere else in PB. We’ve eaten at the bar, we’ve eaten in the restaurant, and we like to eat upstairs during the day when it it’s nice and take advantage of the patio.
On Wednesday ³⁄₁₃ we went in for burger and beer, walked upstairs to the patio and was greeted in a very hostile manner by the older gentleman serving and bar tending. He gave me a hard time for having my longboard skateboard and told me I had to leave it up front by the stairs and couldn’t keep it with me by my table. There were 2 guests at the bar, and no one seated and he had an attitude about the whole thing. We live in a beach town, most of us skate everywhere, I am not a punk kid, and this wasn’t a busy nightclub scene. It was noon on a Wednesday and the bar was empty.
The whole experience was uncomfortable and hostile from the beginning and to be honest, I have been able to skate anywhere in PB and not get a hard time. My girlfriend and I will just take our business elsewhere where we don’t get an attitude, where we get a smile and a hello before being lectured on having a skateboard and how I may decide to use it as a weapon against someone… Yea, against the 2 girls at the bar, mid day? No thanks, no more!

I ordered some Delicious Tacos along with a Spinach Salad. Was able to seat in the patio area overlooking the beach and other PB bars from my good old days back in the early 90s. All in All it was a awesome birthday lunch. Can’t wait to come back.
Maybe next month. Service was good, cute waitrsses, great prices. If I didn’t live 75 miles away this would be my new twice a week lunch spot. The Margaritas where excellent. Drink 4 and stumble to the beach.

RUN FOR THE HILLS!!!
My boyfriend and I were on vacation and wanted to stick with local restaurants. Being on the beach, we thought eating some fresh local seafood would be a great idea! A quick Unilocal search pulled up this place and showed it had fresh seafood and was a sports bar (in our mind, great micro brews). We also passed by, and it looked like a cool place. When we walked in, the host had one of those corporate polo’s with their logo on it. First red flag, we should of ran then. We saw him pick up big plastic menus like the ones you see at Red Robbins. 2^nd red flag. The moment we sat down we looked at each other and 2^nd guessed our choice, but some how talked ourselves into staying. It can’t be that bad.
After our waitress read us the specials from a piece of paper I decided I was craving some crab, so I ordered the crab legs. My boyfriend went with the fresh fish of the day, Mahi Mahi. Now lets breakdown why this was the worst dinner either of us have experienced.
Side Vegetables: Baby corn and Baby Carrots. How can carrots that looks so wrinkly and over cooked be so damn hard!!! The baby corn look and tasted like it came from a can. Neither of us took more than one bite.
Mahi Mahi: It looked like it was one of those frozen fishes that come in a plastic package that you throw in the microwave. And it was super dry. Only a few bites were taken of this. Oh yea, it was supposed to be crusted in Panko…
Rice: The Mahi Mahi came with sticky rice, not sure because there was no Asian theme to the meal that we could tell, unless the supposed panko was the connection. But either way the rice tasted funny and was a really weird. Not normal sticky rice. Not normal steamed rice. Not sure what was going on
Mashed Potatoes: Had so much damn butter we couldn’t finish it. On the bright side, it was real potatoes.
Crab: This crab was far from fresh, yet they felt the need to charge us Market price. I was really craving crab & was starving, so this was the only thing we finished.
Though this seemed to be our waitress first waiting job, she was really nice, therefore we didn’t deduct her tip because the food was horrible Total (including tip): $ 84. We could of got good food at a swanky place for this price, instead we got food that was worse than dinner at Denny’s. How this place has the reviews it does is beyond me, the happy hour must be pretty damn good

Came by tonight for happy hour and to watch the game. This review is only for the upstairs bar area. Was clean, lot’s of seating, lot’s of TV’s and outdoor seating looking at beach (without tv’s)
Great happy hour, half priced burgers/​chicken sandwiches/quesadilla’s, and drink specials as well. Service was good, food was solid, and beer was cold. And to top it off, it’s a UofA bar which makes it that much better for us UofA alum! :)

This place gets a 3.5 from me. It’s definitely better than your average restaurant bar, because they have a pretty sweet burger/​beer deal ($ 7?!) and the food is actually pretty decent. I had the ahi tuna appetizer as my meal because it turned out to be quite a large portion. The seared and seasoned tuna over rice was pretty good, but I’ve had better. They offer half portions of the salads because apparently they tend to be generous with portions for most menu offerings, but I do wish they offered all of the salads in the half portion.
There are two floors, and the staff is incredibly friendly. I would definitely come back, as I bet this place would be teeming with people around happy hour and the evening. I could see why Nick’s would be a local favorite, as it encourages a relaxed yet fun atmosphere.

I’m trying to make it a point to try a different place every time I go out for Unilocal.So far, so good!
I’ve been wanting to come here since my friend was bragging about how the risotto was to die for and beats the restaurants in Little Italy. I ended up accidentally bumping into it when my boyfriend and I couldn’t decide where to go. Finally I said «OK the next place I see we’re pulling in!»…then it was magical from there! I saw Nick’s and fishtailed my way through the lines right next to the restaurant! Apparently the risotto is different every day and today it was the spinach and feta, which I didn’t think I would like so I didn’t go for it.
Luckily we were there between 4 and 8 which is their happy hour. Half off appetizers and pitchers, $ 5 you call its, and 22oz beer for the size of the pint. We ordered:
A pitcher of Karl Strauss Summer Ale (½ off)
Crab Cakes (½ off)
Pulled Pork Sandwich (½ off)
and Artichoke Heart Pasta
…also don’t forget your bread! ;)
All was delicious! I have NEVER had such delicious pasta in my life. The first bite made my taste buds fly! The sauce the crab cakes were in was just the right amount of sweetness! And unfortunately I didn’t try the sandwich, but my boyfriend liked it. It was a matter of 15 minutes by the time we sat, ordered drinks, ordered food, and got our food. I was impressed! I recommend the Nick ‘Upstairs’ because you get a beach view and the happy hour deals.
Enjoy!

I really want to give this place 2.5 stars, but I’ll round up since I’m nice.
We came here for Taco Tuesday last night since we read on
that they have $ 2 tacos all day and $ 5 off pitchers until 7p. Previously, I had only been here around midnight when other places’ kitchens close, but Nick’s still serves food until 1a.
Tacos: You can only choose from mahi mahi, shrimp, and chicken. I got the mahi mahi and chicken — both were pretty terrible. The mahi mahi pieces were about 2 inches long, but they pile on the veggies. The chicken was super dry. The corn tortilla fell apart easily, but the 8″ flour tortilla held up pretty nicely.
Atmosphere: The place is pretty spacious, so it wasn’t empty, but it wasn’t crowded at all. We snatched a nice table at the upstairs patio with a nice view of the ocean and sunset.
Service: No complaints.
Price: I suppose you get what you pay for? The bill was a little over $ 26 before tip for 7 tacos and a pitcher of Ballast Point Yellowtail.

I visited Nick’s recently for a casual breakfast on the rooftop, an A-​OK but slightly underwhelming experience.
There are some tasty omelets here, and basically they were what lured us through the door! I like the omelet with crab and brie, and my boyfriend’s a fan of the one with Mediterranean flavors.
Service was friendly and efficient on a slow Sunday morning, nothing over the top.
While the rooftop area is alright, it’s a bummer that the view is pretty much of a parking lot. Nick’s would do so much better on or closer to the boardwalk, and no doubt they lose a lot of business to flashier Firehouse and Ale House.