Herb & Wood

One of the worst experiences I’ve had in awhile dining out. Where do I even begin, the ambiance was fine, but the music selection was like an older parents idea of “hip music”..a mix of terrible edm and dance. The food was basic American fare with nothing of note in terms of flavor or preparation. The capers sauce on the chicken was a terrible pairing and would have been more suitable for fish. And finally, our server. My god..what a weird human being. He spoke only when taking our order and not a single word the rest of the night. Just brought out our food, made a little gesture with his hands like “here you go” and nothing else. All with an air of nonchalance and indifference. Of all the disappointing places we tried to San Diego, herb & wood stands out as the biggest waste of our $ and time.

We had the pork and gnocchi. The pork was definitely a standout, really delicious. The gnocchi was great but it felt like they were stingy on the oxtail and the portion size wasn't that big. The atmosphere is pretty loud but very cool inside. Very expensive for the size of the portions. Service is great!

Very good.

Really fantastic cuisine in Little Italy. Music was kinda loud, but the song selection was fun. Don't skip desert!

Came here on a date night with my wife. I requested a booth which I didn’t get. The hostess said she had to keep the tables for 4+ people available. We were shown to our table. The table was right next to a large family with a baby. The baby being right next to our table. I have nothing against families or babies, I have two young boys so I have experience with that, but it being a date night between my wife and I, it wasn’t ideal. We asked for another table. I requested a high chair table that was next to the bar. There were two identical tables available. Hostess denied my request. They sat us in the upstairs section where the table was not very good either. Next to the wall and on a busy pathway. We decided to stay because we knew it would be hard to get a table at another restaurant on a Friday night. Menu is ok. It’s a fancier affair but nothing really appealed to us. We ended up sharing a mushroom pizza. Our server was very nice but I gave service two stars due to the hostess that didn’t try and accommodate our request. When we left, we noticed that the two tables near the bar were still open. Very disappointing.

This place was phenomenal, easily one of the best dining experiences that I have ever had and definitely the best one in San Diego. I plan to try one of the chef’s other restaurants when I go back!

There were some really great things about this restaurant. The chef is a chimichurri wizard; it was on two dishes, both of which were wonderful. While the entrees were good, one of the best dishes would be the vegetable side. The trumpet mushroom side dish had deep flavor, the right chew you want in a mushroom mixed with the crunch of crispy garlic, and it was sauced to perfection. I would go back to this establishment, skip entrees, and order several orders of these mushrooms. Then again, I would have to order dessert as well because both that I tried were sensational. The pumpkin souffle was fall in every bite. Perfect pumpkin flavor complemented with the crunch of the toasted pumpkin seeds and the sweet cream (ask for extra), you'll feel like the Empress of Autumn. Even so, that couldn't compare with the ricotta hush puppies. Fluffy, squishy, sweet but not overly so--they fill you with warmth and wonder in every bite! The only down side was the service. While everyone was nice and helpful when you did talk to them, you felt kind of ignored while you were there, like the restaurant was too busy for its own good and they weren't prepared to handle it. It could've just been that night though. I would try this again for sure.

Everything was excellent!

food creative pricy and very salty. atmosphere pleasant but terrible acoustics - hard to hold a conversation

Amazing food, service and ambiance. Our waiter Douglas was the best!