Soda & Swine

I haven't been in San Diego for very long, but I already have my go-to places (obviously). I also already have a list of restaurants that I want to try out (suggestions always welcome!) One of my go-to places, specially to take visitors to, is Soda & Swine.
This first time I went to Soda & Swine I was craving chicken. That is something that never, EVER, happens to me, so I was feeling very weird about myself, but also - craving the chicken. It was the day after our three-day car ride, where we ate a lot of... shit. I don't know how else to put it. We had VERY limited options, some days consisting of only McDonald's, Burger King and Taco Bell. We ate at McDonald's (which was horrible - except for the Oreo McFlurry which was awesome!) once, a bad mistake. Deciding not to do it again, the next day we went to Carl's Jr and I swear to God, Carl's Jr. turkey burger tasted like heaven compared to the quarterpound I got at McDonald's. Ew.

Menu

So, the next day I am craving chicken. As I got to Soda & Swine, I looked at their super-cool menu written on a black chalkboard. And I saw a chicken meatball option! And, AND, it was served with mushroom sauce and provolone cheese! I could not have been happier.
The deal over there is: you can choose one (or more, I guess. I'd never thought about that... hum) out of four options: get your meatballs on a sub (2 meatballs), over pasta (3 meatballs), on sliders (1 meatball per slider) or just the meatballs and the sauce (3 meatballs). Considering the fact that I had just completed a trip where every single meal I had consisted of bread or pasta of some sort, I chose the "a la carte" option, as they put it. Just the largest amount of meatballs, no carbs.

There is also another chalkboard next to the one in the picture with a list of their sides, which must be like 15. So many sides to choose from! You don't HAVE to pick a side. But why not? Why would you not do it? It makes no sense. Anyway, I chose the bacon brussels sprouts because I am smart. Also, because my family decided we should each pick one side so everyone can try everyone's side (we do that a lot.) So, in reality, I had brussels sprout, asparagus and polenta as sides. Hum, where should I begin?

Meatballs to the left and asparagus to the right

So, the meatballs come in this mini iron cast, swimming in the mushroom sauce, with the provolone cheese melted over on top. It's beautiful. And you look at it and you think: "is this going to be enough food?" but what you don't know is that the meatballs are HUGE. They are. They are so filling. But most importantly, they are made of chicken and they blend perfectly - just perfectly - with the thick, creamy mushroom sauce they come with. Seriously. It's so good, I was moaning the whole meal. If you've never experienced chicken meatballs, that is the way to do it. I cannot imagine anyway that chicken meatballs could taste any better. On marinara sauce they would be RUINED. Ruined. Ok, maybe not ruined, but definitely not as good.

Brussels sprouts

The brussels sprouts come with bacon, so there's that. It's not like it's going to taste bad, ever. It's made with bacon. No, but really, they were cooked to perfection and tasted incredible. For realz. The asparagus comes with a little bit of cheese on top and it's also cooked to perfection and delicious in the subtle but unique way that only asparagus can be. The polenta, unfortunately, for my unending sadness, was meh. But just order something else, like, for example, they mac-and-cheese! Or, or, the goat cheese mashed potatoes (yum!). Better yet: order the crispy chick peas. They are divine! They are crispy and salty, and crunchy and delicious. I never knew chick peas could be so... crispy? It's super well-seasoned too, so it's really tasty, and you can't eat just one. It's like popcorn... you eat it and eat it until there's no more to eat.

#crispyanddelicious

After my very pleasant experience, I have made a point of taking everyone that comes visit me there. And it's been approved across the board. Because it's delicious!


Restaurant: Soda & Swine
City: San Diego, CA
Service: Great
Food: Delicious
Price: $