Do not count on dinner plans here. We had a reservation for 10:15 (they close at 11). I got a text from them around 9pm saying they would be closing their doors at 9:30pm, and we could still come in by 9:30pm. I immediately tried to call multiple times for clarification and no one ever picked up the phone. Despite the inconvenience, we rushed to make it there before 9:30pm and no one was there; the place was completely closed even though we made it in time. So we ended up with no where decent to get dinner it being so late. Stressful and terrible experience. Sidenote- I had also tried to call the restaurant much earlier in the day with a question and no one ever picked up which shows their lack of attention and care.
Atmosphere: 1
Service: 1
James Williams
First time is San Diego. Rustic. Root was recommended by a friend. Rooftop dining is a vibe. The chicken was fried crispy and seasoned very well. The pork belly fried rice dish was also flavorful. The cornbread waffle was new to me, and it was a hit. The Texas Smoked Brisket Hash was ok, but it's not a must try. If you are in San Diego, give Rustic Root a try.
Texas smoked brisket hash was pretty good! But unfortunately the southern chicken & waffles were not - was a lil' dry and tasteless.Service was excellent ~
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 5
James Davis
Exploring San Diego with my family for the first time, we were on the hunt for a rooftop dining experience. Rustic Root had caught our attention, and it exceeded all expectations! Our server, Ilian, went above and beyond to ensure we had a fantastic evening, with his warm demeanor and witty charm making us feel like part of the family. Every dish was a culinary delight, served with precision and care. We're already planning our return visit!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Rene P
Visited May 6, 2023.Met my girl here on our first date. She enjoyed the shrimp and grits, I enjoyed the pasta and shrimp.And then we enjoyed becoming each other's love of our life.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Maricela Ontiveros
We were not able to get a good experience at The rustic root due to our server Mathew. The food looked good and I’m sure it would have tasted better if it was warm. We were not able to try our food warm because our silverware did not arrive before our food. We had reserved a table for 8 at 12:15pm and unfortunately there were not silverware wrapped for our table even though we had made a reservation. Our order did take a long time to arrive (30minutes) that is not bad for a group of 8 so I’m sure there was enough time to get silverware. Nevertheless, We asked for silverware because we had our food already. Our server said there were no silverware wrapped so he left for 5 minutes or so and he just brought forks for each of us in his hand and passed it out. We asked for napkins and left for 5 minutes or so and came back to pass out napkins, then he realized some of us needed knifes for our food and he came back with 4 knifes only. We additionally had to ask for ketchup and the sauce that was supposed to come with the stake. The server did not show any initiative at all and made the experience unpleasant. I would like to try the food again but maybe at a different time with a different server.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 1
Marisol O.
Matthew was our server today and he made the experience a regrettable one. He took a very long time to get our orders that another server came to check in on us. She was very nice and we should have requested her to be our server. We orders and our food came out in about 40 minutes. We did not get roll ups (napkins and utensils) until like 10 minutes after our food was on the table. We only got utensils when we requested them and we had to request them often as every time he came to the table he wouldn't bring everything. Matthew our server came and handed us forks one by one, left to get napkins to give us one by one and then asked who wanted knives. He came back later with knives to hand us individually for the 3 of us who needed them. Then he finally got the ketchup we had requested from the beginning. At this point the food was kinda cold but it was fine. The potatoes were delicious and the lavender coffee was great too. It sucked that we got a bad server for our party of 8. I kinda wish I had not made reservations here.
Tanisha F.
Came for brunch on a Saturday (I recommend having a reservation as it does get busy) and had an amazing time. I had the southern fried chicken and waffles and don't tell my grandma but it was the best I've ever had and the cornbread waffle was well paired with it. We had Tipsy Daisy which was a little tricky to drink but worth the effort. Best of all was the service! Matt was attentive, kind and super hospitable. It was quiet when we arrived but as more people came it got a little louder but not to the point where you couldn't have a good conversation with your group. If you're sat in Matt's section, you're in for a treat.
Ashley M.
Came here for big group gathering. Did y make reservations and went to the rooftop on a Sunday afternoon. We managed to get one of the big couches with the fire but just because a group had just finished. We ordered first from the bar and brought over since no server came by for a while. Loud bumpin music if you're in the mood. Got some New Orleans vibes from the ambience and overlooking the street.
Patty A.
We were in town for a work conference and decided to look to Yelp for a recommendation. Yelp hasn't let us down yet! The view was amazing but the food was outstanding! Every single item was rustic and delicious and very satisfying!
Amazing food, service, and drinks. The menu is one of the best structured in the San Diego area. Loved their steak and fries! Will definitely be back.
Gabe Kelly
All very good but not excellent aside from server comping drinks after food didn't arrive for one person after 30 minutes.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Denise G.
Great little Rooftop for some cool weather cocktails. Love the ambience. Good proximity to the convention center and other things downtown. Haven't had a chance to eat here yet.
R B
We were looking for a light lunch later in the afternoon and upstairs looked cute. We were told we had to go upstairs to see a menu. Not many items due to a limited menu offered at that time of day. I asked what the flatbread of the day was (meatball). It sounded better than my other choice, so I ordered it. Food took a VERY long time to come out and it was not very busy. When I got my flatbread, it was a BBQ chicken flatbread. I told the server it wasn't what I ordered and I wouldn't have gotten it if I'd known. His answer? Yeah, they switched it up on me. That's it. No apology. My husband got 3 big chicken wings in a teeny tiny shallow bowl causing him to struggle with eating them. He finally gave up. The only reason it got 2 stars is because my kids enjoyed their chicken sandwiches. They were also out of my first choice of beer.
Dane Cuff
First time visitors to San Diego and we enjoyed ourselves.
Do not count on dinner plans here. We had a reservation for 10:15 (they close at 11). I got a text from them around 9pm saying they would be closing their doors at 9:30pm, and we could still come in by 9:30pm. I immediately tried to call multiple times for clarification and no one ever picked up the phone. Despite the inconvenience, we rushed to make it there before 9:30pm and no one was there; the place was completely closed even though we made it in time. So we ended up with no where decent to get dinner it being so late. Stressful and terrible experience. Sidenote- I had also tried to call the restaurant much earlier in the day with a question and no one ever picked up which shows their lack of attention and care.
Atmosphere: 1
Service: 1
First time is San Diego. Rustic. Root was recommended by a friend. Rooftop dining is a vibe. The chicken was fried crispy and seasoned very well. The pork belly fried rice dish was also flavorful. The cornbread waffle was new to me, and it was a hit. The Texas Smoked Brisket Hash was ok, but it's not a must try. If you are in San Diego, give Rustic Root a try.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Pork Belly Fried Rice, Rustic Fried Chicken
Texas smoked brisket hash was pretty good! But unfortunately the southern chicken & waffles were not - was a lil' dry and tasteless.Service was excellent ~
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 5
Exploring San Diego with my family for the first time, we were on the hunt for a rooftop dining experience. Rustic Root had caught our attention, and it exceeded all expectations! Our server, Ilian, went above and beyond to ensure we had a fantastic evening, with his warm demeanor and witty charm making us feel like part of the family. Every dish was a culinary delight, served with precision and care. We're already planning our return visit!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Visited May 6, 2023.Met my girl here on our first date. She enjoyed the shrimp and grits, I enjoyed the pasta and shrimp.And then we enjoyed becoming each other's love of our life.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We were not able to get a good experience at The rustic root due to our server Mathew. The food looked good and I’m sure it would have tasted better if it was warm. We were not able to try our food warm because our silverware did not arrive before our food. We had reserved a table for 8 at 12:15pm and unfortunately there were not silverware wrapped for our table even though we had made a reservation. Our order did take a long time to arrive (30minutes) that is not bad for a group of 8 so I’m sure there was enough time to get silverware. Nevertheless, We asked for silverware because we had our food already. Our server said there were no silverware wrapped so he left for 5 minutes or so and he just brought forks for each of us in his hand and passed it out. We asked for napkins and left for 5 minutes or so and came back to pass out napkins, then he realized some of us needed knifes for our food and he came back with 4 knifes only. We additionally had to ask for ketchup and the sauce that was supposed to come with the stake. The server did not show any initiative at all and made the experience unpleasant. I would like to try the food again but maybe at a different time with a different server.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 1
Matthew was our server today and he made the experience a regrettable one. He took a very long time to get our orders that another server came to check in on us. She was very nice and we should have requested her to be our server. We orders and our food came out in about 40 minutes. We did not get roll ups (napkins and utensils) until like 10 minutes after our food was on the table. We only got utensils when we requested them and we had to request them often as every time he came to the table he wouldn't bring everything. Matthew our server came and handed us forks one by one, left to get napkins to give us one by one and then asked who wanted knives. He came back later with knives to hand us individually for the 3 of us who needed them. Then he finally got the ketchup we had requested from the beginning. At this point the food was kinda cold but it was fine. The potatoes were delicious and the lavender coffee was great too. It sucked that we got a bad server for our party of 8. I kinda wish I had not made reservations here.
Came for brunch on a Saturday (I recommend having a reservation as it does get busy) and had an amazing time. I had the southern fried chicken and waffles and don't tell my grandma but it was the best I've ever had and the cornbread waffle was well paired with it. We had Tipsy Daisy which was a little tricky to drink but worth the effort. Best of all was the service! Matt was attentive, kind and super hospitable. It was quiet when we arrived but as more people came it got a little louder but not to the point where you couldn't have a good conversation with your group. If you're sat in Matt's section, you're in for a treat.
Came here for big group gathering. Did y make reservations and went to the rooftop on a Sunday afternoon. We managed to get one of the big couches with the fire but just because a group had just finished. We ordered first from the bar and brought over since no server came by for a while. Loud bumpin music if you're in the mood. Got some New Orleans vibes from the ambience and overlooking the street.
We were in town for a work conference and decided to look to Yelp for a recommendation. Yelp hasn't let us down yet! The view was amazing but the food was outstanding! Every single item was rustic and delicious and very satisfying!
Restaurantji Recommends
Amazing food, service, and drinks. The menu is one of the best structured in the San Diego area. Loved their steak and fries! Will definitely be back.
All very good but not excellent aside from server comping drinks after food didn't arrive for one person after 30 minutes.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Great little Rooftop for some cool weather cocktails. Love the ambience. Good proximity to the convention center and other things downtown. Haven't had a chance to eat here yet.
We were looking for a light lunch later in the afternoon and upstairs looked cute. We were told we had to go upstairs to see a menu. Not many items due to a limited menu offered at that time of day. I asked what the flatbread of the day was (meatball). It sounded better than my other choice, so I ordered it. Food took a VERY long time to come out and it was not very busy. When I got my flatbread, it was a BBQ chicken flatbread. I told the server it wasn't what I ordered and I wouldn't have gotten it if I'd known. His answer? Yeah, they switched it up on me. That's it. No apology. My husband got 3 big chicken wings in a teeny tiny shallow bowl causing him to struggle with eating them. He finally gave up. The only reason it got 2 stars is because my kids enjoyed their chicken sandwiches. They were also out of my first choice of beer.
First time visitors to San Diego and we enjoyed ourselves.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5