Starlite Dining and Cocktails

by Candice Vallantin
October 23rd, 2009

Photo: Frank Rogozienski

Local editor Erin Chambers talks about her favourite nightlife spot, Starlite Dining and Cocktails, in San Diego

If there's one local that new visitors should befriend and trust in San Diego, it’s Erin Chambers.

“I do have one of the greatest jobs in the world and I am just completely in love with my city, so I’m happy to chat about them both,” says the San Diego editor for citysearch.com, who ditched New York in 2005 to return to her sunny hometown. “I did one winter in NYC and I was done, done, done.”

And since she’s spent the past three and a half years hopscotching from one bar, restaurant or hotel to the next to vet the city’s new additions online and on air for radio and TV affliates, few people know the town better.

Given the opportunity, she’ll gladly lead intrepid travellers beyond the touristy and stilletto-trodden Gaslamp Quarter to more casual and genuine local hangouts.

Chambers’ first tip: stray east of the downtown core. “Because rents are cheaper, that’s where you find the local stuff,” she says from Starlite Dining and Cocktails, a hard-to-find cornerstone of the town’s cocktail revival. Chambers digs the venue’s expansive bourbon and whisky collection and old-school drinks like Sazerac and Pimms Cup. “Nobody has that on their cocktail list anymore,” she says. “These are old drinks that they’re not just bringing back, but updating and getting people to appreciate why they're great.”

Combined with local seasonal cuisine and a retro, intimate aesthetic, it’s no wonder people stray off the beaten path to find it.

DOOR

“There’s never a line and you’ll never pay $5 at the door. It’s a great place to come during the week. Saturday and Sunday get a little bit busy.”

DÉCOR

“I like its mid-century modern kind of design. It’s kind of a throwback, but with the wood ceiling and low lighting—it’s a little bit twinkly.”

DRESS

“[It’s] a little more independent, a little bit edgier, a little bit more creative, a little bit outside the box and a little bit old-school kind of scene.”

DRINK

“I’m having a Velvet Diablo [Casa Noble Crystal Tequila, house-made falernum, crème de cassis, lime, ginger beer], because we’re just miles from the Mexican border and I love tequila.”

DISH

“I’m obsessed with this charcuterie trend. I love artisan-cured meats. If you house-cure, you can get so many interesting flavours; there’s provolone cheese in that sausage!”