If you work (or have ever worked) in theatre, you know these words well.  They are said by an often tired, overworked, underpaid and underappreciated stage manager to let actors and musicians know that it’s time to stop whatever you were doing and return to your places in rehearsal.  And that “whatever” we were doing has never, ever, EVER been anything important.  But once those fateful words hit the air, the energy in the room changes.  It means we are all now focused on the thing.  Back to business.  No fooling around. 

I’ve always viewed my break from this blog as kind of like an intermission or rehearsal break.  Just a brief pause for things like, pursuing other interests that don’t make me feel like I have nightly homework for the rest of my life, or working 3 other jobs to try to maintain some quality of life in the most expensive city I’ve ever lived in, or a global pandemic that had the entire food service industry circling the drain for a hot minute.  Y’know, normal stuff.

I wanted so badly to not discuss the pandemic on this blog.  Whether you were on the frontlines as an essential or stuck at home trying to stave off boredom, everyone went through their own flavor of Hell during Season 1 of COVID and I would love nothing more than to eternal Sunshine that shit right out of my brain forever but that’s not how the world works.  And it’s impact was too severe on the food service industry for me to ignore it now.  Plus, it’s not over.  Not by a longshot.  We’re back, indeed.

I know it’s highly dramatic to say that I feel like I’m relaunching this blog in an entirely different world than the one I created it in, but am I wrong?  This blog coming back was the furthest thing from my mind when I drove past my neighborhood Chilis in June of 2020 to see sad picnic tables in the parking lot with sad people eating even sadder food packaged to-go from 10 feet away but somehow was already cold once it got to their table.  All over San Diego, once respectable dining establishments now looked like a Hillbilly wedding reception (I’ve been to several Hillbilly weddings, do not @ me).   Seeing someone’s Dad trying to cut his soggy chicken crispers with plastic cutlery really broke something in me for a while there.  Just like his knife broke before he tossed his useless compost flat wear  to the ground and tearfully went at his sweaty chicken tenders with bare hands to glean some shred of the now-dead thrill of dining out.  Don’t even get me started on Little Italy.  I can not.

It was during this time that I saw a BUNCH of my favorite San Diego eateries shuttered.  But a few rolled with the punches, acted fast and got creative with how to keep serving the community and keep their business afloat while doing it safely in the face of a seemingly impossible public health crisis.  A few of these places, through these actions, gained me as a customer for life.  Others went the opposite way and will never again see me inside their establishments, many of which were shitty even before they served their food on the “good Chinet”.  As the years went on and the world at large attempted to stumble forward in the age of COVID, more and more places sprang up and shut down just as fast.  To quote Olivia Rodrigo (I’m very young and current) “It’s brutal out here”

Pandemic aside, keeping a restaurant afloat anywhere at anytime is a Herculean task at best (Blog post about this very subject coming soon) so I salute those who make it work to keep doing what they love.  Once enough time had passed, I decided I really missed doing this and was ready to give it another go.  A much bigger go than before.

And so The Boy Who Ate San Diego is back but I’m doing things a little differently this time.  I once again asked the internet where the best meal in San Diego is and they once again buried me beneath a list of names that took weeks for me to categorize and research before choosing the 10 places I’m starting with this season.  While I have not been to the majority of these restaurants, some I have already and want to share them with you.  Plus, I’m including some of what I call the San Diego “Icons”.  Places that locals have known and loved for decades.  I want to explore why they’ve stood the test of time and share that with you.  I’m still a pain in the ass when it comes to food preferences so my stalwart team of friends is once again coming with me to round out the menu and give additional perspective on the gross things I won’t eat or drink (BEER).

Plus, the Boy Who Ate San Diego is now a web series on YouTube.  youtube.com/@TheBoyWhoAteSanDiego Hosted by yours truly, I take you inside the places themselves and give you the “moving pictures” experience of the restaurants I’m reviewing.  You’ll hear from not just me but also my dining companions (a rotating and delightful bunch) as we recap our visit in our homes while making other food that we love to eat.  Since we’re the “talk about what’s for dinner over lunch” type of folks, this is very much in step for how my chosen family and I do life together and we can’t wait to have you at the table with us for all the fun.

PLUS The Boy Who Ate San Diego is also now a podcast!  The BW8SD: The Podcast will give listeners a deeper dive into the places and experiences that we cover.  We’ll discuss not only the place we ate that week but great food topics in general.  The best part is, unlike the YouTube series, you can play this in the car while driving and not wind up in a ditch!  I hope.  Please drive safely.  It will be available wherever you listen to podcasts.  I don’t know your life.  Link coming soon.

Does all this sound like sensory overload?  Has the modern age reduced your attention span to that of a sperm?  I GOTCHU, FAM.  The Boy Who Ate San Diego is also now on TikTok, serving up bite size morsels of highlights of my reviews and fun outtakes.  If you are over the age of 30 and don’t have access to a salty teenger to show you how TikTok works, I didn’t forget about you.  You can also enjoy these same videos on Instagram Reels, located on The Boy Who Ate San Diego Instagram.  Where I proudly stand as the first ever middle aged homosexual white guy with an influencer complex  in known human history.  Ever. I’m still just as wildly unqualified to review restaurants as ever (maybe even moreso now) so whether you’re a faithful OG reader of this here blog or you’re just now discovering me, good or bad I promise I will make it entertaining and if I can hip you to a new spot or infuriate you with a bad review of some bullshit place you love, all the better!  I’m so excited to bring this new chapter of The Boy Who Ate San Diego to you.  LAUNCHING JANUARY 18th, 2024, Y’ALL. LET’S EAT!