Hob Nob Hill

After a conference in San Diego I decided to stop by a list place in before driving north for the camp Pendleton Mud Run. Since it was 4 o'clock and my first choice was closed I decided to check out a Triple D place. Hob Nob Hill was only 15 minutes away so I drove over for an early dinner. Upon my arrival I noticed two things. First, the it looked like I transported back in time to the 60s or 70s. Honestly, it was dark and dingy, not the most welcoming of places. Second, I was the youngest person in the restaurant by at least 40 years. This may be exactly why the decorations harkened back to their patrons younger days but also could be because I got there at 4pm.

I was quickly seated and just loved my paper napkin table setting. The waitress attended to me quickly, but she was oddly cold. I wonder what I did to make her not like me, but it may have been that she hated her life for working at this place. Just a thought. Guy Fieri ordered the lamb shank so I did the same. It came with bread, applesauce, mashed potatoes, and I threw in a cup of clam chowder.

So let’s talk food, the bread came first and it was a raisin wheat bread. It arrived warm which was nice and had a sweet flavor and a doughy texture. So far so good, I ate the whole mini loaf pretty quickly. After that came the clam chowder. The chowder had some decent flavor. It was a tad bit thin; I am used to a thicker chowder and for that matter, one with a lot more clams. It is always disappointing when there are twice as many potatoes than clams but it still tasted pretty good. The sad thing is that this was the best I was going to get today.

When the lamb shank and side dishes arrived I was immediately let down. The shank was grey and looked way overcooked and the gravy seemed like it was goopy and out of a mix. The mint jelly was without a doubt store bought and tasted awful. At first bite into the shank I realized that I was in for a disappointing entree. The shank tasted just like it looked, overcooked and flavorless. The gravy definitely added flavor but all in all the entree was flat and boring. The sides we even worse. The applesauce was heated up, probably in a microwave and the mashed potatoes had the gritty taste of the instant variety. Really sad and completely flavorless. I never put salt on my food as a way to attempt to manage sodium intake but I wanted to tear the cap off the salt shaker and dumb it in my food. Honestly, this food was unreasonable bland but it may be a reaction to the clientele.

As I stated before, Guy recommended the lamb shank so I had to try it and wow, that was pathetic. I am really starting to question this guy's palate. In summary, Hob Nob Hill was a place lost to modern times which wouldn't be bad if the food transported you back to that time as well. The problem is that the food had no chance in doing that, it just made me very sad to have chosen it as the only place I would try in my trip to San Diego. I would not recommend that you waste your time or money at this place; there are a hundred better options in the area.

Overall Rating: 3/10