Bertrand At Mister A's

01/30/09

Consistently one of the Best Restaurants in San Diego

by danram9 at Citysearch

First time I went there was in the late 80's when I was eleven and the maitre'd made me put on a jacket from their coat closet. It was a very proper place back then and surprisingly it was rumored to be owned by the mob. Recently the formality has eased but it is still a very fine restaurant and one should wear a coat though it is not required.

Over the last few years we have gone there often for family occasions. Twice I?ve had the Beef Tenderloin with gorgonzola cream sauce. By far my most favorite on the menu. And surprisingly filling. Others in my party have had the duck and the salmon, which I sampled and both were excellent. The appetizers I?ve tried were the Lobster Bisque and the oysters on the half shell, which were served with a delicious cocktail sauce. And I?ve had a number of different salads, each unique with their various accoutrements. My mother said that the foie gras was exceptional though she was upset after I told her how it was made. I for one plan on getting it next time. Sorry PETA

I do have to say that I was disappointed in the bouillabaisse which seemed too loaded with mussels and other undesirable fish.

Service is excellent and the various staff is attentive and accommodating.

Besides the food, the true highlight of Mr. A?s is the panoramic evening views from the dining room. Mr A?s sits a top a building that nears downtown and the airport. The atmosphere is genteel yet the elegant setting is calming and pleasant. If you are in search of a fine dining experience at a classic restaurant then I recommend Mr. A?s.

• Pros: Food, Atmosphere, View, Service

01/20/09

Boycott this restaurant to help stop animal cruelty!

by bobs91919 at Citysearch

The Animal Protection and Rescue League asks you to boycott this restaurant to help stop animal cruelty.

Mr. A's continues to serve fois gras, the liver of ducks or geese which have endured weeks of force feeding, performed by jamming large metal pipes down their throats and filling them with massive quantities of food. This is the equivalent of forcing a 150 pound human to eat 60 pounds of food per day.

The livers of these poor birds swell up to ten times their normal size, inducing a disease that veterinarians call "hepatic lipidosis". These fattened, diseased livers are served as foie gras.

Please call Mr. A's and inquire if they are still serving fois gras. If so, then please let them know that you choose to patronize restaurants which do not engage in this horrific cruelty.

Your call will make a difference!

• Cons: Animal cruelty.

07/25/07

Generally great food, not worth the money, though

by amberelise40 at Citysearch

My boyfriend & I spent the weekend in San Diego to celebrate my birthday. We live in Chicago. On the eve of my b'day my boyfriend took me to Mister A's. At the time of reservations, he asked for a nice table as that we were celebrating. Well, we initially showed up 15 minutes late because we could not find valet. (Being from Chicago we just assumed valet would be available at the entrance.) I'm told they DO have valet, but it's at the back of the building (based on their address.) Funny thing is, we drove by that garage entrance TWICE and didn't see a booth, sign or valet person. We found meter parking.

We waited about 10 minutes and then were seated. There were a few empty tables so I'm not sure why we waited so long. Not to mention, we were NOT placed by a window, but were placed directly next to the bar. A large group that was waiting to be seated commadeered a 4 seater next to us, some standing because there were not enough seats and chatted loudly over drinks. I honestly think we were given the worst seats in the house as punishment for my boyfriend having the audacity to ask for a nice table. (We were given a glass of champaign as apology for the loud group.)

We ordered the mac n cheese as an appetizer. I personally love truffle sauce (Rockit's truffle fries in Chicago are to DIE for), but this mac n cheese was TERRIBLE. It had WAY TOO MUCH truffle sauce and nothing much else. The waiter did give this to us for free after we were asked how we liked it and we said we did not.

The veal medallians entree was very good and I do recommend that. I ate every bite and was extremely pleased. The food wasn't as good as you find at Delirio's in La Jolla, but still good. The creme brulee was the best I've ever tasted. So, all in all, the food was quite good, but for the price it should have been!!

I should mention the service was fantastic. We were served by Chase and were sure to give him a big tip. We loved him!

All in all, though, not worth the money.

• Pros: FANTASTIC SERVICE, mostly great food
• Cons: hard to find valet, expensive, some bad seating