Juniper & Ivy

Everything was amazing, food, service drinks etc. Only annoyance was we were asked to wait for our table to be ready so we ordered a drink and as soon as the drinks came they were ready to seat us but couldnt transfer that drink check over for our dinner, and we had to wait to get the check and close out before we could even eat. Besides that we were very happy and impressed.

Our group of 7 foodies made an attempt at eating our way through most of the menu. The duck arrived last and we had to ask for a duckie box...

A lot of the food was pretty mediocre. I had the yellowtail tostada bite and I probably should have sent it back because the chip thing they served it on was pretty stale. Like they had fried it an hour ago. How hard is it to fry a little chip to order? So it was a lot of little things like that. Most of the food was good conceptually but just didn’t work. Another bite we had was the peanut macaron which was a savoury macaron - a peanut macaron with chicken liver mouse filling and a quince jam. First of all the macaron was too chewy and not executed too well and second all I could taste was peanut butter. So on paper the idea is sound but the execution was off and the ratios of ingredients was off. Like the corn dog bite, not a bad little bite but the batter was soggy - again making me think they had fried a bunch a while ago or that it was sitting in the window which maybe is the more likely thing because we were waiting forever for it. I probably should have sent it back. But the pasta I did send back. My god it was awful. It was like I was eating balls of gummy flour. The chicken with dates was okay and they saved the day with a pretty good pork pie - nice pastry and good flavour.

And I suppose I should mention the dessert which was the standout is say. The brown butter fudge cake was very rich and very satisfying - very good. But that was not enough to save the experience overall.

It was a really fun spot with creative dishes. I had a chef’s tasting menu and wine pairing. A couple of the dishes were OUTSTANDING (the yellowtail bite and the persimmon salad) but the other two were just ok (beef tartare bite and striped sea bass). The wine pairing was also rather unremarkable, but good. My husband got the $65 steak... and we were both underwhelmed. The lemon olive oil cake for dessert was fantastic!! Our server was wonderful and we had a great time but for the price we expected every dish to be YUM. We would maybe go back and order our favorite dishes again but honestly we’ll probably try somewhere else for our next night out.

Food was underwhelming and overpriced. The pork dish we got was flavorless and gritty. Like there was sand or dirt in it. Perhaps they forgot to wash the wild mushrooms off? Either way it was a pretty disappointing. Maybe we just ordered the wrong things.

Wonderful food with excellent customer service. It was our first visit and we are just booking to return.

Service and food were outstanding! We had squash blossoms, roasted duck, and dessert. Everything was fabulous! My daughter has shellfish and tree nut allergies and they were very attentive and reassuring about every item of food that was ordered. Our best meal while visiting San Diego!

Excellent service. Great wine list. The food was fresh and great flavors. Loved every bite.

Was very much looking forward to this meal, as we have had celebrity chef caliber meals before. Our service was great, but the meal was sub-par. I couldn't even finish the beef cheek. The beef was tender, but bland. The wife had the striped bass, it was edible, but not worth the price point. Recommend looking for another spot when in town.

What a wonderful place to celebrate! All the staff was happy to provide excellent service. The food was outstanding! I will be enjoying J&I again :)

The food was okay. It was a little *too* gourmet for us, and I hate sharing dishes, so it’s too bad I didn’t know that part beforehand. There were a lot of raw items on the menu (sushi, carpaccio, eggs, etc), which we are not against, but maybe you are. Good thing we weren’t starving hungry. Maybe we didn’t come on a very good day because the server told us that the menu changed every day according to what seasonal ingredients they got. I am not sure which of the dishes that I describe below are staples, but I know there was not any pasta on our menu (my fall back when I can’t find anything that sounds good).

We started with the complimentary sourdough bread and ordered a buttermilk biscuit with jam, was delicious and fed our table of 4. We tried the squash blossom “bite”, which was just one blossom that pales in comparison to Cucina Urbana’s squash blossom. The arancini “bite” was just okay. The chashu dumpling didn’t really match well as a dumpling. The 898 heirloom squash with pomegranate seeds was good, mainly because it was cooked very well and not overcooked. I did not care for the truffle bread pudding that came with the chicken on the SD Chicken plate, but the chicken itself (maybe a 1”x2” block) was delicious. Also delicious was the “small plate” of persimmon and burrata cheese. If we were hungrier we might have ordered another persimmon salad and another SD Chicken, but my party thought it just wasn’t worth it. If I were to do it again, I would just order the whole duck for two from the start instead of all the little plates. Lastly, we had the citrus olive oil cake with pistachio ice cream which we all liked.

The experience was wonderful!! Everyone was so attentive and wonderful.

The bites were phenomenal. Neither of us were crazy about the steak. It wasn’t bad. It just wasn’t at the same level as everything else we had. Since they were $65 each, we expected melt in your mouth decadence.

We will go back again, because everything else was superb. We didn’t tell the waitress about the steak because we liked everything else so much.

The yellowtail bite was the best thing I ever ate.

I can’t wait till I’m in San Diego again so I can go back!!

Excellent food!

Great food! Fun place while noisy... hard to really have a conversation at a table for five...Staff were great!!

Amazing food, everything was beyond delicious! Excellent service and ambiance.

The food was wonderful overall: some big hits and some ok, but interesting. Ordered different small plates and full plates, plus three desserts to share at the table. Everyone got to try a little bit of everything. Will definitely recommend and come back when in town.

The food was over the top. Great service, atmosphere. Would highly recommend to anyone for a special occasion. Food a little pricey.

All they had was outdoor seating available and it was weird. We were alone in this little area, next to the valet parking guys. Food was really good, but weird eating 5 star food in the parking lot.

Excellent service and the food was tasty! Nice place, would return here to dine again.

Went here for our anniversary dinner, and the entire experience was exceptional! They took excellent care of us and threw in a bunch of celebratory perks :)

We had a nice dinner and found everything to be of good quality and full of flavor, however, the dishes all seemed a little too heavily sauced and seasoned. This style surely appeals to some, but I think they could benefit from dialing things back just a bit. I wished we would have brought in a nice bottle of wine and just payed the $25 corkage as there weren't many bottles under $75 to choose from. I'm glad we tried this restaurant, but would likely choose a different spot if visiting again or stick to stopping for a drink and a lighter bite versus a full meal.

Warning, this is a long review but I feel it is necessary.
I made this reservation for my parents and I when they came to town to visit. I had heard great things and wanted to try it out and have a nice dinner. We arrived about 5 minutes before our reservation at 7pm. We were told to wait behind the hostess stand. There were several other people waiting there. The hostess came to take us to our table in less than 10 minutes. We were taken to our table that was outside. I did not request an outside table and we were not asked if the table was okay when we were seated. We were told that the heaters were just turned on so it should warm up. We were the only table our there and mind you this is a night in San Diego in January where the temperature is high 40s. We were also told that the server would be there shortly. Time has passed (it has not gotten any warmer) and the server has not come out yet. One other table was seated. The hostess took our drink orders and then some of our food order since the server had not come yet. The hostess was accommodating. While we were dining, the hostess took another guest to a table outside. It was obvious this guest did not want to sit outside so they went back in. We mentioned to the hostess that it was quite cold out and she said we could move tables to a one farther back and closed a curtain. It was maybe slightly warmer.

I am incredibly disappointed in this restaurant. The food was delicious but we could not enjoy it because we were so cold. From my point of view, it seemed the restaurant may have overbooked and decided to sit some customers outside. It is unfortunate that we were not given the option of dining inside or out (where it looked like others were). I give the hostess credit because she clearly tried to appease the situation but there was no solution for it being VERY cold outside. I unfortunately will not be returning to Juniper & Ivy, nor recommending it to my peers.

Nothing special. Pretentious food was not memorable and prices were steep.

Beautiful venue for couples dining especially. Very classy, very attentive and easy to individualize. Unexpected (but delicious) combinations delivered sequentially at the peak of preparation yield a dining adventure.

Great place to dine--amazing foods with incredible blending of flavors and textures. We thoroughly enjoyed our time there and all the amazing foods we shared as a group. The wine list is terrific. The Day Drinking with the In-Laws was exceptional!! Wonderful experience--so much so that we were the last to leave the restaurant.

Service was great! Food terrific, original and innovative.

We dined here because I wanted to see what a restaurant that was started up by Richard Blais was about. Our server Zachary was enthusiastic and helpful, and the food was wonderful - persimmon salad, clams and gnochhietti - and not as screamingly pricy as I had expected.
The room itself was a little noisier -and darker! - than I had anticipated from the on-line photos.

Special place, staff are engaged & fun. High level experience!

Outstanding fine dining experience that was not over the top as far as price and ooh la la. The Black Pepper Gnochetti was an absolute standout and was a great way to sign-off our trip. The Yodel dessert (the reason we came here) lived up to expectations. Unprecedented service from all staff. Shame it is so far away (we are from Australia) otherwise we would come more often no doubt. Would recommend this to anyone visiting San Diego.

This was our second visit to Juniper and Ivy and it has been fantastic both times. The food was innovative, very tasty, the server was great and the overall ambiance and service was top notch yet very relaxed. Love this place

Really enjoyed the restaurant. Went in with really high expectations, but was disappointed that the food was so salty. Highly recommend the Omakase kind of menu, you can sit back, not worry about what to order, and truly enjoy the restaurant and your company.

Beautiful dining experience. The food is so creative both in flavor and presentation. Still thinking about the steak tartare served in mini cones; the hint of heat in the sauce on the squash blossoms; and the elegance yet comfort-food feel of the pork pie with apples and brussels sprouts. I love their selection of wines by the glass so, you can enjoy the full wine + food pairing without having to purchase and consume multiple bottles of wine. This place is a gem; consistently delicious with amazing service.

The customer service was excellent throughout our whole visit from arrival to departure time .
Our Server was excellent! He was very knowledgeable with the food items. He checked on us frequently to make sure everything was good .
He made us feel very relaxed. It was a memorable experience !

The service and attentiveness were amazing, and not just from our server - everyone that walked by and it seemed genuine. We sat by the kitchen which was fun to watch and see everyone at work. I noticed quite a few times that a man that I assume was a manager (based on how he was dressed) helped in the kitchen with random menial tasks whenever he happened to be back there. I think that there is a very good chance why that's why every employee that we interacted with seemed happy, when you have leadership that helps out it goes a long way. Also the food was delicious, but honestly I was so floored by the service and atmosphere that's what stuck most in my mind.

It was awesome. Good food Good service

Fantastic food! Interesting and inventive combinations, reasonable prices. Good service. Busy, loud and crowded. Great evening. We had a flight of beers at ballast point then walked over to juniper and ivy for a spectacular dinner! They could easily be Michelin 2-star based on the food.

One of our favorite places!

This is an excellent place. I had the black cod, which was truly exceptional. I also tried the beef tartare, which was nice, but a bit overwhelmed by the other flavors. The dish that I did not like very much was the hamachi crudo. It clearly came out of the fridge as the fish was too cold, which kinda ruined the dish. They should've taken it out of the fridge at least one hour prior to serving...

Muy rica la comida

The persimmon salad was exquisite. I plan to make this a regular dinner spot for special occasions.