Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

For Encinitas, Solace Comes to Those Who Wait

It was over a year ago that I sat in the dining room of North Park's Urban Solace and interviewed chef and restaurant owner Matt Gordon about his upcoming second restaurant, Solace and the Moonlight Lounge (http://www.eatatsolace.com). I was the first to interview him on the topic, which I found surprising since the estimated open date at the time was September 2010 and this Encinitas offshoot was already one of the most anticipated openings in the county.

September came and went. So did October, November, and December. Fast forward to this summer, and many were starting to wonder if the project would ever be completed. Then, just when I (and many other foodies) had nearly forgotten all about that pot on the back burner, I received a communiqué from Gordon that come the second week of August they'd be open for business. This time the open date stuck, and now visitors to Pacific Station can get their first taste of the next chapter in Gordon's culinary evolution.

"It's surreal to have it open after so long," remarks Gordon. Of the delays and the part his choice to venture into Encinitas played in prolonging the process, he says, "I looked in a few areas and thought we could have gotten this done sooner somewhere else, but something about the location felt right. I love that I can feel the train rumble by even when I'm on the line or in the walk-in refrigerator, the ocean breeze, the vitality that seems to be a part of this community. I wanted in!"

The southern-tinged comfort food crafted using responsibly sourced ingredients is what made Urban Solace such a hit in North Park. Rather than stick to that proven recipe, Gordon is providing coastal patrons with something different and more suited to his new stomping grounds.

"When we first started in North Park, there weren't a lot of people doing a menu like ours in San Diego, but as the economy worsened, it became the new motif. That's not because of us...we just happened to guess right! So, I've spread my wings a little bit and left behind, for now, the mac 'n' cheese and meatloaf and some of the other staples that you can still find in North Park," says Gordon.

"We are going a little more coastal -- oysters, a couple of ceviche type dishes, and three or four fish entrées on the dinner menu. We've kept a couple of NOPA favorites like watermelon salad, cheeks and pork belly, but we've got some new stuff unique to Encinitas [like] a grass-fed beef tartare and mustard-crusted local halibut with faro and toasted peppercorn sauce."

The upstairs portion of the venue, dubbed the Moonlight Lounge, features a raw bar with delicacies plucked from nearby waters as well as Gordon's take on cocktail hour fare. For the rest of this week, Solace will be serving dinner only, with lunch service beginning next week and brunch (something Urban Solace has been well known for for some time) starting up shortly thereafter. Solace and the Moonlight Lounge is located at 25 East E Street.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

Nation’s sexy soldiers stage protest at Pendleton in wake of change in Marine uniform policy

Semper WHY?
Next Article

Croome Brothers Trio, Jack Tempchin, Ricky, Swami & the Bed Of Nails, Kahlil Nash

Acoustic and electric in Del Mar, La Jolla, Little Italy, and City Heights

It was over a year ago that I sat in the dining room of North Park's Urban Solace and interviewed chef and restaurant owner Matt Gordon about his upcoming second restaurant, Solace and the Moonlight Lounge (http://www.eatatsolace.com). I was the first to interview him on the topic, which I found surprising since the estimated open date at the time was September 2010 and this Encinitas offshoot was already one of the most anticipated openings in the county.

September came and went. So did October, November, and December. Fast forward to this summer, and many were starting to wonder if the project would ever be completed. Then, just when I (and many other foodies) had nearly forgotten all about that pot on the back burner, I received a communiqué from Gordon that come the second week of August they'd be open for business. This time the open date stuck, and now visitors to Pacific Station can get their first taste of the next chapter in Gordon's culinary evolution.

"It's surreal to have it open after so long," remarks Gordon. Of the delays and the part his choice to venture into Encinitas played in prolonging the process, he says, "I looked in a few areas and thought we could have gotten this done sooner somewhere else, but something about the location felt right. I love that I can feel the train rumble by even when I'm on the line or in the walk-in refrigerator, the ocean breeze, the vitality that seems to be a part of this community. I wanted in!"

The southern-tinged comfort food crafted using responsibly sourced ingredients is what made Urban Solace such a hit in North Park. Rather than stick to that proven recipe, Gordon is providing coastal patrons with something different and more suited to his new stomping grounds.

"When we first started in North Park, there weren't a lot of people doing a menu like ours in San Diego, but as the economy worsened, it became the new motif. That's not because of us...we just happened to guess right! So, I've spread my wings a little bit and left behind, for now, the mac 'n' cheese and meatloaf and some of the other staples that you can still find in North Park," says Gordon.

"We are going a little more coastal -- oysters, a couple of ceviche type dishes, and three or four fish entrées on the dinner menu. We've kept a couple of NOPA favorites like watermelon salad, cheeks and pork belly, but we've got some new stuff unique to Encinitas [like] a grass-fed beef tartare and mustard-crusted local halibut with faro and toasted peppercorn sauce."

The upstairs portion of the venue, dubbed the Moonlight Lounge, features a raw bar with delicacies plucked from nearby waters as well as Gordon's take on cocktail hour fare. For the rest of this week, Solace will be serving dinner only, with lunch service beginning next week and brunch (something Urban Solace has been well known for for some time) starting up shortly thereafter. Solace and the Moonlight Lounge is located at 25 East E Street.

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

An Angry Panda Descends on Urban Solace

Next Article

Octopus is the new black?

Area chefs offer tips to this under appreciated seafood.
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.