In the midst of all the insanity that's been going on this week between Coachella, starting a new job at my old job (more on that later!) and our friends' wedding in LA, apparently I had my 28th birthday.
Maybe it's a sign of my age now that I've officially entered my late 20s, but I was thoroughly exhausted at the thought of doing anything for my birthday except a nice, lowkey dinner with Ryan. And when he asked me where I wanted to go to eat and celebrate, the first place that popped into my head was the new Fig Tree Cafe in Liberty Station.
I had one of the best meals of my life (a filet mignon on the specials menu) at their Hillcrest location a long time ago and since then, every time I've eaten there, it's been amazing. The food is always just what I'm craving, the atmosphere is just the right mix of casual and special, and the service is quite possibly the best in town. And lucky for me, upon arriving at the new Liberty Station location, we found out that our favorite server, Letizia, was working and we were in her section for the night.
Two things immediately stood out to me about their new space: the parking, which is plentiful in Liberty Station and not so much in Hillcrest, and the festively lit garden patio which is going to be PERFECT for girls nights this summer.
After coming off the Fast Metabolism Diet and then eating like crap at Coachella, I had really been trying hard all week to be good about no cheese or sweets and having small portion sizes, but I completely threw that out the window the second I looked at their mouthwatering menu.
We started off with two appetizers, their baked meatballs and their insane cheeseboard. I mean, insane. It came with two Yorkshire cheeses, one mixed with apricot and another mixed with cranberry, a goat cheese rimmed with cranberry jam that was to die for, some Manchego cheese which I gobbled up before Ryan even knew what happened, and Brie. It also had two types of bread, some mustard, some jam, figs, raisins, and strawberries as toppings. This board is a thing of beauty.
That's not to shortchange the baked meatballs on praise. They were served with fresh Parmesan cheese on a bed of spicy tomato chutney, which was ever-so-slightly too spicy for me. Ryan, however was unfazed by the heat. Regardless, both he and I had to close our eyes with each bite in appreciation of their savory goodness.
For entrees, I decided to go with the Jidori Chicken in Sauvignon Blanc sauce with fingerling potatoes and garlic green beans. Meanwhile, Ryan went with their special for the night which was porkchops with a baked apple Cabernet Sauvignon glaze over it. I mean, their menu is fantastic, but their specials are consistently on point. Like I said, one of the best meals I've ever had in my life was from one of their special menus. That's what makes coming back here so frequently worth it!
We washed all of this down with a bottle of the Canyon Road Pinot Noir. Letizia suggested this would be the perfect pairing with both of our respective wine sauces and she could not have been more right.
Stuffed and happy, I didn't think I'd have room for dessert but I figured, it was my birthday after all. So we split their specialty, a fig bread pudding with vanilla ice cream. Happy birthday to me!
Fig Tree Cafe - Liberty Station
2400 Historic Decatur Road
Suite 103 (Next to Tender Greens and Luna Grill)
San Diego, California 92106
Phone: (619) 821-2044
