Ironside Fish & Oyster has been one of my favorite spots for years. Having been born and attended college in Newport, Rhode Island, I have a natural affinity for seafood, and Ironside does it right. This beloved restaurant recently closed for renovations, and now it is back with the original chef, Jason McLeod, who is steering the ship in the right direction. Chef McLeod is not just a name on the menu; he is present and cooking, and you can taste it in the dishes he is putting out.
One of my former pizzaiolos at Officine Buona Forchetta, Kody DuBarry, left the woodfire oven to broaden his culinary horizons and ended up at the oyster bar at Ironside Fish & Oyster, where he shucks 100s, maybe more, oysters a day, so on a recent day off I posted up at his bar to see what happy hour at Ironside was all about. Spoiler alert: I was not disappointed.Â
I loved the happy hour menu; it was so enticing I didn’t know what to choose, so I did it all. Well, truth be told, I did not order my guilty pleasure, the Chowder Fries for $8, as once those are on board, there is little room for anything else. Fries smothered in house-made chowder, come on, you’ve got to get yourself a plate of those.
I started with a dozen oysters for $1 each and a Happy Hour beer for $6 and made quick work of both. The oysters were perfectly sized Kumiai from Baja. They were served with freshly grated horseradish and a delightful mignonette. I also thought their upscale version of a pack of Saltines was a nice touch. The oysters were slightly sweet, with just a hint of brine, and very clean-tasting.
While I intended to sit and talk with Kody while decimating oysters, poor Kody was a shucking fool; he and his teammate might shuck over a 1000 oysters in a shift, and happy hour is crunch time.
I ordered a cup of Clam Chowder for $7. As a New Englander and a chowder snob, I must give a shout-out to The Black Pearl in Newport, RI. Hats off to Jason for righting this ship. The chowder at Ironside had lost some of its original magic over the years while Jason was gone. Never fear, the Chowda is back, baby; it tastes fresh and full of life. Kody tells me it is made daily; you can taste the difference. They serve this heaven in a bowl with a killer cheddar biscuit that comes to Ironside daily from Frost Me Cafe & Bakery right across the street in the Piazza della Famiglia.
A man cannot live on beer alone, so I ordered a Daiquiri for $10 and the Ceviche for $12. The daiquiri was as expected from a CH (Consortium Holdings) bar, perfectly executed. As I downed my last oyster and sipped my daiquiri, I thought of Hemingway in Havana circa 1930s — Hemingway, I am not, Old Man and the Sea, maybe?.
Another time I will sit at the bar and have my favorite Bloody Mary topped with an oyster, chowder fries, and a lobster roll, one of the best, if not the best, in San Diego; I could sit, eat, and drink in this spot all day until the money ran out. Adulting sucks, so I pry myself away, but I will always be back as the siren’s call lures me in more often than not.Â
Ironside Fish & Oyster
1654 India Street
San Diego, CA 92101
Hours
Monday-Thursday 11:30 AM – 10:00 PM
Friday 11:30 AM – 11:00 PM
Saturday 11:00 AM – 11:00 PM
Sunday 11:00 AM – 10:00 PM
