One of our favorite things to do when we’re in the San Diego area is try new restaurants. There are so many great places to eat in San Diego County that we’ll never get to them all. Our oldest daughter said her friends highly recommend Campfire in Carlsbad so we decided take her and her sister out to dinner to check it out. It definitely lived up to the hype!
The restaurant is beautifully rustic and outdoorsy, as the name would suggest. The entire space and outdoor patio have a retro camping theme. The concept is to gather around the fire for good food and good company. We sat outside at the table pictured above. It was a little chilly but we were nice and toasty under the outdoor heaters.
The menu stays true to the the campfire theme with clever headings: “Trailhead” (appetizers), “Kindling” (first course), “The Fire” (main course) and “Trail’s End” (dessert). All of the ingredients are fresh and the combinations of flavors are unique and delicious. We started with the porridge bread which were rustic whole-grain rolls with whipped butter sprinkled with charcoal ash along with some cocktails. I had the sawtooth, which is their version of one of my favorites, the old fashioned. It was smooth and delicious with the addition of blueberry flavor. We ordered the carrot and the broccoli to share as our first course and they were both out of this world! You wouldn’t think that veggies could be this delicious. Our waiter highly recommended the broccoli because he said it’s by far their most popular dish. It’s flash-fried and then roasted and served on a chermoula spread (which we learned is an African spice) with crushed spiced peanuts on top. Even if you’re not wild about broccoli you need to give this a try. So good! There was no plate licking but it was tempting. The carrots were served with a sprinkling of marigold petals on a smear of fromage blanc. They were also really tasty and beautiful to look at. I would definitely order both again.
For our main course my husband and I decided to split the ribeye and cast iron roasted potatoes. It was the perfect amount of food for two and we even took some of the meat home with us. My older daughter ordered the brisket, while my younger got the market fish which was grouper. Both enjoyed their meals as well.
Dessert was of course – smores! You get to roast your own marshmallows over a tiny dish of hot embers. A perfect way to round out a meal around a campfire. We will definitely be coming back to Campfire again.
Have you been to Campfire? Do you have another good restaurant recommendation in the greater San Diego area for me to try? Leave a comment below!
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