DH and I have loved watching all the changes happening at the new UTC mall. I don’t think we’ve visited it so many times since our college days.
One of the newest additions, and one I was closely watching, is the opening of Eureka, a gourmet burger and craft beer restaurant. The La Jolla location is actually one of several in California.
We were excited to see that Eureka features several local craft beers, the selection of which changes daily.
Thai Chili Wahoo (Ballast Point), Brainless on Peaches (Epic)
We first tasted the thai chili beer from Ballast Point at a certain porcine party and really loved it. So I was super excited to see it offered here and loved it once again. It’s a light beer and the chili gives just the slightest burn.
Of course, DH went for the peach flavored beer from Epic which is actually a brewery from Salt Lake City.
Too late, after placing our drink orders, we noticed an option for a beer tasting flight letting you sample four different beers. We’ll have to do that next time.
Truffle Fries
Generous portion of signature fries infused with truffle oil, green onions and melted havarti cheese
DH feels compelled to order truffle fries whenever he sees them on the menu. Unfortunately, we didn’t really enjoy these. The fries weren’t crispy enough, too soft and soggy for our liking.
Corn Dog Lollipops
All natural polish sausage hand-breaded in a sweet cornbatter served with a spicy porter mustard sauce, ketchup and a cheddar I.P.A. sauce
I enjoyed this appetizer much more than the fries. They were quite cute and the corn dog batter was nice and light and filled with mini sausages which is a good upgrade from the standard mini hot dogs.
Bison Burger
Charbroiled tri-color peppers and Bermuda onion, smoked mozzarella, finished with a homemade bacon infused jalapeno jam
I love trying the more rare game meats, so we opted to order this bison burger. Unfortunately, the bun was not substantial enough to hold this burger together, with the bottom bun getting quite soggy. I really wished they used a thicker bun. The patty itself was thinner than I expected and not very flavorful. We didn’t really care for this burger.
I opted to get sweet potato fries instead of regular fries. I love sweet potato fries and these may be one of my favorite versions yet. They were thin and crisp, but what I really loved was that they were dusted in cinnamon and drizzled with honey. I adore foods flavored with honey, so that is what pushed these to the top of my list for sweet potato fries.
In addition to having a large craft beer selection, Eureka also offers a pretty big selection of whiskey, something DH really enjoys.
Whiskey flight
So before leaving, we had some whiskeys for “dessert.” I personally don’t like whiskey. It makes my throat burn, makes me cough and sputter. I took a few sips of the sweeter ones and they burned slightly less, but I can’t say much about them. DH seemed to enjoy them all though and polished them off.
Overall, we had an okay experience here. We were very pleased with the beer and whiskey selection, but the food had its up and downs. We were disappointed in the burger we sampled, but I would like to go back and try a few other burgers before making a final judgment.
Eureka (inside UTC mall)
4353 La Jolla Village Dr
San Diego, CA 92122
