Nicky Rotten's Bar & Burger Joint
Rancho San Diego
We were getting stir-crazy from being housebound for close to a month recently (my health), the heat wave this week and then the fires, so we decided to try to get out, even if only for a quick bite to eat.
Number One Son recently checked this place out (he had the Dirty Sanchez burger).
The Rancho San Diego location is one of 3 locations (there's also a downtown location) and essentially, it's an upscale burger bar.
For our first visit, I ordered the rib eye steak sammie, PLAIN, meat & bread with mayo on the side ONLY, (their description: PAPA’S STEAK SANDWICH - 11.95 - Grilled Rib-Eye Steak with Sautéed Onions, Green Peppers, Melted Provolone Cheese & Rottens Sauce on a Fresh Hoagie Roll!).
The wife had the Citrus Balsamic Vinaigrette Steak and Spinach salad (also their description: WARM STEAK SPINACH SALAD - 12.95 - Spinach tossed in a Citrus Brandy Vinaigrette topped with Applewood Smoked Bacon, Egg, Shallots, Pine Nuts & Sliced Choice Rib-Eye. Grilled to Perfection!).
There were more employees than customers at opening (11:00 AM) and we noticed several amusing burger paintings, a couple dozen big screen TVs, seating for maybe 100 plus bar, plus outside seating (not a lot of parking, however).
When the food arrived, the fries were medium cut and hot but obviously generic, pre-frozen fare but the sever didn't listen closely and I had to pry the melted cheese, sautéed onions, green bell peppers, etc from the sandwich. I'd also ask for the bun to be toasted next time (it was too much bread) and I'd order the meat medium well done as it was a little too tough well done.
Our total was just over $30 so we tossed our server a fiver for a tip and left.
We will be back to photograph some burger art on the wall for Hamburger Harry, hopefully they'll get my order right this time...
We also need to taste a few other menu items.
For our second visit, we ordered exactly the same thing and this time, the steak sandwich was exactly as ordered and the cook had toasted the bun without having to ask for it, a point right there. The fries were also closer to lukewarm. I should mention that the mustard and catsup squirts and the side of catsup which came with the fries (they should be kept under refrigeration when not on the table).
The wife's salad was close; this time with a different cut of steak and room temperature (not hot) dressing. She says she really likes this particular salad and may make a version of it at home.
Finally, our second visit was on-the-fly (unsuccessfully) attempting to avoid Friday afternoon rush hour traffic (picking up the computer at the shop) so I didn't have my camera with me to shoot a couple of pieces of their wall art for Hamburger Harry, which means we'll have to go back once more to taste their burgers...
The web site: http://www.nickyrottens.com/
Rancho San Diego
We were getting stir-crazy from being housebound for close to a month recently (my health), the heat wave this week and then the fires, so we decided to try to get out, even if only for a quick bite to eat.
Number One Son recently checked this place out (he had the Dirty Sanchez burger).
The Rancho San Diego location is one of 3 locations (there's also a downtown location) and essentially, it's an upscale burger bar.
For our first visit, I ordered the rib eye steak sammie, PLAIN, meat & bread with mayo on the side ONLY, (their description: PAPA’S STEAK SANDWICH - 11.95 - Grilled Rib-Eye Steak with Sautéed Onions, Green Peppers, Melted Provolone Cheese & Rottens Sauce on a Fresh Hoagie Roll!).
The wife had the Citrus Balsamic Vinaigrette Steak and Spinach salad (also their description: WARM STEAK SPINACH SALAD - 12.95 - Spinach tossed in a Citrus Brandy Vinaigrette topped with Applewood Smoked Bacon, Egg, Shallots, Pine Nuts & Sliced Choice Rib-Eye. Grilled to Perfection!).
There were more employees than customers at opening (11:00 AM) and we noticed several amusing burger paintings, a couple dozen big screen TVs, seating for maybe 100 plus bar, plus outside seating (not a lot of parking, however).
When the food arrived, the fries were medium cut and hot but obviously generic, pre-frozen fare but the sever didn't listen closely and I had to pry the melted cheese, sautéed onions, green bell peppers, etc from the sandwich. I'd also ask for the bun to be toasted next time (it was too much bread) and I'd order the meat medium well done as it was a little too tough well done.
Our total was just over $30 so we tossed our server a fiver for a tip and left.
We will be back to photograph some burger art on the wall for Hamburger Harry, hopefully they'll get my order right this time...
We also need to taste a few other menu items.
For our second visit, we ordered exactly the same thing and this time, the steak sandwich was exactly as ordered and the cook had toasted the bun without having to ask for it, a point right there. The fries were also closer to lukewarm. I should mention that the mustard and catsup squirts and the side of catsup which came with the fries (they should be kept under refrigeration when not on the table).
The wife's salad was close; this time with a different cut of steak and room temperature (not hot) dressing. She says she really likes this particular salad and may make a version of it at home.
Finally, our second visit was on-the-fly (unsuccessfully) attempting to avoid Friday afternoon rush hour traffic (picking up the computer at the shop) so I didn't have my camera with me to shoot a couple of pieces of their wall art for Hamburger Harry, which means we'll have to go back once more to taste their burgers...
The web site: http://www.nickyrottens.com/
