Top Asian Fusion Restaurant in Oceanside
Pick Up Stix Fresh Asian Flavors
125 Old Grove Rd, Oceanside, CA 92057, United States
I had been sick with a cold for a couple of days and I remembered that wonton soup always seemed to have medicinal qualities. Went to order from Door Dash, and the only place open was a local Pick Up Stix. Before ordering, I called to find out if the wonton soup had a lot of broth. I was told if I ordered the large one it would. I thanked the person, hung up and placed and order for two large soups. Turns out with all the ingredients in the soup, it was just the ticket. what I didnt expect was another container in my order with a note attached saying, gave you a side of broth just in case (smiley face) Enjoy! I.WAS.BLOWN.AWAY! Called this morning and found out that the person who did that was the manager of the store at 102 Old Grove Road, Suite 6 in Oceanside, CA and her name is Danielle! Please give her a raise, a trip to Hawaii or buy her a car! She doesnt even know me, but to be that thoughtful for a complete stranger, is such a breath of fresh air. From now on...my favorite wonton soup will be from Pick Up Stix!!! (P.S. Im drinking that broth right now in my insulated cup to keeps all that goodness warm!)
Chins Szechwan - Oceanside
4140 Oceanside Blvd, Oceanside, CA 92056, United States
The first Chin's I went to was in Encinitas. I had no idea there was a Chin's close by to where I live. I was really craving salt and pepper shrimp, which authentic Chinese restaurants usually make it very delectable. Hot and crispy is the best. Chin's does not have salt and pepper shrimp on their menu, but I thought I'd give it a try by calling and asking anyways. I called and spoke to the host/front desk person, and he was so kind and friendly. He said they don't make it, but he knows exactly what I am requesting and will have the kitchen make it just for me. It won't be exactly the same as I want it where the shell and head left on rather the shrimp shell will he peeled and no head. I thought I'd give it a shot and try. I also ordered the Schezwan Eggplant. This dish is one of the top dishes I like from Chin's. It's so tasty!When I went to pick up my order, the host I spoke to over the phone was there. Just as he was on the phone he was so kind and provided amazing customer service. I really like how he showed me what I ordered to make sure it's what I ordered. There was one other employee who mentioned “it smelled so good,” and she didn't even know they made that. I love how the host and I joked that my my salt and pepper shrimp order is from the secret menu and only made by special request. I love add some spice to my food. I almost walked out the door without asking for the chili oil sauce, and the host remembered to ask me if I wanted that. Yes please! My order also came with rice. The shrimp did not taste like the usual salt and pepper shrimp dish, but it worked.Due to a great customer service experience and the food being delectable, I would recommend going to Chin's again.
Sushi 4 Reel
4750 Oceanside Blvd #A20, Oceanside, CA 92056, United States
Sushi, like most art forms, and it truly is an art form, isn't just about having fresh fish. It's about an experience, the balance of flavors, the creativity, the beauty in plating's, vibrant colors, etc.Being here in Socal you expect fresh seafood. Having so many sushi restaurants here in San Diego you are inundated with rainbow rolls and spicy tuna hand rolls and super boring menus, so to have a new place open up, you really are wondering. What are they going to do differently, will I see something I haven't seen. Taking a play out of the already proven and popular they use a lot of sauces that don't scream traditional sushi. They use a carmel sauce on 1 of their rolls. I've been to hundreds of places and never seen that, it's a totally different sweet complexity than the usual eel sauce which we all know. What about their honey sauce, or garlic butter sauce, you get where I'm going.Service is excellent from the managers to the servers. The owner is always there to serve and ensure you have a good time. All too often owner/operators don't press the flesh enough, but when your newer and this small, super small, it's very welcoming. Prices are reasonable and a true neighborhood place. I live down the street and frequently call in a pickup order to go.Some items I recommend are the bad girl (sans honey), you mad bro, caramel love (at least once). Their lunch specials are the typical 2 rolls, soup and salad, but they also have some plates like the salmon cheeks (not quite on that collar level, but something different than most). I did find their bento box a little pricey. Their samplers, roll platters, and the like are probably your best bet unless you are adventurous enough to really eat your way through their entire menu. I do find their sushi rice a little light on the vinegar and while their nigiri pack is dense, some rolls fall apart due to over saucing, so I generally stick with more basic rolls an ask for sauces on the side.The décor is very cool with more modern art than most any Japanese place you'll go to. The clientele are very much regulars and locals because of where it's positioned and how well you are treated here. What survives in this shopping complex does so on their own merit because there is no anchor. If you want more plate offerings, try Teri, if you want better ramen try Wulan. If you want more traditional sushi try Waraii, if you want more expensive try Love boat. Coastal sushi is a whole other thing with places like Blue, Wrench, Hooked on, Harney each catering to their own crowds as well.
Zzang Hot Dog & Chicken
409 Mission Ave, Oceanside, CA 92054, United States
This nice little joint is fun to visit. If you havent tried a Korean corn dog you should definitely give it a try. They have multiple options so every style of corn dog is unique in its own way. Ive never tried one so this was super cool to try. They were cooked to perfection and so good I almost wanted to try another one ! The service was a little slow, but worth the wait. The chicken wings were humongous and delicious. The sauces on the wings and the corn dogs are on point! U have to try it spicy with the touch of sugar to get the full experience. The water bottles I bought were the single small size bottles, and I believe they cost around 3 dollars which was absurd. I bought 3 bottles of water and my wallet shrank. The inside is a bit small but can hold a selected amount of people. The outside does have a few tables which is nice for outdoor dining experience.
Poki Poki - Oceanside 1
#3B-101, 3480 Marron Rd, Oceanside, CA 92056, United States
It's nice to have a dedicated Poke shop in Oceanside. Over the last 2 years they've popped up all up and down the west coast. We have a pretty solid Island population in Oceanside who was already getting poke from mostly Sushi/Japanese restaurants. The real explosion happened in LA and Orange County where hundred's popped up over the last few years. Having commuted there up until recently I had 12 poke places within 1 mile from my office, with no shortage of demand.I like to call these sort of assembly line poke shops “Chipoke”. Base, fish, toppings, seasoning. It's great because it focuses your decisions rather than letting your imagination run wild, but having spent more time in Hawaii than most (family, work, pleasure) it's not how poke is eaten. Now we use more prime cuts and a more westernize palate, but what I really miss is authenticity in style and ingredients. Poke is a side dish, not an entrée and being such pairs poorly when matched with only white, brown, salad or half/half. I actually prefer to order from a Japanese restaurant in that most will use sushi rice, again that acidity and the fish pair is a proven team. I really miss ogo, limu, kukui nuts, shoyu, ginger (not just the pickled kind) which to me are staples to poke. For those that make our own at home we've all certainly made meals out of it but heck even Whole foods uses more than just goma wakame as their seaweed salad. I get that their portion size is nice and filling, but more doesn't make it better.Some things I like are they are more generous than most on the fish scoops, more often than not most places will round down on the scoops, but not here. I love that they carry Octopus, but sad they don't carry scallops which to me pair so well with sauces. They are generous on all toppings and will even do extra crab for free. Not much in the way of binding or mayo which is great and it's not nearly as shredded and reconstituted. I love how even their mild sauce blend has flavor, but with they had more spice as even their hot is not hot. Their fish is firm and fresh, but they wouldn't tell me who their purveyor was.The service line moves fast and they have solid rushes throughout the day and most of the weekend. The prices are good, but being the first true poke spot allows them to set the bar locally. Their customers certainly make use of the outdoor seating which is nice since indoor is limited. The décor is clean, simple. The store is clean and simple. I'd wish they carried a soda fountain as that tends to keep people more comfortable in eating in versus canned drinks. Not having a larger variety of Hawaiian drinks is odd because Teri's has a dozen of them and Oceanside has sort of become accustom to island food and island drinks. They could use a 2nd trash receptacle by the door, they don't recycle and could use a staging area of sauces like sriracha, so it would seem that they really are pushing to go eating with packaged sauces only. A nice variety of Macaroon ice cream is a nice offering and to me shows they care a little more about the overall experience.I've made it a point to try everything from when I come here, what I get, how I pay. Don't get me wrong I like the food(sans rice), love the convenience, but I have to mention the hospitality is suspect overall. Half the line staff are excellent using phrases like (what can I get for you today sir?, what toppings would you like?). While some staff don't even make eye contact with you when speaking (not hot, mild or hot?) not taking into account the level of comfort each customer has with poke and ordering from here. It all cumulates at the register where you see the inexperience is top down. A lot of the weakness' can be chalked up to them being new-ish, but they have failed to take some opportunities to make right certain experiences of mine and others. I'll still eat here, but only because sometimes you just don't want to sit at a sushi bar to order their version and you want more topping options and it's close to me.
Harney Oceanside & Lounge
301 Mission Ave, Oceanside, CA 92054, United States
QUICK SCOOP: Average sushi, masked as awesome sushi by special dipping sauces. Restaurant is nice, service is slow, but friendly. Bottomline though, look elsewhere; $19-$20 specialty rolls are on par w/ $9-$10 specialty rolls in other sushi joints. If you really want the sauce, buy your own and get more sushi for your money elsewhere.The SERVICE:First time at Harney Sushi, no plans to go back. Since this place was listed #1 in Oceanside, we decided to check it out. I ordered ahead to-go based on reviews that service was slow. We were told 25 minutes until the order was ready; arrived after about 35 minutes, after struggling to find parking over a busy Labor Day weekend crowd. Order was ready after about an hour, and it spent another 20 minutes sitting on a counter while someone got around to letting us know the order was ready and then processing payment, but that was fine, we were excited about the hyped up sushi.The FOOD:We used reviews to pick out the most popular rolls. Surprisingly, many of the popular rolls have IMITATION CRAB (that should have been the first clue); we prefer to have legit sushi, especially at $19-$20/roll (most weve ever paid for sushi anywhere in the world weve had sushi)...I figured these rolls must be great! We also ordered the Monkey Brains (that sounded fun) based on some reviews. Many reviews kept mentioning pairing sauces (that was another clue) for each specialty roll; I love a good tasty sauce. Its only a 5 minute drive home, but it was too late, the Monkey Brains appetizer was cold (cooked fish...cold; not so good), but no worries, we bought (6) specialty rolls, and every single one came with either (1) or (2) containers of sauce (clue w/ flashing lights), probably why the rolls cost so much. Surprisingly, with so many rolls, we only received about 1/4 tsp of wasabi and a few packets of soy sauce. The sushi looked pretty standard to what weve seen before in average sushi places, then it finally made sense why ratings were so high; folks rely on the special sauces like ponzu and goyza sauce to add flavor to the sushi. It made sense after recalling a reviewer who was excited to get their favorite roll (Orange Crush) after not having it for over a year, only to find no ponzu sauce, and a huge let-down on flavor...because she relied so heavily on the sauce to make the roll taste better. A good roll should taste well on its own; you shouldnt have to dip it in a sugary or spicy sauce to mask the flavor with something that tastes better. I thought it would be fun to try them in different sauces, but after comparing the taste of each roll in soy sauce vs these special sauces, it was apparent the sauce was doing most of the heavy lifting on flavor. It reminded me of spicing up not-so-tasty veggies with sauces to make them more edible. Lastly, the amount of rice used was on par w/ low-budget sushi places. For $20/roll, half the roll should not be rice and fillers; you pay more for fish, not rice.The RESTAURANT:The restaurant did look nice inside from what I could see and the area outside was also nice, but ultimately, we just wanted good sushi.
Chilly Bears Oceanside
1943 S Coast Hwy, Oceanside, CA 92054, United States
Chilly Bears is an awesome small business that offers a unique set up, good food, great customer service, hospitality & camaraderie. I appreciate that food is prepared fresh upon ordering. The daily menu offers a different dish daily that is scrumptious cuisine pleasant to the pallet. Now, Chilly Bears has extended their menu to include Mexican street Tacos aka TJ Tacos theyre being offered & prepared by José & sold on exclusive days, such as Taco Tuesdays, being one of them. The famous Chilly Bears shaved ice is a must have, its offered In a variety of flavors & also prepared upon ordering. It is refreshing & readily available to all who are overheated or just want to enjoy a delicious treat. In a short time Chilly Bears has become a staple in the Oceanside Community because of its excellence & welcoming reputation. They are generous hosts...many surrounding businesses could learn a thing or two about quality customer service. Thank you Lynn, Auggie Pops & Auggies wife Tini. And now, Jose too!! Great collaboration, Long Live Chilly Bears Oceanside.
Top other services in Oceanside:
China Fusion- Vista Way
2530 Vista Way Ste J, Oceanside, CA 92054, United States
Delicious chinese food fast. This location is conveniently located in the strip mall off Jefferson or El Camino Real in Oceanside. This little gem is snuggled in between the Trader Joe's and BevMo!. The service here is top notch and the food is a solid match. Each entree is packed full of flavor and delight. The crispy noodles and sweet and sour sauce welcome your tastebuds as you sit down and let your eyes wonder the menu at all the tasty options. Their classic Orange Chicken was fantastic, with great depths of flavor. There crispy chicken bites were perfectly coated with a tantalizing sauce that made each bite more delightful. The chicken chow mien had perfectly cooked noodles, rich in flavor mixed with moist delicious chicken and veggies. The black pepper chicken did not disappoint with its own unique flavor palette and veggie mix. The meal portions were great and the price was a value for the quality of the meal. The exterior of the store was bright, clean and inviting. Service was quick and the take-out orders seem to go on seamlessly with their sit down experience. Fast and friendly. If you're in the mood for great Chinese food, this is your spot. Give them a try. Delicious!
Guahan Grill
4259 Oceanside Blvd #104, Oceanside, CA 92056, United States
The food of my (moms) people! I havent had Chamorro cuisine in a long time and this is one of the few times Ive had it out since Ive only really had it homemade.Ive somewhat had this place in mind and Im happy I finally got the chance to try them out.ITEMS ORDERED:Locals Deluxe (w/ mac salad & pork spare ribs)Chamorro Style Fried Chicken (w/ mac salad)EmpanadaTASTE:All the comforting feels for me as I ate my way through all the different items. I already had certain flavors in mind of how specific items would taste and the dishes all pretty much fit that.I had to go with the pork spareribs instead of the chicken option since I always enjoyed them as a kid at all the Chamorro parties. I was already expecting flavors of soy sauce and vinegar in an almost too strong way and these ribs were just that, in the best way. I say too strong because I think if you have never had these, you might at first find it a little too flavored, but once you get a bite with some red rice, its all good.Red rice is a staple with this cuisine and works well with any protein. The vibrant color is more dramatic than the flavor since its more subtle with just notes of salt & garlic I like to think. The mac salad was simple & good. I like the nicely sized portion of it compared to what you get at the Hawaiian chains these days. Compared to the mac salad at Hawaiian places, this is much less sweet. Also, I was surprised to not see potato salad as an option since Im more used to having that side dish more.I dont believe Ive ever had Chamorro Style Fried Chicken but Ill say its comparable to fried chicken, minus the breading part. So the crunch is not there, but also comes across less heavy.The Empanada I always view as a specialty item since since whenever Ive had it before it was in limited amounts and it always ran out. Its basically a nicely flavored shredded chicken mixture inside a crispy shell. Im use to a little more spice, which these werent, but they still were so good. Great freshly fried texture.SERVICE:The one girl who both took the order and brought the food out was very kind and friendly.LOCATION & PARKING:They are located in little shopping plaza which includes an IHOP with lots of parking so you shouldnt have a problem with that. Youll get all the warm, island feels inside with the woody interior and Chamorro styling.Im partial to this cuisine since I had it so much as a child. If you are looking for a comforting meal or something new and pretty approachable be sure to find your way to Guahan Grill.Cheers!
Wrench and Rodent Seabasstropub
1815 S Coast Hwy, Oceanside, CA 92054, United States
Formerly the Whet Noodle. Today, the same owners and chef. Asian influenced. Our party of four arrived on a Saturday evening without reservations and we only had to wait 15 mins. Inside it was loud due to a large group celebrating a birthday party. There are tables out in the back patio, but we were seated in front on Coast Hwy as our view. The heaters were Great! The atmosphere was cozy.The food here is very unique. The chef has a creative streak which is nice.There are several sushi rolls to choose from the menu. My friend ordered a spicy tuna with albacore, avocado and more. I tried it and it was VERY tasty!The chicken yakisoba is a generous portion with chicken. My husband I split it. It was delicious.The roasted cauliflower dish is a colorful array and roasted perfectly with nice flavors.I ordered an item from the daily menu, October 9,2021. Seared Wahoo, charred rice, roasted veggies $16. Beautifully presented, but it was a bit bland. I wanted more flavors. Looking back at my photo, there wasnt charred rice or roasted veggies. There are micro greens and radishes with a puree of something green which had no flavor. Perhaps I didnt get the correct dish? I wont order it again due to the blandness.Dessert: we shared the PLOT CAKE ( also on the daily menu) with coconut creme. The cake was a bit dry but the berries were nice!Despite my dish, everyone loved theirs and I would try this place again next time we are in town. I just wish my dish was the one described from the menu.