Rice
Categories: American (New), Asian Fusion [Edit]
Neighborhoods: Downtown, Little ItalyW Hotel
421 W B St
San Diego, CA 92101 (619) 231-8220
- Price Range: $$$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street, Valet
- Attire: Dressy
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: No
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: No
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: Yes
20 Reviews for Rice
I went to this restaurant last night. It was a complete disaster. I wanted to check out the new design, which was underwhelming. I think the server was on drugs or something, he had the most awkward social skills, and was not very attentive. It took almost a 1/2 hour for him to take our drink orders. I order two dishes, and both I set aside unfinished because they were so bad. It's kind of a bummer, I used to like this place. What happened????
If only the price of the food was a teeny bit lower and the service a tiny bit more attentive, I would give this place 5 stars!!
Either way, this place has pretty good food!!! I went with two other girls to try their food. I had gone prior to sip on wine and 'party' at 'the beach' (which is also very interesting!!) but yes, their food is good and i never seemed to have trouble getting seated. i enter, seats available.. but maybe because i went around 7pm or later.
their dessert is AMAZING! i think it was something like a chocolate fondant! (please try)
I had the 5 course chef's menu for $65/person. This is the way to go at Rice.
You have to call them in advance when you make reservations and let them know you want the chef's 5 course menu. Ya know, give them ample time to prepare a delicious well rounded feast to impress you. When we walked in the hostess greeted us like "ohh so you guys are doing the chef's menu, excellent choice." They give good sized courses (not like those places where they call a spoon of something "course 1"). The service was very attentive, dishes brought out in a timely manner. All the courses were pretty solid. The only one that didn't impress me was the dessert course. Dessert is definitely not their strong point.
I wouldn't order a la carte because you end up paying more for less food. Its better to go balls out and get the 5 course menu and get more bang for your buck. Great restaurant.
I have never written a bad review before on any place, and can't believe I am about to do it now! We ate at Rice tonight and it was like the Twilight Zone.
1. Our server didn't approach us for almost 15 minutes.
2. Our bread tasted like Wonder Bread.
3. The gnocchi appetizer had (not kidding) 5 pieces of gnocchi. It literally looked like someone had eaten the dish and left just a few nibbles in the bowl.
4. Our pear salads were salty.
5. I was not offered a drink refill for the duration of our two hour visit.
I have eaten at many restaurants, and some are memorable and others were forgettable. Unfortunately, our meal at Rice was memorable for all the wrong reasons.
I have dined at Rice a couple of years ago, and the food was good. Not fantastic, but good. But now, this? What's up people?
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One morning during my stay at the W Hotel, I had an early appointment at the spa across the street, but was absolutely famished for breakfast. Seeing as how my appointment was less than an hour away, I opted to just go downstairs to Rice, hoping I'd be able to have a quick, but tasty breakfast.
Mission accomplished.
I had a delicious dish called "Hot N' Frisky" which was spicy chilaquiles (tortilla slices simmered in salsa) with poached eggs, queso fresco and avocado. I washed it all down with a glass of fresh orange juice. My waiter was quick and attentive (I should mention, however, that it was an early weekday morning and the place was pretty much empty, save for one other table of people in business suits... so I can't speak for how the service is when the place is really busy).
All in all: great food, great service. No complaints here.
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Went for Restaurant Wk., server had no knowledge of drinks or how dish was prepared. Bread was cold. Mushroom/prawn aptz was cold. Green salad was salty. Halibut was tasty, but Husbands' halibut was undercooked. Once our waiter did start to serve us, we realized that the first server was really our buss-er (no wonder he didn't have a clue),
We knew 10min into our experience there that this was a miss.
One bright spot was the coffee!
We wont be back to dine.
May however have a drink in the lobby bar.
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gag. the only reason i'm giving this place any stars at all is that i liked the decor, the server was really rad, and they bring you miniature bottles of ketchup and mustard. other than that, the food was putrid.
we went there for breakfast one morning, and sat outside, which was really pleasant. the bloody mary's were decent, so we thought we had just found a new favorite breakfast place. not so much. the food came and the whole mood changed. all we could do was laugh about how bland everything was. how to you f-up eggs and potatoes, and then charge $14 for it??? just ask the chef at Rice, whom they must have commissioned from a nursing home. no, not even. my grandma would have thought this "food" was lame too...
don't waste your time...
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I ate here a few weeks ago on a Saturday night and was surprised at how empty the restaurant was. I've eaten there years ago and wasn't that impressed, the same went for this visit. My friend wanted the sea bass, but they served the last piece to another table. I had the halibut and it was okay. The ambiance of the place was nice, but I was also surprised at how much older the crowd was considering it was part of the W Hotel (which usually draws a younger 20-something group of kids).
I gave this place three stars because their staff was friendly and the service was great.
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Usually rice fills me up, but eating at Rice's makes me want to order a jumbo-sized California burrito at Cotixan's afterwards. Nonetheless, it receives 4 stars from me because I did like my plate of food (something involving rice, avocado, and marscapone cheese) when I dined there.
1. Food: Good but like many other "fancy" restaurants--they serve anorexic portions. I found the fusion approach to rice interesting, but I definitely liked my dish.
2. Service: Not great but not bad either. It can be slow even when the place is empty.
3. Price: At a quick glance it seems affordable but once the dish is served you will be wishing that you could get your money back.
Be prepared to eat beforehand, or walk away hungry if you prefer.
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Of course I'm partial since I'm the Marketing Manager at the W San Diego, but Rice is a true dining experience. I'm picking up what Nathan H. (below) is putting down. Beyond the great service and excellent global contemporary cuisine, you have the added value of cozying up in Magnet, the restaurant bar, with a "Porn Star" martini or wiggling your toes in the sand as you snuggle by the fire pit at Beach and "cheers" under the stars. And if the night is going really well, you can always stay overnight! W beds . . . in-room service . . . and no DUI. What a bargain!
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Nothing can be better than having another amazing restaurant in the W Hotel!
Rice is the restaurant inside of the W Hotel in Downtown. A very snazzy venue with pretty good food and great service. A great date restaurant especially because of the W Lobby and "the Beach" for after dinner. The menu is pretty modern California fusion cuisine and its pretty tasty. I think its pretty pricey relative to other better restaurants in Downtown where Id spend my money first. But as I mentioned above, the added Lobby and Beach make it a full night out over at the W.
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4 stars over 3.5 b/c of the nice decor. i came here years ago for dinner and it was good but really just average with fancy packing. lunch (5 years later) really wasn't all that different. the menu selection was very limited and the although well executed everything kind of fell short. it wasn't that it was bad but the service was slow and there was nothing truly specatular... unfortunately, i think this place will continue to draw people b/c the W is the place to go with it's very excellent faux beachside hotel bar (on the 6th floor i think).
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While the food was good, I can' t quite give this place 4 stars. We had dinner there on a Saturday night as part of my girlfriend's bachelorette weekend extravaganza. The place was eerily deserted for 8 pm on a Saturday night. For such a hip venue and apparently good reviews on Yelp, I would have expected more people there.
For the first 45 minutes or so, the service was appallingly slow. I had warned our server that I was pregnant (as if he could miss my giant belly) and hungry (is that redundant?) and yet he chose to clear the table of wineglasses before he took our dinner order. And the bread basket took forever to arrive. I think someone must have heard us complaining because after a while, service greatly improved. When I asked for a refill on the bread basket, it came back overflowing. That made me very happy. The server also presented the bachelorette with a complimentary dessert. Oh and speaking of dessert, the "really freak'n good chocolate cake" (warm chocolate cake with a peanut butter ganache) was worth every single calorie.
No question this place is spendy, but the menu is very creative and the food is superb. Usually bring guests here for a nice, formal dinner with a little flair. And they give you cotton candy with the bill...c'mon, that's priceless (at least, that's what you'll be hoping when you SEE the bill). Haven't had a bad dish or appetizer here. Also, the atmosphere is elegant, modern and interesting. Might be a little too "LA" or NY chic for some, but go with the right attitude and enjoy.
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My dinner experience here was horrible. The wait staff didn't know anything about wine, in our party of six, everyone's food was either cold, over-cooked, dry, too salty, too sweet, or all of the above. My steak was well-done (a filet well done!!!!!!), and the panna cotta was rubbery, and you had a sneaking suspicion half the things they served were out of a box/can. We were one of six tables in the restaurant and the food took forever to be served on a Thursday evening. As you can guess, I was hesitant to go back for breakfast weeks later, but friends of mine were staying at the W, so I obliged. The chilaquilles were decent, but they couldn't make it spicy enough even after we requested extra spicy. The peanut butter french toast thing was the sugariest thing I've had in my entire life. After three of us each took one bite, we had to push it aside because out teeth hurt. We were on the patio on a beautiful day and for the two hours that we lounged there, we had refills on coffee, but every cup was lukewarm at best, and they said they had no way of producing a hot cup of coffee for us - a "fresh" brew was just as cold as the last.
I recommend lounging here, but you'll be greatly disappointed in the food and the service. I know others who have fallen into the "Oooo, that looks cool. Let's go there!" trap at Rice - don't you become a victim too!
Pros: At least the food looked cute, nice bar/lounge scene, good-looking people, decent mixed drinks.
Cons: Food was poor, expensive, service was sub-standard for the price and expected caliber.
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If you ever want to seem cooler than you are, invite friends here! Just walk in wearing your sunglasses a bit longer than usual and then mosey on over to the" hot hostess" and get a table, and voila your "instantly cool". This place feels cool, the name is "awful" but the food and presentation is great. Can't beat the annex over to the W hotel lobby bar!
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Mmmmm.... Pomegranate Martini's. Enough said.
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I brought my local SD friends here on a visit from NYC. The atmosphere is great, staff nice and drinks - YUM! The food was overall quite nice - the meat entrees being the best along with a green bean dish.
Food is fusion-Asian - they call it Pacific Rim - and is really just above average. I like the shrimp rolls for appetizer; seafood can be hit or miss.
The main attraction, however, is the place itself. The decor is ultra hip and chic. It is only fitting that it's the signature restaurant inside a W. Which means, this is a place to see and be seen, with food being a bonus.
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