Aidan Owens is the Culinary Director for two prominent San Diego restaurants, Herb & Sea and Herb & Wood. He is recognized as a rising star in the culinary world, noted for his youth and rapid ascent. Owens gained...
Herb & Sea is a modern eclectic seafood restaurant in Encinitas, California, known for its focus on locally-sourced, sustainable ingredients. The menu features a diverse range of dishes including a raw bar, fresh local fish, wood-fired pizzas, and handmade pastas, complemented by a vibrant atmosphere and craft cocktails.
Customers consistently praise Herb & Sea for its "insanely flavorful" and "perfectly cooked" food, outstanding service, and amazing cocktails. Many consider it an ideal spot for special occasions, noting its popularity often makes same-day reservations difficult. Reviewers frequently highlight the quality of the seafood and vegetable dishes, with some mentioning it as a kid-friendly option.
Additional Details
The restaurant adheres to a "farm to table or sea to table" philosophy, emphasizing fresh, high-quality ingredients in its culinary offerings.
Vegetarian options availableVegan options available
Best Times to Visit
Herb & Sea is open for dinner Tuesday through Sunday evenings. Due to its popularity, reservations are highly recommended, especially for weekend visits. The restaurant is closed on Mondays.
4
Marssa is outstanding, very attentive, detail oriented, and made some great gluten free recommendations for us.
Please know Herb & Sea is expensive.
As an appetizer the Cerviche and taro chips were excellemt. Great flavoring, a good portion, and fresh.
Our chicken was the better of the two entrees. Flavor was perfected with the chicken, but the meat was overcooked and borderline tough.
The seared tuna was very good, the smoked flavor was excellent. Our cut of meat was poor, stringy and not the best, it was a loose tuna.
Order the butterscotch boudine for dessert. Excellent flavor, a nice mild lavender whipped cream, and a great caramel finishing taste.
Avoid the mixed drink, it is pricey and not worth the pour.
We came for dinner midweek and were so pleasantly surprised at how good it is. We had the cabbage, the bone marrow, the mussel toast, and the shrimp as appetizers which were all insanely flavorful and perfectly cooked. For mains we had the snapper and the pork belly pizza which were both delicious. The snapper seriously had the best slightly crunchy crust, I can’t get over it. The cocktails were amazing too, I had the Sonora one with Tajín and I’d get it a million times over. The place is also super kid friendly which for us is important. Our server Ael was also so lovely and hospitable, she truly is the definition of ‘unobtrusive kindness’ in the service industry. That being said the hostess was pretty blase and not in a particularly good mood, which was the only part that didn’t match the rest of the restaurant. We’ll definitely be back though!
We come here to our birthdays and when we have special friends or family. The food is amazing, well priced for what you get. Service is outstanding. Still amazed on our second visit. Every table is packed and hard to get a same-day reservation. Started with the dinner rolls - wow. I enjoyed the half baked red snapper and shared the carrots and mussel toast. Delish! Barbara wine was so-so, I’ve had better. Overall wonderful experience, will be back on the next t event we celebrate.
I had such an incredible experience here — from the moment I walked in, I could feel the warm, inviting atmosphere. Everything about this place feels thoughtfully curated, from the ambiance to the smallest details.
Every dish I tried was absolutely delicious, but the pasta… honestly, it was the best pasta I’ve ever had in my life. You can truly feel the quality and care in every bite.
What made the experience even more special was the service. The team is genuinely kind, attentive, and very present. And I have to highlight Katie — she gave me the most exceptional service. So warm, so attentive, and made me feel truly taken care of. She is simply the best.
This place is a gem. I will definitely be coming back.
I almost don't want to make a review.....🤣🤣🤣 so I can keep this place just for myself😁 . I can't believe we didn't find this place sooner. Everything on the menu was farm to table or sea to table. The staff say they're known for there vegetable dishes and they weren't lying. We started off with 2 cocktails Peach,Peach,Peach, and 2nd D St. We tried something from each category, and we were not disappointed. We started with the Ceviche w/tarot chips, Embered Beets, house rolls, and Red Snapper. Then finished it off with Butterscotch Budino. Everything was amazing! We can't wait to go back.
