Yard House

Yard HouseYard House
Yard HouseYard House
Bar, Eatery

1023 4th Ave
San Diego, California, 92101-4815
United States

// CLOSED //
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.82
Reviews:
46
Ratings:
73
pDev:
7.85%
View: Place Reviews
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by mmmbeerNY:
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Rated by mmmbeerNY from New York

3.95/5  rDev +3.4%
vibe: 3.75 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | food: 3.75

Sep 03, 2015
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.45 by halo3one from Georgia

Sep 28, 2015
 
Rated: 4.03 by GatorCoop from California

May 17, 2015
 
Rated: 4.15 by jshusc from South Carolina

Mar 09, 2015
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Reviewed by mrcraft from California

4.06/5  rDev +6.3%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.25 | food: 4
This Yard House is near the Gaslamp District in San DIego. It's a fairly large space both in the dining and bar area. They are known for having a very large tap list. This location is no different. Large doesn't necessary mean great all the way around. They had nice beers on tap, but also your standard stuff which is probably by design to attract the most diverse clientele possible.

I sat at the bar area and watched some college basketball. I didn't have any beers since I was at Stone earlier for a cheese pairing event.

I ordered their surf and turf burger which was a nice burger with some lobster claw meat on top. It was a nice combination and tasty.

My servers were prompt and courteous.

It's one of many choices in this area of town, so while Yard House is a good place to grab some beer and food, it's not a must stop for San Diego, in my opinion.
Feb 26, 2015
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Rated by Ucsbrandon from California

3.55/5  rDev -7.1%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 5 | food: 3
Great beer selection, mediocre everything else including food and service. Many better options in San Diego.
Feb 18, 2015
 
Rated: 4.51 by KarmicSkrambl8 from California

Dec 27, 2014
 
Rated: 3.88 by italianstallion from Wisconsin

Dec 23, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by double2chin from California

Dec 15, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by HunterSBeerson from California

Dec 08, 2014
Photo of Gavage
Reviewed by Gavage from Nevada

3.9/5  rDev +2.1%
If you have been to any Yard House, it is basically the same. A large bar that can seat a boat load of people, 100+ taps, and decent food. The layout here was a bit different since the dining space is a bit different from other Yard House restuarants. Loads of TVs through the place showing sports. The beer offering were typical for a Yard House with a few more local San Diego beers. Overall, this place is consistent to other YH restaurants and is worthy of a stop.
Sep 12, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by Bubbawilly88 from California

Sep 10, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by bigred89 from Maryland

Aug 24, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by sharkboy from California

Aug 08, 2014
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Reviewed by stevoj from Idaho

4.33/5  rDev +13.4%
vibe: 3.75 | quality: 4.25 | service: 4.25 | selection: 4.75
Something for everybody, beer menu organized by taste/style, making it easier to locate what you want. 100 taps...enough said. Take the trip to the restrooms and look in on the Keg room. Enough for everybody, even particular people like me.... Good selection of local, regional, and international
Aug 04, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by aoampm from Hawaii

Jul 27, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by SimcoeKid from California

Jul 20, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by cherche from Washington

Jul 18, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by James_NelsonIV from California

Jul 15, 2014
 
Rated: 3.25 by BubalooBrewMaster from Kentucky

Jun 09, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by bridell from Rhode Island

Jun 04, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by SavageHopHead from Texas

Jun 03, 2014
 
Rated: 3.25 by MickeyHops from California

May 26, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by HopsAholic79 from California

Apr 13, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by jeremy3311 from Ohio

Mar 14, 2014
 
Rated: 5 by ridd from Virginia

Mar 14, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by vfgccp from New York

Feb 18, 2014
 
Rated: 4.75 by heffIPAlover from California

Jan 22, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by sunny289 from California

Nov 07, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by NickMunford from Wyoming

Oct 08, 2013
Photo of sholland119
Reviewed by sholland119 from Pennsylvania

4.08/5  rDev +6.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 3.5
We stopped in to this location a couple of times during our week in San Diego since it was across the street from our hotel.

The place is big, with a huge oval bar, counter space and high tops behind, a good sized dining room. Downstairs is the "barrel room" which is open on weekend nights but which we did not get to. Sports bar like feel in general but a bit darker, which gave it more charm than the Yard House I visited in Las Vegas.

This is a mega tap place, 120+ beers, heavily concentrated in local and regional craft taps. To fill this number of taps with craft and keep it fresh, you have to have lots of the standard products and few seasonals. So the choice can be oddly unexciting for a craft drinker who has done a reasonable amount of traveling and/or trading and is looking for something new. We lucked out here as our visit was during beer week and there were some special kegs (GF 9th Anniversary, Hamilton's 5th Anniversary Black Ale, DDH Ruination with oak). But even on a non Beer Week visit, it's nice to have fresh Deschutes (even if it's *just* Mirror Pond), FW (even if it's *just* Union Jack), etc.

Service was really good, prompt, friendly and more knowledgeable than I would have expected. Food was decent, nothing memorable.

On the whole, if I lived in a town with a Yard House, I'd probably never go. But for an out of towner the experience can be quite nice.

HV
Nov 15, 2011
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Reviewed by berley31 from Canada (NB)

3.5/5  rDev -8.4%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5
Dropped by here a couple of times over our trip to SD, as it was quite close to our hotel.

A: Very "cool" atmosphere, or at least trying to be. Dark, lots of booths, pretty people to sit you. A large wrap around bar in the center of it all.

Q+Selection: Well... in terms of numbers it's obviously high (what, 120 taps I think?). But really, in the grand scheme of things, other than a few beers there's nothing here that's going to jump out at you... and I'm from New Brunswick, for crying out loud. A lot of the beers I've had on more basic U.S. beer trips. But, it was nice to be able to try a couple of beers that I've tried to clone since and can't get. I don't know about freshness though... the Mirror Pond I had seemed a little off.

Service: Served fast, asked if we wanted another when we were empty, but that's it. They WERE very busy both times, though.

O: I wouldn't seek it out, but if you're crawling in the area... you'll easily find something there that you'd like to drink.
Sep 30, 2011
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Reviewed by SaCkErZ9 from South Carolina

3.29/5  rDev -13.9%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3 | selection: 3
This may have been my least favorite place in SD. The atmoshpere was purely sports bar with no real ambiance or feel to the place. They had a shit load of selections but none of them were really any good. I think I had Green Flash IPA or something really mundane.

This may be a cool place for a large group of people to watch college football or an NFL game but the lack of beer atmosphere and beer selection would keep my away from this place, especially considering what else is out there.

The service was pretty non existent. I was served my beer and then forgotten about. I guess that is what you get at the big chains.
Sep 13, 2011
Photo of AdamBear
Reviewed by AdamBear from Pennsylvania

3.6/5  rDev -5.8%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3 | service: 4.5 | selection: 3
Atmosphere: this was my favorite part. it was just so big inside. of course, its a typical model of a chain restaurant, but it was nice being able to find a secluded booth in which just my girl and i could enjoy some good beer on a busy night for the city.

Service: since it is a chain restaurant, the staff are more than likely required to be as nice and chipper as possible. the bartender was fairly knowledgeable and willing to help as well.

Quality/Selection: very large, but not very great. it did have some great locals, but nothing rare. It really would be a great place to go and enjoy a great beer...if it were not in the area that its in. San Diego just has so many great treats to offer...so don't waster your time here!
Aug 20, 2011
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Reviewed by easong from California

3.33/5  rDev -12.8%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 2 | food: 3
Went here because I was staying in the neighborhood, and needed to get lunch before an afternoon baseball game, and the nearby pub called Neighborhood was not yet open (boo). Here am in a pub with nearly 100 taps, and nary a Ballast Point, nor a Port, nor an Alpine, nor hardly anything local other than a Stone and one Green Flash. I got a West Coast IPA which sadly tasted as if it were the first to pass through the tap line in a few days. Fresher in the bottle up in SF. Maybe the PBR and Blue Moon sells better here? As for the food, the thin-cut truffle fries are quite tasty -- everything else was large in size but average in edibility. As we were among the first customers of the day, the place was uncrowded and the service attentive and capable. With the huge wrap-around bar, and given the nightlife in the Gaslamp, I can imagine this is not always the case. This is not a place for BAs in SD.
Jul 31, 2011
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Reviewed by TheSevenDuffs from Canada (ON)

3.8/5  rDev -0.5%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4
Stopped in for a pint while waiting for check in time at a nearby hotel.

The tap list was huge - must have been over 100 beers on tap, most of which were craft beer. The selection was also decent, including offerings form Stone, Ballast Point, Alaskan, Sierra Nevada and others. Heavily focused on lagers and other easy drinking beers. Of the 100+ taps, only 3 beers were listed in the stout category and they included the liked of Guinness. Selection did include IPAs, DIPAs, a few porters and a lot of pale ales, ambers, etc. There were also a few house beers, but I didn't try any. I had a pint of BP Black Marlin Porter, which was excellent.

Atmosphere was very reminiscent of a chain restaurant, which this basically is.
Jul 07, 2011
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Reviewed by barbaraeliz from Vermont

3/5  rDev -21.5%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3 | service: 2.5 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3
We're staying in San Diego for 8 days, and have been hoping around town. Looking for a specific beer bar, we came across Yard House right on Broadway in the Gas Lamp District, one of the busiest and commercial and tourist-oriented areas in San Diego.

The restaurant is large, and the bar is in the center of the establishment. it's a little dark, there is definitely as hipster/commercial/chain feel, which the place is a trendy chain (they have dozen or so locations throughout the US). Downstairs, there are clippings from many newspapers toting the Yard House as a successful restaurant and business venture. You can also view the kegs and storage areas for their beverages in the basement.

The bar is set up in an oval shape with the 130+ taps all around the inside of the oval. There were some repeats, and several outs. The nice apart about empty taps is that there's hangers for them explaining they're dry.

The menu is large. Kudos to the restaurant for having the beers right up front. They're listed by ales, lagers and misc, then from lightest to darkest/most intense and by beer style. No prices are listed.

You can order pints, half yards, yards, and apparently it looks like they also do samplers. Did notice that Belgian beers were given proper glassware. A variety of split beers were also available.

Service was fine. I can imagine it can be slow or frustrating at times, because half of the bar will always be out of sight. Our bartender was polite and as quick as she could be. She made sure we had menus as soon as she saw us, got us the proper silverware and plates for food (which was just an order of fries) and offered to offer suggestions.

The biggest downfall to this bar is that even with so many choices, if you're an experienced beer drinker, you're going to have trouble finding something new or exciting. This was the second place I've seen in SD that has DFH 90, the first time I have seen it on tap, so if you're a local, that may be exciting.

They also have an extensive food menu featuring everything from snacks to full course meals. They have an O.K. wine list and about 30-40 specialty drinks and cocktails.

Overall, there is nothing that stands out to me about The Yard House as a border-line obsessive beer drinker. But if you're a casual drinker, or staying in the area (there are dozens of hotels in walking distance) or just need some place that will make everyone in your party happy for lunch or dinner, The Yard House is a decent place for a beer.
Jan 14, 2011
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Reviewed by Eriktheipaman from California

4.08/5  rDev +6.8%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5
The fact that this place is downtown means Ill rarely get to go there but I must say the food was great and they did have a ton of beer on tap.

I had an Oaked Arrogant Bastard which was great because its a hard beer to find and it wasnt any more expensive than the rest of the beers. This beer alone is worth stoping in because it can run upwords of $16 a 6 pack so instead just stop in and grab a pint!

The lighting was a little dark but if you like beer and dont mind going downtown Id suggest going here rather than the Hard Rock or something along the sorts.
Oct 13, 2010
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Reviewed by armock from New York

2.78/5  rDev -27.2%
vibe: 2.5 | quality: 2.5 | service: 3 | selection: 3
Atmosphere - As you walk in theres a bunch of seating with the big bar toward the rear. This place has a very corporate feel to it that tries to come off as a trendy club type of place that I'm not a fan of.

Quality/Selection - Yes theres a lot of beer to choose from but they're serving just about every average beer out there. There was a decent selection of styles to choose from but the beers where all basic versions no doubles or variations.

Service - I went on a Monday night after diner and it wasn't really all that busy but it took quite awhile for the bartender to serve us.

Value - The prices on beer weren't all that bad here I paid $6 for my pint before leaving.
Aug 10, 2010
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Reviewed by glid02 from Georgia

3.7/5  rDev -3.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4
This was the place closest to my hotel during a recent stay but the last place to go.

Atmosphere is good - similar to the other Yard House location I've been to (in Long Beach) with lots of wood, a large central bar, and lots of TV's. It's actually fairly similar to Flying Saucer and Taco Mac locations (although I don't remember the former having TV's).

Quality is OK. The temperature of the beer is good however the head is minimal. The glassware was appropriate for the beers I had.

Service is pretty good. We had to wait a bit longer than we should have to order drinks but after the initial order we didn't have to wait long again.

Selection is good. Nothing spectacular but a solid selection of local and non-local brews.

Value is a bit on the expensive side. This may be because the pours are larger (16 or 20 oz. I believe) but I'd rather have smaller pours and spend my money on different drinks. Maybe they have half-pours?

Overall, as mentioned before, this is my second Yard House visit and I remain less than impressed. They have a ton of selection but nothing exceptional - worth a shot if you're looking for year-round locals but otherwise there are plenty of other places nearby with a more eclectic selection.
Jul 02, 2010
Yard House in San Diego, CA
Place rating: 3.82 out of 5 with 73 ratings