Escondido or Liberty Station? By the pictures, Escondido looks more beautiful to me so I'm leaning toward that. I've heard mixed reviews on the food, but I'm easy to please and the beer will surely be excellent.
I think the inside of Liberty station is much nicer. Plus there is more room to roam around, and there is a Bocce Ball court. Escandido's garden's are a little nicer, mainly due to the terrain. Food is fairly similar, but I think I prefer Escondido's a little bit more. Note, neither place is inexpensive for food, and is not your typical pub fare. If you are looking for a burger I suggest eating first then going. Near Escondido i recommend Churchill's. Near Liberty Station I suggest Slater's 50/50. Both places have extensive beer list.
Stone – Commander in the Crosshairs 4.7%, English Pale Ale brewed by Stone Brewing Co. Liberty Station in Point Loma CA Stone – Matt’s Thrill Rye’d IPA 7.8%, Rye India Pale Ale brewed by Stone Brewing Co. Liberty Station in Point Loma CA
Yeah, eat first. I've seen all of the explanations/excuses about the farm-to-table concept of the food preparation. The sad truth is that the food just isn't very good.
I have come to a similar conclusion. Though there are some dishes I do like on their menu, I feel it overall is not my favorite for a farm-to-table place. I especially was dissappointed at Liberty Station. I feel like they need to have a bar menu at Liberty Station with some good well-made pub fair, they can even make it slightly more fancy. Just give us some options! I have also gotten some attitude from the servers at the new Liberty Station location. While playing Bocce Ball we simply asked if they had some more shareable appitezers, like fries. She responded "We don't serve things that are at MCDonalds". Seriously? Screw you guys and your fancy notion. I am pretty sure fries have been around and are served in many different atmospheres (moules and frites?), or how about sweet potato fries. Plus they use to have onion rings and a burger (buffalo?) at their old location. The best thing about the Liberty Station location is the atmosphere to lounge and hang out. However, that becomes very difficult if there are no reasonable options for snack food. I am not going to drop $12 on three small quail kknots for a group of 4-6. I want to go, hang out over 2-4 beers, play Bocce Ball, eat some food and not have the bill be $50+ per person.
I've been to both and prefer Liberty Station. The food is pretty mediocore. Go for the beer. Stay for the Bocce.
If you need a big tap list at the food place too, then that is a good suggestion. There are quite a few other options within a short drive - Point Loma Seafood, for example. My current favorite during the weekday lunch period (when I am making those Company Store runs) is the Mariscos German taco truck that parks at the Amvets on the Pacific Coast Highway frontage road, just north of Washington. Why would anybody make that sort of implication? Even St. Archer has at least 3 beers on tap in their tasting room (supposedly). Perhaps, but putting up with the Miramar noise all day makes that seem quiet by comparison.
the beers aren't exclusive to liberty station, they have been hitting the company stores for fills as well. so all 20ish kegs each batch yields aren't being tapped at the bistro itself. there are a few new brews on their way as well!
