Treat Yo Self: $20 Friday Lunch at Blind Lady Ale House in North Park

There might be nothing quite so luxurious as a really good, sit-down, weekday lunch. With this in mind, the managing editor and I decided to start our weekend early with a trip to Blind Lady Ale House in North Park for farm-fresh pies, salads, and specials.

Run by Clea Hantman, Jeff Motch, Jenniffer Chase, and Former Stone Brewing Co. brewmaster Lee Chase, this brew pub is one hell of a destination for beer fans (they've landed on Draft Magazine's "100 Best Beer Bars in America" every year since they opened in 2009), and they take the crafting and serving of beer seriously, but it's not all about the brew.

The dishes on the vegan-friendly menu of bites, salads, and chewy, thin-crust pizzas are made with ingredients sourced from local farms. Their inventive pizzas, from the simple bianca al procsciutto topped with procscuiutto, olive oil, garlic, mozzarella, and fontina, to the super unusual house-made soyrizo, poblano chile, epazoe, and cotija cheese pie, are some of the best in the city.

Thought we usually think of BLAH as a happy hour destination, their casual setup of counter-service ordering and communals makes it a relatively fast place to grab lunch on Fridays.

Walking into the eclectic space, whose walls are lined with kegs and surfboards, was an instantly transportative experience. We ordered chickpea fritters, served with eggplant puree, preserved lemon, pomegranate gastrique, and mint yogurt, along with a killer seasonal kale salad studded with crispy chunks of lardon. Deciding on a pizza from their expansive list of standby and seasonal pies was more of a challenge. In the end we settled on the Salsiccia, topped with house-made Italian sausage, rapini, fontina, pecorino romano, and red sauce. A craft beer and an Arnold Palmer completed our order. We split the check, handing over around $20 each.

We lingered at our communal table overlooking Adams Avenue, sipping our drinks, devouring our spread, and savoring the break from our usual lunch hour routine. 

Feeling satisfied, but nowhere near a food coma, we emerged out into the midday sun less than an hour later. It felt like we had dissapeared down the rabbit hole for much longer, in the best way possible. 

Blind Lady Ale House, 3416 Adams Avenue, San Diego
(619) 255-2491

Hours: Monday to Thursday, 5pm-12am; Friday-Sunday, 11:30am-12am