Hanging Out At Union Kitchen & Tap Gaslamp On An NFL Sunday Funday
By Kevin Wilkerson, PubClub.com San Diego Blogger
Sunday afternoon in sunny San Diego and the available options of things to do were as endless as summer in Southern California.
Since it was lunchtime – brunchtime on a weekend! – and it was the opening weekend of the NFL, I decided to stay local and cruise the Gaslamp Quarter looking for a good brunch restaurant/bar.
My choices were many tho I had certain criteria: the place had to have bottomless mimosas, those mimosas had to be no more than $15, and it had to have a large and lively crowd.
I walked past a few places on Fourth Ave., and then turned onto the lower end of Fifth Ave., near the Convention Center. As I walked past Union Kitchen & Tap, I saw a crowd. The people were all wearing football jerseys with “8 Aikman,” “4 Prescott” on them and the place offered bottomless mimosas for $15. I had stumbled into the fall Sunday hangout of transplanted Texans, the “official bar” of San Diego Dallas Cowboys fans.
As if by fate, a bar stool opened up at the back bar and I settled into my seat. It was 12:30 and the bottomless mimosas expired at 2 p.m. Three o’clock would have been better but good bartenders will “top you off” a couple of times after the expired time. From the menu, I dove into my Southern roots and ordered the Country Fried Steak ($15.95; brunch items range from $12-19).
“Oh it’s huge,” the bartender said. “Good choice.”
It turned out to be huge all right, Texas huge, in fact. It’s just too bad it did not taste as good as it looked. Er, gourmet chef, have you ever heard of seasoning the steak before you cook it? Forget the fantastic presentation and please focus on the flavor.
Anyway, the bar got lively whenever the Cowboys scored, which on this Sunday was frequent. A group brought in cowbells (what, are they Mississippi State alumni?) and clanged them with every Dallas point. If you’re a Cowboys fan in San Diego, Union Kitchen & Tap is the place for you.
Just as I was about to wrap up my experience there and move onto another place, a sudden turn of events kept me glued to my barstool. An attractive blonde plopped down right next to me. And she was alone.
Well, so much for checking out any other place! The girl, who was wearing a Cowboys jersey, put a blue purse with a big white star on it onto the bar.
Turns out she was not from Texas but just up the coast in Long Beach and for some reason, has always liked the Cowboys. Her name was Rosia (I’m not sure how to spell it and but it’s pronounced Rose-e-a) and even though 2 o’clock had just passed, the kindly bartender topped off my mimosa.
I wasn’t going anywhere folks!
With Rosia, the mimosas and the cheerful demeanor of the Cowboys fans who were enjoying a rout over the New York Giants, things became quite lively at the ‘ol Union Kitchen. I even started talking to a guy sitting on the other side of Rosia, a Texas A&M fan who was in town on business.
It was obvious I had chosen well that day when seeking a lively bottomless mimosa brunch in the Gaslamp as it turned into another #SundayFunday in San Diego.
#sandiego
#gaslamp
#bottomlessmimosas
#sundaybrunch
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