Ember & Rye

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

A Steakhouse with a View — and a Pedigree

Perched alongside the Arnold Palmer–designed Aviara Golf Club, Ember & Rye looks out over the 18th green and, beyond it, the Batiquitos Lagoon. The setting is vintage clubhouse — unhurried, California-easy — but the cooking is anything but casual. This is a Richard Blais concept, and the James Beard–nominated chef, Top Chef All-Stars winner, and co-star of FOX's Next Level Chef brings the same restless creativity here that has defined his career since training at The French Laundry, Chez Panisse, and el Bulli.

The Chefs Behind the Kitchen

Day-to-day, the kitchen is led by Executive Chef Jonathan Bautista, a San Diego native, James Beard Foundation Awards semifinalist, and 20-year veteran of the region's dining scene. Bautista draws on longstanding relationships with local farmers, produce growers, and markets to shape a menu that celebrates his Canadian Filipino background through seasonings and technique. The result is a fresh take on the steakhouse format — prime cuts and fresh seafood anchored by seasonal, local ingredients — with tableside presentations and creative specials woven throughout.

What's on the Plate

The steakhouse side of the menu is sourced with real intention: a 16oz Flannery Beef Boneless Ribeye dry-aged 14 days, a Snake River Farms American Wagyu Gold Denver Steak, and an A5 Japanese Wagyu New York from Kagoshima Prefecture sit alongside more accessible cuts from Brandt Family Beef. Seafood holds its own — Blackened Ora King Salmon arrives with summer squash, maitake mushrooms, and a nuoc mam chimichurri, while Baja Bay Scallop Ceviche and a Shrimp Cocktail with wasabi and Louie sauce anchor the starters. Even the sandwiches show the kitchen's range: a Mishima Ranch Wagyu Beef Burger with kimchi secret sauce, or a Pastrami Reuben on rye with kimchi-thousand island.

Cocktails carry the same wit — the "Not Too" Old Fashioned uses wagyu fat-washed WhistlePig Rye, and the Smoking Ember arrives encased in a citrus smoke bubble.

Recognition and the Wine List

Wine Spectator has recognized Ember & Rye with its Award of Excellence, citing a list that pairs well with both the steakhouse and seafood sides of the menu — ranging from Napa Cabernets and Russian River Chardonnays to selections from Oregon, Washington, and beyond. The beer program leans local, with drafts from Carlsbad, San Diego, and the broader Southern California craft scene.

How It Works Week to Week

The restaurant runs a full schedule of recurring experiences: bottomless Côtes de Provence rosé on weekend afternoons, a three-course prix fixe Industry Night every Monday, and Corkage Free Wednesdays for guests who want to bring their own bottle. Private dining is available for groups of up to 14 or up to 50, with views of the golf course and lagoon on both sides.