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CUCINA urbana, San Diego, CA
Award-winning

CUCINA urbana

4.7
4.7
7085 Reviews
$30 and under
Italian

Make a booking

2 people
19:00
Booked 49 times today
Experiences are available.
  • Good for special occasions
  • Great for fine wines
  • Neighbourhood gem
We are a wine shop inside of a restaurant | Dining and design form the perfect union at San Diego's highly acclaimed CUCINA urbana, a California-inspired Italian kitchen and wine shop, located in the heart of Bankers Hill since 2009.

The restaurant boasts comfort and familiarity, welcoming diners to a country farmhouse with the added whimsy of a contemporary art installation.

CUCINA urbana is the originator of the CUCINA retail wine program where each dedicated shop allows guests to hand select wines at a retail price, either to enjoy with their meal for a minimal corkage fee or for purchase to-go. The wine list is comprised of many familiar labels as well as rare and small-batch gems, with an emphasis on Italian varietals.

Order delivery or takeout

Dining areas

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Price
    $30 and under
  • Cuisines
    Italian, American, Mediterranean
  • Hours of Operation
    Dinner Mon–Thu, Sun 16:00–21:00 Fri, Sat 16:00–22:00
  • Phone number
    (619) 239-2222
  • Website
    http://www.urbankitchengroup.com/cucina-urbana-bankers-hill/
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Executive Chef
    Tim Kolanko
  • Catering
    URBAN KITCHEN CATERING provides four star, stunning events with menus unique to your occasion. For more information check the URBAN KITCHEN CATERING link on our website www.urbankitchengroup.com or call Alison at 619.239.2222 extension 2. Or if interested in restaurant buyout opportunities, please contact Tiffany Tassano at 619.239.2222 extension 4.
  • Private party facilities
    From birthday celebrations and corporate dinners to graduation celebrations and wedding receptions, our space is perfect for your dining event. Our Wine Shop offers an intimate semi-private space for smaller functions, while larger groups are welcome to host their event using our entire restaurant as a private venue. We offer: wine specialists, who will design pairings for your meal, personalized printed menus, table decorations, specialty to-go gifts, and more.
  • Location
    505 Laurel St., San Diego, CA 92101
  • Award-winning
    1. MICHELIN Bib Gourmand 2023
    2. MICHELIN Bib Gourmand 2022
  • Area
    Banker's Hill
  • Cross Street
    5th avenue
  • Parking details
    Street Parking
  • Additional
    Banquet, Bar/Lounge, Beer, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Counter Seating, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Happy Hour, Non-Smoking, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Takeaway, Wheelchair Access, Wine

Featured in

Experiences

  • Feast of the Seven Fishes

    US$75.00 per person

    18 Dec 2024 - 24 Dec 2024
    A modern spin on an Italian Tradition, enjoy the Feast of the Seven Fishes, an Italian holiday ritual at CUCINA with a four-course prix fixe menu available from December 18-24th along with our a la carte menu. MENU: salt cod fritters + tonnato sauce + chicory salad lobster tortellini + saffron cream + trout roe + bonito striped bass + borlotti bean + clam + seafood brodo + salmoriglio chocolate budino + coco nib tuile + chocolate crumb + salted caramel + whip
    Feast of the Seven Fishes photo

Menu

View menu on restaurant's website

What 7,085 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.7
4.7 based on recent ratings
  • 4.7Food
  • 4.7Service
  • 4.6Ambience
  • 4.5Value

Noise • Moderate

Loved For

  • San Diego

    Great for fine wines

  • San Diego

    Great for fine wines

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
CUCINA urbana offers "exceptional food" and "excellent service" in a lively setting. Highlights include the flavorful short rib pasta and "delicious" squash blossoms. Desserts like tiramisu leave a lasting impression. While the noise level can be high, the vibrant atmosphere and attentive staff consistently make it a top choice for dining in San Diego.

7,085 Reviews

  1. Elmer

    San Diego

    22 reviews

    vip
    3.0

    22 reviews

    Dined 5 days ago

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 2
    The food at Cucina Urbana is fantastic. The portion size for the pizza is great! More than enough for one person. The portion size for the pasta was downright offensive! Dont order a pasta dish here without something else! Way too small. The dining room is WAY TOO NOISY! Almost impossible to have a conversation. They need to do something with the noise level in this restaurant. We could barely hear our waiter.

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  2. Lois

    San Diego

    49 reviews

    vip
    5.0

    49 reviews

    Dined 5 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    My husband and I enjoyed a wonderful dinner after our play. Our server, Kevin, is so knowledgeable and gracious. The food was excellent. We had drinks, appetizers, main course and desert. Everything was delicious.

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  3. Alexia

    San Diego

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined 6 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Service was kind, polite and fast. The food and drinks were phenomenal.

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  4. Jeff

    San Francisco

    3 reviews

    3.0

    3 reviews

    Dined 6 days ago

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 4
    We were expecting much more from this Bib Gourmand rated restaurant. Nice place with friendly staff, but the food did not match. Three stuffed and tempura fried squash blossoms came to the table only luke warm which means they had been sitting. Sloppily presented Italian chopped salad that was mediocre at best. Good but poorly presented pasta dish. Warm olive dish was fantastic. Just ordered gelato for desert… Amazing wine selection but our wine was indifferently placed in a small bucket with some ice cubes at the bottom. Not a bad experience, but not as expected.

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  5. Diana

    Orange County

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined 6 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Lovely experience, the food was amazing! Drinks were great too. Ambience was cozy. Servers were great! I have came twice and it is our go to everytime we visit San Diego.

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  6. JoAnne

    San Diego

    88 reviews

    vip
    5.0

    88 reviews

    Dined on 21 November 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    Our favorite local restaurant! Our waiter warmly welcomed us knowing us from previous visits. As usual he was spot on in suggesting wines, knowing the contents of each dish, and anticipating our needs. And the other support staff did an excellent job -- smoothly orchestrating the evening. The salad we shared and ate every morsel -- lettuce, escarole, radicchio, tomatoes, cucumber, almonds, chickpeas, and green beans with an oregano vinaigrette that was so, so, so delicious. My husband enjoyed his pepperoni pizza. The branzino was divine! We finished with a limoncello and vegan pistachio ice cream.

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  7. Michael

    San Diego

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on 20 November 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Our food was delicious, we got the pork belly appetizer, the ribeye pasta, and the beef cheek plate and it was all amazing. My son loved the kids pepperoni pizza and our waiter was super helpful and patient. We had a great time, even with kids and would definitely celebrate another birthday here

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  8. Ann

    Chicago

    6 reviews

    5.0

    6 reviews

    Dined on 16 November 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    It was a very successful evening of dinning. Friends are visiting from Seattle. We had a great time at the bar since our table was not ready until 5. With the attentive Bobby and Sean at the bar, we decided to forgo a standard dining table. It was a great decision. Foods were great, will definitely go back again soon.

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  9. Brad

    San Diego

    4 reviews

    5.0

    4 reviews

    Dined on 16 November 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    Did I step into a hot tub Time Machine and go back to pre-Covid restaurant levels? Staff that was actually happy to be there, pride in the food and cocktails and snappy service. To have a mixologist actually come up to our table and get to know our preferences to produce cocktails to having our plates consistently exceed expectations is something neither I or my partner have not singly or collectively experienced in what seems like ages. This is definitely now our neighborhood go to spot.

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  10. Mike

    San Diego

    1 review

    3.0

    1 review

    Dined on 14 November 2024

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 2
    The restaurant is very loud. The squash blossom and octopus appetizers were excellent. But the octopus came with 3 bite sized pieces and was $20. The food was good but not worth the price. Service was very slow. It was almost 2 hours from when we sat down until our meal was served.

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FAQs

CUCINA urbana offers takeout which you can order by calling the restaurant at (619) 239-2222.

CUCINA urbana is rated 4.7 stars by 7085 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Make a booking

2 people
19:00
Booked 49 times today
Experiences are available.

Order delivery or takeout

Google Map for CUCINA urbana

505 Laurel St., San Diego, CA 92101

Dining areas

Additional information

  • Award-winning
    1. MICHELIN Bib Gourmand 2023
    2. MICHELIN Bib Gourmand 2022
  • Cross Street
    5th avenue
  • Area
    Banker's Hill
  • Hours of Operation
    Dinner Mon–Thu, Sun 16:00–21:00 Fri, Sat 16:00–22:00
  • Price
    $30 and under
  • Cuisines
    Italian, American, Mediterranean
  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    Street Parking
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Executive Chef
    Tim Kolanko
  • Additional
    Banquet, Bar/Lounge, Beer, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Counter Seating, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Happy Hour, Non-Smoking, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Takeaway, Wheelchair Access, Wine
  • Website
    http://www.urbankitchengroup.com/cucina-urbana-bankers-hill/
  • Phone number
    (619) 239-2222
  • Catering
    URBAN KITCHEN CATERING provides four star, stunning events with menus unique to your occasion. For more information check the URBAN KITCHEN CATERING link on our website www.urbankitchengroup.com or call Alison at 619.239.2222 extension 2. Or if interested in restaurant buyout opportunities, please contact Tiffany Tassano at 619.239.2222 extension 4.
  • Private party facilities
    From birthday celebrations and corporate dinners to graduation celebrations and wedding receptions, our space is perfect for your dining event. Our Wine Shop offers an intimate semi-private space for smaller functions, while larger groups are welcome to host their event using our entire restaurant as a private venue. We offer: wine specialists, who will design pairings for your meal, personalized printed menus, table decorations, specialty to-go gifts, and more.

Featured in

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