Oscar Wilde’s Irish Pub

Tried this place; good happy hr — good whisky, delicious food — awesome bartenders. Will repeat — check it out if you have not yet!!!

1^st and foremost this place is a dump! This was the second time going and the same rude pregnant lady was there. The food was amazing the first time. I ordered the hangover burger. It was the best thing I’ve ever tasted. I don’t know why but the second time I came the food was horrible! Not cooked right. Looked a mess. Obviously not the same cook from the first time. This place probably won’t last long.

I cannot say enough good things about this place! Very chill with excellent quality drinks and food! The two bartenders that I’ve met are knowledgable and sweet. Please frequent this place and keep it open! Stephanie and Twan are absolutely FANTASTIC!

A group of us came here on a whim because we heard it was «the new bar where Gossip Grill used to be». All we wanted was a cool place to have a few drinks, watch the game and get our snack on. When we walked in, there was only 4 people in the bar but instantly felt like this was the spot to chill. The drinks were on point and the prices were great too. We tried the Bacon Cheddar fries, potatoes skins and fish tacos. All of which were very satisfying! Didn’t catch the bartenders name but she was hella attentive and friendly. There was also a gentleman working who set up the patio heaters and made sure us ladies were comfortable watching some football and that was extremely appreciated. We’ll definitely be back and won’t be surprised when this place starts getting packed!!!

Stephanie at the bar is the best bartender! She is so welcoming, lets you know any of the daily drink or food specials and makes sure you enjoy yourself! I highly recommend checking out this spruced up spot that used to be the old Gossip Grill. They have cleaned it up a lot, added new décor, have a great variety of beer/​drinks/​food and the customer service is amazing. Check it out! Support your local businesses!

Service and food was awesome. Fish & chips were awesome!

Twan is absolutely amazing!!! Her service is always stellar!!! She’s bringing the chill bar back to Hillcrest.
Stephanie is also amazing! UFC 193 Rousey v Holm
Curry fries are legit!

Great food. Horrible service. Good use to be good months ago!

They will be out of business in less than a year. 12 ounce bottled domestic beer for $ 5. No thanks. The food is not good either. Cheese platter had random cheeses. The chicken tenders were burnt. Service-​ehhh

I had dinner here some time ago upon recommendation from friend… delicious fish and chips and best bread pudding ever. (I thought I hated bread pudding so just tasted a bite of my friends and was hooked) I returned recently for more bread pudding. Server was extremely pleasant with short dark hair… I wish I remembered her name because she is largely the reason I wanted to write this review. The desert was as delicious as I remembered and the kitchen gave us generous portion… but just as wonderful was the genuine, warm and thoughtful service. I came home and reminded my friends about this cute pub with great food and service… and easy parking. I wanted to do Unilocal thank you as well. I’ll be back! Thx so much.

Love this place. I recommend the bacon scrambled hash for breakfast, and the fish and chips or the toastie for lunch and dinner. Amazing service, great people, they make you feel like long lost friends every time.

Oscar Wilde is one of mine and my Dad’s favorite author and I love that my husband is a fan of Oscar’s as well. They have one of his witty quotes on the chalkboard which I love.
Well laid out place, beautiful décor. I hate that they have a dead area that is supposed to be their «dining» area. It was dead the entire time we were there. One of my colleagues had the best idea, she suggested that they put a bar in the lonely dinning area with some ac. Hot is the new normal in San Diego people get used to it. Having said these things, if it ever drops below 90 in San Diego, I would hang out in that area and throw darts, but they need a tv there and ac.
The staff: five stars, attentive and very, very welcoming to new visitors. The lady bartender who is «with child» was patient, funny and sweet as ever. :) I wish her all the best.
Beautiful patio outside, lot’s of high def televisions. Outdoor bar with a high def tv, hello?
I love this place, I will be back. I just love the look, feel and atmosphere. :)

It’s official. I had the best Fish & Chips I’ve ever had. Great beer selection and a great poured Guinness.

If you’re looking for a good Irish Pub, your search has ended. First off the Guinness here is the best around. Most places don’t know how to serve it properly, too cold or poured wrong. It goes down smooth like milk, and doesn’t leave you bloated feeling. Irish Coffee here is also great made with thick homemade cream. Many varieties of beers on tap: Hillcrest Banana Hammock from next door, Alpine from East County, Mother Earth from North County, Racer 5 from NorCal are some favorites.
If it’s pub food you want, then the Fish and Chips are awesome real juicy flaky Haddock, like I remember having in the UK. But the menu doesn’t stop there, I had a Salmon filet on quinoa that was amazing. One time I substituted salad for Chips on the Fish and Chips (to be healthy) and was shocked at how much I enjoyed the salad, so now I actually prefer the salad. I also like the Irish (French) Onion Soup. Roasted Brussels with Pork Belly is killer. The chef, Elaine, has made a lot of updates to the menu and keeps a close eye on the quality and follows up with customers to make sure everything is good. Irish Breakfast is great too, and a nice way to start a visit to the Sunday Farmers Market next door. Oh. and where else can you get homemade Guinness ice cream?
The Bartenders and Wait staff are all fun, if something isn’t right (and you are nice), they will bend over backwards to make it right. Also Wednesday trivia night is a hoot and good excuse for me to get out of the house. Sometimes there is music with Irish fiddlers if that is your thing. Ultimately even if you’re not into all things Irish, it’s a fun place to hang out and have great food and drink.

Where Grown Folks Dine
There are a lot of places to eat in Hillcrest, but there are very few places where you don’t mind spending $$$ for good food. Don’t get caught up in the «atmosphere» reviews. Its all about the food and the company you keep. The food is great, well priced and you won’t leave disappointed.

This place is still in it’s new phase and I’m sure they are working out the kinks. I had some drinks and apps with a friend here a couple weeks ago. The food was hit or miss. Our stuffed squash blossom was excellent, so full of flavor, yet our fried fish fritters were bland and flavorless. The house Cabernet was pretty good for $ 6.50. My friend enjoyed her vodka sodas as well.
Our server was great! She definitely elevated our experience. She was very attentive and friendly!
The décor is too bland/​sterile/​vanilla for me. It’s classy-​ish yet totally forgettable. Something about the décor does NOT signify Irish Pub, more like classy eatery for old people. The atmosphere simply does not make me want to hang out here… which probably can be partly blamed on the super bright lighting over our table. It was almost like a spotlight.
Overall, the food was so/​so, the drinks were good, but they lost me at the atmosphere… I won’t be rushing back with all the options in the area.

How much do I love Oscar Wilde’s? Let me count the ways…
1. Unbelievably amazing staff. Claire is phenomenal. Incredibly attentive and easy on the eyes *bow chicka bow booww*
2. Delicious food! They really go hard on the Irish pub style eats. The Mac & Cheese was so damn good. 3 different cheeses. The Gator Bites in Curry were ridiculously tasty as well. Elaina is the chef and she will treat you right.
3. Great beer selection on tap. I got a Space Dust IPA from Elysian Brewing. Claire will also mix you whatever you want. Top notch bartender with skills for days.
Overall amazing place. Definitely stop by when you have the chance!

We were SO EXCITED when something finally opened up in the spot that formerly housed our beloved Gossip Grill, if only because it added another place that we could easily walk to (sometimes we’re lazy and the new GG is just too far away.)
We initially stopped in for a couple of drinks, just to see how the place had changed. The most welcome change was the reconfiguration of the restrooms. No more awkwardly standing in line to go into the single stall who’s door opened up pretty much facing the outside. Hooray! In terms of layout, etc. not much else has changed, but that’s okay because I always felt like the flow was pretty decent.
They have a good happy hour, a decent beer list and some fun cocktails (with whiskey everywhere) just like you’d expect from a place in Hillcrest and/​or an Irish Pub. So with that, we immediately decided on a return trip to check out the food. Fortunately for us, we were in the mood for burgers and Oscar Wilde’s participated in the City Beat Burger week. For $ 5 we each tried the Dubliner — one with rashers on the side, one as planned. FYI — rashers are basically a much more delicious Canadian bacon. We opted to order fries and beer from the happy hour menu, which gave us more options for a «$ 10 meal.» I’m so glad we tried this place out. I’m definitely going to find a way to add it in to the rotation.
What’s even better than the food though? The service. It was on point, and because we were in a little early, we were able to interact well with the bartender and one waitress. The waitress was so cute because she was truly excited to have learned how to clean the bar glasses. It’s awesome to see someone loving their job (and learning) so much.
Anyway, definitely worth a stop in when you’re in the ‘hood. Bonus — there’s a parking lot (shared with HBC) so you won’t necessarily have to worry about that.

We had a party of 11 and everything was perfect. Service at the bar with Stephanie was very welcoming and started the Sunday funday. Angie and
Ryne took great care of our party to celebrate a birthday party. This is the new Gem in Hillcrest. Pay them s visit.

A brand new Irish Pub? I say let me in! I stopped in on a Saturday morning for brunch and found a wild boar bacon hash with fingerling potatoes and red and green peppers. The meal, to my surprise, did not come with toast, so you have to order it as a side (
).
The hash was very flavorful, especially the wild boar bacon. It had a milder flavor than I thought it was going and it saltiness was mellow as well. In my opinion, it needed to be crispier to give the hash the texture it needed, because all everything else on the plate was soft. The scrambled eggs were fluffy and light, but needed seasoning, and the fingerling potatoes were well cooked and soft as well. The peppers were a little over done, which made them soft too. I would of liked of have seen them crisp and vibrant, which would of allowed them to make a splash in the hash (
).
In the end, it was a good hash, but if they would correct its seasoning, keep those peppers crisp, as well as the bacon, well this hash would be a winner. I also would suggest they offer some sort of compote or jam with the English Muffins or toast they offer on the side. The muffins were good, but they needed something to go along with them (
).
Service was pleasant and provided by Veronica. She excelled in timely service and good conversation. The Hash was $ 12 and 3.5 stars for now…