Dining Review: Mastro’s Ocean Club

Downtown dining forays in most metro areas are thematically rich thanks to detailed, illustrious interior design, but window views tend to offer little more than bleak urban tableaus. It’s a sharp divergence that’s missing from Mastro’s Ocean Club, the recent arrival at the foot of downtown San Diego’s InterContinental Hotel. 

Launched over the summer as the latest link in a family of high-end steak and fish restaurants which have garnered national acclaim, the floor-to-ceiling windows and open patios at this massive 300-seater (which previously housed Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse) give way to the stunning sights of the Embarcadero. Patrons on the first floor can watch residents and their pets making a playground of Lane Field Park, while second-story guests take in the sights of San Diego’s bayfront, including the USS Midway, Broadway Pier, and Cruise Ship Terminal.

Back inside, chandeliers cast subdued light on mostly neutral interiors warmed by leather, medium-toned wood, and earthy accents. That look extends into a piano bar, serving up nightly music (Sunday to Thursday, 5:30-9:30pm; Friday and Saturday, 6-11pm) along with vast assortments of wines and cocktails. Much of the former resides within a glass wine wall abutting the interior staircase, which includes selections from notable vino regions the world over and has earned Mastro’s Wine Spectator’s Grand Award, while the latter consists of page after page of supped-up takes on classic tipples as well as a considerable number of zero-proof options.

A French 77 marries the almost-herbal notes of St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur with a fruit-forward crémant (sparkling wine made in the Champagne method outside of its eponymous region), while the venue’s namesake bourbon-based Manhattan is rich with warm woody tones that pair nicely with the extensive red-meat section of the menu. As lengthy as the drink list is, three of the eatery’s signature cocktails — an Appletini, Cosmopolitan, and Lemon Drop — remain off-menu, and all are shaken with great vigor tableside before being decanted over dry ice, resulting in a colorful concoction that looks as if it’s at a rolling boil.

Dry ice also adds presentative flair to Mastro’s seafood towers. Those chilled vertical structures can get as high as two feet tall and are completely customizable with an array of fresh seafood, including Red King crab legs, jumbo shrimp, and oysters hailing from West and East Coast waters. Cocktails of those items served with “atomic” horseradish are also available along with Oysters Rockefeller, jumbo lump crab cakes, bigeye tuna tartare, and three varieties of caviar. 

Roasted bone marrow, a maple-glazed steak of Nueske’s applewood-smoked bacon, and fried calamari topped with zippy sriracha mayo and a sweet-chili dipping sauce round out Mastro’s composed apps. There are also soups (Lobster Bisque, New England Clam Chowder), salads (Spanish White Anchovy Caesar, Chopped Iceberg Wedge, Burrata with Heirloom Tomato and Peach), and a sushi menu developed for Mastro’s by acclaimed chef Angel Carbajal of Cabo San Lucas’ Niksan, including a maguro lime roll that’s softly savory versus aquatic with perfumy citrus and soy accents.

Seafood entrees abound and are headlined by a longtime signature star, Roasted Garlic Jumbo Black Tiger Prawns, bolstered by Herb-Roasted Branzino, Jerk-Spiced Mahi Mahi, hard-seared oh-so-sweet sea scallops, or, for the extra indulgent, twin lobster tails served bulging from their neon-red shells. A pound-and-a-half of meat from that crustacean can also be found folded into creamy, Old Bay-laced mashed potatoes — a must-have accompaniment if ever there was one. Other notable sides include a caviar twice-baked potato, wild mushroom and black truffle gnocchi, and Brussels sprouts tossed with cubed bits of the aforementioned maple-glazed bacon steak.

Mastro’s’ USDA Prime steaks include an 8-ounce filet mignon, 16-ounce New York strip, 20-ounce 35-day dry-aged Kansas City strip, and 22-ounce bone-in ribeye coated in a blend of paprika, salt, sugar, wheat flour, and garlic and onion powders (plus “secret spices”). Authentic A5 Kobe beef from Tajima cattle in Japan’s Hyōgo prefecture is also available in a 4-ounce order (with 2-ounce supplements), as are are 8- and 10-ounce New York steaks of A5 Wagyu hailing from the Miyazaki Prefecture.

Saving room for dessert at a steakhouse is always a daunting task, especially when the best of the final-course lot is a moist, sizable butter cake made triply decadent with a warm cream cheese filling, vanilla ice cream, and a drizzle of raspberry sauce. It’s a meal all its own, and a tasty one at that.

Yes, the views at Mastro’s are next-level, and thankfully, so, too, is what awaits diners inside its four walls. 619.272.5060, mastrosrestaurants.com

Service: 4
Timeliness: 3.5
Ambience: 4
Culinary Innovation: 4
Food Quality: 4.5
Wine List: 4.5
Cocktail Program: 4.5
Value: 4