VAGA Restaurant & Bar has officially opened to the public at Alila Marea Beach Resort Encinitas.
Love letter to San Diego
Award-winning Executive Chef Claudette Zepeda, who heads the kitchen at VAGA, considers this restaurant a love letter to her hometown of San Diego and invites locals and travelers to experience the confluence of rich and diverse cultures in San Diego through her vibrant cuisine.
Tribute to grandma
The opening coincided with a significant date for Zepeda as it’s the anniversary of her grandmother’s passing, a woman who was a tremendous influence in Zepeda’s life — even giving her the childhood nickname “Vaga” (as in Vagabond), the restaurant’s namesake. A strong woman from Jalisco who never missed a party, a 14-piece mariachi band played in her honor.
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Simple and seasonal
Chef Zepeda’s commitment to responsible sourcing will be revealed through a menu that showcases the simplicity of California cooking, sourcing seasonal ingredients from local farms such as Cyclops & Chino Farms.
While the menu will change seasonally, the VAGA opening menu can be viewed here.
The beverage program, led by Alexander Gregg, will maintain seasonality and integrate ingredients from the dining menu, featuring rotating signature cocktails, local microbrewers and a wine list carefully curated with thoughtful selections of natural wines utilizing grapes from low intervention/biodynamic vineyards.
Guests at VAGA will have the opportunity to pair their meal with dramatic coastal views or peek behind the scenes with a front-row seat to Chef Zepeda’s open kitchen – both certain to delight the senses.
See you there….and stay healthy, San Diego!
