Crowning the open kitchen of Callie, in San Diego’s East Village, is a sheet of glowing, rust-colored steel that comes to a point in the center—like the bow of a ship, said chef-owner Travis Swikard. Working each evening service, “I stand right there, and it’s me at the helm of my ship coming home, bringing back everything I have with me.”
There’s some precious cargo onboard.
Culinary school in New England and a stint in London; a decade working under revered French fine dining chef Daniel Boulud in New York; and a lifetime of dogged hard work, attention to detail, and rabbit-hole-diving curiosity have all led to Swikard’s debut restaurant, opened in June 2021. Here, fine-dining finesse meets surfer-dude casual (flip-flops are welcome), and the Mediterranean flavors he fell in love with during his travels meet his hometown’s home-grown abundance….