Restaurant: Flying Bridge (Dining Room) Location: 1105 North Coast Hwy. Oceanside, CA Phone: (760) 722-1151 Price Range: (Dinner only) 4 p.m. - 6 p.m. early bird $8.95-$12.95, 6 p.m. - closing $10.95-$21.95

Number of visits: 1
Last visit before review: May 26, 2001

Randy had: Dinner salad, tortilla soup, rack of lamb (with asparagus, sauteed spinach, and melon salsa tortilla cup), iced tea.

Jeff had: Chicken Marsala, (with rice pilaf, asparagus, melon salsa tortilla cup), iced tea.

The dinners also came with: cheese bread sticks, shrimp slaw, dinner rolls.

Rating 9 (of 12) Good

Randy says: I didn't really enjoy the cheese bread, and the shrimp slaw was very mayonnaisey with sharp tasting small brine shrimp, but since these were brought to the table when we sat down (they're complementary) it was no loss. Also the dinner rolls were plain, soft, and made of white flour, with no substance.

Jeff says: The cheese bread sticks were alright. I was afraid they would be garlicky and was pleasantly surprised that they weren't. Since I won't touch seafood I didn't try the shrimp slaw. On the other hand, the soft white rolls were just the sort I like and they came nice and warm, ready for buttering.

Randy says: I was surprised by how good the salad was. I expected it to be a plate of iceburg but instead it was a lovely assortment of greens with cucumber, a little red cabbage, and two cherry tomatoes, and it came with a chilled salad fork. The only thing I could find wrong with it is that the cuke slices had clearly been sliced earlier.

Jeff says: I also liked the salad. The greens were nice, the tomatoes were flavorful, I didn't notice anything about the cucumber, and the cabbage consisted of only a few big chunks that were easy for me to put aside, since I don't particularly care for cabbage. But what I really liked was the ranch dressing. It was milky (not thick) and tangy and just had a very nice flavor.

Randy says: Instead of a potato or rice with my lamb, I asked for the tortilla soup, partly because I wanted to try it. The waitress brought it after the salads while the lamb was finishing, which was nice. The soup was topped with cheese and sour cream, and had beans, avocado, black olive, corn, tomato chunks and diced onion. It was very flavorful. The menu described it as "spicy" but it had only the merest hint of spiciness.

Jeff says: I was just going to take the cheese and sour cream off the top of the soup for Randy, who doesn't really care for dairy garnishes, but in doing so I got a good taste of the soup and it was delicious. It had good ingredients and a nice full flavor with just a hint of tabasco or chili pepper or something similar.

Randy says: As so often happens with lamb chops, I ordered my lamb medium to guard against overcooking but it arrived well done. It was very nicely seasoned. They're not scared of garlic. The asparagus was a little overcooked, oily, and uninspiring, as was the spinach. The melon salsa tortilla cup was small cubes of watermelon, cantaloupe, and onion in a small deep-fried tortilla shell. It added a nice, if incongruous touch. Jeff's chicken wasn't bad.

Jeff says: Randy's lamb came just the way I like it, and it had a delicious flavor due to the seasoning. My chicken Marsala was very good. The two chicken breasts were not at all dry, and the Marsala wine sauce added a nice flavor as did the capers and mushrooms cooked in. The rice pilaf was flavorful and not oily. I don't care for asparagus and so didn't try mine. The melon salsa tortilla cups were good the way the sweet melon and oniony onions combined.

Flying Bridge is the restaurant attached to a low-budget hotel/motel, and there is a dining room and a separate cafe. This review is of the dining room only. The place looks like it was built in the 1970s and hasn't been redone since, but of note is the sky and birds mural on the cottage cheese acoustic ceiling and the giant seaward windows affording a nice view of a railroad bridge over the San Luís Rey river and the ocean beyond. During our visit three trains passed over the bridge, which was fun to see. Further back from the window tables are red booths that are raised so that they too afford the view.

Considering the type and quality of food, higher prices, and fancy view dining room it seems Flying Bridge aspires to attain a certain upper class status, but there are several factors preventing success. First, they should redecorate for the 21st century and rely less on dark colors and red — brighten the place up a little. Also, the gunshot hole in the view window was a bit disconcerting and we kept our eyes peeled throughout the meal for signs of a potential repeat incident. We arrived around 6:30 and were just getting ready to leave around 7:30 when the live entertainment began. The band started out not bad, but when the singing started we were glad to be leaving. Also, the restaurant does not accept American Express credit cards. Perhaps if they fixed some of these things they might attract the sort of customers they want instead of the ones that look like they came over from the adjoining run-down hotel. We dressed up a little, being unsure of the environment, and found that we were the best dressed customers there.

We stopped in because we had other business in Oceanside and we had read about the view and the type of food, and after seeing the place we were pleasantly surprised at how good the food was. The service was prompt and courteous. Since to us food and service are the most important elements of a dining experience, we consider Flying Bridge somewhat of a hidden find.