La Jolla’s NINE-TEN marks 10th anniversary with special menu

Located in a spot that boasts nearly a century of memories that helped shape the La Jolla Village community, NINE-TEN Restaurant is celebrating its 10-year anniversary as one of San Diego’s pioneer “farm-to-table” restaurants with a special Anniversary Market Menu offered from 6 to 10 p.m. in July.

Located at the historic Grande Colonial Hotel, (which will celebrate its Centennial in 2013), NINE-TEN opened on July 17, 2001 and quickly became one of the region’s finest dining establishments.

“It’s wonderful to see how much San Diego’s culinary scene has changed over the years,” said Jason Knibb, executive chef who, after working in renowned restaurants across the western region, took the reins at NINE-TEN in September 2003. “I have to thank the staff and community for the support over the past decade, many who have stayed loyal since the beginning.”

For $45 per person ($60 with wine pairings with each course), guests can enjoy NINE-TEN’s cuisine with a delicious “create-your-own” three-course anniversary tasting menu. Dishes will be inspired by Chef Knibb and Pastry Chef Jack Fisher, who served as NINE-TEN’s opening pastry chef and remains in that position.

“We’ve come a long way since opening a decade ago, continuing to evolve our market cuisine into what it has become today,” said Pastry Chef Fisher. “But one thing has remained constant: Our signature Half-Baked Chocolate Cake. It has been on the menu since day one and we have served up more than 50,000 of them to our guests — that’s equal to 2,375 pounds of dark chocolate, 20,000 eggs, another 20,000 egg yolks, 1,250 pounds of sugar and 172 pounds of flour. And assuming everyone who ordered had ice cream, too, we would have used 500 gallons of heavy cream, 1,750 cups of sugar, 2,500 pounds of butter and another 20,000 egg yolks.”

NINE-TEN’s history dates back to 1926. The spot was formerly the La Jolla Drugstore. In 1926, the store was purchased by Kansas-native Silas O. Putnam, and moved inside the adjacent Colonial Hotel’s main building. Putnam added an ice cream parlor on the sidewalk that served chocolate sodas and banana splits. The drugstore became a prime location for locals to gather. The beloved pharmacist considered it a big day if he filled more than three prescriptions. He was also the father of actor Gregory Peck, who grew up in La Jolla.

In 1980, the space once occupied by Putnam’s drugstore became Putnam’s Grille, which quickly became a La Jolla landmark. Reflecting the La Jolla of the 1920s, the restaurant was redesigned to feature dark wood paneling, wrought iron chandeliers and ceiling fans, oak dining sets and large picture windows. The original soda fountain was replaced with a mirrored back bar and alcoholic beverages were served instead. Continuing the tradition of the past 65 years, the restaurant offered sidewalk seating. Then in February 2001, Putnam’s Grille closed its doors. Six months later it opened as NINE-TEN.

It has been recognized with an “extraordinary to perfection” rating by ZAGAT, and a 2011 Gold Medallion Award for San Diego’s Best Hotel Fine Dining Restaurant by the California Restaurant Association. Chef Knibb is a 2010 StarChefs Rising Star Chef winner, and both he and pastry chef Jack Fisher are inductees in the San Diego Chef Hall of Fame. NINE-TEN is open for breakfast and lunch daily, and dinner nightly from 6 p.m. at 910 Prospect St. Reservations at (858) 964-5400 or www.nine-ten.com.

Related posts:

1. NINE-TEN reopens for dinner on Sundays, Mondays
2. La Jolla’s NINE-TEN named ‘San Diego’s Best Hotel Fine Dining Restaurant’
3. Alfonso’s celebrates 40 years in La Jolla this weekend
4. NINE-TEN spicing up Thanksgiving
5. La Jolla sisters create the Sweet life

Short URL: http://www.lajollalight.com/?p=45837