Zen Modern Asian Bistro

Dan Rawlins

Went for San Diego restaurant week to try a new place...the food was really good and the service was excellent. We had the cucumber salad and hot and sour soup appetizer, Chicken lettuce wraps and spicy pork dumplings for 2nd course, and for entrees we had the shrimp and scallop dish and the sea bass dish. Each was perfectly cooked and well seasoned. The chili oil was a nice addition to add kick to the mains. For cocktails we tried the Cucumber Crush (gin based) and Matcha cocktail (vodka based) and both were excellent. Not too sweet and properly refreshing to balance out the heat of some of the dishes. The restaurant is located in the one paseo shopping center food court (which is a fun venue but could get loud at times).

Jacky Yang

Tried the newly opened Asian fusion restaurant at Sky Deck — the food was amazing! The chicken wings were crispy on the outside yet tender inside, and my kid and I especially loved the beef noodle soup — flavorful, comforting, and perfectly cooked. The service was friendly and attentive, and the staff made us feel very welcome even though the place was busy. The atmosphere is modern and lively but still cozy — a great spot for families or casual dining. We’ll definitely be coming back!

Nicole Pleasant

Wow this place is incredible! The food was delicious (Taiwanese Beef Noodle soup was our fave, sichuan pork dumplings were so spicy which was perfect) the staff is so friendly and accommodating, it’s a classy beautiful and fun environment/ atmosphere , and Ethan is so kind he gave us a dessert platter to try which was so good. Can’t wait to come back and try more!

Quazakaharet

Followed zen to this location from their previous location in Poway. The sweet chili wok classic with chicken is one of my favorites while the wife favors the black pepper steak. The drinks are new to us there as the last spot didn't have a liquor license. Tried the Chinese 5 spice old fashioned was quite tasty along with the mont blonc cake. Will happily come again when the craving strikes us. The zen wings are still good but used to be more spicy in the past. Hopefully that will come back as well as they have only been reopened a couple weeks.

Hal Jurgensen

Place was fantastic, the sampler is a great way to start a meal with a date. It comes with a cooking apparatus to cook your beef sticks. The beef noodle soup was absolutely amazing. Loved the ambiance and immaculate restaurant itself. Customer service was top tier. It seems like anything Ethan touches turns to gold and it's the same for this restaurant. Will definitely be back regularly!

Ling

Such a great spot! The staff were super nice, and the Taiwanese beef noodles were incredible. Definitely a must-eat place if you’re in the Skydeck!

Ashley Navarro

Best salt and pepper chicken wings i’ve had in san diego. great atmosphere, reasonable price. loved the vibe.

Shu Pin Liu

I had Taiwanese beef noodle. Flavorful, good portion with tons of beef.

Really excellent addition to the area - I've had a good chunk of their menu and it's delicious. The bar area is great to hang out as well! The Singapore Noodles are fantastic, the best version of this in the city. Some folks might not like that these are "dry" noodles, but these are crazy good. The Beef Chow Fun is superb. Drunken Noodles are delicious. The Fried Rice dishes are awesome. The wings though - oh my god, the wings are insanely good. I seriously could not believe how much I loved them. The salt and pepper wings are my new favorite wings in the city. The Zen Wing sauce is just perfect, I could eat that sauce on any protein, put it on rice and you have a perfect meal. Chef Ethan and his dad are geniuses here.

Zen bistro is a delight. We ordered a variety of items and shared. Some highlights were fried rice, the honey walnut shrimp, and wonton soup. The wonton soup tastes just like my favorite Chinese restaurant growing up which is a high compliment. Overall the service and atmosphere are also great and this will be a new regular go to spot for us.

This place has become my go to spot! The food is very comforting and tastes amazing. The Taiwanese beef noodle soup, fried rice, and mustard greens pork are so yummy. I can’t wait to try other menu items. The bar is also great with my favorite asahi draft beer 😋 Service and atmosphere is perfect here

Love this place Sooo much! It's about time Del Mar got a good Asian restaurant. The menu, service, food, and atmosphere is on point. I definitely recommend, it's nice not waking up and not having stomach issues the next day. Definitely recommend giving it a shot if you like any kind of Asian food.

I went to try out Zen for the first time last night and was super impressed! I started the night with ordering a zen-tini, for food I ordered the salt and pepper chicken wings, shrimp chow mein and the chinese broccoli. It was all so good and the service was amazing as well. I cant wait to come back and visit when I am at the sky deck next!

I loved the food here! Everything was so flavorful and the portion sizes were very large. My favorites were the ube cocktail, coconut shrimp, orange chicken, and drunken noodles. The executive chef and owner visited our table and made sure we liked everything we ordered which was really thoughtful.

We had a yummy and fun 40th birthday celebration at Zen. Di (server) took such great care us us - which really transformed our experience. They have plenty of space and the menu has a bit of something for everyone - highly recommend it for groups.

Great new location in Sky Deck! The food was fresh and delicious, reasonably priced, the staff was attentive and knowledgeable. Can’t ask for much more! Highly recommend this spot for lunch or dinner.

Ally Hicks

I went to try out Zen for the first time last night and was super impressed! I started the night with ordering a zen-tini, for food I ordered the salt and pepper chicken wings, shrimp chow mein and the chinese broccoli. It was all so good and the service was amazing as well. I cant wait to come back and visit when I am at the sky deck next!

Jim N.

This place has become my go to spot! The food is very comforting and tastes amazing. The Taiwanese beef noodle soup, fried rice, and mustard greens pork are so yummy. I can’t wait to try other menu items. The bar is also great with my favorite asahi draft beer 😋 Service and atmosphere is perfect here

Athraa Abdal

Alisha is super nice and friendly. The food here is delicious and the atmosphere is great. Highly recommend if you are in the area!

Sam

Zen bistro is a delight. We ordered a variety of items and shared. Some highlights were fried rice, the honey walnut shrimp, and wonton soup. The wonton soup tastes just like my favorite Chinese restaurant growing up which is a high compliment. Overall the service and atmosphere are also great and this will be a new regular go to spot for us.

Richard Griko

Love this place Sooo much! It's about time Del Mar got a good Asian restaurant. The menu, service, food, and atmosphere is on point. I definitely recommend, it's nice not waking up and not having stomach issues the next day. Definitely recommend giving it a shot if you like any kind of Asian food.

Guy Fisher

We had a yummy and fun 40th birthday celebration at Zen. Di (server) took such great care us us - which really transformed our experience. They have plenty of space and the menu has a bit of something for everyone - highly recommend it for groups.

Alexis Klimpl

I loved the food here! Everything was so flavorful and the portion sizes were very large. My favorites were the ube cocktail, coconut shrimp, orange chicken, and drunken noodles. The executive chef and owner visited our table and made sure we liked everything we ordered which was really thoughtful.

Michaela Allen

Great new location in Sky Deck! The food was fresh and delicious, reasonably priced, the staff was attentive and knowledgeable. Can’t ask for much more! Highly recommend this spot for lunch or dinner.

Liam Stewart

The flavor of these dishes were what I was excited about and they did not disappoint. Can’t wait to come back again. The ownership group is creating magic all around the County.

Noele Clayton

We followed this restaurant in Poway, great to see they’re still serving such great food! One of the manager’s recognized us and came over to chat and give us a dessert for continuing to eat there at the new location.

We had the general tso’s chicken, green beans with meat sauce, and hot and sour soup. The food was pretty standard Chinese, yet portions were on the smaller size. There were definitely way too many mushroom in the general tso’s chicken. Overall, the food is okay and I’d definitely consider returning at some point.

Chris

We had the general tso’s chicken, green beans with meat sauce, and hot and sour soup. The food was pretty standard Chinese, yet portions were on the smaller size. There were definitely way too many mushroom in the general tso’s chicken. Overall, the food is okay and I’d definitely consider returning at some point.

What an absolute let down - We choose Zen Modern to celebrate a birthday with six guests after hearing the good reviews following Modern Zen’s successful opening and great reviews, we truly regretted it. They haven’t figured out the service aspect of the this new restaurant, following our drink, appetizer and entree order - we had not one, not two, but FIVE different times a server come by our table and drop off a dish which we did not order. Did they apologize even though they dropped it off and then literally came back to pick it up and put it on another table (unacceptable), no. We found each of the appetizers (we got the pupu platter) underwhelming, the main dishes lacking flavor and serving side based on the price and the drinks overpriced. I really wish we would’ve celebrated the birthday at a different Asian restaurant in North County, of which, there are many. Another par for the course of Sky Deck.

Chris J

What an absolute let down - We choose Zen Modern to celebrate a birthday with six guests after hearing the good reviews following Modern Zen’s successful opening and great reviews, we truly regretted it. They haven’t figured out the service aspect of the this new restaurant, following our drink, appetizer and entree order - we had not one, not two, but FIVE different times a server come by our table and drop off a dish which we did not order. Did they apologize even though they dropped it off and then literally came back to pick it up and put it on another table (unacceptable), no. We found each of the appetizers (we got the pupu platter) underwhelming, the main dishes lacking flavor and serving side based on the price and the drinks overpriced. I really wish we would’ve celebrated the birthday at a different Asian restaurant in North County, of which, there are many. Another par for the course of Sky Deck.