The Smoking Gun
Bar grill · San Diego
About The Smoking Gun
At The Smoking Gun, we're all about laid-back vibes and Southern-inspired flavors that'll make you feel right at home. Our spacious bar is the perfect spot to catch a game or challenge your friends to a round of pool in our tabletop game corner. We've got seasonal cocktails to quench your thirst and...
At The Smoking Gun, we're all about laid-back vibes and Southern-inspired flavors that'll make you feel right at home. Our spacious bar is the perfect spot to catch a game or challenge your friends to a round of pool in our tabletop game corner. We've got seasonal cocktails to quench your thirst and a menu that's always firing on all cylinders - like our famous fried chicken tenders, which are a local favorite. Whether you're grabbing lunch with friends or meeting up for dinner with the crew, we'll make sure you feel like part of the family.
What Customers Say About The Smoking Gun
The Smoking Gun offers a fun atmosphere with arcade games, pool, and music. Customers rave about the friendly service, especially from bartenders like Kat and servers like Taylor and Manny. The fries and burgers are highly recommended, though some find the food inconsistent.
Popular Dishes
Best For
Tip: Visit during happy hour (M-F 3-6pm) for food and drink specials. Be sure to try the burgers and fries.
Features
What to see nearby
Data from Wikidata
Explore the area around The Smoking Gun
The Smoking Gun is located in San Diego, surrounded by cultural and historical points of interest. Here are some of the most notable places nearby.
Historical Heritage
- Edificio Independent Order of Odd Fellows (San Diego) (A 44m) — edificio histórico en San Diego, California, Estados Unidos Lugar inscrito en el Registro Nacional de Lugares Históricos
Other Points of Interest
- Alan John Factory (A 15m) — Historic building in San Diego, California, U.S.
- Sterling Hardware Building (A 47m) — Historic building in San Diego, California, U.S.
- McGurck Block (A 62m) — historic building in San Diego, California, U.S.
- Manila Cafe (A 81m) — historic building in San Diego, California, U.S.
- Combination Store (A 88m) — Historic building in San Diego, California, U.S.
- Montijo Building (A 90m) — Historic building in San Diego, California, U.S.
- Yuma Building (A 96m) — building in San Diego, California
- Timkin Building (A 98m) — American historic building
- Lewis Brick Block (A 101m) — historic building in San Diego, California, U.S.
Data from Wikidata
Frequently asked questions about The Smoking Gun
The Smoking Gun San Diego Reviews
We stumbled upon the Smoking Gun restaurant on a trip taken in September of 2024. The atmosphere was fun with a 1970/80’s decor and menus presented in Pee Cee folders. We had a breakfast sandwich and potato cake addition (might be only available for brunch on the weekends) that was so good! We flew into San Diego February 2026 and the first thing we thought of was to find this restaurant again to have the fantastic breakfast sandwiches! I hope they keep keep these on their menu. We will be back!
I held a corporate happy hour here, something I’ve done several times. This was hands down the best restaurant I’ve worked with. They were so communicative and reassuring beforehand, extremely helpful and flexible during set up, and I wish I caught the name of our server because he was truly amazing. He remembered so many peoples drinks and was so on top of everything. On top of all that the price was perfect. The space is amazing, great for friends, work, or family with any age kids. I will definitely host here again and would love to come back with my family!
ROLL TIDE! Amazing place to visit in San Diego. Great food, Great drinks. Cheapest beers in town. Ask for the lawn mower beer menu. Perfect place for local and out of town Alabama Crimson Tide fans. Arcade is Great. Leg lamp, grandma's living room, Gump's jersey, and you can wish to be BIG with the Zoltar machine. ENJOY.
We went on the spur of the moment when we got into town and they were pretty much full for the Alabama LSU game. We went there for that too. The hostess was so nice and she helped us figure out where we could sit with our boys and got us a server. We never felt rushed or like we were an inconvenience. Our server was a man whose name I can’t remember but he was so friendly and attentive. He even gave my son a duck from the claw machine. Just a great experience all around. Thank you. It was very much needed.
One of my favorite places in downtown San Diego. On the cusp of the Gaslamp and East Village Smoking Gun gives off such a fun vibe. Food is great, atmosphere is fun, arcade and games are amazing. Makes me feel like childhood (born in the early 80’s) and frequent this establishment a ton! It’s such a unique experience in the 92101. If you like fun, you like smoking gun!
Omg I wish I had a picture of the chicken nugs ...let me tell you, I can no longer get chicken nugs or tenders anywhere but HERE for the rest of my life lol. They are brined in pickle juice, then dipped into buttermilk batter and fried!!!! It's out of this world. They arcade games, pool, ping pong, tons of games, a lot of fun! I cannot wait to come back! Definitely worth driving out of PB into Downtown!
Had an amazing time. The food was outstanding. Some of the best restaurant fries I've ever had. The portions are huge, so please bring an appetite. Our waiter, Manny, was excellent. We couldn't ask for a better waiter. He knew all the details about the meals and how they were prepared. He explained all the house made items (Homemade roll) and even down to the flavors. I'm definitely going back the next chance I get.
Gaslight District highly recommend eatery. Fun atmosphere with Pool Table, Shuffleboard, Nostalgic Arcade Gaming and several TVs. I was with a group of 8 with no reservation and they were able to accommodate although a party of 75 was scheduled to come in. We arrived in time for the 7pm cut-off Happy Hour Drinks and Appetizers. Our Waiter was attentive and patient. We had a fun time and will go back.
The bartender Kat was amazing! She really took care of us and was beyond helpful on what to choose from the menu! THEIR BURGERS ARE TO DIE FORRRR!! ESPECIALLY IF YOU'RE A MEAT LOVER 🍖 😋 The bar vibe was dope and played great music 🎶 They also have am arcade and games to play! Definitely coming back when I'm SD!
Nice big bar. Service is a hit or miss, but they do have a great smash burger on happy hour. One of the best in downtown.
I was a little disappointed that I got there so late since they only had the late night menu available. I ordered something that always feels just right, no matter what city or state: a cold beer and some wings with buffalo sauce on the side. The service was friendly and the kitchen was speedy. It had a cool atmosphere, but I didn't stay long since I had an early flight. If you're looking for a cool bar to hangout in.. the smoking gun is the place for you!
It was such a cool looking place that a bunch of friends told me about. Unfortunately, the service left much to be desired. We walked in and it was not quite busy yet. Just a handful of folks. We sat at the bar and waited....and waited...and waited...two employees walked past us ( behind the bar) and tried hard to not make eye contact. Then a manager walked out,right past us,and leaned on the bar talking to another customer who already had a drink. The. The bartender comes out and he walks past us..my husband said 'excuse me' and the guys turns around and tells us they aren't serving at the bar right that second. Totally weird since there were about 4 or 5 people sitting at the bar with cold drinks in their hands. Really bummed...it looked like a cool place to frequent. But we won't be.
Celebrating our friends 21st, bar was fairly dead and I’ll admit we were a bit rowdy however the woman at the front refused to let me back in to use the restroom. We didn’t make a mess, we took our party outside to smoke, paid our tabs. Extremely strange.
I like the vibes and the decor but the food isn’t that great. I’ve been here 4-5 different times and the food kept missing the mark. The food has too much going on and it’s all over the place the flavors don’t blend well. Especially the dill soak brine wings, they are terrible because it doesn’t matter what sauce you choose you will always taste dill in them! They focus a lot on the name of the food but not on the flavor!
One of the security guards seemed bothered that I was just tired. Makes sense, we’d just spent seven hours down the street holding seats and watching the Super Bowl. That security guard made the otherwise cool atmosphere uncomfortable and took away from the end of the night. I personally won’t be returning.
I'm a local and tend to come here often but likely less so going forward. I have been there for a while several hours ordering beer and food at some point I needed to go to the bathroom and I didn't have any coaster went quick and came back to my beer and water gone. Mind you I had an active tab open. When engaging with bartender he was irritated and lecturing me about the coaster on the beer I explained they were busy and I I had no coaster he walked away and provided a beer with a bit less than I had. How dumb is all this. They were not that busy where someone wanted my seat at the bar. Just very disrespectful.
4pm and not busy… I wonder why?!!? Let’s start off with the warm plastic fake cup they serve their drafts in that suddenly warm my beer up in less than two minutes. Not cool man. With the competition of being located in the gas lamp district you would think they would actually care or put up some kind of a fight to keep up with the competition, this establishment is not worthy of popping up on my google search as a “barbecue restaurant!” Weak by all means. Next let’s talk about the kiddy trays they are trying to serve with child size portions of a soup dish that they try to pass as “smoked brisket…”. NOT EVEN CLOSE- THE TEXTURE ALONE MADE ME WANT TO VOMIT ON CONTACT WITH A MAC AND CHEESE SLOP FOLLOWED WITH A WHOLE DOUBLE SHOT OF BUTTER WHICH IS ABSOLUTELY POINTLESS IF YOU ARE IN BUSINESS TO TURN A PROFIT AND I BET THE WASTE ACCUMULATED FROM CUSTOMERS BARELY USING 1/10 OF IT AND THEN DISCARDING THE REST IS COMPLETELY AN ISSUE FOR RETHINKING. We returned the fatty brisket plate back just to be uncomfortably confronted by the waitress because the chef wants to know exactly what part about their smoked brisket “hoppy meal,” I didn’t like. LETS SEE… I was completely polite and honest because I thought that is what they wanted- some honest feedback- but abruptly confronted by the cook- he angrily snatched the rest of our plates from the table in front of us while taking care of the bill. My wife said, oh my gosh they are aggressive and rude! She wouldn’t allow me to leave a gratuity, and we left from there while we could. I do NOT RECOMMEND THIS PLACE, instead I believe they need a serious BAR RESCUE!!! This place should really receive a zero review, the only good thing to look forward to is them being out of business soon.
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About The Smoking Gun
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555 Market St, San Diego, CA 92101
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555 Market St, San Diego, CA 92101
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Historic building in San Diego, California, U.S.
edificio histórico en San Diego, California, Estados Unidos
Historic building in San Diego, California, U.S.
historic building in San Diego, California, U.S.
historic building in San Diego, California, U.S.
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