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Lucien Lands in La Jolla With a 13-Course, Big League Tasting Menu
12/24/2025
Lucien Lands in La Jolla With a 13-Course, Big League Tasting Menu
#413 On Happy Half Hour, host Troy Johnson talks with chef Elijah Arizmendi about leaving home at 15, training in Vegas and New York, and opening Lucien — an ingredient-obsessed, 30-seat destination built around San Diego produce, house ferments, and meticulous coursing. On this week’s Happy Half Hour, host Troy Johnson sits down with chef Elijah Arizmendi, the 30-year-old behind Lucien, La Jolla’s new 12- to 13-course tasting-menu destination that’s already getting “best in the city, maybe the country” texts from chefs like Travis Swikard (Callie, Fleurette). Arizmendi traces his no-shortcuts path: leaving home at 15, early kitchen reps in D.C. and Sacramento, then Vegas (Spago), Robuchon, and a New York run that included opening The Bay in Tribeca… before choosing San Diego for what he calls the ultimate advantage of produce and microclimates. The conversation gets deep into Lucien’s obsessive pantry-building: a house-fermented calamansi kosho (with habanero), a red curry squash “miso” inoculated with koji, a lineup of finishing salts, and multiple shoyus, including a koji shoyu he’ll drip onto everything from raw fish to a polarizing uni ice cream. Tune in for more details about San Diego's latest culinary force. Discover more at
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