San Diego County, Mira Mesa, Mary, Multiple Locations

islands restaurants, pineapple infused margaritas, $100 gift cards and you

I’m here with another peek at a few new items over at Islands Restaurants plus a sweet, sweet giveaway for you – a $100 gift card to Islands! See the end of this post for more information about the Islands Restaurants sponsored giveaway!

Jake, T and I visited Islands Restaurants recently to check out a few of their newer items. We headed over to the Mira Mesa location in my ‘hood. I noticed immediately that they had remodeled a little bit, removing the old straw thatch awnings and getting rid of some of the greenery, fake parrots and other decorations. We found out this was a newer fix that 1) helped clean up the restaurant to get rid of items collecting dust that were too hard to clean and maintain and 2) open up the restaurant for a more open air feeling and allow everyone access to the many, many TV’s on the wall. It made the restaurant feel so much wider!

Their newest cocktail beverage has a pineapple-infused tequila, to give a little sweet kick to a beverage.

The cinnamon sugar rim on this Makaha Maggie helped emphasis the added sweetness. This drink was kind of a cross between a margarita and an ensalada juice drink which has fruit floating in it. This drink had little bits of pineapple in it plus a piece of pineapple floating on the top, giving is a bonus boost of fruit and sweetness. It helped offset the citrus and the pineapple infused tequila went really well with the rest of the ingredients. A very refreshing cocktail!

Another highlighted item on their menu are the Steak Tacos which are served with a side of ranchero beans. I left the beans to Jake since beans and I are not exactly on the best of terms.

The steak in the tacos was juicy and cooked to a nice medium. There is fresh pico de gallo along with caramelized onions, lettuce and cilantro-chili sauce drizzled over the tacos for a mighty kick of flavor. The tacos tasted very fresh, thought this might be more on the “American-ized” side of tacos, or maybe even “California-style”. In either case though, the tacos are fresh and on point and a good change of pace for anyone looking for something different then their standard burgers. Jake and I shared this as an appetizer before we got our real food (which consisted of burgers).

We also took a quick detour into appetizer-ville by trying out Islands’ Buffalo Wings. The wings are also available in teriyaki and bbq flavor if you’re not into buffalo sauce. A side of ranch dressing helps to cool these down in your mouth, otherwise I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t be able to eat them with buffalo sauce alone. The crispy exterior helps give a nice crunch and an extra bit of texture to these babies.

My go-to burger for years and years has always been the Maui Burger. I’ve strayed a few times to try out the other burgers, but I always come back to this one in the end. The guacamole and swiss cheese is always such a happy combination for me and my tastebuds and this does not disappoint. I always, always get the wheat bun, too. I don’t think I have ever order the white bun, or I did so long ago that it’s not even apart of my memory banks any longer. There’s something about those little oats on top of the bun that makes me happy. They also look deceivingly healthy to me, as if eating on a wheat bun will somehow negate a bunch of calories from eating the juicy burger… I wish.

Surely you’d love to indulge at Islands Restaurants, too! Islands Restaurants is sponsoring a giveaway for one lucky reader to win a $100 gift card to their restaurant along with a pair of nifty beach towels. Here’s how you can enter!

1) Leave a comment telling me your favorite menu item at Islands Restaurants. (+1 entry)

2) Tweet the following message: “I want to win a $100 gift card to @IslandsBurgers! http://bit.ly/1fVldTH #win #giveaway @kyten” (+1 entry a day, leave a separate comment for each entry with a link to your tweet)

3) Like or Share this post on Facebook (+1 entry, leave a separate comment for this entry)

This contest and post is sponsored by Islands Restaurants. Food and beverages featured in this post were complimentary. All opinions listed here are my own. Contest is open to US Residents only. Gift card can be used at any Islands Restaurants location. Contest ends on Monday, October 7th, 2013 at midnight PST. One winner will be drawn via random.org and announced on the blog on October 8th, 2013.

This contest is now closed. Congrats to our winner, molly!

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Mary

Mary is a San Diego native and has been a food blogger since 2006. She is an avid reader, a lover of puppies, and loves trying new food. Foods she loves: sweets, peanut butter, pasta, Triscuit crackers with cream cheese, and extra nuts on top of her sundaes. Food she dislikes: pickles, olives, black licorice, and arugula. View all posts by Mary