by Frank Sabatini Jr.

—[ secret san diego ]—

Students run the show at The Palette, an under-publicized restaurant hiding on the second floor of The Art Institute of California-San Diego in Mission Valley. Open to the public Monday through Wednesday, the restaurant currently only serves dinner, and is fully staffed by enrollees dressed in their chef whites. A glass wall separates the kitchen from the dining room, allowing patrons to peek in at the chefs in training. All profits go into the institute’s culinary scholarship fund.

7650 Mission Valley Road • 858-598-1405