GET TO THE POINT FOR FOOD, FUN.

Byline: Eric Noland Travel Editor

SAN DIEGO - When it comes to lodging, dining and nightlife on Point Loma, brand names are conspicuously absent.

But that only enhances the fun - and the sense of discovery - for visitors.

A sampling of its diverse offerings:

Humphrey's Half Moon Inn: You might find yourself humming a tune as you check out of this sprawling low-rise on Shelter Island. It's a very musical establishment.

In a large courtyard alongside the yacht harbor, Humphrey's has a stage and outdoor seating area where it stages concerts in the warm-weather months. The upcoming acts are pretty impressive, too: Tony Bennett, Vince Gill, Tracy Chapman, Lyle Lovett, Hootie & the Blowfish.

The hotel's Back Stage Lounge, meanwhile, offers live music almost every night of the week. On a Monday night, we enjoyed a band that was a graying knockoff of Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band.

The hotel went up in 1962, when South Seas mania was still running strong, and it continues to play this theme to the hilt. Palm trees shade an enormous pool, and when the afternoon sea breezes ruffle their fronds, you can almost fool yourself into thinking you're in Hawaii.

Rooms have louvered windows that let those breezes in (this close to the water, no screens are needed). Balconies would be a welcome addition to the bay side, though. We had one of these bay-view rooms, and it positively screamed for a balcony in the late afternoon.

Bikes are available for guests' use (two hours free). The flatness of the island and the Point Loma business district make for easy pedaling.

One advisory: Shelter Island and this hotel are in the takeoff path for the military jets of Coronado's North Island Naval Air Station. During our visit in March, two days before Operation Iraqi Freedom began, a fighter came tearing over the top of our room - at 6:02 a.m.

Information: [phone]. Reservations: [phone]. Web: www.halfmooninn.com.

Bali Hai: Within walking distance of Humphrey's is a restaurant similarly immersed in Polynesian kitsch - beginning with the tiki head outside the door and continuing with the fruity rum drinks in the bar. But from the Bali Hai's rotunda-shaped dining room, the view across the bay toward downtown is sensational.

The Hawaiian-themed food is pretty good, and it's an extraordinary value. Most entrees are priced under $20, and include everything - soup and salad (though, oddly, they weren't served in that order), delicious stir- fry vegetables and rice or potatoes.

Call in advance and try to reserve a window table. But don't despair if you can't get one: The floor is gently sloped toward the windows, so the view is nice throughout.

Information: [phone]; www.balihairestaurant.com.

Pizza Nova: Point Loma has a lot of casual dining options, and this establishment at Scott Street and North Harbor Drive is one of the best.

We climbed two flights of stairs to the top level, where large windows overlooked the yacht marina. A canvas roof snapped in the wind overhead, lending the feel of dinner on one of those boats. Bare-wood tables were varnished to a high gloss, completing the effect.

The menu is a shameless rip-off of California Pizza Kitchen, but the gourmet pizzas, cooked in a wood-fired oven just inside the door, were tasty. Most of the pasta dishes eschewed the standard marinara for something a little more interesting: a garlic cream sauce.

A bottle of Gabbianno Chianti set us back only $20.

Information: [phone].

Point Loma Seafoods: This popular lunch spot sits hard by the sportfishing docks, at the foot of Emerson Street.

It's a combination fresh fish market and seafood-and-chips eatery where you can grab a table outside, sip a cold draft beer and tackle a combo platter while watching the day-boat fishermen trudge up the dock.

The only disappointment: All that fresh fish and seafood in the display cases, and for the lunch menu every last piece of it is incinerated in the deep-fat fryers. A grilled or broiled filet of anything would be a welcome variation.

Information: [phone]; www.plsf.com.

Living Room Coffeehouse: For an excellent breakfast option, stop by this place, housed in an old Victorian building at 1018 Rosecrans St.

Sit on the front porch, which is screened from the road by greenery yet still welcomes in some rays of morning sun. The breakfasts are hearty, and the edges of the plate are heaped with chunks of fresh fruit.

More than a dozen gourmet coffee drinks are offered, including the Hammerhead and the Slammer.

Not recommended for lunch. We found the sandwiches ho-hum. And how can a lunch spot within two blocks of San Diego Bay run out of tuna?

Information: [phone].

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Photo:

Guests at Humphrey's Half Moon Inn on Shelter Island can look out on the area's many yachts. The hotel also stages outdoor summer concerts by major acts.

Eric Noland/Travel Editor