The prolific Cohn Restaurant Group, which recently opened BO-beau Kitchen + Caché and Libertad Tacos in Hillcrest, is in the process of taking over the historic Coaster Beach Bar & Grill in Mission Beach, which has been serving San Diegans and tourists alike for more than three decades.
Darren Renna took over ownership of Coaster Beach Bar & Grill in 2007 from his mother and father, who first opened the Mission Beach mainstay as Coaster Saloon in 1983. In April 2007 a fire resulted in a complete remodel of the beachside bar, resulting in a redesign, kitchen extension and the addition of more beer taps, for a total of 52. A fun fact is that Coaster Bar was one of the first bars to serve Ballast Point beer in San Diego.
The Cohn Restaurant Group - which operates more than 20 restaurants in San Diego, Southern California and Hawaii - will takeover the bar in the next week or so and intends to keep the Coaster as is with minimal changes taking place throughout the summer months, aiming to use this high season interim period to get to know the location and community in order to develop their own concept which best suits the area. This fall the San Diego-based hospitality company is expected to convert Coaster Bar into another Cohn concept - possibly a second incarnation of Draft Republic if not something new. We have reached out to the Cohn Restaurant Group for comment but have not heard back. We'll be sure to let it be known when we find out more.
