The original location of the Soda & Swine concept opened in Normal Heights in February 2013 with a menu designed by corporate executive chef and partner Jason McCleod based around an eclectic array of meatballs. A second outpost debuted in Liberty Station in July 2015 with a 14,000 square-foot third location opened in September 2019 on the University of California San Diego campus in the space longtime occupied by Porter's Pub. Last summer, the original Soda & Swine restaurant was rebranded to become Fortunate Son, a modern Chinese eatery.
Although Soda & Swine Liberty Station has not been open to the public since the COVID-19 pandemic caused the first round of shutdowns in March 2020, Consortium Holdings recently listed the restaurant as permanently closed. There are currently no plans to repurpose the 4,700 square foot space at 2750 Dewey Road in Liberty Station. The UCSD location is reportedly expected to reopen when onsite education resumes at the La Jolla campus.
Started by Arsalun Tafazoli with the opening of Neighborhood in 2007, Consortium Holdings (also known as CH Projects) now has more than a dozen concepts scattered around San Diego, including cocktail-focused Polite Provisions, classy dive bar El Dorado, neighborhood bar & restaurant Craft & Commerce with adjacent tiki-speakeasy False Idol, two locations of its Japanese fusion restaurant Underbelly, modern barbershop Dover Honing Co. (which may also be permanently closed), seafood-centric Ironside Fish & Oyster, bi-level steakhouse Born & Raised, Westfield UTC bottle shop and speakeasy Raised By Wolves, brunch-centered Morning Glory, and industry-focused East Village sandwich shop and Negroni bar J & Tony's Discount Cured Meats and Negroni Warehouse with neighboring coffee shop Invigatorium in partnership with San Diego's Modern Times Beer.
The group also has numerous additional concepts in the works, including rooftop sky bar & restaurant The Reading Club and Seneca restaurant atop Intercontinental Hotel and a refresh of East Village's Neighborhood. There is also rumored to be a second iteration of Ironside Fish & Oyster in the works for North Park, although CH representatives have ensured that a different concept is planned for the space. Consortium Holdings co-founder Arsalun Tafazoli has also purchased the shopping plaza at 3401 Adams Avenue in Normal Heights, which sits across the street from Blind Lady AleHouse and approximately a half mile from CH's Polite Provisions. There is no word yet on what is planned for that space. Arsalun also took over ownership of Bar Pink in North Park last year and plans to convert the space to become a new cocktail bar dubbed Part Time Lover.
For more information about Soda & Swine, visit sodaandswine.com.
