Experienced Los Angeles Restaurant Group To Open California-Inspired Bar & Restaurant At Former Fat Fish Space In San Diego's Pacific Beach

September 17, 2021

An experienced Los Angeles-based restaurant group has taken over the Crystal Pier-adjacent, 5,500 square-foot building that last housed Fat Fish Cantina Grill in San Diego's Pacific Beach and will open a California lifestyle-inspired bar & restaurant named The Hideaway. 

Los Angeles' nearly three-decades-old Baja Sharkeez Restaurant Group operates several hotspot bars and restaurant in Southern California, including Palmilla in Hermosa Beach, five branches of Baja Sharkeez, Sandbar Mexican Restaurant & Tequila Bar in Santa Barbara, Panama Joe’s in Long Beach, Killarney’s Irish Pub in Huntington Beach, Esperanza Cocina de la Playa in Manhattan Beach, and Tower12 at Hermosa Pier. The proficient hospitality company recently took over the nearly oceanfront space last occupied by recently-departed Fat Fish Cantina Grill in Pacific Beach and will open its newest concept tentatively dubbed The Hideaway. 

"The timeline is still being ironed out and we're kicking around some names that relate to both the concept and also gives a nod to the local community," explained Baja Sharkeez Restaurant Group Director of Food & Beverage Leigh Lupinacci. "This new spot will be a beach-town casual kitchen and bar located in Pacific Beach, California. It will honor the Southern California lifestyle, incorporating vintage artifacts, furnishings and artwork that reflect its laidback surf, skate, music and beach culture and history, paying special homage to San Diego and Pacific Beach icons of the past and present. We want our guests to feel like they’re sitting down for dinner and drinks at the super cool beach house of someone who has spent their lifetime curating one of a kind interiors, furniture, artwork, photography and memorabilia that reflect the iconic SoCal vibe. We cannot wait to welcome people home!"

The incoming Pacific Beach bar & restaurant will offer a menu created by corporate chef Raymond Alvarez. Expect California-inspired spins on American classics, including shareable bar bites, wood-fired pizzas, sandwiches, salads and entrees. In addition to the food program, the former Fat Fish space will feature a dining-conducive full service bar specializing in handcrafted cocktails, wine and 30 local brews on tap. Located just steps away from the Crystal Pier, at the intersection of Garnet and Mission Boulevard, the new bar and restaurant will feature a beach bungalow feel with a wraparound, outdoor patio and interconnected rooms with a casual, homey vibe. The bar & restaurant will most closely resemble the Tower12 concept in look, food and feel. San Diego's Next Wave Commercial represented both the landlord and tenant in this transaction.

While there is no concrete timeline on the opening of the new bar & restaurant at 4474 Mission Boulevard in Pacific Beach, ownership hopes to have it up and running by summer 2022.