Pacific Beach’s most famously recycled address is getting yet another reinvention - and this time, the team behind some of San Diego’s most recognizable restaurant hits is taking the wheel. Grind & Prosper Hospitality, led by restaurateur Pete Cich, is officially moving into the massive Garnet Avenue space that formerly housed Backyard Kitchen & Tap, Moondoggies, and most recently a very short-lived incarnation of Union Kitchen & Tap. The group is preparing to launch Coco Fuego, a new bar-and-restaurant concept inspired by the tropical, high-energy DNA of their Little Italy hotspot, Coco Maya.
This latest move adds to Grind & Prosper’s expanding local footprint, which includes PB Shore Club, Miss B’s Coconut Club, Park 101 in Carlsbad, Louisiana Purchase in North Park, Coco Maya in Little Italy, Haole Shack in Pacific Beach, and two concepts inside Oceanside’s Brick Hotel. The group is also nearing the debut of its highly anticipated restaurant Austin NoLa in North Park - a 2,800-square-foot New Orleans-inspired project headed by Grind & Prosper partner and executive chef Quinnton Austin.
Coco Fuego lands in a location that has seen nearly every kind of nightlife evolution Pacific Beach can conjure. But with Cich’s proven track record - transforming neighborhood spaces into destination-level eateries and social hubs - the upcoming concept may finally give the corner the stability it has lacked. With the popularity of Coco Maya still rising and Miss B's Coconut Club drawing constant crowds, the shift onto Garnet Avenue in PB feels like a strategic expansion designed to capture both locals and visitors hungry for something fresh.
Coco Fuego will open in 2026 at 832 Garnet Avenue in San Diego's Pacific Beach.
Originally published on November 23, 2025.
