San Diego Unseen: An Urban Portrait
The Jalapeno Margarita
- Photo by Kinsee Morlan
A bar that’s literally underground might sound cool, but it isn’t exactly great for business. The nightclub located beneath George’s on Fifth (835 Fifth Ave., Downtown) has gone through a lot of ownership and name changes in the last few years (Faces, Blonde Martini, Vanish), but maybe the key to success is simply calling the kettle black. And not sucking.
Introducing Underground, the newest venture to fill the basement void. I walked in a few weeks ago and met one of the owners, Jessica Divine, and she assured me that, this time, things would be different. Expect quality craft cocktails and craft beer, she said; don’t expect loud house music and overpriced everything.
“It’s just a dingy, underground basic hangout,” her husband Brian added later. “We wanted to offer people a place of refuge from the rest of Downtown.”
Arts shows, movie nights, whiskey tastings and live indie rock are in the queue, he said.
At the end of Fifth Avenue is Hard Rock Hotel’s 207, which recently revamped its cocktail menu. Yes, it’ll cost you $14 for a signature drink, but the Jalapeño Margarita (Patrón Anejo, Patrón Citronge, muddled jalapenos, fresh strawberries, fresh lime, sour and sugar) ain’t half bad. The Gin and Bare It (Tanqueray gin, pineapple juice, basil and sugar) is good, too, but might benefit from a touch less sugar and pineapple and more gin and muddled basil. If the bartender people call “Fish” is behind the bar, though, you’re in good hands. Ask him to surprise you if you’re looking for a shot that tastes more like a cupcake than booze.
Another place to get a decent drink on the Gaslamp’s stretch of Fifth Avenue is The Tipsy Crow (770 Fifth Ave.). Admittedly more of a beer bar, it has a short and simple list of drinks, including the Mexican Soda Pop (Don Julio Blanco, Grand Marnier, ginger beer and a touch of fresh-squeezed lime) and the Salty Dog (fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice and vodka in a glass rimmed with salt). Stay away from the evil, bright-blue “Adios Motherfucker” concoction perpetually churning in a slushy machine on the bar. Bad idea.
