universal lounge

the owners of stingaree and other clubs in the gaslamp are propsing to renovate a truly hideous corner of university avenue in hillcrest. the new 3.5 million dollar restaurant/lounge would be named universal, and sounds very promising, especially considering the innovative clubs these owners already run. currently, the property is occupied by a defunct porn store with a garish purple exterior, and some other properties that could stand an improvement.

the restaurant will have indoor and outdoor dining, the latter of which san diego can always use more of. the outdoor area will be comprised of a garden lounge with a fire pit. while the "ultra-chic lounge" part of the concept sounds a bit dubious, hillcrest can only benefit from an upscale place like this. it would be a welcome addition to a section of university that already has several fun restaurants (ono sushi, baja betty's) but could stand further improvement. let's hope the NIMBY folks who oppose the project don't have their way, since more porn stores are waiting to fill the void if the project is denied. usually, the more gay porn the better, but in this case...