HILLCREST & BANKERS HILL
Inside bar of 5th Ave Kitchen & Tap, Featured drink Blackberry Margarita
To get a better idea of how any neighborhood operates, it’s always a good idea to go right to the source of local business and community. Business owners have their finger on the pulse of the community and can tell you first hand the advantages of certain neighborhood features. To better understand the neighborhood of Bankers Hill and Hillcrest for commercial business, we set out to find someone seeing success in this growing neighborhood.
This led us to interview and tour one of the newest and brightest establishments in the Bankers Hill/ Hillcrest neighborhood. 5th Ave Kitchen and Bar opened in early 2018 and has seen tremendous success in the neighborhood with both residents and other business owners.
5th ave Kitchen and Tap has placed themselves directly on the border of Hillcrest and Bankers hill in a neighborhood that is a mix of close knit community, visiting tourists and thriving business districts. Not only does the establishment offer a New Orleans influenced menu but the owner and managers and have made it a priority to be a part of the community. Block by block, reaching out to neighbors and business owners alike.
The business is situated on 5th avenue closest to Upas Street and has large retractable garage door windows that allow the beautiful San Diego breeze to enter the restaurant. The interior consists of ample bar and table seating in addition to 16 TV’s showing the latest sports games locally and nationally. We continued walking through the restaurant and arrived on the back patio which is easily the crowning jewel of this location. With open air, sparkling lights, bocce ball, and room for events of up to 100 people, this back patio invites community gatherings of all shapes and sizes.
Following our tour of the location we had an opportunity to sit with the Owner Andrew and the manager Renata to ask them more about their goals for 5th ave Kitchen & Tap.
Back Patio Event area at 5th Ave Kitchen & Tap
What do you like most about this location for your business?
One of the Biggest benefits to this area is that we border three really unique neighborhoods. We have Hillcrest to the North, Bankers Hill to the South and Balboa park to the East. Our establishment is right in the middle of all of that which diversifies our crowd.
What sets you apart from other eateries in the neighborhood?
When we opened this location we restyled our menu to have a fresh ingredient list with influences of New Orleans style food. I take a lot of time to create food that everyone can enjoy. We cater to such a diverse crowd its important to have something for everyone. Our patio is also an added bonus to this location. We have room for 100 person events out here and we can even make the space private for the events. This community ranges in demographic so widely but everyone has a place here. This restaurant is really a hidden gem of the neighborhood.
What sort of specials do you offer?
We have a daily happy hour that offers drink specials and discounted appetizers. We also have weekly football specials with unique New Orleans inspired food. This has become sort of a hub for Saints fans in the region so we cater to the crowd on those days. The San Diego WHO DATS have made this a frequent gameday watch spot so we make sure there are plenty of good eats to go with it.
What do you want people to know about 5th Ave Kitchen and Tap?
We designed this location to be open to the neighborhood so the retractable garage door windows really invite people inside. We were able to give this location a face lift and really make it stand out when we decided to open the business here, which is also important because it adds to the thriving neighborhood. We really love being in this community. Everyday we see neighbors we know, greet other business owners at lunch time or happy hour, and get to expand on our already growing customer base. It really works because we have been active in our local neighborhood and we are not just another store front. We had options in other neighborhoods to open but ultimately chose this location because of the thriving community around every corner.
I’m also really proud of our cuisine. Handpicking ingredients and making sure that everything is fresh and made to order was a big priority for me when designing this menu. The Cajun style burgers and po’boy sandwiches are some of my favorite items we make.
Your back patio is a great area for events, what sort of events to you host here?
We’ve spent a lot of time making this patio space inviting and ready for events. We have hosted birthday parties, dog rescue events, football team fundraisers and even drag queen bingo. We don’t charge an event space rental and for every event we create a unique menu and have full bar options. I think that really opens up the range of who likes to hold events here. We are so close to so many business districts so it also makes this space a great location for corporate mixers and happy hours. We want everyone to feel invited to hold an event here so we go out of our way to make every event a success.
What would you say to another business owner looking to open a store front or business here?
This community is growing. There are so many residential housing developments within walking distance and the foot traffic seems to increase by the day. The local average range of income has increased over 25k in the last three years alone and will likely continue to rise. Outside of the residential community, the business community is welcoming and very focused on working together to help each other out. We sponsor each other in fundraisers, host events and all support each other at local business owner events. There can sometimes be misconceptions about the demographic here and what I want people to know is that there isn’t just one type of person in this area. There’s the lifelong residents, business owners and operators, the LGBT community and a lot of families too. The opportunity is endless. If someone wants to open a business, this is definitely the San Diego neighborhood to do it.
What are your favorite things on the menu? What should people definitely not miss when visiting your location?
There are so many items to chose from but I definitely have to say our Shrimp Po Boy sandwich and our Southern Gentleman burger. Both are made in traditional Cajun styles and really bring a taste of home into our menu. I’d also suggest whatever seasonal and shareable specials we have available because they are made fresh to order and are unique every week.
We get a lot of rave reviews about our wings too. They are flash fried and come with a variation of sauces. The BBQ sauce we offer with our wings is made locally in Oceanside, That Boy Good BBQ sauce. As a joke the owner gave me the recipe without the measurements to let me try to get the recipe right. After several attempts I gave up and now we have his sauce offered in house. We also make several other sauces right here in the restaurant so they add that special flavor to every batch.
If there’s any room left for dessert I’d suggest ending the meal with the White Chocolate Bread pudding. Every time we serve it there’s nothing left when we return for the plate. Our desserts are also seasonal so we can stay with the freshest ingredients but right now that’s my favorite.
If you are interested in learning more about the neighborhood send us an email or stop on in to visit 5th Ave Kitchen & Tap. They’ll roll out the red carpet and make you feel right at home!
Hillcrest and Bankers Hill commercial real estate valuable information
If you are looking to expand your current business location or even open a new store front, check out all the details on this quickly rising community in the heart of San Diego.
Total Vacancy Rate for Class A commercial space: 25.3%, up a total of 5% in the last quarter
Hillcrest is the 16th most walkable neighborhood in San Diego with a Walk Score of 81
In the heart of San Diego this neighborhood is easily accessible to the I5 and I163 freeways
City planners have recently increased the building height limit in this section of San Diego to 100 feet, allowing for commercial growth while keeping a neighborhood feel.
Much of the available space is street level, allowing foot traffic to be a driving factor in business growth
Rental rates are comparable to many other business districts such as UTC, Downtown and Del Mar Heights. This sub section of the city can often be viewed as under priced for the area allowing more creative business entities to rent commercial space