Here's something you might be interested in.
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed
Big Screen — Movie commentary
Blurt — Music's inside track
Booze News — San Diego spirits
Classical Music — Immortal beauty
Classifieds — Free and easy
Cover Stories — Front-page features
Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes
Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts
Feast! — Food & drink reviews
Feature Stories — Local news & stories
Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore
From the Archives — Spotlight on the past
Golden Dreams — Talk of the town
The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it
Letters — Our inbox
Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites
Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans
Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists
Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news
News Ticker — News & politics
Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated
Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna
Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated
Poetry — The old and the new
Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers
Reading — The hunt for intellectuals
Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails
San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds
SD on the QT — Almost factual news
Sheep and Goats — Places of worship
Special Issues — The best of
Street Style — San Diego streets have style
Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves
Theater — On stage in San Diego this week
Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative
Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work
Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego
Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads
Your Week — Daily event picks
The Griffin
“We gave it a textured, gritty feel...it’s a darker ambiance in here.”
O’Connells’ green trim went red in June when the bar was purchased by Mike Reidy, owner of Bar West in Pacific Beach.
“We’re not Bar West Two,” manager Joe Gleason emphasizes from one of the new booths at the Griffin, where O’Connells’ Irish motif has been swapped for a Medieval tavern aesthetic. “We gave it a textured, gritty feel because it’s a darker ambiance in here. We sandblasted the wood paneling and replaced the old carpeting with hardwood floors. The look is very purposeful.”
A full suit of armor overlooks the free shuffleboard. A mounted boar’s head observes the bar. A new 14-foot high-definition screen plays a football game in front of the stage. Electric candles flicker from chandeliers and Edison bulbs glow in overhead fans.
“We’ve refined the sound system incredibly — a new P.A., mics, soundboard,” says Gleason, who was one of the managers to open the Stingaree, a posh downtown club, seven years ago. “It’s not just a place for bands anymore. It’s also a dance party for college kids and locals. It’s very different from what this space has seen.”
In addition to names such as the Styletones, Dead Feather Moon, and the Lyon Crowns on the calendar, the Griffin has regular nights dedicated to blues, games, comedy, beach rock/reggae with Carlos Culture, and karaoke with Reckless Rhonda.
“We’re not at the beach or in the Gaslamp,” Gleason says. “There are logistical challenges to the location. One thing that helps is our huge parking lot in the back. We’ve also been researching gourmet food trucks, which are really burgeoning here in San Diego, and have identified a handful of quality trucks we want to work with.”
The Griffin offers two local and a few standard drafts but plans to expand the San Diego flavor with craft bottled beers in the future. Gleason is also working on a seasonal craft cocktail menu focusing on whiskeys and bourbons.
“People tend to brand us as a dive bar, which I don’t take issue with, but it’s limiting,” Gleason says. “We’re not a sports bar or a dive bar. We’re a next generation neighborhood bar. We have something for everybody.”
The Griffin celebrates its grand opening on Thursday, August 25, with Gabe Vega and the Howls.
Hours: 2 to 2
Happy: 2 to 7, $1 off everything
Prices: $4 wells, $6 premiums, $2 PBR pints
Capacity: 240
Here's something you might be interested in.
The Griffin
The Griffin
“We gave it a textured, gritty feel...it’s a darker ambiance in here.”
O’Connells’ green trim went red in June when the bar was purchased by Mike Reidy, owner of Bar West in Pacific Beach.
“We’re not Bar West Two,” manager Joe Gleason emphasizes from one of the new booths at the Griffin, where O’Connells’ Irish motif has been swapped for a Medieval tavern aesthetic. “We gave it a textured, gritty feel because it’s a darker ambiance in here. We sandblasted the wood paneling and replaced the old carpeting with hardwood floors. The look is very purposeful.”
A full suit of armor overlooks the free shuffleboard. A mounted boar’s head observes the bar. A new 14-foot high-definition screen plays a football game in front of the stage. Electric candles flicker from chandeliers and Edison bulbs glow in overhead fans.
“We’ve refined the sound system incredibly — a new P.A., mics, soundboard,” says Gleason, who was one of the managers to open the Stingaree, a posh downtown club, seven years ago. “It’s not just a place for bands anymore. It’s also a dance party for college kids and locals. It’s very different from what this space has seen.”
In addition to names such as the Styletones, Dead Feather Moon, and the Lyon Crowns on the calendar, the Griffin has regular nights dedicated to blues, games, comedy, beach rock/reggae with Carlos Culture, and karaoke with Reckless Rhonda.
“We’re not at the beach or in the Gaslamp,” Gleason says. “There are logistical challenges to the location. One thing that helps is our huge parking lot in the back. We’ve also been researching gourmet food trucks, which are really burgeoning here in San Diego, and have identified a handful of quality trucks we want to work with.”
The Griffin offers two local and a few standard drafts but plans to expand the San Diego flavor with craft bottled beers in the future. Gleason is also working on a seasonal craft cocktail menu focusing on whiskeys and bourbons.
“People tend to brand us as a dive bar, which I don’t take issue with, but it’s limiting,” Gleason says. “We’re not a sports bar or a dive bar. We’re a next generation neighborhood bar. We have something for everybody.”
The Griffin celebrates its grand opening on Thursday, August 25, with Gabe Vega and the Howls.
Hours: 2 to 2
Happy: 2 to 7, $1 off everything
Prices: $4 wells, $6 premiums, $2 PBR pints
Capacity: 240