HOTEL LA JOLLA SET FOR $8 MILLION RENOVATION
“It makes sense to start a new chapter and new concept and start making new memories.” Planned redo of 11-story facility includes sixth iteration of penthouse dining, bar area
A year after celebrating its 50th anniversary, the 110-room Hotel La Jolla will undergo an $8 million renovation that will include the latest reincarnation of its oceanview penthouse dining space known decades ago as one of the best jazz venues in San Diego.
The planned overhaul of the 11thfloor space, now occupied by Cusp Dining & Drinks, will require a months-long closure to redesign the dining and bar venue, build a whole new kitchen and reopen what will be known as Sea & Sky.
The new fine dining restaurant marks the sixth iteration of the glassenclosed space that originated with the once well-known Elario's — both a restaurant and a widely popular spot for top-notch jazz performances. A number of other concepts followed after Elario's faded out in the early 1990s, including the Crescent Shores Grill, Clay's, and The Grill at Hotel La Jolla.
Cusp, which debuted more than a decade ago, has made a gradual comeback since shutting down during the pandemic and then reopening with a much-reduced schedule — just Thursday through Sunday — in 2021. It wasn't until September that it returned to being open seven days a week. In preparation for the upcoming remodel and rebranding, it is expected to close after Labor Day, with Sea & Sky anticipated to open in early December, said General Manager Adam Lund.
“When the new owners arrived, the business was still recovering from COVID and finding its way,” Lund said. “So we pretty much took a closed food and beverage operation and got it back to where it needed to be, which was seven days a week of breakfast, lunch and dinner. People have such a history with the place that they were still coming in to check to see if it was open. We really have felt