Una Más isn’t even open yet, and already the Baja-Southern California fusion concept has lived several lives. First, the University Heights space was slated to become a German biergarten (it didn’t.) Then, Collin Corrigan hoped he could open it as a cross-border brewpub earlier this spring (he couldn’t). But at long last, Una Más will open on Friday, August 1.
Corrigan founded Ensenada’s Cervecería Transpeninsular in 2016, and was a former partner in El Cruce+241 in Chula Vista before Brewjeria Company took over the concept. To get Una Más over the finish line, he enlisted some high-profile names in the local food and drink scene. He tapped Danny Romero (one of the new owners of The Lion’s Share) and Ian Ward (Ponyboy, Addison) of Service Animals to consult on menu development with executive chef Real Coronado. Coronado has worked in restaurants in Tijuana (Casa de Coronados, Savage) and San Diego, including with Romero at his pop-ups Tortoise, Two Ducks, as well as Wormwood and Ponyboy.
Along with Geoff Hill (co-founder of Baja Bound Insurance) and creative consultants Jeff Lozano and Danny Goycoolea (OverPour Media), Una Más’s team is a hodgepodge of top-tier San Diego and Baja California talent. That’s precisely what’s going to make it stand out, says Lozano.
“These particular players, at this particular time, in this particular neighborhood, with this particular idea, are really what sets it apart from any other spot in North Park,” he says.
Una Más’ menu features Ensenada-style cuisine, specifically emphasizing a lot of fresh seafood. Romero wanted to take it one step further. “[Service Animals] had been simmering on a concept that was a play off of Taco Bell—like an elevated Taco Bell,” Lozano explains. They took familiar favorites, like Taco Bell’s signature nachos, and kicked them up a notch using premium ingredients and preparation techniques. Other items include an escabeche pickle dip, coconut and tomatillo aguachile, and various vegan/vegetarian and gluten-free items.
Despite the playful twist, Corrigan emphasizes the menu will be a serious representation of the best of Baja. “It’s still very, very much Ensenada-style food, with a couple dishes that have a fun spin,” he promises. There are also 20 taps featuring San Diego craft beers and Baja breweries, plus NA beers, ciders, kombucha, agua frescas, and wines from Valle de Guadalupe. A coffee counter will be open daily starting at 7 a.m. as well. Once open, Una Más will offer lunch and dinner service, and will launch a brunch program on Saturdays and Sundays a few weeks after opening.
“The full intention of this business is to provide a family-friendly, community-driven, hyper-local establishment where people can gather, enjoy food and libation sustainably, and have your family and your pets there and enjoy what we know down south of Mexico and what we all know in San Diego,” says Corrigan.
Una Más opens at 2611 Adams Avenue on Friday, August 1. Hours will be Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. The coffee counter will open starting at 7 a.m. every day.
Photo Credit: Kimberly Motos
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
Dockside Night Market Returns For One Night Only
In novels, the concept of a Night Market swirls around mystery, intrigue, and a bit of danger. It’s a place where magical folks come to buy, sell, and trade all manner of enchanted items. San Diego doesn’t have one of those (that I, a non-magical person, am aware of, at least), but what we do have is much more delicious. On Thursday, August 7 from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., Dockside Night Market returns to Tuna Harbor Pier for a one-night culinary gathering centered around our abundance of locally caught seafood. Expect cocktails, live music, and of course, plenty of fresh seafood prepared by local chefs from restaurants like Bica, Campfire, Ponyboy, Herb & Sea, Mabel’s Gone Fishing, Ironside, and more. Leave the kiddies at home for this 21+ event (it’s past their bedtime anyway).
Summertime is historically a slow time for restaurant openings, but there are a bonanza of newbies on the horizon. Mamma Mia in La Mesa is expanding next door to open a new pizza concept, Mission Bagels opens on August 30 in Pacific Beach, Heavenly Bodega is coming to Bankers Hill later this year, Fish Shop is expanding to Oceanside this fall, and Farm to Smash burgers is coming to Point Loma. The second half of 2025 (I can’t believe we’re there already) is shaping up to be one tasty time.
One restaurant opening you don’t have to wait for is Mastro’s—the upscale steak and seafood concept opened its first San Diego location earlier this month along the Embarcadero. (We San Diegans tend to be a casual people, but you might want to gussy yourself up for this elegant waterside dining room—it’s utterly gorgeous.)
Trying to put together a Comic-Con itinerary every year is a grueling exercise in compromise. How can one person pick between all of the goodies jam-packed into a week? I don’t have advice on how to juggle it all, but one that did catch my eye is Kevin Smith’s Comic-Concerts at Good Night John Boy in Gaslamp. The director-writer-actor known for ’90s pop-culture classics like Clerks, Chasing Amy, Dogma, and Mallrats is throwing three events over two nights, starting with Archie Meets Jay & Silent Bob Live! On Thursday, July 24, followed by Jay Mewes: The Ghosts of Comic Cons Past! and Hollywood Babble-On on Friday, July 25. Smith’s caliber of star power generally means sellouts, so if any of these are on your short list, I’d commit sooner rather than later.
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Beth Demmon is an award-winning writer and podcaster whose work regularly appears in national outlets and San Diego Magazine. Her first book, The Beer Lover's Guide to Cider, is now available. Find out more on bethdemmon.com.
