Hot Stuff

WELL, SO MUCH FOR FISH. Epazote at the upscale Del Mar Plaza opened its ocean-view steakhouse in mid-July, with a patio designed by David Robinson, and with Anthony De Luca in charge of a beefy menu that runs to $44 for a 10- ounce filet mignon (the 6-ounce version costs $28). There are shiitake-leek spring rolls, too . . . Steaks are the sizzling sellers of the moment, and Ghio’s Seafood & Steaks is slated to open in September to replace the decades-old Star of the Sea in its enviable Embarcadero location. The bottom line dictated the change . . . In La Jolla, The Shores at the Sea Lodge also has switched to a steakhouse format, accompanied by a new décor . . . Of course, Paddy and Laurel Rainwater would remind us they opened their Rainwater’s on Kettner just as the red-meat phobia of the late 1980s and early ’90s struck, and struggled for a while (no longer). So steak your bets on the next craze: What if it’s tofu?

CHICK CHIC: Not quite a “Hooters for Hotties” (few guys would be caught dead in a place that gives manicures while patrons sip cocktails named Platinum Blonde, Redhead and Shampoo), the new Beauty Bar at the corner of El Cajon Boulevard and Euclid Avenue is one of those ideas whose time evidently has come. With six big-city locations—New York and San Francisco among them—the Beauty Bar offers the novelty of partying in a hair-raising setting. At the San Diego club, the back bar formerly held hair-tonic bottles at an oldtimey barbershop in New Jersey, and many a beehive hairdo baked to perfection in the vintage dryer chairs from an Austin, Texas, salon. A cocktail-manicure package sets patrons back $10 (619-516-4746) . . . Characters like those in Rent can’t afford new East Village lofts, but young entrepreneurs are turning the remade neighborhood into a warren of hip spots at which to sip and mingle. Monday through Saturday, The Cask Room (619-822-1606) pours select California vintages in a cozy setting at 550 Park Boulevard, a few steps south of Market Street . . . Café Chloe currently anchors East Village, but a competitor named Café Zanzibar will arrive soon in a new condo building at Seventh and G . . . Over in the Gaslamp, restless restaurateur Alex Thao transmogrified the front bar at Rama into 30-Two, a plush, couch-filled membership club ($1,500 individual, $2,500 corporate) whose amenities extend to complimentary Thai hors d’oeuvres and concierge service. Why “30-Two”? Says Thao: “There are 32 bars in music, and that’s the age I want to retire at.” (He won’t.) . . . Get juiced at Jooze Box (619-578-0096), a new juice bar and shop at Sixth and Ash that offers shots of Philippine fruits like calamansi (lemon) and dalandan (tangerine), along with green tea–fruit blends.

RUMORS THAT THE $52 MILLION restoration of the U.S. Grant Hotel will supplement the Grant Grill with a second restaurant apparently are untrue, but operator Starwood Resorts (the Grant is packaged into the chain’s “Luxury Collection”) confirms that Italy-born, France-trained chef Andreas Nieto will serve as executive chef. He has rather nice credentials, including stints as executive chef at the Beverly Hills Hotel and, most recently, at Starwood’s tres upscale St. Regis in Century City . . . The chefs from Chive, Laurel and Kensington Grill collaborate on “Kitchens for Kids” fund-raisers benefiting the Sullivan Children’s Foundation, August 31 at Chive, and the Children’s Museum, September 28 at Laurel. Four courses with wines, followed by a trio of minidesserts, cost $133 per person.

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