Hospitality: New
Owner Senses ‘Good
Karma’ for Bertrand’s
If Bertrand Hug had any doubts about taking over famed Hillcrest restaurant Mr. A’s, they were put to rest late last month , with a piece of molding.
On April 28, the restaurant had been in the midst of a million-dollar remodeling. A worker replacing molding found a piece inscribed with the names of the construction and design team.
It read, “April 29, 1965.”
It was the last piece installed on the restaurant and happened to be nearly 35 years to the day. The next morning, Hug and the current work crew reinstalled the piece, adding the new date.
“It was pretty chilling, actually,” Hug recalled. “Good karma.”
The molding has since been repainted a buttery shade, updating the restaurant’s former look of red walls, dark wood and velvet curtains.
D & #233;cor is one of many changes at the restaurant, whose view and prestige long placed it in San Diego lore.
Closed since Feb. 29, the restaurant reopens June 1 as Bertrand’s at Mr. A’s, an event important to the local industry.
“A familiar landmark in San Diego will be reborn,” said Stephen Zolezzi, executive vice president of the Food & Beverage Association of San Diego County.
Restaurant Is A Home
Mr. A’s reputation hinged on its namesake, John Alessio, Zolezzi said. Alessio’s approach was the restaurant is a home rather than a business; customers were truly guests.
“That is reborn with an operator like Bertrand Hug,” Zolezzi said. “That is the reputation that he has.”
Hug is well known for his popular Rancho Santa Fe restaurant, Mille Fleurs.
Both Alessio’s and Hug’s establishments share a strong reputation for menus, and particularly good wine lists. For instance, Hug’s wine cellar at the new Mr. A’s includes a 1928 Grand Vin de Chateau Latour, worth $2,250.
Hug added his first name to the restaurant to clarify the ownership and changes, and plans to phase it out within a year.
Hug wanted to maintain the Mr. A’s name, he said. It was also part of his deal with John Alessio’s family. Alessio died in 1998.
Eschewing details, Hug said he paid more than $1 million for the restaurant. Its renovation has run “well over” budget and has cost more than $1 million, he said.
Seating Changes
A major change has been opening the deck, adding umbrellas, tables and wind shelters.
Hug decreased the restaurant’s former 250-person capacity by 50. The new floor plan has two separate dining areas.
There will be a 100-capacity formal dining area and a 20-capacity private room to the east, and a less formal 80-capacity lounge facing west. The lounge will have regular piano entertainment, he said.
The deck area could seat 40 to 50 people, but isn’t planned for food service, he said.
Previously, the Mr. A’s continental fare featured meats, fish and classic pastas. Specialities were Steak Diane and Lobster Thermidore.
Hug’s new menu will serve meats and lighter dishes in a modern American menu he described as “a melting pot with Asian and European influences.”
As before, entr & #233;es’ costs will range from the high $20s to the mid-$30s. Hug plans to serve five lunches a week at first, and plans to expand it to the entire week.
For about seven years, Hug had sporadic talks with Alessio about buying Mr. A’s. Alessio had been a frequent customer at Mille Fleurs.
Mr. A’s had never officially been for sale, said Rick Rosa, Alessio’s grandson. “It was his crown jewel,” he said, of his grandfather’s prize venture.
Alessio had restaurants in several of the establishments he owned and operated, such as the Agua Caliente Racetrack, the Hotel del Coronado, and the Kona Kai on Shelter Island, which has since become the Shelter Pointe Hotel & Marina.
Long Negotiations
In Mr. A’s, Alessio strove to create a restaurant with top food, service and views, Rosa said.
Talks between Hug and Alessio fell through several times, but started again in 1997. After Alessio’s death, the family wanted to wait until the time was right, Rosa said.
Last October, talks began in earnest, and a deal was struck by December, Hug said. The restaurant went into escrow March 1.
Hug came to San Diego in 1973 and launched a series of restaurants, including Mille Fleurs in 1984.
News of Mr. A’s changes prompted a flood of nostalgia, Zolezzi said. Many longtime customers returned to relive special events they celebrated there.
“It’s an example of what an important part our industry plays in people’s lives,” Zolezzi said.
Many calls about the restaurant’s sale were about whether the tradition of holiday lights draped around the Mr. A’s building each December would continue.
“An emphatic ‘yes,'” Rosa said.
The Alessio family still owns the building, called the Fifth Avenue Financial Centre. The family also has several ventures in the United States and Mexico, primarily in real estate, Rosa said.
