Little Italy is always on the up and up.(By Frank Sabatini Jr.)
Accolades and Openings in Little Italy
By Frank Sabatini Jr.
Hardly a month goes by when there isn’t something to report about Little Italy.
Of late, the once-sleepy neighborhood has again proven its ever-growing bustle by catching the attention of a global media outlet while showing off the arrival of a few new businesses.
Travel + Leisure Magazine recently cited San Diego as having the “biggest Little Italy in the world.” While many assume the largest Italian neighborhood (outside of Italy, of course) is found in New York City, we end up rivaling it with 48 square blocks and 206 acres of territory that should perhaps be renamed, “Not-So-Little Little Italy.”
The area was about half the size in the early 20th Century when Italian and Portuguese fishermen and their families settled in. Spurts of significant, new development that started in the late 1990s have since transformed its streets into a destination for dining and shopping, and for enjoying public art and attractive open spaces.
The article mentions how the community becomes “especially animated” during the Christmas season. “Between twinkling light displays, a Christmas village, and San Diego’s famously mild weather, you might just feel like you’ve been whisked away to the Mediterranean for the holidays,” it states.
Among the neighborhood’s newest ventures is the 334-room Courtyard by Marriott San Diego Downtown Little Italy. The hotel features a sophisticated coastal-inspired design that embodies six different types of rooms, including suites as large as 820 square feet. The property also offers 10,000 square feet of event space.
On its ground level is the new Orexi, a Mediterranean-style restaurant with a Greek-leaning menu. The kitchen sends out scratch-made dishes for daily breakfast as well as for happy hour and dinner. (It is closed from 11:00a to 4:00p.) Meals include egg bowls with veggies and feta; spiced meatballs; chicken shawarma; and more.
A stone’s throw away is the new San Diego location of Taco Centro, owned by Little Italy resident Adrian Gutierrez. It was his dream to open another shop in the neighborhood ever since he launched the first one a few years ago in the Gaslamp Quarter. The menu greets with more than a dozen different types of tacos and burritos in addition to various birria dishes. Look for the eatery on the ground floor of the AV8 apartment building.
