The long-dormant former Top of the Cove site is presently being given new life as hospitality group T S Restaurants prepares to open its sixth Duke's in space by the end of October. Duke's took hold of the 15,000-square-foot property in May, which had already been expanded and given a modern revamp. The building's owner originally intended the space to be meant for a nightclub and restaurant concept but Duke's is filling it with a two-story eatery and bar that will have a more contemporary design than existing Duke's but retain its original surf theme. Duke's La Jolla will have capacity for 350 and includes 4,000-square-feet of outdoor dining on two levels of unobstructed ocean view patios.
Executive chef Anthony Sinsay, a longtime fixture on the San Diego food scene, collaborated with Duke's corporate chefs on the menu, which is a mix of the restaurant's Hawaiian-inspired signature dishes that have been given his stamp and adjusted to feature local ingredients, along with the new plates that include mussels adobo, vegetarian miso ramen and wood-grilled salmon. Sinsay is charged with leading a large kitchen team that includes chef de cuisine Dave Underwood and overseeing a basement prep area and two full-fledged kitchens that will feed the main dining room and more casual upstairs bar, which will be hung with surfboards and include a 12-seat private dining room. Both levels of Duke's La Jolla will have a large bar, featuring 10 craft beer taps and six barrel-to-glass wines on tap.
