An office park in Sabre Springs is undergoing a radical transformation: come next month, the site will welcome a culinary hub featuring a restaurant, cocktail bar, café and more.
San Diego-based hospitality group Legal Restaurants – led by founder Antonio Frisca – recently confirmed plans to bring "The Florence" to 13480 Evening Creek Drive North, Suite 150, at the Kilroy Sabre Springs office park.
The indoor and outdoor space pays tribute to late San Diego swimming legend and Point Loma native, Florence Chadwick.
Among her many long-distance, open-water accolades, Chadwick was the first woman to swim the English Channel in both directions, in record time. She accomplished this feat on Aug. 8, 1950, at the age of 31, by reaching the English coast in 13 hours and 28 minutes after entering the water at Cap Gris Nez, France.
To that end, the 10,000-square-foot restaurant will feature a coastal theme with what the hospitality group described as “powerful feminine touches,” as well as plenty of Florence Chadwick memorabilia.
“There couldn't be a better time in our world to create a new venue themed around a powerful female athlete like Florence Chadwick,” a message posted over the weekend to The Florence’s Instagram page read.
The business – which includes a 2-acre patio – will boast a covered boat shack-inspired dining room, beach resort-style seating, fire, its and a regulation-sized bocce ball court. With its varied seating and gaming options, a press release likened it to “a well-appointed backyard.”
According to Legal Restaurants, the kitchen at The Florence will be led by partner and Executive Chef Ricardo Heredia, previously of South Park’s now-shuttered Alchemy eatery and an alumnus of the 2014 World Food Championship.
The menu will focus on locally-sourced, elevated eats “at a conservative price point,” plus a cocktail, beer and wine program crafted by a spirits director and wine sommelier. Fresh seafood and farmers market-inspired dishes will also take the spotlight, along with a full barista-backed café bar.
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Legal Restaurants said it hopes The Florence helps turn the office park in Sabre Springs into a food and events destination for those who work there, as well as local families, businesses and San Diegans. The $4 million project is among five new restaurants the hospitality group plans to open in San Diego County over the next two years.
