San Diego is known for surf, sand and sun, and when you are there you want to experience it all. Melding that with the convenience of the 2.6 million-square-foot convention center, 11,000 hotel rooms and international airport all located downtown, there are a variety of venues unique to the birthplace of California—site of the state’s first permanent Spanish settlement.
Coasterra
Coasterra, the 28,000-square-foot bayfront restaurant, lounge and event space on Harbor Island, opened in summer 2015. The over $150 million project offers panoramic views of San Diego’s downtown skyline and features creative Mexican dishes and agave-driven cocktails. The establishment boasts more than 70 labels of artisanal mescal and tequila.
“We offer a sleek and modern design with stunning views of the bay and downtown skyline that create an extraordinary backdrop for any style of event,” says Tracey Amernick, Cohn Restaurant Group’s director of special events. “As a member of the Cohn family of restaurants, we specialize in providing the ultimate dining experience.”
Local artist Rafael Lopez created two murals, one on the interior and one on the exterior that resulted in a modern interpretation of works by Mid-Century painters such as Mathias Goeritz and Carlos Merida, with geometric illustrations that represent “Coasterra,” a fusion of two Spanish words that translate to “coast” and “land.”
In addition to the restaurant and lounge areas, there is the Bayview Ballroom, which can hold up to 500 guests, has floor-to-ceiling windows and seamlessly opens to the Skyline Terrace. Coming later this year, the venue will be home to a 6,000-square-foor floating deck that can accommodate 500 for a reception.
Led by chef Deborah Scott, who is known for her diverse taste and ability to create inventive dishes with an emphasis on presentation, the on-site event planners and banquet team are able to create customizable food and beverage programs featuring options from the restaurant and bar menu.
“The amazing menu has been designed by Deborah Scott, one of San Diego’s most respected chefs, and is a mix of modern Mexican dishes showcasing the fresh flavors that define our region,” Amernick says.
USS Midway Museum
The USS Midway is the longest-serving U.S. Navy aircraft carrier of the 20th century, touring for 47 years from the end of World War II to the liberation of Kuwait in 1991. Anchored along San Diego’s embarcadero since 2004, near both the San Diego Convention Center and the San Diego International Airport, it can accommodate groups from 65 to 4,000.
“When visitors and event attendees want to experience the city they are visiting, nothing says U.S. Navy more than holding an event aboard the USS Midway,” says Midway’s marketing director, Scott McGaugh.
The USS Midway, which has carried over 150,000 American soldiers, allows visitors and groups to explore exhibits, climb in cockpits and helicopters and experience flight simulators.
With the city’s year-round temperate climate, the 50,000-square-foot flight deck, which offers views of the San Diego skyline, the San Diego Bay and the iconic Coronado Bridge, is a unique outdoor option. The flight deck has over 30 restored naval aircrafts and offers flexible space for any type of event.
“San Diego’s world-best climate makes a flight deck event possible throughout the year,” McGaugh says. “It’s a setting in San Diego Bay that can’t be replicated in any ballroom or convention center.”
The two indoor Hangar Bays showcase WWII aircraft and can seat up to 600 or accommodate 1,500 for a reception. Hangar Bay 1 features the museum’s 90-seat Battle of Midway Theater and exhibit. The smaller space, the Faintail Sponson, is a patio-style deck that can accommodate up to 75.
Naval Training Center (NTC) at Liberty Station
For over 75 years, hundreds of thousands of Navy recruits were trained at the Naval Training Center (NTC). Since it was decommissioned in 1997, NTC has been recognized as a historical property for its architectural significance. The grounds, known now as Liberty Station, are home to restaurants, bars, shops, grocers, event space and the soon-to-be open Liberty Public Market, a multi-vendor space similar to San Francisco’s Ferry Building and Seattle’s Pike Place Market.
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Liberty Station offers two conference or banquet halls, five breakout rooms and outdoor venues for groups of all sizes. The largest indoor venue, the 8,700-square-foot Corky McMillin Companies Event Center, was once the base library and can accommodate up to 800 attendees, while the 75,000-square-foot grassy North Promenade can be used for all types of outdoor events.
The Dick Laub NTC Commend Center serves as a 5,800-square-foor executive conference center with five spaces, including a boardroom that can host 60 people theater-style. The space opens to the foyer and Rose Garden, which can accommodate larger receptions and events.
The newest venue is the historic barracks building, the Barracks 17 Event Center and Barracks 17 Plaza. The 2,000 square feet of renovated indoor space is ideal for groups from 60 to 180 and opens to the 10,000-square-foot plaza.
San Diego Wine & Culinary Event Center
With the feel and ambience of a winery, the urban-based San Diego Wine & Culinary Event Center offers a full-demonstration kitchen, reception space and patio for groups. The 7,500-square-foot venue is within walking distance of the San Diego Convention Center, the Gaslamp Quarter and PETCO Park, and can accommodate 20 to 500 guests.
“Whenever you have a party at your house, where does everyone end up hanging out? The kitchen! Our goal is to take that feeling of warmth and happiness and bring it to corporate groups in our venue,” explains Shannon McQuade, sales and marketing consultant for the event center.
The Bordeaux Cellar features a tasting bar and exhibition kitchen and can seat 100 guests while the Fallbrook Cellar can be used as a private space with its own entrance and can seat 300 people. The venue also offers a 3,000-square-foot patio with fire pits and heaters.
In addition to hosting events with live chef demonstrations and interactive wine and spirits tasting stations, the center offers an array of teambuilding options as well as tastings and presentations. Attendees can challenge each other with a wine blending, an Iron Chef-style competition or a head-to-head culinary showdown or they can work together in a hands-on cooking class.
With some of the region’s most educated and experienced professionals in the industry—winemakers, sommeliers, executive chefs and culinary teams who have a passion for sharing their knowledge and enthusiasm—the center also offers tastings and presentations, such as the program Deciphering French Wine Laws and Labels, as well as wine and cheese pairings and scotch, bourbon or tequila tastings.
San Diego Zoo
The world-famous San Diego Zoo is celebrating its centennial with special events throughout the year, starting with the Celebration in the Park in May 2016. The kickoff commemorates the history of the past 100 years and plans for the next 100.
Located in the heart of Balboa Park, close to downtown, the zoo offers groups of up to 7,000 a variety of venues and teambuilding activities with package options or the flexibility to create unique events based on a group’s needs.
All of the venues on-site are surrounded by exhibits, from the plantation-style Treetops & Deck area that emulates the plains of Africa to the Sabertooth Grill at Elephant Odyssey, a large terrace that puts attendees at an eye-level view with elephants. Rondavel, an octagonal room with a vaulted ceiling overlooking an Asian garden with a koi pond and exotic waterfowl, can also be used by groups.
There are also several outdoor venues: the Zoofari Party Area that can be tented in cooler months, the casual Discovery Picnic Area and Sydney’s at Australian Outback located near the zoo’s giraffes, koalas and rhinos.
Groups also get the chance to explore the zoo’s grounds during breaks, before or after an event, taking in some of the property’s thousands of animals and even the opportunity to take a “selfie” with a gorilla. One of the zoo’s animal ambassadors can make an appearance or a speaker can talk about the importance of animal conservation, among other topics.
Teambuilding options include Meet the Characters, animal presentations, scavenger hunts, and in the summer months when the zoo is open late, a night prowl tour through the exhibits.
