How can the emotional bond were feeling now be turned into something stronger, with muscle and teeth to protect all of us and all of our people in the future? Consortium Holdings includes, undeniably, the most conversation-worthy restaurants on the San Diego landscape. As big as our industry is, its also incredibly shallow. Comments (0) View FREE Public Profile & Reputation for Arsalun Tafazoli in San Diego, CA - See Court Records | Photos | Address, Email & Phone Number | Personal Review | Income & Net Worth The Lafayette Hotel was owned by developer Jay Wentz of JCG Development since he purchased it in 2004 for $11 million. Purchased by Wentz in 2004 for $11 million, the storied hotel underwent an ambitious $6 million renovation that was completed eight years later. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. But with us, you have to invest your time and its more expensive. Lets build a better one. consortiumholdings.com, The organization continues to innovate to further its hunger relief mission, Founder Nicole Gleeson of Rancho Santa Fe promotes wellness, sustainability and functional health through hydration, Janean Stripe succeeds Suzanne Newman as president, who stepped down after a four-year term but continues to serve as first vice president, The philanthropic Rancho Santa Fe couple shares the process of creating their modern masterpiece, Your email address will not be published. Arsalun Tafazoli, Founder and CEO of Consortium Holdings Zack Benson Brad Japhe Brad Japhe is a freelance journalist specializing in food, beverage, and travel. Tafazoli has also partnered up with local brewery Modern Times to form the Invigatorium, the group's first coffee house. Opened last year inside an upscale shopping mall in La Jolla Village, it's a stunning, Old World-inspired drinking den hidden behind the walls of a liquor store. The companies were formed over a five year period with the most recent being incorporated five years ago in February of 2017. Your email address will not be published. Built in a grand colonial style in 1946 by a former car dealer and developer, the Lafayette began life as the Imig Manor with about 250 guest rooms, suites, and apartments. As his firm, CH Projects, and local architect Paul Basile prepare to open a revamped Craft & Commerce, Tafazoli shares his thoughts on design and we look inside where he works. Some people arent going to get it, and think were pretentious hipster scum, he says. It remains to be seen how the boundaries of creativity will be stretched when Tafazoli has a 131-room hotel as canvas for his next signature experience. Following the acquisition, the hotel underwent a $6 million renovation. With its upcoming projects halted, co-founder Arsalun Tafazoli says theyre focused on supporting their internal crew of 600 employees; all online sales of merchandise and gift cards are going towards a team fund, and Ironside in Little Italy has been set up as a staff grocery. Currently you have JavaScript disabled. Because the original rooftop was used as a parking lot for 10 or so cars, we thought the second-story expansion would be a relatively easy build. But its heartbreaking that not every restaurant or bar is going to get to the other side. Tafazoli was unwilling to reveal any plans he has in mind for future restaurants or bars, although his overarching goal, he said, is to transform the hotel into a cultural hub for the neighborhood that is very oriented to locals.. But we're also mall kids that were raised on this sh*tno shame. By submitting your email, you agree to our, The freshest news from the local food world, CH Projects Arsalun Tafazoli on Restaurant Life After COVID-19, Sign up for the We pound the pavement for our exclusive coverage instead of waiting for permission to break news from the fancy public relations firms that regularly spoon-feed mainstream media sources their story ideas, influencing journalists opinions with freebies and fanfare. That fire doesnt burn as hot anymore. The ever-expanding restaurant group also has numerous additional concepts in the works, including arefresh of East Village's Neighborhoodthat is expected to be completed in the very near future and also includes a new speakeasy calledYoung Blood. But I am excited for the conversation, and inspired by the resilience and ingenuity Im seeing all around me, hardworking restaurant people doing what we do and finding what ways they can to push forward. Today that groupConsortium Holdingsconsists of 600 employees spread across 16 bars and restaurants throughout San Diego county. Meet the four San Diego restaurants that made Yelps 2023 list of the Top 100 Places to Eat in the U.S. 66 bus rattles just like a regular diesel bus on Chicagos west side, but no one seems to notice the high-pitched whine of the electric motor that makes it go, Privacy PolicyTerms of ServiceSign Up For Our NewslettersSite Map, Copyright 2023, The San Diego Union-Tribune |. 2023 Consortium Holdings All Rights Reserved. The heart and soul of a great hotel is the F & B (food and beverage), so this is a natural progression for us. Both Raised by Wolves and CHs Noble Experiment, a spooky speakeasy hidden behind a faux wall inside the recently revamped East Village eatery Neighborhood, were recently named to Esquires Best Bars in America list. Meet The Man Lifting San Diego Onto The Global Food And Drink - Forbes And judging by his restaurant group's sales numbers, personality goes a long way. Please enter a valid email and try again. "There didnt used to be a deep, thoughtful culture in F&B here, but there is now. Arsalun Tafazoli, 40 - San Diego, CA - Has Court or Arrest Records But that doesnt change the fact that every one of us sees every other restaurant as a competitor. Structural challenges, plus the meticulous design of the project, including high-end materials and custom-made pieces overseen by Tafazolis go-to designer Paul Basile, also contributed to soaring costs. In order to post comments, please make sure JavaScript and Cookies are enabled, and reload the page. Required fields are marked *. Three years later, he partnered with another no-holds-barred, social-scene-busting restaurateur, Arsalun Tafazoli. There are always unintended consequences that we miss in development that come to surface when people start filling the space. And thats okay. A post shared by Jason McLeod (@ironsidechef). CH Projects, a well-known San Diego restaurant group, is the prospective buyer. 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I believe that after COVID-19, the democratic social spaces of restaurants and bars are going to be more important than ever. Really, you should do it in 40 characters or less. For more information, please review our Privacy Policy. Thats kind of how we feel about our projects. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the San Diego Union-Tribune. Your guide to finding delicious Vietnamese cuisine, ranging from Michelin-recognized modern dishes to traditional pho and banh mi. So the duo set out to fill what they saw as a cultural void, focusing on restaurants and bars. Third-generation family owners of the site soon were fielding inquiries from restaurateurs for a spot that could command significantly higher rent, said Dino Cresci, who oversees the property owned by three members of his family. But retrofitting the building presented huge challenges.. The pandemic was shocking and jarring especially shutting down 95 percent of our operations, says Tafazoli, a UC San Diego alum who lives in downtowns East Village. Like many college students, Tafazoli was once a kid with no idea what to do with his life. While upscale restaurants like Tafazolis account for just 1 percent of restaurant industry traffic, the fine dining segment has been a standout in recent years, posting decent growth compared to the industry as a whole. Thirty years later, his widowed grandmother developed the building that would house the photo supply store. Exposed filament bulbs and reclaimed wood paneling. Industry after industry is getting pummeled. How do you make a small fortune? the old joke goes. We have always strived to be a catalyst for analytical thought and get people outside of their comfort zone. His most visible hotel-related project, which has yet to open, is the rooftop venue on the 19th floor of the Intercontinental in downtown San Diego. There is also a new concept in the works for North Park and Consortium Holdings co-founder Arsalun Tafazoli haspurchased the shopping plaza at 3401 Adams Avenue in Normal Heights, which sits across the street from Blind Lady AleHouse and approximately a half mile from CH's Polite Provisions. There are stories we want to tell. With the purchase, expect Consortium Holdings to overhaul onsite food & beverage options, including rebranding Hope 46 restaurant and installing a new concept in the space that long housed Red Fox Steakhouse & Piano Bar, which is in the process of opening across the street in a new building. Most of us that work in restaurants love the energy and the dysfunction and the challenge even while we know its eating us alive. Arsalun Tafazoli has reshaped San Diego's culinary scene with his edgy architectural designs and unconventional, unapologetic menus at more than a dozen eateries and bars. "All of our projects are historically rooted and start with a story, usually one that isn't told yet in San Diego, but we feel like it should be.". "Love Us or Hate Us, but Don't Be Indifferent" | Hatch With a population of nearly 1.5 million, San Diego is one of the biggest urban areas in the country. Were all trying to figure it out. Get the top San Diego innovation and tech stories delivered straight to your inbox. We wanted to have a truly independent hotel that was a reflection of the community its in. As much as he enjoyed Muir College and his political science and philosophy studies, equally interesting to him were the social dynamics he saw play out every night while he worked security in local bars. Even though we represent a workforce of about 10 million people, and impact supply chains that include tens of thousands more. 858-277-6359 (Local), San Diego Business Journal | Website by Web Publisher PRO, San Diegos Most Influential Business Leaders, List of San Diego 500 Icons Grows This Year, Julie Given-Glance Joining Endeavor Bancorp as CFO, Scripps Health CEO Retires as Reserve Sheriff, Surf Instructor Making and Catching Waves in North County, Making A Community Strong and Resourceful, Palomar Health Named a Worlds Best Hospital. By submitting your email, you agree to our, The freshest news from the local food world, Local Restaurateur Arsalun Tafazoli on Beer, Best Neighborhoods &Borrowing, 777 G St San Diego, CA 92101 (619) 446-0002, Sign up for the Frustrated with the bad rap his hometown had amassed, he formed a hospitality group to weave soulful cuisine with elegant design into the local narrative. On every level, we encountered the worst-case scenario, said Tafazoli, co-founder of CH Projects, which operates nearly a dozen venues, including Ironside Fish & Oyster, and Craft & Commerce, also in Little Italy. In the coming days, well share more thoughts from local chefs and restaurant owners who are navigating this new world. We wanted to create spaces that became a part of the fabric of thecommunities they were in, and create long-term relationships with our guests. Dont look for literal explanations. Your email address will not be published. When the citys dine-in ban came down, one of San Diegos most prolific and high-profile restaurant groups CH Projects moved to temporarily shutter all of its 14 restaurants and bars, save for the Underbelly ramens shops in Little Italy and North Park which are still open for takeout, with all proceeds going to the hospitality collectives furloughed staff. SD 500: Nathan Stanton - San Diego Business Journal Get the latest Hatch updates straight to your inbox. Consortium Holdings founder Arsalun Tafazoli is currently in the escrow stage of purchasing North Park's 131-room, grand colonial-style The Lafayette Hotel. I think it was Woody Allen in Annie Hall who said a relationship is like a shark; if its not moving forward, its dying. Arsalun also took over ownership of Bar Pink in North Park last year and plans to convert the space to become a new cocktail bar dubbed Part Time Lover. There will also be a "wellness component" added to the property. SanDiegoVille was created in 2010 to report about all the fun & delicious happenings taking place around America's Finest City and we quickly earned a reputation for being a news source for and by those that shun archaic journalistic practices in pursuit of reporting the real story. SanDiegoVille reports fairly on the top entertainment happenings and small businesses doing it right, while not shying away from hard topics and questions you wont read in local publications where editorial direction is ultimately steered by the sales department. ', When we started we loved San Diego, but we wanted a better social dining culture," recalls Tafazoli. I think well be able to do something pretty special with it, Tafazoli predicts. And the newest downtown addition to the group, J & Tonys Discounted Cured Meats & Negroni Warehouse, also snared accolades from Esquire. So while we look forward and think about life after COVID-19, those of us in the restaurant industry need to think about what kind of world we want ours to be. More than a year after its scheduled opening, Born & Raised, a glamorous, wood- and marble-embellished steakhouse in the heart of Little Italy, formally opens Wednesday. Choose your subscription. San Diego's Consortium Holdings hospitality group (Morning Glory, Raised By Wolves) is in the process of purchasing North Park's historic The Lafayette Hotel,Swim Club & Bungalows. Craft & Commerce Assistant General Manager, Born & Raised Assistant General Manager, Seneca Trattoria and The Reading Club Service Manager, Seneca Trattoria and The Reading Club General Manager. Required fields are marked *, Save my name and email in this browser for the next time I comment. Looking back, it was a little much, vulgar and unnecessary, but thats what youth is forI think. We may also place cookies on our and our partners' behalf to help us deliver more targeted ads and asses the performance of these campaigns. The Lafayette was originally built in 1946 by former car dealer and developer Imig Manor. Q. Tafazoli calls J & Tonys a daytime hangout space. A wide-winged pterodactyl dangles over the caf counter, which is also guarded by a glaring red dragon and a bemused-looking T-Rex. Little Italys Craft & Commerce (which has a Tiki bar-themed speakeasy hidden in a back room, natch) could be described as an industrial literary cabin. San Diego, CA 92123 Whats your favorite San Diego County beach? There is always a better market for things like Chipotle because of the price point, he said. And true to its much anticipated debut, reservations are already booked through the end of September. Background Report for Arsalun Tafazoli Views: 10041 Eclectic Restaurateur nonpareil Arsalun Tafazoli is back in business. If we are given the opportunity to take stewardship of this special place, it would be a dream come true. What would that look like? There is no word yet on what is planned for that space. What's been missing is personality. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. This is a pretty rare asset with a pretty special history, Tafazoli said. Get ready for your week with the weeks top business stories from San Diego and California, in your inbox Monday mornings. "For San Diego, these venues are sophisticated and a little bit eclectic. The 500 is selected by the San Diego Business Journal newsroom. 4909 Murphy Canyon Rd., Suite 200 Though it boasts the nickname "America's Finest City," longtime residents Arsalun Tafazoli and Nathan Stanton found that something was missing from California's south ernmost metropolis. Arsalun Tafazoli leads restaurant group Consortium Holdings into the There is no word yet on the exact changes planned for The Lafayette, but we anticipate Tafazoli to implement design upgrades in the near future while respecting the name and history of the hotel. We put a friendly face on for the public, rooting for each other on social media, showing up for special events. Last update: May 20, 2022 profile Stats Market value Transfers Rumours News Hundreds of classic novels are stacked in bookcases. Consortium Carefully Crafts A Fine-Dining Experience We are a concerted threat to legacy media organizations, and proudly so. The San Diego 500, The Book of Influential Business Leaders, is the markets most comprehensive product of people you should know in the business community. Arsalun Tafazoli email address & phone number | Neighborhood Owner Add to that the challenge of transforming an old photo supply store with rooftop parking into a two-level, 10,000-square-foot restaurant, and its no surprise the bills kept mounting. You can pick up any credible publication and the talk is about who is going to get bailed out and with how much and when. For more information, visit lafayettehotelsd.com, and learn more about Consortium Holdings atconsortiumholdings.com. So we try to design our spaces to encourage human interaction and good conversation. It's not as though San Diego was ever a wasteland for bars and restaurants. Oops. Along the way, he enlisted big names from food and beverage, including Chris Patinowho curates the spirits selection at Raised By Wolvesand Erick Castro who built out the bar programs.