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San Diego's most anticipated nightlife destination, Universal in Hillcrest, transforms the seedy into the sublime with new urban comfort food restaurant, Dish.

EnDev Enterprises will soon unleash their signature brand of high-style entertainment in Hillcrest with the eagerly awaited opening of Universal and its chic new restaurant, Dish. An experience designed to stimulate all the senses, Dish's synergy of mood, food and attitude breaths vibrant new life into a structural eyesore that has plagued the popular neighborhood's busiest intersection for years.

A principal attraction of the Universal dining experience, Dish will feature a tantalizing twist on comfort food favorites designed to appeal to a plethora of palates, from the more sophisticated to the easy-to-please. Adjacent to The Garden, Universal's open-air lounge Dish's sophisticated interior environment reflects a certain natural charm, fitting with its menu of local, organic and fresh comfort fare.

An abundance of natural light plays off the lush color scheme of red tangerine, orange tangerine, poppy, mango, papaya and clay. Dish's dining room oozes sex appeal with its swank-funk fusion of driftwood, gold-plated leaves and sandblasted brass. Guests can enjoy entertainment options that will include roving jazz nights, live acoustic guitar and violin performances.

Helming the kitchen at Dish is EnDev's culinary phenom, Chef Antonio Friscia, who's talked about Stingaree landed a coveted spot on Conde Nast Traveler's 2007 "Hot List." For Dish's menu, Friscia has masterfully transformed many comfort classics into a savory selection of signature eats based on each season's freshest local ingredients. His menu of urban comfort food will tease, tantalize and satisfy, with dinner starters such as lemongrass chicken lettuce wraps with marinated cucumber, organic butter lettuce and chili ginger sauce or the succulent lobster mac 'n cheese with rustichella macaroni al torchio, baby Maine lobster and Gruyere cheese fonduta. Dinner entrees include the Brandt beef pot roast with green garlic potato puree and Madeira gravy, the "wiener schnitzel" with Vande Rose pork, Yukon gold potato croquette, and more.

For lunch, Chef Friscia has put his inventive twist on several noontime staples such as the grilled Fulton Valley organic chicken sandwich on house-made foccacia with aioli, roasted peppers and fontina, the Daddy's pimped-out egg sandwich on toasted ciabatta with Nueske bacon, double Glouster cheddar and two eggs any style, or the vegetarian pizzetta on grilled flatbread with pesto, grilled eggplant and smoked mozzarella.

Dish will also serve a light lounge menu and refreshingly original brunch special.

The $5 million, 15,000 sq. ft. Universal features four distinct, urban entertainment concepts: Dish @ Universal; The Garden, the ultra-hip indoor ultra-lounge with a dance floor and a Ciro's Pizzeria - all scheduled to open late February, 2008. As the name implies, Universal celebrates unity, embracing Hillcrest's predominantly gay community while welcoming an entire social spectrum of patrons.