OCEAN BEACH – There’s a renaissance transforming Voltaire Street in north Ocean Beach.
The ongoing remake of the former Voltaire Beach House, converting it into The Jetty at 4934 Voltaire St., is one of the cornerstones of this metamorphosis.
First opened in January 2017, Voltaire Beach House closed unexpectedly in September 2024, leaving an unanticipated gap in the local retail landscape.
Enter Kyle Jaworski and Sebastian Widman, who are part of a small group of investors for The Jetty. They’ve stepped in to make change happen on Voltaire.
A real synergy is being created at the intersection of Voltaire and Cable streets in OB. Expected to open sometime this fall, with a grand opening possibly in October after their remodeling is through, The Jetty will be at the epicenter of this rapidly changing, revived,and often overlooked part of OB.
Located adjacent to Hungry Lu’s with The Artist Outpost in the same building, The Jetty is strategically situated across the street from Dog Beach Dog Wash and Ocean Beach Tattoo & Piercing.
The new-look restaurant-bar will also have, as neighbors, Lucy’s on the corner of Voltaire and Cable, with City Tacos across the street along the MTS 35 bus route.
Directly across from City Tacos is Mike Hess Brewing at 4893 Voltaire St., which is adjacent to Reunify Yoga. Around the corner from Mike Hess on Cable is a gym shared by San Diego Biomechanics and 5-MeO-JJ martial arts school.
Jaworski conducted a tour of remodeling work now in progress at The Jetty, which will have a seating capacity of 148 inside and out. He spoke about the re-imagination of the Voltaire Beach House and how it will affect the neighborhood.
“This end of town is really starting to pick up, and when it (the Beach House) came up for the opportunity (sale), I jumped on it right away,” said Jaworski, noting the building redo turned out to be more than anticipated.
“The building’s patio structure had to come down because it wasn’t permitted properly,” he said. “Initially, we thought we’d flip it as is with some new kitchen equipment, redo some of the finishes inside. But then, when we walked the space and looked at it, we knew we were biting off a lot more than we initially intended.”
Jaworski noted the bar has been located in different spots in the past than where it will be in this latest iteration of the building. He added that the investors have signed a new 10-year lease on the entire building plus a five-year option.
“We want to be here for a long time,” he said. “We had the opportunity to build it out with a brand new kitchen and have inside dining all the way through.”
The Jetty could also be an event venue. “There are not many spots in OB where you can do a party of 20 to 40 and have your own separate space,” said Jaworski. “We wanted to create signature spaces.”
Jaworski pointed out that patrons will be able to sit in the bar area with the high tops, or go out in the garden patio area with heaters in a pub-style dine-with-your-family area.
“When you’re coming in, you can say, ‘This is the space I want to be in,’” Jaworski said. Each of the Jetty’s separate spaces will have a different feel, but will be approachable to anybody: “That’s the key.”
Added Jaworski: “We want to be that neighborhood spot where you can get some good food. If you want to be a little rowdier sitting in the bar area, it’s not going to affect the people that are trying to dine.”
The Jetty will not be a sports bar, but it will have enough televisions to have all the games on to view from any area you’re sitting in, said Jaworski.
Jaworski also gave a sneak peek at their prospective menu.
“We want to have a smaller eclectic menu with some bar bites that aren’t crazy expensive, where you can come in and get a snack on your way home from work,” he said. “Or you can come for dinner and get some entrees. I don’t want to dig too much into the menu because we’re still working on it, and we want it to be a little bit of a surprise when we launch.”
The Jetty will be dog-friendly outside on the patio.
“We’ll encourage people to bring their families here,” said Jaworski adding the former restaurant “was very closed off and felt very industrial,” whereas, he said, the new look and feel of the re-imagined restaurant will be “inviting and bright, a place that, when you walk by, you want to step in.”
“We have some cool businesses that have changed hands, some new energy down [on Voltaire] the last five, six years,” Jowarski said. “I hope that we can help to become an anchor for that in the middle of this block.”
