Awards

In December 2018, Forbes magazine included San Diegan Alexander Adler on its list of 30 Under 30 young innovators and entrepreneurs. Adler is co-founder of the Puesto restaurant group which has expanded to six California locations including the original La Jolla venue and the second bustling location at The Headquarters along San Diego Bay.

The new El Jardin restaurant in San Diego’s latest culinary destination, Liberty Station, appeared on the list of “Best New Restaurants in America” in both Esquire and Food and Wine magazines in 2018. Opened in June 2018 by “Top Chef” contestant chef Claudette Zepeda-Wilkins, El Jardín features regional Mexican fare refined and reinterpreted with both indigenous Mexican ingredients and local produce alongside an extensive selection of tequila and mezcal.

In December 2018, the San Diego Hall of Champions became the San Diego Sports Association and announced a new awards center has been installed at Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres baseball team. Located within the Breitbard Hall of Fame at Petco Park, the digital interactive awards center chronicles and celebrates the honorees who the organization have recognized during its long history. The center is also accessible via a new website and the San Diego Padres' MLB Ballpark app.

Ernie Rossow, National Sales Director of the San Diego Tourism Authority, was named the Hotel Performance Network Global’s (HPN) CVB Sales Manager/Partner of the Year at the organization’s awards ceremony in November 2018. Rossow has been awarded this distinction by HPN four times in the past seven years.

In November 2018, TripAdvisor ranked San Diego #7 in its Top 25 Destinations in the U.S. to visit, according to its Travelers Choice Award. This ranking is a move up from #8 in 2017.