There are a lot of studio pop-ups during San Diego Comic-Con but for those without tickets to this massive event, there are still a places to go that provide a lot of the super hero, sci-fi and comic book characters amosphere.
For starters, just hang around the Gaslamp Quarter sign on Fifth Ave., for there you will get a lot of the San Diego Comic-Con flavor.
But eventually, you will get thirsty and hungry and here are some activities with food specials and themed drinks at the bars and restaurants in the Gaslamp Quarter during Comic-Con.
Hasta Mañana Cantina, an excellent and different kind of Mexican restaurant just past the Gaslamp sign, has a trio specialty cocktails for Comic-Con. They are the Pantera Negra with blanco tequila, lime, agave, activated charcoal, and agave bitters with a skull glass giveaway for the first 25 orders everyday; the Super Juice with blanco tequila, lime, agave pineapple juice, and blue curaçao; and the El Storm with blanco tequila, lime, agave, white peach and edible glitter.
One of the busies bars during Comic-Con is barleymash and it has a special lineup of cocktails Friday through Sunday. The Oz includes Bacardi White Rum, ube, coconut cream and lime garnished with a custom Comic-Con sticker. The Cat’s Meow mixes Grey Goose Vodka, cold brew, coffee liqueur, sugar, and activated charcoal whip, topped with a sugar cat; and the Flying Falcone includes fiero, strawberry, sparkling water, and a red wine float garnished with a mini decorative rose.
Around the corner, The Smoking Gun’s theme for Comic-Con 2024 is Beetlejuice. It has a Beetlejuice-themed cocktail withAstral Blanco, Italian liqueur, melon, lime and an ava salt rim. On Friday, July 26th, The Smoking Gun will host a Mario Kart N64 competition. Sign-ups begin at 6 p.m., with races beginning at 8. Prizes include gift cards to both The Smoking Gun and their arcade, along with merchandise.
The secret hideaway bar Prohibition is where you’ll find the Penguin-inspired Gentleman of Crime, a nefarious yet sophisticated cocktail blend of whiskey, lemon and ube. Other cocktails, all priced at $18, are the Hanzo Sword with Umiki Japanese Whisky, Yellow Chartreuse, Cointreau and lemon; the Sisyphus, a mixture of Castle and Key Gin, Italicus Rosolio di Bergamotto, lime, lemongrass and cucumber; and the All My Heroes are Dead, made with Old Forester Bourbon, Lo-Fi Hibiscus Amaro, lemon, hibiscus and R&C Citrus Bitters; and more.Prohibition’s “secret” entrance on Fifth Ave., is behind the door inconspicuously marked as “Law Office – Eddie O’Hare, ESQ.”
El Chingon has a Joker-inspired cocktail priced at $13, Madness Like Gravity, featuring tequila, lime, melon liqueur, agave and Tajín. The bar/restaurant also features a regular rogues gallery of wanted cocktails including the Pancho Villa, made with El Jimador tequila, lime, salt and choice of Jarritos (grapefruit, pineapple, tamarindo or mandarin), priced at $13; the Bad Hombre with choice of tequila or mezcal, orange curacao, lime juice, ginger beer and Tropical Red Bull for $14 and margarita flights for $18.
Havana 1920, will pay homage to Batman’s sinister super-foe, Bane, with a cocktail as dark and treacherous as the archvillain’s tortuous origin story in a Caribbean prison. The restaurant’s Bane-inspired Comic-Con cocktail, I Broke The Bat, is made with coconut rum, lime, Demerara and activated charcoal, priced at $15.
Oxford Social Club nightspot located in the Pendry hotel is hosting a Comic-Con art showcase featuring legendary artist Ryan Benjamin and many other top comic book artists. Beginning at 10 p.m., it promises a dark night of entertainment, drinks and dancing to the high-energy sounds of DJ Shift.
The Pool House. also at the Pendry, is a pool party in an elevated lounge setting that during Comic-Con will try and cure people’s P.C.D. (‘Post-Con Depression’…it’s a thing. Look it up!), on Sunday, July 28. There are Comic Con-coction cocktails and DJ dance tunes spun by top DJs and Lgndry entertainment.
The Pendry’s upscale Lionfish Modern Coastal Cuisine has special Comic-Con cocktails for $18. They are the Regeneration Refresher, a twist on the Dirty Shirley made with Grey Goose Vodka, grenadine and Sprite (fun fact: groundbreaking BBC vision mixer Shirley Coward created the first regeneration effect in “Doctor Who”); the Cowabunga Cooler, a green TMNT-inspired cocktail featuring Sipsmith Gin, Midori, cucumber, honeydew, lemon and simple syrup; the Joker’s Jive, an espresso martini crafted with Belvedere Vodka, espresso, St. George Espresso Liqueur, Baileys Irish Cream and simple syrup; and the Elven Elixir, an energizing mixture of St-Germain Elderflower liqueur, rosé wine and Fever-Tree pink grapefruit soda.
City Tacos is offering free chips and salsa to all parties with at least one guest in costume. Located at 323 7th Ave adjacent to Petco Park, City Tacos is open from 11 a.m.-8:30 p.m., each day of the Comic-Con. This is a wallet-friendly place; of the 18 tacos on the menu, 16 are less than $5.
Comic-Con Special In Little Italy
Coco Maya, rooftop tropical oasis in Little Italy, has specialty menu July 25-28 with 15% off for those with a weekend badge. The Coco-Con menu includes the Princess Peach’s Poke, Stormtrooper Spare Rib and Dragon Ball Z Drunken Mussels. Cocktails are the Infinity Stone Flight, The Baby Yoda and Siempre Sailor Moon.