Portside Pier is one of Southern California’s iconic waterfront restaurant sites, constructed entirely on an over-water platform with panoramic views of the nearby bay. Through a partnership between the Port of San Diego and The Brigantine Inc., the location along the North Embarcadero was redeveloped from a dilapidated restaurant which closed in 2016 into a two-level, multi-restaurant venue.

The $25-million project, which spans 42,000 square feet of a new building, includes the signature restaurants of The Brigantine, along with featuring public areas to enjoy views of the bay and a dock-and-dine concept which allows boats to pull up to the eateries. One portion of the development was modeled after a fishing boat, configuring curved steel and zinc shingles on a barrel-shaped roof to pair up with 26- and 31-foot glass structures, resembling fishing baskets, on each end.

Portside Pier offers 1,000 seats across its four restaurants and the public areas, including a significant amount of outdoor seating. Three of the restaurants are full-service, sitdown operations: Brigantine Seafood and Oyster Bar, Miguel’s Cocina and Ketch Grill & Taps. Portside Coffee & Gelato is a walk-up café.

H.J. Martin and Son was selected to handle millwork installation on this signature project for the City of San Diego. A company crew of four installers spent eight months on site, from December 2019 through July 2020, finishing the work. Four additional installers contributed to the project for one of the months.

Several challenges were successfully overcome in completing the work. Foremost among them was working through the COVID-19 pandemic; while the project did not shut down, there was ongoing uncertainty among the construction teams. Company installers had to exercise care not to co-mingle with other tradesmen while working in nearby proximity.

There also were the additional difficulties of the job site being on a pier and weather-related issues. Outside exposure to the upper-level ceiling installations, plus penetrations and fittings for the ceiling, provided obstacles.

A large quantity of the work was within the Brigantine Seafood and Oyster Bar. In its entry area, H.J. Martin and Son installed a distinctive wine rack on the edge of the indoor dining room, plus a light wood soffit turn. It additionally placed trim around the wall art, along with trim on the lights, bar and TV surrounds. Metal bottle racks in the bar area also were done by the company.

Multiple aspects of the Brigantine seating area were handled by H.J. Martin and Son. These included the ceiling trim, plant metal columns, booth seating, the “PINK” seating section and overhead light boxes within the “PINK” area.

On the spectacular rooftop, the company installed the bar, the host stand and elaborate ceiling metal, along with metal around plant holders.

At the open-air Ketch Grill & Taps, the work of H.J. Martin and Son centered around its expansive bar.

One of the most detailed portions of the installation occurred within Miguel’s Cocina, particularly in its entry area. The host stand featured distinctive trim on its exterior. A one-of-a-kind bottle stand greets diners and provides a classy look. Ornate wood work highlights the ceiling trim, beams, lighting chains and cabinets.

Work within the bar area of Miguel’s included an elongated bar, a vast wood ceiling and beams, and overhead metal bottle racks.

The Miguel’s seating area installation featured half-radius booth seating, all ceilings and decorative chain that supports large chandeliers.

H.J. Martin and Son also was involved in the restrooms throughout the dining complex, both in the restaurants themselves and in adjacent public areas. Along with the entrances, the company handled the multi-colored wall plank and its top trim, as well as large bump-outs with extensive trim work.