After untangling red tape, Buddy's Diner finally opening soon



Buddy's Diner in Pacific Beach will open in August. / Photo by Dave Schwab slideshow

Buddy’s Diner co-owner Vito Totino wishes he had a nickel for every time someone’s asked him when he was going to open Buddy’s Diner, his Pacific Beach restaurant-to-be, and he ushered them inside to show them he was working toward that goal.“We got cleared two weeks ago; we got our permits finally completed,” said Totino, who acquired the property at 1564 Garnet Ave., a portion of the building formerly owned by Potts by Pat Florists, in May of 2013. “We should be open in about six to nine weeks, by the end of August.”Totino is glad to be back on track to open his 24-hour, ’50s retro-style diner serving up traditional American cuisine.The restaurateur’s still working on his all-purpose breakfast, lunch and dinner menu, but promised it will feature “lots of milkshakes — 27 different types — and piled-high sandwiches.”“It’s stuff I liked and enjoyed as a child,” Totino said, noting his tastes run toward things like roast and corned beef.“It’s comfort food,” he said, adding sushi is one item that won’t be on Buddy’s menu.Totino has come to own an old-fashioned diner by a long and circuitous route. He’s a degreed engineer who’s worked in the defense contracting industry. He also previously owned, then sold, Da Boyz Pizza & Pasta chain back in the ’90s, which he noted still has a dozen locations in San Diego and elsewhere in the Southwest.More recently, Totino was general manager at The Tap Room bar-restaurant a couple blocks down on Garnet.When Potts By Pat’s owner retired, Totino said, “I got the idea to open Buddy’s Diner when I saw the place had become available, and the rest is history.”But Totino never imagined it would take this long — or require overcoming so many bureaucratic “hurdles.”“It’s been one thing after another,” he said. “I was told I had to be ADA-accessible outside.” Then he said there was a slew of conditions he had to meet to satisfy the health department.“They (city) told me I had to bring in a licensed, structural engineer even though I told them I had my own plans,” Totino said, adding then there were even issues over what his seating occupancy could and should be.Then there was the installation of cable TVs throughout the diner, which Totino’s been paying for for 12 months without being open. The biggest bureaucratic hoop — and hold-up — Totino had to jump through was taking care of 110-foot-long trench in his establishment for underground plumbing that had to be installed and properly inspected.Now that his eatery has finally been cleared for takeoff, Totino noted he may not have much time as he’d like to kick the tires on his new place.“Normally, when you open, you’ve got some time to work out the bugs,” he said, but he added that may be difficult because he’s had so many fits and starts and people have been so anxious to see his diner in action.“People may not be so forgiving, as they’ve had to wait two years,” Totino noted.Nonetheless, the debut of Buddy’s Diner draws near.“I can’t wait to open, more than anybody that’s been asking,” concluded Totino, adding, “I think I have the right to say that now.”