This New Rooftop Restaurant Landed Alums of Mister A’s and George’s at the Cove

More details, including an opening timeline, are emerging about the restaurants that will anchor the ground floor and rooftop of the Sasan, the unabashedly pink, retro-modern building in Mission Hills that began moving tenants into its loft spaces earlier this year.

Both venues are scheduled to debut in early November and mark a return of sorts for restaurateur Jacquee Renna Downing, a San Diego native who once ran Pacific Del Mar and currently operates La Quinta Cliffhouse and Pacifica Seafood in the Coachella Valley area.

Working with local firm Design Perspectives, Downing’s seventh-floor restaurant and cocktail bar will be called Communion and serve a global menu geared towards sharing from executive chef Mike Moritz, an alum of foundational spots like Mille Fleurs and Mister A’s. Moritz will be joined in the kitchen by pastry chef Aly Lyng, who spent more than a decade at George’s at the Cove, another iconic local establishment. The space, decorated with a custom mural and an installation of preserved butterflies, will have panoramic skyline views.

Paradis, the ground-floor restaurant, will serve dual purposes. Downing told Eater in January that the cafe will center around coffee and pastries during the day but shift to a tapas-style bar at night.