Hash House A Go-Go, the sprawling-portion breakfast institution that put Hillcrest on the map for out-of-town food tourists, has filed a legal claim against the City of San Diego over a storm drain replacement project the restaurant says badly hurt its bottom line.
According to tort claims filed with the city, the Fifth Avenue construction project — which ran from late 2025 through this past June — turned the block in front of the restaurant into what the filing calls a “construction zone.” Parking disappeared, traffic was rerouted, dust settled over outdoor seating, and nearby side streets closed intermittently, all of which made it harder for regulars and tourists alike to simply walk in the door.
The numbers in the claim are striking for a single-location restaurant: estimated losses of $28,000 to $40,000 per month during construction, including a 17.8% revenue drop in February compared to the restaurant’s three-year average for that month, and a 9.5% dip in May. The city has denied the claims and declined to comment further given the pending litigation.
Hash House A Go-Go isn’t alone in feeling the pinch. Other Fifth Avenue businesses reported similar slowdowns during the work, though not every affected owner went the legal route — Divo Diva Cafe, a nearby spot, confirmed it dealt with lost business but opted not to file a claim.
The dispute is a reminder of a tension every growing city wrestles with: necessary infrastructure work inevitably collides with the small businesses that depend on foot traffic and curb access to survive. Hillcrest’s commercial strip has weathered plenty over the past few years, from pandemic-era closures to rising rents, and a months-long construction detour is the kind of disruption that can tip a marginal month into a genuinely bad one.
For San Diego business owners watching from other neighborhoods, the case is worth tracking — it could set a precedent for how the city handles compensation claims tied to public works projects that disrupt commercial corridors, whether in Hillcrest, downtown, or anywhere else construction crews show up next.
Source: Times of San Diego
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