After much anticipation, Jordan Restaurant, aka JRDN, opened last month at the newly opened Tower 23 Hotel in Pacific Beach. The brainchild of developer Brett Miller (Gringos, Moondoggies), Tower 23 and Jordan Restaurant have changed the landscape of the PB waterfront. The high-styled boutique hotel, designed by Graham Downes, boasts state-of-the-art rooms with luxurious amenities and trendy furnishings. Jordan, a 10,000-square-foot restaurant that features “The Dune Wall,” a computer programmed LED wall that changes color every six minutes, serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. Victor Jimenez (Gringos, Thee Bungalow) is executive chef.

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Jack’s La Jolla is delayed but looking for a late-September opening on Girard Avenue.

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Trattoria Acqua has made a few changes. Check out the new interior design and menu. Don’t worry, old favorites are still on the menu. Look for more seafood and I hear they have a new lobster pot pie to die for.

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Last month Amiko Gubbins, chef/owner of Parallel 33 in Hillcrest and Riko Bartolome, chef/owner of Asia Vous in Escondido joined together and presented their third annual KoKo dinners (Get it, Ko and Ko?) at their two restaurants. Each chef presented a five-course tasting menu. The courses were served in tandem so that at each table one diner would receive Riko’s first course, while another diner would receive Amiko’s first course. A lot of “bite and switch” went on. Diners wanted the opportunity to taste every course. It was a lot of fun. Guests feasted on dishes like “monkfish chorizo with brown butter gnocchi” and “golden grouper wrapped in grape leaves with feta, tabbouleh, fried capers and harrissa.”

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Ruth Silva, manager of La Paloma Café on the University of San Diego campus has been named “Manager of the Year” for the California Restaurant Association’s annual “Foodservice Employee of the Year” awards. Silva, along with two others, was honored at the CRA’s Educational Foundation Hall of Fame awards ceremony last month. Silva has been with USD’s catering department for more than 20 years.

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After a five-week closure due to a small kitchen fire, Emerald Restaurant in Kearny Mesa has reopened. The blaze, which started in the early morning hours, caused minor damage to the exhaust ducts. “We took advantage of the down time as a creative opportunity to make some across-the-board upgrades,” says Susan Lew, the restaurant’s owner. Stop by and check out the freshly painted dining area and new art work.

Terryl Gavre believes the world would be a better place if everyone worked once as a foodserver. She is owner of Café 222, Downtown, and can be reached at (619) 233-4060, Ext. 316, or terryl@sandiegometro.com.