(Roving correspondent/ photographer Kristen Tobiason revisits and documents the scenes of our youth. Today, Topsy’s becomes a bear sanctuary! Photos by Kristen Tobiason; text by Kristen Tobiason and Matthew Rothenberg.)
In the pantheon of 24-hour, Formica-countered restaurants of early-’80s San Diego, Topsy’s was the Rolling Stones to El Cajon Blvd. Denny’s’ Beatles: less-polished and slightly tougher than its competitor to the east.
But like “Gay Denny’s,” Topsy’s’ after-clubbing hours and proximity to San Diego’s Hillcrest neighborhood also put a queer spin on the mix of patrons.
Reborn as Brian’s American Eatery, the restaurant at 1451 Washington Ave. expands on Topsy’s’ tradition of diner fare and a mix of gay and straight clientele, with special affinities for the “bear” subculture of the former.
