By Danielle Allaire, Sara Clemence, Beth Demmon, Randy Dotinga, María José Durán, Leorah Gavidor, Cherie Gough, Mateo Hoke, Troy Johnson, Lili Kim, Marissa Kozma, Kai Oliver-kurtin, Nicolle Monico, Cole Novak, Amanda Parmele, Will Riddell, Amelia Rodriguez, Jay Smith, and Claire Trageser

A solar eclipse may have blocked out most of SD’s legendary sunlight a few months back, but our city is shining brighter than ever. Michelin bestowed a constellation of stars on our always-innovative food scene.

The city’s sports fever heated up, drawing two more pro teams to the landscape. Locals joined hands to pull a few beloved institutions from the brink (see Coop’s and The Harp). A mega revamp of a particular iconic North Park hotel beckoned hordes of visitors—and a gazillion international eyes. Even orcas want to live here.

And when disaster struck—catastrophic flooding, especially in the county’s most under-resourced areas—San Diegans came together to save and rebuild the lives of those impacted. Courageous residents helped rescue grandmas. GoFundMes got funded. Volunteers scooped away water and cleared debris.

Then, we kept pushing this place forward, creating community and starting small businesses and making more and more cool things. Here are over 100 of the coolest of them. Check ’em out, then go forth and make your own list. Or start your own thing. This town’s big enough for all of us.

Food & Drink | Arts & Culture | Retail & Shopping | Health & Fitness | Kids & Family | Reader’s Picks

Best Upgraded Take on Your Fave Dive

Gaslamplighter

Gaslamplighter is more than a glammed-up karaoke palace with a not-hyped-enough burger (a double-stack of juicy Wagyu beef served in a O’Brien’s strikes again. One of the Louis Vuitton knockoff). It’s a fifth-generation San Diego success story. Owner Frankie Scuito’s great-great-great grandparents opened San Diego’s first first deli with a liquor license, and his uncle and dad brought us the dark, cozy karaoke icon The Lamplighter. For the sister concept, Scuito and his brother put in ultra-upscale roaring-’20s décor, enlisted the city’s top cocktail minds, and garnered all the Gloria.

Best Team That Hasn’t Won A Single Game… Yet

San Diego FC

Soccer and San Diego are pretty tight right now. That bond will continue to grow when San Diego FC joins MLS in 2025 as the league’s 30th team. The club will look to cultivate homegrown talent like local teenage goalkeeper Duran Ferree) and give San Diego its first major sports championship since 1963. Oh, and one more thing: The Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation, a part-owner of the club, is now just the second Native American tribe in the country to have an ownership stake in a pro sports team.

Best Bay-utification

Don’t get us wrong—roadwork and city renovations aren’t always our idea of positive news (especially when they add 15 minutes to our commute to work). But this $1.2 billion bayside project in Chula Vista is promising to be worth leaving the house a little earlier. Scheduled for completion in 2025, the redevelopment will include a new park, resort, convention center, RV resort, and residential area, creating space for locals and visitors to enjoy Chula Vista to the fullest.

Best Postpartum Power-lift

Fit4Mom

Held outdoors in the fresh air, Fit4Mom’s stroller-based classes incorporate resistance bands and structures like stairs, curbs, and walls to get mamas moving. Headquartered in San Diego, the fitness company has eight franchise locations across the county and more than 250 nationwide. Especially popular among new mothers on maternity leave and stay-at-home parents with young kids, Fit4Mom is a great avenue to make mom friends, seek parenting advice, and ease back into exercise postpartum.

Best Day in the Dirt

Coastal Roots Farm

Everyone needs to get their hands dirty sometimes. Thursday, Friday, and Sunday mornings, parents cart their little ones to Coastal Roots nonprofit Jewish community farm in Encinitas for Nature Play. Designed for kids ages zero to 10 and their families, the program is run by farm staff, who oversee interactive storytime, animal encounters like feeding chickens, and other sensory activities, including play in the outdoor “kitchens.” Afterward, stop by their pay-what-you-can farm stand (those in need can get up to $30 of produce free) to take home organic veggies and herbs.

See our reader’s top picks across the city

Moose Toys, a leading innovator in the toy industry, revealed their new collaboration with  MrBeast, also known as Jimmy Donaldson — the world’s most subscribed YouTuber and a dedicated philanthropist. The new line, MrBeast Lab, includes a range of small-scale collectibles along with action, vinyl, and collector’s figures. It is set to hit the U.S. market in July and expand globally through the fall, but attendees at San Diego Comic-Con will be able to get their hands on a SDCC exclusive, as well as limited edition items.

You can find Moose Toys at San Diego Comic-Con Booth #301, where they’ll be offering two MrBeast Lab items. The first is a 3.5″ tall San Diego Comic-Con exclusive MrBeast Lab Fuzzy Panther Vinyl Figure, which features a unique flocked texture, defined detailing, and display-ready packaging. It is limited to 3000, and will be available for $14.99.

The second item is a MrBeast Lab Alpha Panther Mutator, a limited-edition figure featuring an exclusive blue chrome finish, glow-in-the-dark crystals, and more than 20 points of articulation. The 5.5″ figure is part of the recent launch of MrBeast Lab Mutators, “the wildest experiment from the world of MrBeast Lab”, but it stands apart from the other figures in the line. This iteration was designed and styled to represent MrBeast’s iconic panther logo, and has a “completely new and elevated unboxing experience” in which the premium packaging touts “restricted access”. Fans will have to remove an exterior sleeve before unfolding the lab-themed box to unveil the limited edition Alpha Panther inside. Pick it up for $29.99 at San Diego Comic-Con and Walmart Collector Con only.

CHULA VISTA, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) — The Chula Vista Police Department is now livestreaming 911 emergency calls directly to officers in the field.

Officers can hear the caller’s actual words and voice providing the sense of urgency, small details that may not be otherwise provided, and immediate updates on the situation and location. Officers also see the caller’s location on a map. 

This new technology — “Live911”– provides a “head start” to officers monitoring incoming 911 calls by eliminating dispatching delays, reducing response times.

Live911 allows the officer to obtain more information for a better response plan and calculated de-escalation techniques, providing better service to the community.

“I used to think officers could hear 911 calls, and the truth is no, that’s not ever been the case really,” said Sgt. Tony Molina with the Chula Vista Police Department.

The Chula Vista Police Department spearheaded the idea and worked with software company, HigherGround, to make it a reality. Since 2020, the department has been test driving the software and says it has been a lifesaver. 

“We’ve had multiple people that were saved from the officers just listening to it in the field,” said Dispatch Supervisor, Tina Larson. “They will get there before fire and medics, and they’ll be starting CPR.”

Late last year, officers saved a man’s life who was in a burning car after it veered off the freeway in San Diego County. Instead of waiting to dispatch the California Highway Patrol, an officer on duty could hear the callers reporting the incident in real time and decided Chula Vista should respond immediately to rescue the man. 

There are 143 agencies across the country that have adopted Live911, including the Oceanside Police Department. In California, a total of 24 police and sheriff departments are customers. 

“We’ve been blessed with this particular software. I told my boss if we ever got rid of this program, I’m going to leave my headset swinging because it is such a game changer,” said Larson.