There’s an lyrical synchronicity behind the name of a much-anticipated, upscale karaoke lounge scheduled to open to the public in the Gaslamp Quarter on February 8, 2024.
[Note: A VIP opening weekend celebration is February 2-4. Schedule has been updated.]
To appreciate the moniker you have to know the co-owner is a fourth-generation scion in a hospitality industry family that runs The Lamplighter–that iconic, old-school, cash-only, karaoke-and-pool dive bar on Washington Street in Mission Hills.
For the new downtown venue, “Gaslamp Quarter” and “The Lamplighter” will be morphed together to become: Gaslamplighter.
Boom. Mic drop. Actually, hold the mic drop, which is frowned upon in the karaoke world.
The origin story: Frankie Sciuto is a Millennial go-getter. He cut his teeth working all the entry-level bar jobs–doorman, bar back, bartender, karaoke host–before moving into management at bars outside the family business.
Pre-COVID, he was a manager at Side Bar. The sexy Sixth-and-Market boutique ultralounge, institutionalized by RMD Group, has been in operation for decades. Side Bar is credited with initiating bottle service in the Gaslamp Quarter.
Sciuto was able to put together a deal to buy Side Bar from RMD two years ago.
Next door to Side Bar was Ciro’s Pizzeria and Beerhouse. Long a late-night pitstop for lining your stomach with crusty-cheesy goodness after a night of downtown clubbing, the former Ciro’s is where Sciuto’s vision will materialize.
Like the rug from The Big Lebowski, the new name really ties all the rooms in question together.
“I was thinking out loud with my mentor and I just said it out loud all together,” says Sciuto, who at the time was in negotiations to buy Ciro’s. “I’m like, ‘Man it would be cool to put a Lamplighter down here.’ Gas-lamp-lighter. That was it.”
Would it be accurate to say that if Side Bar and The Lamplighter had a baby it would resemble Gaslamplighter?
“Yeah, to a certain extent,” Sciuto says, laughing. “Side Bar is a beautiful venue. Lamplighter is known as a dive bar that’s been open for 60 years. We’re bringing the karaoke element downtown. But Gaslamplighter will have the Side Bar sound system, lighting and an elevated cocktail program.”
The Gaslampligher will be a lot more “bougie” than the Lamplighter, he adds.
Designed by GTC Studios, the 1,600-square-foot space will aim to be moody and nostalgic, with a vintage, industrial 1920s design. Think Art Deco, featuring a stage backdrop with high-tech bulbs and private booths to pair with bar seating.
“It’ll have a little jazz,” Sciuto says. “A little hip hop. It’ll have a classy vibe. Throw in the karaoke and it’ll be a party. You’re going to get a little bit of everything.”
The Sciuto family tree also has a little bit of everything.
During World War II, Papa Joe and Mama Josie Sciuto (Frankie’s great-grandparents) had a downtown San Diego bar called Rio. Sailors in uniform drank there. The family also ran the Roma Inn in Little Italy, the Elbow Room and Stage Door at Crystal Pier in Pacific Beach.
Stage Door was in the family’s hands until 1993. It was the karaoke predecessor to The Lamplighter, which was opened in 1957 by relatives and sold to Frankie’s father, Joe.
“Karaoke took off at The Lamplighter and that’s how it gained its reputation,” Frankie says.
The Sciutos were doing karaoke back when you had to change CDs for every song a patron wanted to perform. These days, the process is digitalized.
Anybody can get up on stage every night after 9:15 p.m. at The Lamplighter and belt out their version of a song by Mariah Carey, Morgan Wallen or any artist whose verses allow them to showcase their inner crooner.
The Lamplighter has a rare San Diego liquor license that allows bar operations from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. The Gaslamplighter won’t run on that schedule.
Sciuto says the Gaslamplighter will be open a few evenings a week at first while they work out any operational kinks. He hopes they’ll expand until eventually Gaslamplighter will also be open seven nights a week.
One thing you won’t see at the Gaslamplighter: Frankie Sciuto up on stage singing karaoke.
Yes, he knows the magic of karaoke isn’t just found in great performances. Sometimes the most off-key singers can turn in the most entertaining moments of the night.
“Nope, I don’t sing,” Sciuto says. “Never done it. You’ll find me dancing, but I don’t sing. It’s not my thing. If I was a good singer, I would. I’m very envious of people who can sing.”
Vocal ability apparently skipped a generation. Sciuto says his dad will officially christen the karaoke mic when the Gaslamplighter opens.
The song? It was written in 1962, recorded by Pat Boone and popularized by Englebert Humperdinck. Some time in late 2023, Joe Sciuto will weave “Quando, Quando, Quando” into the modern history of the Gaslamplighter. SDSun
