From the San Diego Uptown news:

There’s a lot of architectural high-fiving going on in our Uptown communities this month — and at least a little gnashing of teeth as well. It goes with the territory when the San Diego Orchids & Onions awards are announced. This year the 2009 awards ceremony was held November 12, at On Broadway Event Center downtown. And this year Uptown and neighboring communities got their share of each with five Orchids and two Onions, highlighted by an Onion for what one critic called an “800-pound stucco gorilla” in Hillcrest and a Grand Orchid for a “flawless” neighborhood bar and grill in South Park.

Orchids & Onions has been a program dedicated to pointing out the best and worst in architecture for many years. It was revived and reinvented in 2006 by the San Diego Architectural Foundation, whose mission is to inspire excellence in our “built environment.” The public was encouraged to nominate, comment and vote on the nominations at the foundation’s website (www.orchidsandonions.org). This year there were 24 Orchids and Onions awarded countywide.

Read the complete write up at the San Diego Uptown News online.