Gossip Grill is a trashy late night sleaze fes- wait no, that’s the television series “Gossip Girl.” Gossip Grill (located at 1440 University Ave.) is a fun, upbeat and reasonably priced restaurant in Hillcrest.

Part of the same restaurant group that started San Diego Urban Mo’s and Baja Betty’s, Gossip Grill offers a great vibe with a new and unique menu. Artwork – such as the Mona Lisa spinoff with a mustache and multiple versions of Marilyn Monroe – adorn the walls, and if you’re celebrating a birthday you’ll be the lucky recipient of a suggestive balloon creation.

Happy hour specials at Gossip Grill include a two-for-one drink special, done in a unique way. Instead of having to buy and indulge in both drinks in one sitting, you can save your drink token for the second drink until the next time you’re there for happy hour. No more compromising driving safety in order to get a deal on booze.

It is hard to find something that is better than pizza, but flatbreads succeed in this goal. Gossip Grill’s Italian Stallion flatbread offers diners the traditional flavors that customers know and love, but the Bleu Buffalo Chicken flatbread takes it up a notch with a punch from the buffalo sauce and jalapeno relish. Either way, you can’t go wrong.

Any run-of-the-mill cook can build a salad on a bed of mixed greens, romaine or spinach – all of which are played out, unless you’re honestly trying to eat healthily while dining out. Good luck with that.

If you’re not a dietary masochist who wants to eat some bland lettuce while your friends consume pizza and beer, then the choice for you is the soba noodle and chicken salad. Tossed with shiitake mushrooms, carrots, snap peas, peanuts, sprouts and sesame-ginger dressing, this salad is packed with flavor and innovation.

With one of the sexiest recipes in San Diego, Gossip Grill’s truffle mac and cheese makes the perfect accompaniment to any meal. The words rich, gooey and orgasmic don’t even begin to describe how delicious the mac smells, and that’s before you put it in your mouth.

If you’re going through a mental checklist of how great the menu at Gossip Grill sounds and looking to see where they fall short, then here it is: noisiness. Well, it’s a bar that just so happens to serve some pretty killer food, so ever-so-shockingly it’s bound to be a wee bit noisy. Solution? Don’t bring your 80-year-old grandmother.