Some
Good Places to Eat in Long Beach
This is NOT an exhaustive guide to
Long Beach restaurants, just a highly selective and subjective list of
some places that I think are worth visiting. --Jeff Cohlberg
Outdoor eating:
Belmont Brewing
Company – 25 39th Place (off Ocean Blvd.), at the foot of the pier,
with an outdoor patio overlooking the beach. They have several
varieties of their own beer, along with very good food at very
reasonable prices. Reservations a good idea on weekends. (562)
433-3891
Yard House – in
Seaport Village, on Shoreline Drive, overlooking the marina. 180
beers on tap, plus good food. You may have a long wait on a
weekend – best to avoid during the Grand Prix. (562) 628-0455
River's End
Café, 15 1st Street, Seal Beach (562) 431-5588 – At the edge of
the sand at the foot of First Street in Seal Beach (at the end of the
parking lot). Very casual.
Schooner or
Later: 241 Marina Drive, overlooking the Alamitos Bay
marina. Lunch only. (562) 430-3495
Acapulco: At the
north end of the Marina Pacifica mall. A good chain Mexican
restaurant with some outdoor seating overlooking the water. (562)
596-3371
Also many of the
restaurants in Belmont Shore have sidewalk seating.
Slightly upscale but worth it:
L'Opera (Italian),
101 Pine Avenue (downtown). Really good. (562) 491-0066
Frenchy's Bistro
(French), 4137 E. Anaheim St. (Anaheim is one block above 11th St.)
Excellent food and good wine list. 494-8787
Christy's
(Italian), 3937 E. Broadway. Cozy, romantic neighborhood setting,
excellent food. (562) 433-7133. Run by Sonny Bono's
daughter. Her other restaurant, not so upscale, and sort of mixed
California cuisine/Italian, is Bono's in Belmont Shore (4901 E. 2nd
St., (562) 434-5901).
Michael's
Ristorante (Italian), 5620 E. Second St. (Naples island) – reputedly
the best restaurant in Long Beach
Other general recommendations:
Lunch:
Babette's Feast, 4621 E. 2nd (Belmont Shore) (562) 987-4536. A
bakery restaurant. Great for salads and sandwiches on freshly
baked bread.
Dinner:
At Last Café, 204 Orange Avenue (562) 437-4837. A tiny
neighborhood café. Serious cooking at unbelievably low
prices. Reservations essential.
King's Pine Avenue Fish House – 100 W. Broadway (at Pine) (downtown)
(562) 432-7463. Excellent fish restaurant with a covered open-air
patio.
Tantalum, north end of Marina Pacifica mall next to Acapulco (562)
431-1414. Excellent Cal-Asian fusion. Nice view of the
water.
Ethnic restaurants:
Brazilian: Green Field
Churrascaria, 5305 E. Pacific Coast Highway (562) 597-0906 – for
serious carnivores
Cambodian: Long Beach has
the largest Cambodian community outside Cambodia, with the Little Phnom
Penh area running along Anaheim Street between Alamitos Avenue and
Junipero Avenue. Ask which dishes on the menu are Cambodian style.
Crystal Thai Cambodian Cuisine, 1165 E. 10th Street (562) 591-7636
Sophy's Fine Thai and Cambodian Cuisine, 3240 E. Pacific Coast Highway
(562)494-1763
If you absolutely must find a more hardcore "authentic" restaurant with
an almost exclusively Cambodian clientele, you can try Hak Heang (2041
E. Anaheim) or Siem Reap (1810 E. Anaheim).
French:
La Creperie, 4911 E. 2nd St. (Belmont Shore) (562) 434-8499. Good
crepes, and OK French
platters at low prices.
Greek:
George's Greek Cafe, 5316 E. 2nd
(Belmont Shore) (562) 433-1755 and 135 Pine Avenue (562) 437-1184
Indian:
Kamal Palace: At the far south end of Marina Pacifica mall, on
the lower level past the movie theater (562) 493-0255. Great
Indian food.
Italian:
La Parolaccia Osteria, 2945 E. Broadway (562) 438-1235. Very good
neighborhood Italian restaurant.
Japanese:
Sushi of Naples, 5470 E. 2nd St. (Naples) (562) 434-1122 – really
excellent sushi and Japanese seafood
Japengo, 5325 E. 2nd St. (Belmont Shore) (562) 433-0221 – also very good
Korean:
Café Sura, 621 Atlantic Avenue (562) 495-7892. Long
Beach's first Korean restaurant. A tiny place with a limited
menu, but quite good. Their specialty is tofu soup with a bright
red chile base – try the combination tofu soup.
Lebanese: Three options,
all close to each other in Belmont Shore, all good
Magic Lamp, 5020 E. 2nd (562) 987-3080
Open Sesame, 5215 E. 2nd (562) 621-1698
Sunnin Lebanese Café, 5110 E. 2nd (562) 433-9000
Mexican – a couple of
places offering more than the usual tacos and burritos:
Enrique's, 6210 E. Pacific Coast Highway, in the mini-mall at the
corner of Loynes and PCH (562) 498-3622. An excellent family-run
Mexican restaurant serving Guadalajara-style food. Find out why
people line up every night to get in.
Los Compadres, 3229 E. Anaheim (562) 961-0061. Another place with
an unusual and varied menu. Try the quail molcajete.
La Concha, 2612 E. Anaheim (562) 438-9499. A true
hole-in-the-wall joint, no atmosphere, but great food. Their
specialty, Carne en su Jugo Estilo Guadalajara, is to die for.
Spanish:
Alegria at 115 N. Pine Avenue (downtown) (562) 436-3388 has both tapas
and full-size Spanish entrees.
Thai (Long Beach has lots
of good Thai restaurants; these are just a few of the best):
Thai Gourmet by Sri Maya, 4722 E. Second St. (Belmont Shore) (562)
438-5838 Long Beach's newest Thai restaurant. Delicious and
creative cooking.
Star of Siam, 2109 E. Broadway (562) 439-1564, very good food including
some unusual fish dishes
Tiny Thai, 4152 Norse Way, (562) 421-2207 One of the best Thai
restaurants anywhere.
North of the airport off Lakewood Blvd. near Carson St.
Vietnamese:
Number Nine, 2118 E. 4th St. (562) 434-2009. On the up-and-coming
stretch down the street from the newly refurbished Art Theater.
An excellent noodle restaurant.