Best liquor store: Abe’s Liquor
The trouble with most liquor stores in the South Bay is that the more conveniently located they are, the higher the prices are. Not so with Abe’s Liquor in Hermosa. Even though the store is right on Pier Avenue and has free parking, the owners do not take advantage of their local customer base. The […]
Best original band: Andy and Renée
You would think they are married. They finish each other’s sentences, make endearing jabs at one another, and have been the faces behind the popular local Bob Dylan tribute Dylanfest for 23 years. And while they did date briefly, Andy Hill and Renée Safier are now simply dear friends who enjoy making music together and […]
Best wine store: Uncorked
Watching Kathleen Knoll and Gerry Athas-Vazquez at Uncorked run a wine tasting is a marvel. They excitedly pour samples for the crowd around them, explain the character of the wine well but without pretension, and manage to do all this while still helping every customer who comes through the door. Uncorked isn’t a Bev Mo […]
Best tequila bar: Palmilla
Palmilla Cocina y Tequila, as the name suggests, takes its tequila seriously. They offer over 150 premium tequilas including Corzo Blanco, Cazadores Blanco, Patron Silver, Don Julio Blanco, Corzo Reposado, Cazadores Reposado,Sauza Hornitos Reposado, and Don Julio Reposado. As Bartender Kevin Williams explained, people are starting to enjoy tequila in new ways. “It’s not just […]
Best bar food: Sharkeez
Baja Sharkeez is a beach cities institution. It’s also pretty polarizing—either you like Sharkeez or you don’t, and if you do, you’re likely under 30. The music is loud, the TVs are bright and the crowd is rowdy. But even grumpy buzzards like myself have to admit that the food is pretty darn good. Appetizers […]
Best female bartender: Kristina Cordova
Cordova is an institution at Coyote Cantina in Redondo Beach. She has worked at the Mexican restaurant for 12 years and seems to know every customer who walks up to her bar. Some of the best food in LA County can be found in unlikely strip mall restaurants, and the Tex-Mex cuisine at Coyote Cantina […]
Best craft beer bar: Simmzy’s
Mike and Chris Simms opened their beer-focused gastropub Simmzy’s four years ago in a space that had seen numerous failed restaurants come and go and in a community that was just in the cusp of the craft beer craze. “I just came from a selfish point of view, really – I wanted a place to […]
Best service waitress: Natalie Hantzarides of Old Venice Restaurant
I almost choked on my iced tea when I asked Natalie at Old Venice Restaurant in Manhattan Beach how long she had worked there and she said 15 years. She looks about 20. In fact, the petite blond and quintessential beach girl is 29 and started working at Old Venice when she was 14. It’s […]
Best male bartender: Scott Perry of Charlie’s
The best bartenders are much more interested in talking about you than they are about themselves. This, however, makes it mighty difficult when you want to find out more about this year’s favorite male bartender Scott Perry. Scott has worked at Charlie’s in Redondo for three and a half years but has been a South […]
Best yogurt: Yogurtland
Yogurtland opened its doors in California in 2006 and has set itself apart from chains like Pinkberry with a focus on freshness. Yogurtland frozen yogurt is made with California milk, real sugar and real fruit. Appropriately, their slogan is “get real.” According to the folks at the Riviera Village location, each day Yogurtland hand-cuts about […]
Best cocktails: Circa
Julian Cox is Los Angeles’ go-to guy for mixology. It is no surprise, then, that the best cocktail award goes to Circa, where Cox designed the drink list. Cox got his start at David Myer’s Comme Ça restaurant and quickly became a force in the cocktail world, winning awards like “Rising Star 2010” and Tales […]
Best of the Beach 2014: List of Winners
Every year, our readers vote for their favorite people, places and things across the South Bay. Look through the categories below to find out the winners and runner-ups of our Best of the Beach 2014 contest. For a complete list of this year’s winners, click here. Dining Music & Nightlife Shopping Health Sports Kids Hospitality […]
‘Pathway to Sea’ among this year’s capital improvement projects in Manhattan Beach
After nearly seven years from the time it was first proposed, a concrete walkway stretching out to the beach made the shortlist of capital improvement projects approved for funding by the Manhattan Beach City Council this year.
Manhattan Beach education advocate honored as ‘Woman of the Year’ in state capitol
The special ceremony, organized by the California Legislative Women’s Caucus, recognizes a remarkable woman from each district as part of Women’s History Month.