Posts by Easy Reader Staff

Bowls (Acai or fruit) Paradise Bowl Two of the most popular ingredients for fruit bowls are pitaya (otherwise known as dragon fruit), and acai, both tropical fruits that don’t grow here. That means nobody can really compete on whose is freshest. It’s all about the inventiveness with which they are combined with quality ingredients. Paradise…

Outdoor dining Palmilla All beach city boosters like to emphasize the variety of options for outdoor dining in their towns, but Hermosa really has everyone else beat thanks to the traffic-free pier plaza. Free of vehicular traffic, we hasten to add. The pedestrian traffic is a big attraction as people of all ages, some walking…

Romantic dinner Chart House The Chart House is a favorite place for wedding receptions, and perhaps some of the romance from those occasions has infused a sort of psychic energy into the building. Or perhaps that’s backwards – maybe the space has been the scene for so many romantic evenings that people decide to have…

Bartender Rico De Alba, Shellback Shellback bartender Rico De Alba is thrilled to finally see the faces of his guests after enduring mask mandates. “I love talking to people and making them feel welcome,” he said. For the past 21 years the resident bartender has been serving signature drinks like the Fanta, a shot of…

Dance Club American Junkie A “house party vibe” is how American Junkie manager Art Hernandez describes the Pier Avenue dance club, which features two DJ’s on the weekends. The east room has throwback, sing along, rock: the second dance floor, house music. The club also brings in some heavy hitters for live performances, like rappers…

Hamburger restaurant Ercoles 1101 There are some similarities between our winner for fast food burger and restaurant burger, mainly that both come from places that make almost nothing else. Ercole’s burgers are made with fresh meat from the butcher next door and garnished with lettuce and tomato, same as In-N-Out. One difference is that the…

Tequila bar Palmilla To some people, tequila is an ingredient in a margarita or paloma, perhaps something to down a shot of on a bet. To others it’s one of the world’s great liquors, expressing smoky, vegetal, and sweet flavors based on a variety of factors. This includes the climate of the region, the skill…

Neighborhood bar Shellback One of the most expensive residential neighborhoods in California has a favorite neighborhood bar that does not fit expectations. Rather than a palace of fancy mixology with a high style interior, locals prefer an unpretentious beachy hangout that looks worn around the edges. That’s probably a mix of nostalgia and habit for…

Inventive cocktails Palmilla Cocina y Tequila The selection of liquors at Palmilla is impressive – not just the array of tequilas and mezcals that are standard at an upscale Mexican restaurant, but fine whiskies, rums, gins, and amari. The bartenders do justice to those fine ingredients in mixed drinks that use fresh juices and fresh…

Craft Beer Restaurant/Bar Hermosa Brewing Company These days it’s a rare eatery that doesn’t have local beers,and a rare bar that still serves just burgers and hot dogs. Even so, Hermosa Brewing stands out for creative food that would grace an upscale space and beers that will satisfy a demanding brew connoisseur. The food menu…

Vegetarian / Vegan (Over $20) Pura Vita Pura Vita was one of the most exciting openings of last year, because they were serving something many people thought could not be done. Italian food is based on rich sauces that usually use abundant cream and cheese, so making it vegan seemed impossible. Pura Vita makes splendid…

Thai Southeast Asian Thai Dishes The people who brought Thai food to the South Bay are still best at serving it, say our readers. Thai Dishes remained popular through the pandemic thanks to pleasant outdoor patios at the side of the restaurant and in their parking lot, and that’s still some people’s favorite seating even…