Search Results: richard foss

New Guys In Town: The South Bay has a new Chinese restaurant, and their menu goes well beyond the Americanized fare that is common in our area. As the name Dumpling Mix suggests, housemade noodles, wontons, and dumplings are a specialty, but they offer regional items from Taiwan, Sichuan, and Shanghai as well. The interior…

Finally Open: Work has been underway at the former Louis Burgers for almost three years, but the wait is over – the Pita Café on Artesia finally open. Given the amount of time it has taken, you might expect intricate murals, mosaic tables, or other labor-intensive decor. Instead, it much resembles the burger place it…

Surprises on MB Boulevard: I was sad to see Gallery 208 close because I liked the art on display and the friendly attitude of the staff. I had expected another retail space to replace it. That’s not what’s happening – the building is being remodeled into a restaurant space that will offer three levels, including…

The Empires Expand: There has been much talk about the way some local restaurant groups are becoming increasingly dominant in the South Bay. The Simms Group is one of the most active, and stands apart from most others in opening creative, chef-driven restaurants rather than duplicating previous endeavors. Their newest venture is Attagirl in the…

Goodbye, Hello Again: While writing about the South Bay dining scene for 35 years, I have covered many restaurant openings and closures, but very few instances of a place announcing that they planned to shut down but changed their mind. That’s what happened at Brewco, which announced on September 12 they would close, but reversed…

French Transition & Crustacean Central: Greenspot had good food but an identity problem. The name made people expect a vegan restaurant, and there was nothing on the menu that fit that category. The place is now the Bonaparte Bistro, serving some favorites from the old menu and a mix of classic Parisian items. The atmosphere…

The Market Report: Hermosa Beach acquired its first stand-alone butcher shop in living memory this week, and you can read more about that elsewhere in this edition. In Manhattan, Nick & Sons Market & Deli is open in the former Moon’s Market on Highland, and there could hardly be a greater contrast with the previous…

Renaissance On Aviation: The former Giuliano’s on Aviation has been closed for almost three years, but a tenant is on the way, and it’s a familiar one to those who have been visiting the Hermosa Farmers Market. Tommy and Atticus Bread, Coffee, & Pastry isn’t named after the owner, baker Garrett McPerry, but after the…

A Eureka Moment: The Mexican stew called birria has become more widely available in the South Bay recently, and now a new restaurant in Rolling Hills Estates is serving a modern riff on it: birria ramen. This dish was apparently invented almost a decade ago in Mexico City, but Fuego Cravings is the first place…

The Goat Is Dead: The Goat Hill mall on PCH had a long and storied career, beginning when it was actually a goat farm owned by an irascible Scottish lady named Mrs. Auchmoody. She won LA County Fair awards in the 1920’s but was notoriously bad-tempered and prone to suing her neighbors. The Goat Hill…

Meat Central: There’s a lot of activity involving barbecue of various sorts in the South Bay, with one opening this week, one a few months down the line, and another relaunch of a local favorite. The established place is the former Silvio’s Brazilian Beach BBQ on the Hermosa Pier Plaza, which is now Silvio’s South…

Hermosa Happenings… After a period when most new restaurant action was in El Segundo and Redondo, Hermosa is hopping. We’ll start with doings there and then get to other cities and an event roundup… Living In A Musical?… A new Colombian restaurant called Encanto is coming to the long-empty ground floor space beneath Radici restaurant.…