Wait, say some people who haven’t been there. A place on the Pier Plaza has won best eclectic restaurant and best new restaurant? Yes, it has, and deservedly so. The second-floor restaurant is decorated like a hangout for an art-loving surfer, and the menu has burgers and pizzas like the bars on the block. But there are also American favorites like chicken pot pie and braised short ribs, and upscale items like scallop risotto a rich pasta carbonara, and real smokehouse barbecue. It’s enticing on the menu and even better in your mouth, a measure of how far standards have risen in the area.
Tower 12
53 Pier Ave., Hermosa Beach
(310) 379-6400
tower12hb.com
Runner-up eclectic: Tower 12
53 Pier Ave., Hermosa Beach
(310) 379-6400
tower12hb.com
Runner-up new: Rabano
2516 Pacific Coast Hwy, Hermosa Beach
(310) 318-1998
rabano.co
