Posts in Dining
February Spotlight: The Finer Things
 

February is here! As we celebrate the Month of Love, we can’t help but think about indulging in the finer things! We went around to some of our favorite restaurants, jewelers, and florists to find out just what they’re recommending this Valentine’s Day.

FINE DINING

What is your favorite dish to prepare for Valentine’s Day?

The Arthur J - Chef Uyen Kirshenbaum, Executive Pastry Chef

“My favorite dish to prepare for Valentine's Day has to be our Coconut Passion Fruit Cake of the Month because as we're making it, the kitchen fills with aromatics like the toasted coconut and the flowery fragrance of the passion fruit, making it feel like we're really baking at the beach.”

The Arthur J

The Arthur J

 

Costa Manhattan Beach – Chef Josiah Citrin

"I love making something craveable and seemingly simple like pasta on Valentine's day, but elevating it.  Fresh, chewy pasta is quickly tossed into an unctuous ragout of duck, onion, carrots, garlic, porcini mushrooms, parsley, and tomato.  It’s topped with chopped pistachios and pecorino for texture, nuttiness, and that extra saltiness.  This pasta is rich, unique with its faint gamey flavor, and incredibly craveable." 


Costa Manhattan Beach Valentines Day Menu 2020

Red Endive, Piave Cheese, Beets, Walnuts $14
Maine Lobster, Chard, Grapefruit, Champagne $32
Duck Ragout, Tagliatelle Pasta, Pistachio $26
Taleggio Cheese, Fingerling Potato, Cippolini Onion $12
Tiramisu $12

Costa

Costa

 
Fishing With Dynamite

Fishing With Dynamite

Fishing With Dynamite - Chef de Cuisine,
Alice Mai

“My favorite dish we'll be making for Valentine's Day is our Chilled Dungeness Crab Salad, Fresh and Candied Ruby Grapefruit, Cilantro cream and Serrano oil.

It's Dungeness crab and winter citrus season right now, and we complemented the sweet fresh crab meat with bitter-tart ruby grapefruit. The dish highlights the best of winter ingredients while bringing together bright colors for a little hint of summertime.”

 

Little Sister - Chef de Cuisine Frankie Reyes

“One of everyone’s all-time favorite Little Sister dishes - Shaky Shaky Beef with watercress, baby tomatoes, burnt butter soy.”

Little Sister

Little Sister

 
 
 

Love & Salt - Chef Chris Feldmeier

“I love our ‘Sharing is Caring’ Valentine’s Day menu because we are doing Venetian Cicchetti which are Italian Shareable Bites. I am really excited about the oxtail Cicchetti.”

Love & Salt

Love & Salt

Love & Salt

Love & Salt

Love & Salt

Love & Salt

 
M.B.. Post

M.B.. Post

M.B. Post - Chef de Cuisine, Jeremy Loya

“My favorite dish for Valentine's Day this year is our Seared diver scallops with champagne beurre blanc and caviar. We take fresh scallops and sear them until golden brown. We then reduce champagne and fold in butter to make a luscious sauce. Each scallop then gets a topping of caviar for a dish that's decadent and great for celebrating.”

 

Petros- Manager, Ashley Hastey

“My favorite dishes for Valentine’s Day would be starting the night with our calamari, then the feta-crusted rack of lamb, cooked medium rare, with roasted broccolini and a glass of Petros’ Nektar Cabernet from our winery in Los Olivos, and finishing with the Bougatsa.”

Petros

Petros

Petros

Petros

Petros

Petros

 

Rock’n Fish - Executive Chef Alex Iniguez

“My favorite item to prepare for this special holiday is a whole steamed Maine Lobster Tail. I designed my whole menu this year around lobster. Our lobster wine pairing tasting menu will be available all weekend. You won’t want to miss it!”

Rock’N Fish

Rock’N Fish

 
Slay

Slay

Slay - Chef David Slay

“My favorite dish for Valentine’s Day is the Surf and Turf for two, featuring filet mignon and shrimp scampi, served with garlic mashed potatoes and wilted spinach.”

 

Slay Italian Kitchen

Celebrating their first Valentine’s Day, Chef David Slay will be serving, "pizzas with hand formed dough that is fermented for 48 hours, alongside specialty homemade pastas using fresh ingredients straight from our vineyard in Santa Barbara.”

Slay Italian Kitchen

Slay Italian Kitchen

 
The Strand House

The Strand House

The Strand House, Chef Austin Cobb

“My favorite dish for the valentines menu is the Maine Lobster Raviolo with Carrot Ginger Puree, sea beans, and lobster nage. To me, a large Lobster Raviolo is Sexy, and it also consists of a balanced flavor explosion!

 

zinc@Shade, Chef Graham

“My favorite dish to make (and eat!) on Valentine’s day is my petite filet mignon. I serve it with a twice-baked potato, asparagus, carrot, red wine sauce and king trumpet mushroom. It is the perfect dish for a romantic evening paired with a nice red wine.”

zinc @ Shade

zinc @ Shade

 

FINE Jewelry

What are your favorite gifts to recommend?

 
Designs by Musti

Designs by Musti

Designs by Musti

"for me, Valentine’s Day is about sentimentality and intimacy.  From my own collection, I would recommend a piece that could be worn every day; something that your partner could look at from time to time and remember the personal connection you share. This Valentine’s Day we are featuring our Folded Heart Necklace, and For all walk in & website clients, we are offering 20% off with our promo code LOVEUS."

 

Pasha Fine Jewelry

Owner Tony says, “our favorite gift that I recommend from Pasha is diamond fashion rings. We like to help people think out of the box a little and be more edgy with their gifts.  We feel that women appreciate unique ideas, instead of your “play it safe” gifts--typical chocolate and card just doesn’t cut it!”

Pasha Fine Jewelry

Pasha Fine Jewelry

 
Blue Diamond Jewelers

Blue Diamond Jewelers

Blue Diamond Jewelers

Altaf Amlani suggests, “surprise your sweetheart with a piece of jewelry made entirely of solid gold and brilliant stones for an eloquent way to shop for your love. Bonus points for designing a unique piece as authentic as your bond. Whatever you need, the Blue Diamond team is here to help.”

Mention this post to receive a $100 gift card.

 

MB WATCH REPAIR + VINTAGE WATCHES

Owner Victor Kartounian says, “I’ve been waiting for this all year. My favorite things to recommend for Valentines are vintage Rolexes for men and ladies. I love the models from the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s and 80’s. Why not get something special? Something different you can’t buy brand new. Give a beautiful vintage Rolex which has stood the test of time and is a style from a different era.”

MB Watch Repair + Vintage Watches

MB Watch Repair + Vintage Watches

 

FLORISTS

What is the most unique offering you have for Valentine’s Day?

Growing Wild

Growing Wild has two unique offerings for Valentine’s Day 2020. The first is a 16” tall orchid adorned with Quartz crystal, which represents unconditional love. The second is a hand-crafted wooden heart container filled with pink succulents. Either would make a wonderful gift for your special Valentine!

Growing Wild

Growing Wild

Growing Wild

Growing Wild

 

Rolling Hills Flower Mart

“Valentine’s Day is our specialty! We are offering some really incredible arrangements and flowers by the stem this year. Our top 3 favorites are our classic, sustainably-sourced Ecuadorian roses, Japanese sweet peas, and giant Italian ranunculus. “The Get Out of Jail Free Card,” features 125 Ecuadorian roses in whatever color you might like - though red is the go-to. "Blush & Bordeaux" is a personal favorite in a burgundy and blush color scheme... because, hey - not all roses are red!”

Rolling Hills Flower Mart

Rolling Hills Flower Mart

Rolling Hills Flower Mart

Rolling Hills Flower Mart


We hope you enjoyed our selection of the finer things!
Come celebrate the month of love with us in Downtown Manhattan Beach!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

 
 
Celebrating Oktoberfest
 

with Local Brewers and
Restauranteurs, Michael Zislis
and Mike Simms

Oktoberfest

We thought it would be fun to sit down with two of Manhattan Beach’s most popular brewers to discuss Oktoberfest. Here’s what we learned:

 

How many times have you been to Oktoberfest in Munich?

Michael Z: 11

Mike S: 1 – but I go to the Great American Beer Festival in Denver every year!

 

Tell me about your Lederhosen!

Michael Z.: I’ve collected a few over the years, but these I had custom made in Germany to celebrate the opening of Rock and Brews.

Mike S: I bought mine in Munich because you want them to be authentic. Editorial note: lederhosen look especially authentic when worn with flip flops!


Which is your favorite beer tent?

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Mike S.: My first night I went to a traditional tent, Marstall, where you have to be wearing traditional garb to even get in. They had a non-traditional German rock band playing covers, and I was listening to AC/DC and Prince in German and the whole tent was going off! It was super fun!

 Michael Z.: I don’t know that I have a favorite—I like them all. They’re all different. Spaten has more Germans, but Lowenbrau is all tourists from Australia, New Zealand, Asia, Europe…it’s a lot of fun. Those Australians really know how to cut loose!

 

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What is your best piece of advice for someone traveling to Oktoberfest?

In unison, “Make reservations!”

Simms shared that on his first night he didn’t realize that even inside a tent you won’t be served beer unless you have a seat. He talked his way into an empty seat at a table of Europeans and at the end of the night they learned they had a special connection when he told them he was from Los Angeles. They told him they had gotten engaged in a little town called Manhattan Beach and then celebrated with a beer at a place called Simmzy’s. “I freaked out and was like, ‘I’m Simmzy!’ See…here’s my drivers license!” Crazy small world!

Michael Z. was at Oktoberfest to celebrate his bachelor party and their large group didn’t have a reservation one night. In typical Zislis style, he found his way to a host and shared all of his restaurant experience and his invitation, which had Oktoberfest on it and then popped the question: do you think we could get a table for 12? The guy said he didn’t have any open tables and Mike Z said, “what about that one?” The host walked over, turned around the reserved sign for the no shows and wrote “Americans.” Cheers to German hospitality!

  

Are your restaurants doing anything to celebrate Oktoberfest?

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Michael Z.: Rock’N Fish will be serving a traditional German Schnitzel special with Lingonberry preserves, garlic mashed potatoes along with dill and cucumber salad. Order it with a German Marzen Oktoberfest beer and you’ll get $2 off the beer! BREWCO  and Rock & Brews both will be featuring rotating Oktoberfest taps all month long.

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Mike S.: All Simmzy’s will be featuring Breadbar’s baked fresh daily pretzel mustaches as well as Bratwurst steam-cooked in Simmzy’s Beach Cruiser Blonde, then charbroiled until hot and crispy. It’s served on toasted ciabatta topped with creole mustard, bacon onion jam, and parsley. Don’t forget to pair it with Simmzy’s 33 oz. custom “boots” of their freshly brewed Bierfest Lager!

 

One of you is serving beer in a boot and one of you in a stein? 

Michael Z.: It’s easier to drink out of a stein. Boots get a little tricky at the end.

Mike S.: Yep. They’ll bubble.

Michael Z.: You have to swirl it at the end.

  

Special cheers to Kelley Haley for hosting us at Homie! When you’re ready for something different from Oktoberfest, stop by for a delicious bowl, soup and salad or breakfast burrito…the menu and atmosphere are great any time of the day!

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Best way to spend the afternoon in Manhattan Beach with kids…
 

By Lori Ford of Gum Tree

We like to walk Downtown Manhattan Beach along the strand with the kids for a trip to the Roundhouse Aquarium. We could spend hours watching surfers off the pier and searching for seals and dolphins, and then we head inside the Roundhouse to explore.

 
 
Photo by Pete Halvorsen
 
 

Since the renovation the kids new favorite is the eel tank, but the touch tanks are a close second followed by the Jellies.

 
 
 
 

Our kids always request a stop in to Pages: A Bookstore to see what’s new. Our little guy is still convinced that he can find Waldo. Their Where’s Waldo event is a favorite for us a couple of years running, super family friendly, it’s a great adventure through our downtown businesses.

 
 
 
 

We like to head up the hill for an early dinner at Pitfire Pizza. The menu has great options for both the kids and grown ups. They never look at you funny when your picky kid orders the cheese pizza with no sauce extra crispy, and it’s perfect every time. The kids especially love the free clay, it gets their creative juices flowing, and keeps them busy, sometimes we can even sneak in an extra glass of rose!

 
 
Photo by Pitfire Pizza

Photo by Pitfire Pizza

 
 

After dinner we walk down to the Creamery for a sweet treat. Sometimes it’s candy, sometimes it’s ice cream, but it’s always delicious and fun. We sit in the big chairs out front and watch everyone pass us by.

 
 

If it’s not too dark we’ll walk the greenbelt back home, or if the littles are worn out we’ll hop in an Uber or Lyft.