Bar Becky and Loquat Oyster’s recent collaboration for Long Beach Last Call proved two very big things: They are among the city’s best purveyors of food, with Bar Becky likely taking the crown as the city’s most under-welcomed space, given its caliber of cuisine, and Loquat Oysters (perhaps joining the also underestimated Liv’s) as the most oyster-serious crew in Long Beach.
And while representing excellence, they’ve also managed to redefine collaboration in a sense. Unlike Bar Becky’s previous, celestial collaboration with Hell’s Kitchen alumni, this was about a collaboration of space. Loquat had its menu, and Bar Becky, typically shuttered on Sundays, had theirs.
What that showed is that collaboration is a multi-dimensional tool in the culinary world. It can be something directly linked, like the aforementioned “Hell’s Kitchen” collab dinner at Bar Becky, where menus are constructed in tandem. Or, a place offering up its kitchens to two outside concepts, like Hamburgers Nice and Waldo’s Pizza at Due Fiori. And then there are residencies, like the amazing Got Your Back residency every Monday and Tuesday at Selva.
In this case, it was about letting a pop-up explore the world of full-service hospitality—while letting Bar Becky showcase why it’s one of the city’s best restaurants.
So what did Loquat Oysters serve during this collab?
Unquestionably, the coolest aspect of the evening was not just seeing Bar Becky open on a Sunday and the Loquat Oysters truck parked outside. It was wonderful watching Lucky and Liz Huon work in a full-service-centered environment, something that isn’t a reality in the pop-up world, where parks and tents act as your serving space. Learning the art of touching tables, the flow of the expo and running, and presentation, Lucky and Liz showcased that their love of oysters blends into an unknown-until-then love of front-facing hospitality.
And their food reflected that, showcasing that Lucky and Liz can indeed own a brick-and-mortar with their hospitality. The city’s finest oysters paired—one so clean, Lucky rightfully suggests it solely with lemon. A po’boy that makes you re-think the idea of what a po’boy, blending Asian and Californian flavors in ways that no one else is doing…
Honeydrop Oysters from Duxbury: Fresh [lemon only] | Dressed with kosho vinaigrette | Dressed with caviar
Chargrilled oysters: Shoyu yuzu | Shiso tempura flakes
Oyster karaage po’boy: Battered oysters | Wasabi mayo | Togarashi | Sesame coleslaw| Tamari-pickled cucumber | Brioche
And what about Bar Becky—what did you have?
As always, Chef Johnathan Benvenuti flexed his ability to be insanely witty—his blue corn spaeztel with birria can rightfully be called “taco pasta” in the best way possible. Or be wonderfully eclectic in his interpretations of Italian classics—his spaghetti limon could not be more melting-pot-Californian with its uni butter, Italian chili crunch, and crispy tempura bits topping. And be a lover of vegetables, and the farmers market—his beet salad is somehow an ode to the earthy root veggie while also “hiding” it amid bits of granola, slices of strawberry, and a bed of Meyer lemon aioli…
He proves, continuously, that it is now outright egregious that his storefront doesn’t share the lines that happen to overwhelm the nearby 908 and Hangar on the daily.
Beet salad: Golden and purple beets | frisée | Meyer lemon aioli | Strawberry | Pumpkin seed granola
Hamachi crudo: year-old kosho | hibiscus | avocado crema | fried sweet potato strings
Spaghetti limon: House-made spaghetti | uni butter | nori | tempura | Italian chili crunch
Blue corn spaeztle: Pork birria | cotija | cilantro | pickled onion
Swordfish au poivre: Pink peppercorn | capers | shoestring potatoes
Long Beach food scene: Keep up the collaboration efforts
Collab dinners. Cocktail dinners. Wine dinners. Tasting menus. Residencies. Special dinners are popping up consistently around Long Beach. And they offer diners a distinctly unique perspective on where our food scene is and where it is going. These special dinners have become one of the most vital tools for keeping a food scene dynamic, imaginative, and forward-moving.
Special dinners reveal the depth of a kitchen staff’s craft. Their curiosity. Their discipline. And their imagination, introducing people to ingredients they might not normally encounter and combinations they may never have thought to try… Broadening palates and deepening appreciation for the culinary arts… In this way, they serve as cultural incubators, keeping the dining community engaged, challenged, and excited.
What are some recent highlights in terms of Long Beach food figures collaborating?
- Got Your Back residency at Selva: This residency every Monday and Tuesday at Selva brings the world of Chef Brennan Villarreal and Sasha Schoen to full-service life.
- Alder & Sage’s MAHA wine dinner: Bringing underrated Paso Robles winery gem MAHA—a space he was closely connected to for four years—Chef Matthew Roberts showcased his love of wine.
- Wood & Salt’s cocktail dinner: Wood & Salt in Bixby Knolls is really the only space harnessing cocktails in the neighborhood (outside of the relatively new cocktail space that is Beachwood Distilling).
- Ellie’s ‘Feast of the Seven Fishes’ at Partake Collective: The team behind Ellie’s and Ginger’s—led by Chef Jason Witzl and FOH extraordinaire Molly Sirody—tackled a tradition that most Italians and Italian-Americans know very well and most food-centric Americans know from the stress-inducing series that is “The Bear.”
- Chez Bacchus’s tequila dinner: Chez Bacchus is such an underrated space—that goes without saying. But their latest tequila dinner showcased something broader within the city.
- Nonna Mercato’s dinner nights: Chef Cameron’s always-sold-out dinner series at Nonna Mercato have proved one thing across 2025: Nonna needs to have dinner service on the regular.
- The Long Beach Grand Prix Fixe: My inaugural chefs’ competition showcased everything I love about my city’s food and the people who create it.
