Missed out on Brian Addison’s Favorite Things of past? We got you covered—just click here.
Too many years back, I wrote a very self-indulgent listicle that was about so-called “essential” Long Beach dishes; dishes that I loved and could depend on as long as that place existed—and I wrote it because there’s something so elemental and useful about a specific great dish at a specific place. It was less about some grander proclamation than it was about, “This is just great food.” (I’ve done a much more comprehensive, similar list since then.)
And after a year of not doing such lists, I want to return to it. Not some grand list of “essential dishes”—that is too hard of a burden to put on a restaurant: You better have this and you better have it all the time. But for now, in this moment, I am happy to share some of my favorite things.
In other words: Why not just own the moment? Without further ado, here are the favorite things I’m eating right now…
Cappelletti from Sky Room
210 E. Ocean Blvd.
I was blessed enough to have my Dad take me to Sky Room for my birthday. And Chef Maxwell Pfeiffer’s sous, Chef Rob Adams, has taken on the task of advancing their pasta program.
Their newly minted cappelletti? Marvelous. Some are stuffed with braised short rib. The others with ricotta that he sous-vided until it browned, creating a super-salty, almost burnt cheese quality. And, leaning into the space’s zero-waste program, he used the skins of the potatoes they use for their Pommes Sky Room to create an earthy cream sauce and the unused stems of herbs to make an oil and herb velouté.
One of the best pasta dishes I’ve had in a long while.
Cold matcha soba with duck breast (鴨ロースと茶そば) from Homareya
145 E. 4th St
Homareya—Long Beach’s first, proper izakaya space from Kyoto-born Chef Yoya Takahashi—isn’t interested in recreating the ubiquitous Americanized vision of Japanese dining found Stateside. Instead, the intimate space embraces the warmth and conviviality that make neighborhood izakayas such beloved institutions across Japan: linger over food. Sake. And conversation—whether or not you’re in a rush. That tradition stems directly from Chef’s Yoya’s Kyoto roots and his desire to create a place that feels like an extension of home.
The Kyoto matcha soba at Homareya is a dish that quietly captures what makes his cooking so compelling. Earthy, subtly bitter matcha is worked directly into the buckwheat noodles, served cold in a light broth. Slices of soy-roasted duck breast that are rich without becoming heavy sit on top. And, for a gentle sweetness and assertive smokiness, charred-over-coal Japanese long green onion (negi).
Look for an upcoming update on Homareya.
Bagel from Hey Brother Baker
3929 E. Anaheim St.
Sourdough bagels dominate the Californian bagel scene—and there are some spectacular examples of them, particularly the wonderful ones from Solis here in Long Beach. But when master baker and Hey Brother Baker co-owner Jesse Hellen-Lloyd tells you that you need to try his bagels because you can’t make up your mind, you go for the bagel. Because Hey Brother Baker is slowly rising up as one of Long Beach’s finest.
I opted for the onion-and-salt version and—without a single plop into the toaster, opting for the raw, rip-and-dip option instead—it could very well be the city’s best East Coast bagel.
Its exterior? Glossy, lightly blistered, and pleasantly chewy from being kettle-boiled before baking. The interior? Delightfully dense yet tender with a tight, even crumb. Rather than being airy and crispy like its sourdough sibling, this room-temperature-fermented version offers substantial resistance when you bite into it, then gives way to a soft interior. And yes, get the whipped cream cheese with it.
Chicken wings with jalapeño from EA Seafood
1611 E. Wardlow Rd.
EA Seafood subtly updates its menu throughout the year. There’s a new, solid, textural wonder of a jellyfish dish. A battered and fried cod with broccoli, slathered in a glazy, peppery sauce… But there is nothing more comforting than the space’s battered-and-fried chicken wings.
Marinated in Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, white pepper, and salt, the wings are then battered in a cornstarch slurry before being fried until thick and crisp. Topped with jalapeño and fried bits of garlic, it has a crunch that can be heard across the dining room and a tenderness that is worthy of the humble fowl too often dismissed as a pedestrian protein.
Soft-shell crab crêpe from Olive & Rose
Atlantic Ave.
Ah, Olive & Rose’s commendable if not outright praise-worthy soft-shell crab crêpe, one of their items on their solid summer menu. It feels like a personal reflection of Chef de Cuisine David Villatoro’s lengthy tenure at Damian, Chef Enrique Olvera’s pandemic-born first L.A. restaurant (after claiming rightful fame at his institutional, seminal space, Pujol, in Mexico City).
With winking nods toward Damian’s squash blossom tlayuda, it is a stunner of a dish that feels Damian-esque while being fully Olive & Rose. Bright golds and greens contrast with one another, thanks to squash blossoms pressed into the crêpe and Nasturtium leaves and flowers, which add peppery notes.
Missed out on Brian Addison’s Favorite Things of past? We got you covered—just click here.
