The re-branded Bungalow Long Beach—formerly Bungalow Kitchen when it was a shared concept between Chef Michael Mina and owner Brent Bolthouse—will be having its grand opening come May 13 in a big fashion: Anderson .Paak, under his DJ Pee Wee pseudonym, will be on hand to spin tunes (and will also be appearing at Solita in DTLB that same night as well to promote his and Bruno Mars’s SelvaRey rum brand).
Mina departed the space in January this year as owner Brent Bolthouse pivoted the business back to what he says is the space’s original intention—a massive bar and lounge with snacks and music.
Bolthouse emphasized to me earlier this year (and in interviews before) that Bungalow Kitchen’s wasn’t to be a shock—as it reflected what his other two lounges, one in Santa Monica and the other in Huntington Beach, exist as.
That is, less of a focus on food—though not an entire dismissal of it: the pizzas from Kitchen are still on the menu while the rest has been scrapped in favor of easy bites: tacos, fried squid bites, tots, a cold noodle salad…—and more of a focus on drinks and gatherings.
There’s even an impressive mocktail list joining the cocktails, where a stellar zero-proof bubbly, French Bloom, joins an array of over 20 other mocktails.
Bungalow Lounge representative Deb Fass also assured that (unlike certain soon-to-open concepts) that The Bungalow will be entirely inclusive.
“We want everyone to join in and have a good time,” Fass said. “It’s really as simple as that. If you happen to have to wait outside, we promise you that will eventually have a guaranteed pathway to get inside.”
Bungalow Long Beach is located at 6400 E. Pacific Coast Hwy. inside Suite 200 at the 2nd + PCH retail complex.
