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Long Beach Food Scene Intel is a series from Brian Addison that will recap food news throughout the city, both news that needs just a quick mention or repeated news where you might have missed the full features.
Morning Nights shutters food service permanently; bar to remain open
Morning Nights—the vastly underrated vegan Asian-fusion joint inside The Hangar at the Long Beach Exchange complex—had its last day of food service on Aug. 25. Owner Stephen Le, who also owns The Kroft. has long been looking for someone to sublease the space from him. “It just got too hard,” Le said. “A vegan kitchen with everything made from scratch.”
This deals another blow to the vegan community, which saw Seabirds announce they will having their last day of service on Sept. 8.
Adalberto’s up for sublease as sales dramatically drop
Shortly after opening its first Long Beach location, things were going solid for Adalberto’s, the transplant of the OG San Diego staple. “Late 2023 to April were solid,” owner Adrian said. “Then April 1 hit with the new wage bill and all of our suppliers and produce jacked their prices up. We’ve been hemorrhaging pretty bad the last five months… It just reached a point where sales were okay—not good, not bad—but the cost of everything else has shot through the roof. I can fix it and sell our burritos for like $20 but I don’t think: A) That’s right; and B) People would stop coming anyways… Currently looking for a sublease option, unfortunately.”
For those interested in the space, more information can be found here.
& Waffles signage goes up in Downtown Long Beach
After announcing their presence back in Februrary, Los Angeles mini-breakfast chain And Waffles (stylized as & Waffles) has officially hung its signage at its upcoming DTLB location at the former Pier 76 space in Downtown Long Beach at 95 Pine Ave.
With two locations in existence—one in North Hollywood, the other in Woodland Hills—the massive menu has an entire section dedicated to proteins and waffles: Cajun fried chicken and waffles, Texas-style fried chicken and waffles, a waffle cheeseburger, waffles benedict, waffle sandwiches… This one top of classic breakfast (think corned beef hash, steak’n’eggs, country fried steak…), breakfast burritos (from pastrami and steak to chorizo and Polish sausage), omelettes….
Sabor a Mí opens on Pacific Coast Hwy.
It’s been many things: Coco Beach Presents, Cantarito, Gabriel’s Burgers, Molito’s Grill… But Sabor a Mí has formally and officially taken over the space at 2300 Pacific Coast Hwy. in Central Long Beach. Long Beach Food Scene member Elle Be Cee Zee shared videos and said of the space: “Our micheladas were good and the renovation inside looks great. Wishing them luck! We will be back to try their menu!”
New Amsterdam opens in Downtown Long Beach
After announcing the owners of the much-loved Bjorstar Shawarma would be opening a new space in Downtown Long Beach earlier this year, they have officially opened New Amsterdam. With a menu that is a bit confusing—fish’n’chips and ratatouille pasta sit next to hummus and falafel—and has little to do with Dutch food, one can only hope the shawarma gods that guided the Syrian-born owner to restaurants will bring in more of his Levantine roots.
Annual Greek Festival kicks off this weekend for its 75th year. (Yes, 75th year.)
The annual tradition that is the Long Beach Greek Festival will have its 75th turn at happily feeding locals gyro and hummus as it spreads across three days this upcoming Labor Day weekend.
“This is very similar to what a Greek festival in Greece would be like. If you’re traveling through Greece and you stop at a local festival it would look like this with delicious food, delicious drinks live music,” said Thanasi Papoulias, a spokesman for the festival.
The Queen Mary seeking executive chef to oversee all food operations
In what could be a chef’s total dream or absolute nightmare, The Queen Mary is looking for an executive chef that would “oversee all culinary operations for the ship,” said Steve Caloca, general manager for the vessel. The compensation—between $93,000 and $140,000 per year—is handsome and the responsibilities hefty. But the overall treat? Seeing the Queen into a new era as the ship currently runs a profit and becomes a larger tourist destination each year.
For those interested in applying, click here.
ICYMI: Albert’s Petite Sweets: How a Filipino chocolatier chose Long Beach as his home
I just love, love this story—we love to see our queer Filipinos succeeding—but I am also obsessed with the chocolates at Albert’s Petite Sweets. With the loss of Romeo Chocolates, there has been a deep hole in quality chocolate-making and Albert takes it to new levels and beyond.
Click here for the full feature.
ICYMI: OBRA HandBakery—Long Beach’s king of empanadas—shares the love South America and the Carribean
OBRA HandBakery is the undisputed king of empanadas in Long Beach. They’ve done so by building up a decade-long patronage and online following, generating genuinely viral moments for the space.
However, the inner entrepreneurial spirit of owners Luz Torres and Chef Cesar Villarreal cannot be tamed. Despite overwhelming success, they want to not rest on their laurels. And for any hard-working Colombian who has made the trek to the States, that means expansion. For both of them, it is not just about searching for a suitable space; it is outright in their blood.
Click here for the full feature.
ICYMI: Open Sesame re-introduced Lebanese food to Long Beach 25 years ago—and it is still going strong
How rad is this? Open Sesame is celebrating 25 years serving Lebanese food to the community. The journey of the restaurant has provided owner Ali Kobeissi with multiple full circle moments. After all, it was Belmont Shore who introduced Lebanese food to Long Beach when George Mitri opened Sahara on 2nd Street in 1976.
They’re having a celebration on Wednesday, Aug. 28 at 11:30AM for those who want to congratulate the team.
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