As with all things that are Chef Philip Pretty, his summer sprawl of a menu at Heritage—one that slightly alters across the months given mood, resources, or simple surprise—is never quite what it seems. And that is said with all the glorious mystery that accompanies a new experience at the Michelin-starred space.
There is, no doubt, a gravity to be found in the food, but not to the point of stuffiness. Enough tableside flair that makes the meal feel whimsical and friendly rather than performative. A staff with a welcome, absurdly well-oiled knowledge of the menu. And a chef who is not only at his most comfortable best, but is now willing to showcase all his moods simultaneously. The seriousness with the goofy. The stern stare with the subtle wink.
And in my experience of his summer menu—weeks ago, before the blur that was Long Beach Food Scene Week—something that feels like he is closing a chapter in order to challenge that comfort he has at what has been his culinary home for six years.
Heritage’s summer menu is oceanic poesy in culinary form.
Chef Philip’s meals at Heritage always begin with a haiku: three lines of culinary poetry. In this case, uni topped with fried leeks atop avocado and shrimp toast: buttery, hyper-umami meets earthy. A squash blossom stuffed with Maine lobster salad, then drizzled with Green Goddess dressing: ocean salt-bomb with herbal punches. And a salmon tartare layered into a tart with peppers and sous vide egg yolk, topped with caviar: elegance in a bite.
Their serving vessels? Hand-crafted clay sculptures created by clay master Clay Wood of Clay on First and Chef Philip himself, it is another layer of showcasing what Chef Philip (and, in direct connection, his sister and co-owner Lauren Michaelis) has always been about: Long Beach and Californian culture.
This was the beginning of the meal.
Earth-toned dishes carried umami-drenched bites layered with subtle complexity. It’s everything you want from an elevated tasting menu, with no land-based protein in sight for the rest of the menu (though I’ve seen iterations with a duck offering). And we experience Heritage not redefining what it can do but refining what it does already so well.
A trip through Heritage’s history, its present, and its future.
That back and forth—where dishes have these nostalgic qualities to them for Heritage patrons because Chef Philip and his team are constantly returning back to previous dishes—is ever-present throughout the experience at the 7th Street space.
After all, following is a continuation of Heritage tradition: a crudo, in this case a Kanpachi lined with coriander and a basil oil-edged, agar-agar-tinged pineapple sauce that gives it a gelée-like quality. Sweet and creamy, the acidity and texture of the pineapple sauce punching up the sweetness of the fish. It makes you, for a moment, forget the plethora of mundane crudos found on tasting menus across the past few years.
This is followed by a touch of the Heritage story: Chef Philip’s rightfully loved charred cabbage.
Green round cabbage charred to a blackened crust. Topped with a parm-drenched Caesar dressing, with a sauerkraut soubise on the side. Hyper-savory, slighty earthy, a wee bit bright, this dish is the warmest hug you’ll receive on the summer menu. Elegant yet homey. Technical but comfy.
For the mains, a three-part escapade into the Pacific…
Just like when he served crystalline ice plant—the pervasive succulent you’ll find lining your hikes in San Pedro—on Olive & Rose’s crudité offering, Chef Philip comes to the table with verdolaga, the pervasive, citrusy annual weed. He inserts it into an array of rices, including puffed rice, that is lined underneath a black garlic sesame aioli with Monterey abalone. It acts as a wonderfully earthy counterpoint to the minerality and briny nature of the abalone.
The diver scallop has also been a long-held tradition for a Heritage menu. The very version on this summer menu was used back in the winter of 2025. There have been tons of iterations—a personal favorite featured thinly sliced mastutake mushrooms with cauliflower and a raisin puree—but this one is once again refining what they’ve previously done. The space’s dashi buerre blanc has never been better, where trout roe is smoked to the extent of creating boba-like pearls that pop when you succesfully smash them in your mouth.
And then, of course, his king salmon.
Here, a beautifully cooked filet becomes the anchor for a silken vermouth beurre blanc, its buttery richness sharpened by the wine’s herbal, gently acidic edge—a distinctly French foundation for a dish that is just as Californian in spirit. That joy is followed by the beauty that comes with Chef Philip’s courgette rouleau: delicate ribbons of summer squash meticulously wrapped around a lush filling of sweet corn, ricotta, mascarpone, and mascarpone.
Heritage might be looking back now—but it feels like that is about to shift following this menu.
And, as the summer sunset faded to give way to street lights pouring through our side window, a reflection on this letter to the sea and the space that made it come to life. There is no question as to whether or not Chef Philip, Lauren, and the team at Heritage will leave the house they made famous. They will; they have to grow. And it is clear that Chef Phil is ambitiously and rightfully looking toward a second star.
In that sense, this felt like somewhat of a bittersweet wave goodbye. Not in the sense of not knowing when we’ll see each other again, but knowing that we will soon, in a different space. Given the transformation happening at the Heritage Farm, that is all but a question of when. It’s an au revoir to the space, not the people or food; a strange but exhilarating sensation.
Until then, Long Beach, enjoy the space that garnered our city its first Michelin star. Bask in its hominess, remembering that what was once a beloved sandwich shop has brought people who would have otherwise never glanced at our city as a culinary destination. And begin to think about what Heritage will be in its next iteration.
Heritage is currently located at 2030 E. 7th St. For reservations, click here.
