While the annual BeachLife Festival isn’t set to return to Redondo Beach until next year, the founders of the South Bay’s largest music event are giving people a taste of something new this summer.
The BeachLife Grotto, a new restaurant that’s offering a menu inspired by international seafood dishes, is set to open in late July.
“We decided to open a restaurant and now we have BeachLife Grotto, which is basically the everyday experience of the beach life from a food and beverage perspective,” said Allen Sanford, who along with his business partner Rob Lissner, co-founded BeachLife in 2019. They are opening the new festival-affiliated restaurant in Redondo Beach’s Riviera Village.
“For us, we’re lovers of the beach, the ocean, and it’s pretty obvious that seafood is a derivative of that and so it made a lot of sense to focus on seafood,” he added.
The kitchen at the new spot will be helmed by Jacob Ramos, the executive chef of BeachLife Festival who is also in charge of organizing the festival’s popular pop-up restaurant. That’s where well-known chefs cook multicourse meals and serve them right on the side of the main stage.
“The wood grill, the charcoal grill, the techniques we’re using and the fish we’re receiving, I just don’t think you see it a lot in LA.,” Ramos said.
Ramos is sourcing fish like Thai snapper as well as lobster from Puerto Nuevo, Mexico.
“I lived in Mexico for years and I studied everything they have to offer and we’re making this with handmade red corn tortillas,” he said. “It’s served sort of like a concept, not like a dish. The beans, the rice, the tortillas, the avocado salad are mixed with lobster claw meat. It’s kind of like you can make your own tacos, share it. It’s an experience,” he said.
Also on the menu will be a New Zealand coral trout.
“It’s such a unique fish and we’re going to make that kind of Japanese style off the yakitori grill served with soy sauce and braised Japanese turnips,” he said.
“We’re going to take you to every country by way of seafood,” he added.
The drink menu will feature a new BeachLife branded rum that’s set to launch this year, which will mean Mai Tai cocktails.
“The last year for us has been a deep dive into the Mai Tai cocktail and we’ve tried probably 500 different recipes of Mai Tais and we’ve settled on two,” he said.
The restaurant, which will be decorated with a surf and nautical vibe, will be serving Mai Tais akin to the original Trader Vic’s version and another that’s more fruity oriented. And in case you didn’t get enough BeachLife merch at the festival, the restaurant will also include a general store upstairs that will sell all sorts of festival-affiliated gear and goods.
Before launching BeachLife Sanford got his start in the restaurant business and currently co-owns the Rockefeller, Primo Italia and the Venice West music venue.
The opening of BeachLife Gratto is set to precede Sanford’s other project, the California Surf Club, an indoor-outdoor, 21,000 square-foot compound adjacent to the Seaside Lagoon that is set to open in October at 239 N. Harbor Drive.
BeachLife Gratto BeachLife Grotto and BeachLife General Store are located at 1711 S Catalina Ave, Redondo Beach; 310-373-1200 or BeachLifeGrotto.com.
Related Articles
Gov. Newsom signs law allowing California restaurants to keep surcharges
Polly’s Pies is selling fresh olallieberry pie and strawberry pie
Where to find the best BBQ in the San Fernando Valley
15 restaurants to enjoy al fresco dining in Los Angeles County this summer
Casa Vega marks the 100-year anniversary of the Caesar Salad by adding original recipe to the menu