Manhattan Beach: The quintessential California beach town to visit during a long layover at LAX

I live just five miles from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) so I know what I would do with a long LAX layover. I always tell my friends and family transferring through LAX on their way to Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, Asia … you know, all the places that make you jealous … to break up their trip and get out of the airport and go to Manhattan Beach. Nothing is worse than just milling around an airport for hours. If your layover is three hours or more, jump in a rideshare or taxi and take a mini vacation. Better yet, spend a night or two on each end of your trip so you can recharge your batteries—literally and figuratively.

Manhattan Beach is a home of surfing and both beach and indoor volleyball. It’s a special community that used to be filled with pilots and flight attendants in the 70s, 80s and mid-90s until the housing market exploded and priced all the fun people out.

I used to live right on the Strand (the first row of houses on the beach) and when I first moved there in 1992, in a tear-down house on a single lot, it was selling for $750,000. Today, that same old house is priced at $14,000,000+. I made a HUGE mistake not rustling some money together to buy it. Many believe that MBS Studios is one of the main culprits behind the explosion since they built a movie studio down the street. MBS produces all kinds of shows and films like Ally McBeal and Avatar (here’s a complete list).

Transportation
The easiest way to get to Manhattan Beach from LAX is to take a taxi, Lyft or UberX. Tell the driver you want to go to Manhattan Beach Boulevard and Highland Avenue (the heart of downtown). It should cost no more than $35 by taxi or $30 by UberX.

FYI: Be prepared for the taxi driver to give you a bit of attitude, as he will probably have been sitting in a line for two hours and will be bummed that he’s going only a short distance. If you don’t want the attitude take UberX or Lyft.

As you go down the hill you’ll see the famous Manhattan Beach Pier. It’s been in a lot of movies and was always featured in NBC’s coverage of the Manhattan Beach Open, the Wimbledon of beach volleyball, before the sponsors pulled out.

Store your Luggage
As of press time there’s no place to store your luggage in Manhattan Beach which is a real bummer. However, there are plenty of websites and apps that offer the service and new places keep popping up so check each site: Vertoe, LuggageHero, Stasher, Nannybag

What to do
Once in Manhattan Beach the best thing to do is stroll around the Strand and the pier (there’s a little aquarium at the end). I highly recommend renting a bike and cruising the bike path (you can go all the way south to Torrance or north to Santa Monica). Sadly, the only bike rental in Manhattan Beach closed so you will need to go to nearby Hermosa Cyclery.

Where to eat
This is one of my favorite parts about Manhattan Beach—the restaurants. There are so many to choose from and most are within walking distance from where you’ve been dropped off, so I’m just listing my favorites.

Breakfast

• Uncle Bill’s Pancake House (1305 Highland Ave; Tel: 310-545-5177). It’s a diner that’s open for breakfast and lunch only and has super long waits on weekends/holiday mornings. I’ve eaten here so many times my picture is on the wall (to the right of the front door).
• Le Pain Quotidien (451 Manhattan Beach Blvd; Tel: 310-546-6411) Yeah, it’s a chain but it’s darn good and they serve some healthy (and non-healthy) food. Get the mint tea and don’t try their hazelnut spread—it’s addicting.
• Local Yolk (3414 Highland Ave; Tel: 310-546-4407) It’s located in North Manhattan Beach (about a mile away) and has an extensive menu and award-winning omelets. You won’t leave hungry.

Coffee, smoothies and bagels
If you are looking for something quick and light then go to Noah’s Bagel. There’s also a Peet’s Coffee and Starbucks within a block.

Lunch
There are so many places I don’t know where to start, but here’s a quick list:

• Almost anytime PR people want to take me out to dinner I suggest Petros (451 Manhattan Beach Blvd; Tel: 310-545-4100). They have fantastic Mediterranean food and I love their watermelon and peach salads (in season).
• Izaka-ya By Katsu-ya (1133 Highland Ave; Tel: 310-796-1888). It’s a very well-run Japanese restaurant and even though I don’t eat sushi, I still frequent it often and get the apple ginger chicken, which comes with miso soup, rice and salad ($10.50).
• When I’m in the mood for something quick I go to Lemonade (401 Manhattan Beach Blvd). It’s a gourmet deli chain and I get two salad portions for $5.25.
• Simmzys (229 Manhattan Beach Blvd; Tel: 310-546-1201) is a gold mine. It’s always happening with the cool people drinking, eating and watching sporting events on their open-air patio.
• If you want to live like a local go to Becker’s Bakery and grab a sandwich to eat down on the beach or pier or an Acai Bowl from Paradise Bowls.

If you happen to be in town on a Tuesday between 11am-3pm, go to the Farmers Market (13th Street & Morningside Drive). Buy some fresh fruit and ask to try the spicy tempeh from Dave’s Korean food.

Dinner

• Rock ‘N Fish (120 Manhattan Beach Blvd; Tel: 310-379-9900) is always busy so you’ll need a reservation Thursday-Sunday. It’s great for steaks, seafood and Navy Grogs.
• The Strand House (117 Manhattan Beach Blvd; Tel: 310-545-7470). They have the best location of all and take vending machines to a new level with their wine stations. They also have an insane glazed doughnut dessert with PB-n-chocolate, vanilla bean and caramel with fleur de sel.
• Pancho’s Restaurant (3615 Highland Ave; Tel: 310-545-6670) is one of the oldest and best known landmarks in the South Bay area. It’s in North Manhattan Beach and has a festive atmosphere and solid Mexican food.
• The Kettle (1141 Manhattan Ave; Tel: 310-545-8511) is a staple in Manhattan Beach as it’s been around since 1973. It’s the first restaurant I went to when I passed through with my dad in 1990. It’s open 24 hours and seems to always be crowded. I usually go with my friends late night.

Dessert
If you have a sweet tooth like me then listen up. Here’s the best places in Manhattan Beach to get your sugar fix:

• Manhattan Beach Creamery (1120 Manhattan Beach Avenue; Tel: 310-372-1155) is a nostalgic ice cream shop with the best ice cream sandwiches around. Get one chocolate dipped and to go and eat it while walking down to the pier.
• Becker’s Bakery (1025 Manhattan Ave; Tel: 310- 372-3214) is also located downtown and has been around since 1942. They make colorful cupcakes, cakes and cookies. I love their chocolate chip cookies. Closed on Monday’s.
• Susie Cakes (3500 N Sepulveda Boulevard; Tel: 310-303-3780) is the place to go if you need to order a cake or pie for a special occasion. They’re located up in the Manhattan Village and are super busy around the holidays.

Nightlife 
I’m not much of a drinker but I go out with my friends the first half of the night and when they start to get sloppy I bail. Places we go:

• Hennessey’s Tavern (313 Manhattan Beach Blvd; Tel: 310-546-4813) is an Irish bar right next door to Shark’s Cove. We usually go on St. Patrick’s Day and on Tuesdays when burgers are two-for-one.
• Shellback Tavern (116 Manhattan Beach Blvd; Tel: 310-376-7857) is an institution in Manhattan Beach and the spot to be after any big volleyball tournament. The food is not too good (except the turkey tacos) but it’s happening and crowded.
• Baja Sharkeez (3600 Highland Ave; Tel: 310-545-8811) is in North Manhattan Beach and is a popular USC bar that serves decent fish tacos. Go on taco Tuesday when it’s two-for-one and you’ll find lots of eye candy.
• Ercoles (1101 Manhattan Ave; Tel: 310-372-1997) is a local dive bar that arguably serves the best, thickest and slowest hamburgers in town. If you go on Wednesday evenings it’s two for one.

Grocery stores
Of course, if you ever need to grab snacks for the plane you have Vons supermarket right in town. There’s also a Ralphs, Target, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Lazy Acres, Gelson’s, Mother’s Market, and the Manhattan Village (a mall)—all of them are just off Sepulveda Blvd (close to the airport).

Lodging

• The swankiest place to stay in Manhattan Beach is Shade Hotel (1221 N Valley Drive; Tel: 310-546-4995). It’s a luxury boutique that’s in the heart of town and three blocks from the beach. Shade is also a hot spot Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, though they kick everyone out by 11 pm so they don’t disturb the guests. Rack room rates begin at $279. They also have a sleek rooftop Skydeck pool. See my 10 reasons to stay at Shade Hotel.
• The Sea View Inn (3400 Highland Avenue, Manhattan Beach; Tel: 310-545-1504) is in north Manhattan Beach and located right on Highland Avenue. They offer free parking, complimentary bicycles, beach chairs, beach towels & boogie boards. Rack room rates begin at $130.
• The Belamar Hotel is located off of Sepulveda and Valley. It’s just a few miles from LAX and has 127 rooms. I stayed there one night and here’s my story.
• If you want to collect some Marriott hotel points there’s The Westdrift (1400 Parkview Avenue, Manhattan Beach; Tel: 310-546-7511). It’s three miles south of LAX, has 385 rooms, and there’s a par-3 golf course in the backyard. However, it’s a good 2 miles from the beach. Rack room rates begin at $149.

Rent a house or an apartment
If you are staying longer than a day, then rent a house or an apartment. Airbnb and VRBO are the two major players.

Useful Manhattan Beach resources

• Wikipedia.org/ManhattanBeach
• City of Manhattan Beach, CA

So there’s my Manhattan Beach. Hopefully, this will make your long layover at LAX (or stay in the area) and trip to whatever fabulous place you are going, that much more enjoyable.

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