Fine Dining in Manhattan Beach, Ca. at Zinc and Mucho (12/11)
We had the great pleasure recently to visit some fantastic restaurants in the South Bay owned by the same company. Our first stop one night was at the beautiful Shade Hotel in Manhattan Beach. As you enter, the hip reception area leads right into the Zinc Lounge. We had a fantastic lunch at the comfortable and relaxing restaurant with an outdoor patio. We had the ready-set lunch served from 11am-4pm, which includes soup or salad, entrée choice, one side and a beverage for only $15pp. The house made tomato soup and zinc chopped salad were our choices and you cannot go wrong there. Entrée suggestions are the delicious zinc burger, thin crust pizza, ricotta stuffed spinach pasta, fish tacos or grilled tilapia. Try the sweet potato fries or Mac and cheese to accompany your meal. They are also open for breakfast, brunch and early evening bites with a fantastic drink menu. Executive Chef Greg Hozinksy has worked at some great restaurants in LA and San Francisco before moving over to Zinc at the Shade Hotel, which is located at 1221 North Valley Drive Manhattan Beach, CA 90266.
(310) 546-4995. You can find out more about the hotel and restaurant at www.shadehotel.com
We just had an incredible dining experience at Mucho Ultima Mexicana Restaurant in Manhattan Beach. This place took over the lease for the former popular Michis restaurant and has been going strong for over 4 years. We can see why as this was the Best Mexican restaurant we have dined at in LA. It is not just Mexican as the food is high-end with flavors and spices complementing some fantastic fresh food. The executive chef Chris Garasic came from the Trump National Golf Club in Palos Verdes. The owner of Mucho was at a party there and loved the food so he approached and offered the head chef position at Mucho and the rest is history. Be careful with the tasty chips so you save room for the courses to come. Do not miss the fantastic homemade guacamole and perfectly baked quesa fondido served with hot corn or flour tortillas or a combo of both. Mix the hot cheese, guacamole and their delicious salsa and that could be a meal in itself. It was off the charts!
For entrees, we had the house specialty fresh Maine lobster enchiladas (pictured above) with cilantro green rice and black-eyed peas. We also had the best fresh Swordfish I think I have ever had (including any past seafood restaurants) that our superb waitress Rochelle said was caught right off Catalina Island. The service was top notch and the manager Javier was very hospitable as he goes around the restaurant to check on customers. The décor is beautiful and they have a full menu of Mexican specialties, fish, meats and more. They also offer Happy Hour and a huge list of specialty drinks including marguerites, mojitos, many types of tequila, sangria and more.
Mucho is located at 903 Manhattan Avenue Manhattan Beach, CA 90266 (310) 374-4422
More at www.muchomb.com
The Zislis Group’s portfolio includes Shade Hotel, ROCK’N FISH Restaurants (Manhattan Beach, L.A. Live, and Laguna Beach), Rock & Brews restaurant and beer garden (El Segundo), Mucho Ultima Mexicana restaurant (Manhattan Beach), Brewco microbrewery and restaurant (Manhattan Beach), and its latest addition The Strand House restaurant overlooking the Pacific Ocean in Manhattan Beach.
We had the