From the outside, Sloopy’s Beach Cafe seems like any other nondescript beachside restaurant. There’s a plain green sign, a small storefront, and the windows don’t reveal much in the way of restaurant personality. Located just a block uphill from Manhattan Beach, it is very easy to pass by and miss. But if you’re a beach visitor that likes a filling meal, especially burgers, Sloopy’s is well worth the drop in whether you’re enjoying the ambience or ordering to go. Since 1967, it’s been providing hungry customers with breakfast, lunch & dinner comprised of organic ingredients, all within an artfully constructed beach wilderness interior.
Organic, Sustainable, Fresh
Sloopy’s is not shy about the standard of food that goes into their food in drink. From the minute you lay eyes on the cafe, the store front boasts “farm-fresh ingredients, sustainable fisheries, all natural meats and organic coffee.” This isn’t just a random greasy burger joint. They serve with an attention to detail that ensures you get the kind of high grade meal befitting the culture of Manhattan Beach.
Knowing that, there’s a lot to mull over. Their menu is diverse and wide, with three different meal menus. For example, their breakfast time menu has intriguing bites like The Strand, a bacon, brie & scrambled egg on ciabatta bread meal, to go with their fresh squeezed fruit & vegetable juices. Lunch is comprised of salads, burgers and sandwiches with dramatic names like The Masterpiece (proscuitto, ham, mixed greens & more on ciabatta bread) and Mother Nature (a sandwich with raw vegetables, cheese and pepper mayo.) It’s almost overwhelming; if you’ve ever suffered from indecisive “I-don’t-know-what-to-get” paralysis, this is the kind of menu that can trigger it.
Lunch Without Ever Leaving The Beach
While the ingredients and menu are great, it’s hard to talk about Sloopy’s without describing the interior. The unassuming, plain store front gives way to an open-air dining area, composed of finished driftwood furniture and a distinct beach-rustic feel. There’s stone brick flooring, clay potted flora, and even a small interior fire pit. It’s as if you’ve stumbled upon an oceanside forest cabin, creating an appealing and relaxing atmosphere to enjoy your meal. It makes faux-jungle eatery chains like the Rainforest Cafe look like tacky gimmicks by comparison.
Beach town communities tend to have certain values that stand in stark contrast to the bustling cityscapes inland. They like their food fresh and organic, they like healthy juices, their laid back leisure time and their lives tend to always draw toward the ever present seaside. A place like Sloopy’s Beach Cafe is a perfect distillation of not just that area, but that lifestyle. Although small and lacking flash, it’s signature Manhattan Beach.
Been to this Manhattan Beach gem? Wat is your favorite menu item at Sloopy’s? Tell us below in the comments section.
Sloopy’s Beach Cafe – (310) 545 – 1373
416 Highland Avenue, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
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