I know you said you'd be hoofing it, but really, if you could spring for a taxi and take yourselves less than 8 to 10 miles up the road a ways (depending on the route the cab takes), I'd recommend you treat yourselves to food at Captain Jack's. If you're almost never in this area, then you really do not want to miss it!

The restaurant is located at 16812 Pacific Coast Hwy, Sunset Beach, CA 90742.
Ph # is: (562) 592-2514
Definitely make a reservation or be prepared to wait...and wait...and wait. They open at 5:00 pm to 10:00 pm on Mon to Fri, but Sat and Sun, from 4:30 pm to midnight, but you can verify this if you call for a reservation.

They are noted for their prime rib and their king crab and believe me, those items are not to be missed! We usually have a seafood appetizer that's awesome too (I think it might be seafood nachos or something like that). It's pricey, and has lots of other a la carte stuff we ignore, but it's my absolute favorite restaurant!

The only negatives I can say are that the inside can be rather dark unless you go early and it's daylight saving time and you sit by a window, and another negative is that the bathroom is sooooo small (like on an old ship!). If you do decide to take the car, street parking is almost non-existent but the restaurant does have valet parking.

Smiles,
Sooz

Good luck to you guys!

I noodled around chowhound a bit ago looking for the same info since we were going to be in that area, and I pulled up google maps to see how far anything was.

The Sky Room is close. Looks like Pine Ave. has lots of options, L'Opera, Kings Fish House, Alegria. You are also next to The Pike with lots of chain restaurants, of all budgets and quality.

Urban Spoon lists a lot of restaurants near the CC, especially up and down Pine St. You might want to ask at your hotel what they recommend or find another local person. I do have friends in LB, but they are not near the CC, and I'm not sure I trust their taste in restaurants.

On Maui we got some good suggestions from the women at the hotel, but the best restaurant we found was during a drive-by. I think that if you walk up and down Pine Street, you might be able to find something you like. It appears to me that Urban Spoon has at least one review from the restaurant owner for each restaurant listed, but they do tally a vote, which might be more helpful.

How much does a 10 mile taxi ride cost? I've never taken a taxi that far. I would like to go to Captain Jack's some time when I'm in that area.

Lars

We just would not bother with a taxi. It's walking or nothing. The Pine St. recommendations are good. Kings Seafood also runs 555 East, I think. The steakhouse is non-negotiable, according to the carnivore, his favorite type of restaurant. And we'll have other people we'll be meeting up with, one of whom might drive, but his choice is Roscoe's Waffles and Chicken.

Thanks---looks like a good area to be on foot, doesn't it? We're even talking about a movie, a (barely) once a year event for us!

Hey Sushipup,

I would recommend any of the following if you want something other than chain restaurants:

George's Greek Cafe on Pine - standard Greek dishes, but very good quality ingredients and reasonably priced dinners

La Creperie on Pine - Wonderful savory crepes. Good lunch option. I haven't been to this location as it's fairly new, but I really like the one in Belmont Shores, a couple of miles away.

One option other than a taxi is the Passport Bus. It's a tourist bus rather than general service. It's free if you're riding around downtown (if you want to go from Pine Ave down to The Pike or the LB Aquarium for instance), and it's really inexpensive to go down to Belmont Shores (only 2-3 miles from downtown LB) which is, in my opinion, a much nicer area to walk around in. The area is comprised of three long blocks along 2nd Street with nice shops and restaurants. The Passport bus stops right at the far end of the street, and you can walk down one side then back and be at the bus to go back to downtown Long Beach.

In Belmont Shores, I would recommend:
La Creperie - same owners as the one on Pine Ave.
George's Greek Cafe - same owners as the one on Pine Ave.
Cafe Gazelle - very tiny (maybe 8 tables?), great food, reasonably priced, you'll feel like you're in Italy, but if you're claustrophobic, don't go.
Sweet Jill's - bakery with GINORMOUS portions with offerings like cinnamon buns, cheesecake, brownies

One other recommendation that not many people seem to know about... About one mile away is the Long Beach Art Museum. It's a small museum in an Arts & Crafts building with a wonderful indoor/outdoor patio cafe for breakfast or lunch. It's a little pricey ($12-15) but the food quality is wonderful and the setting overlooking the ocean is gorgeous. In that one short mile, you get away from the intense downtown urban feel. (The Passport bus has a stop right at the museum, or if you are a beach walker, there is a walking path / bike path that heads along the beach East. It's about 1-1/2 miles)

A note about King's Fish House: We recently went and we were a bit disappointed. The restaurant seemed more run down and the waiters seemed young and inexperienced. It seemed more "chain restaurant-like" than I had remembered. The fish quality was very good, however. One option if you do go here, is they have a casual bar side of the restaurant - same great seafood, but more relaxed and a good place for lunch for seafood chowder, etc.

Hope this helps.
Ann

Here is a link that might be useful: Passport Bus

Thanks, Ann. Nice to know that Pine St. is good for all sorts of eats. We're sticking very close to the hotel/convention center for the short time we'll be there. Great ideas, all!