Seated on the patio at the latest branch of The Hook & Plow on Manhattan Avenue in Manhattan Beach, it’s easy to get the feeling that beach people live on a diet of ice cream … and more ice cream. That’s because legions of well-satisfied denizens troop by, licking their cones packed with exotic flavors from the adjacent Manhattan Beach Creamery, and from Salt & Straw around the corner.
I, by comparison, was busy chewing on a cheddar scallion biscuit, flavored with garlic, with sweet butter, honey and blueberry-lime jam on the side. It’s a tasty creation that compares very well to a double fudge ripple mint scoop with sprinkles. Indeed, it rivals my obsession with dark chocolate ice cream.
For me, life is good if the chocolate is shamelessly intense … and if the biscuits crackle with cheddar. The french fries served at The Hook & Plow could have been crisper. But the biscuit made up for any lack of crunch.
The Manhattan Beach branch follows Hook & Plows in Redondo Beach and Hermosa Beach. This Hook & Plow is far enough off Manhattan Beach Boulevard to have a more relaxed air than, say, Simmzy’s just around the corner, with its surging crowds. There’s an ease to the place, which is reflected on a properly eclectic menu, where you can leap from those tasty biscuits to a 36-ounce bone-in, ribeye tomahawk steak, served with white cheddar grits, roasted Brussels sprouts and fingerling potatoes with burrata (for $125).
In between, there are dishes large and small, leaning toward seafood — celebrated with a $46 lobster roll. Or, as the menu says, “The Lobster Roll.” And indeed, the “The” is well deserved. Thanks to the opening of The Lobster Guys down on Artesia Boulevard, our consciousness of lobster rolls has taken a great culinary leap westward.
But where the lobster rolls at The Lobster Guys go for a nickel under 20 bucks, at The Hook & Plow it’s a considerably grander creation, priced at $46. Which buys you a roll that isn’t just part of a meal — it’s the whole meal. It’s a mess of lobster meat on a toasted brioche, flavored with mayo, chives and celery, with a side of red cabbage and cranberry slaw, and fries topped with Grana Padano cheese, mustard aioli and a ketchup made in-house. Toss in a cheddar-scallion biscuit, and you don’t need anything else.
On second thought, the four-draft Tour of South Bay Breweries Beer Flight wouldn’t hurt on the side. Maybe, the Little Bo Pils from Smog City in Torrance, the Pure Intention from Hop Saint or the Mayberry IPA from El Segundo Brewing. There are more. They like their beers local at The Hook & Plow. And, on draft; bless them for that.
Show up for lunch, and you can satisfy your cravings with a choice of seven dishes from the Bistro Board — two for $16, three for $21. The burrata sandwich with the clam chowder and the furikake fries would settle me for the rest of the day. Or go off the Bistro Board, and opt for the striped bass sandwich — blackened, grilled or battered — which can be seen as fish and chips on a brioche.
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Come dinner, the menu bounces from a cheese and prosciutto charcuterie board, to salmon poke, to a $150 seafood tower for four, to a Jidori chicken and kale salad.
But, if you want exotic ice cream for dessert, you still have to go next door or around the corner. The ice cream served with the sticky toffee pudding and the brown butter apple cobbler is vanilla. Seated on the patio, it tastes that much better. The Hook & Plow sounds like a lot of rustic labor. But the patio takes no labor at all. It’s as soothing as it could be.
Merrill Shindler is a Los Angeles-based freelance dining critic. Email mreats@aol.com.
The Hook & Plow
- Rating: 2.5 stars
- Address: 1112 Manhattan Ave., Manhattan Beach
- Information: 424-304-2100, www.thehookandplow.com
- Cuisine: Gastropub
- When: Lunch and dinner, every day; brunch Saturday and Sunday
- Details: Full bar; reservations important
- Atmosphere: Open and airy, with a fine view of the high-steppers along Manhattan Avenue, this third branch of a South Bay classic makes dining, drinking and livin’ real easy. It’s a fine place to wile away an evening.
- Prices: About $45 per person
- On the dinner menu: 5 Cold Seafood Dishes ($18-$150), 7 Starters ($8-$22), 7 Entrees ($35-$125), 3 Salads ($18-$25), 2 Sandwiches ($20-$25)
- Credit cards: MC, V
- What the stars mean: 4 (World class! Worth a trip from anywhere!), 3 (Most excellent, even exceptional. Worth a trip from anywhere in Southern California.), 2 (A good place to go for a meal. Worth a trip from anywhere in the neighborhood.) 1 (If you’re hungry, and it’s nearby, but don’t get stuck in traffic going.) 0 (Honestly, not worth writing about.)
Originally Published:
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