SurfWriter Girls: February 2015

Friday, February 27, 2015

Get On Board at Longboard Restaurant

Huntington Beach Restaurant Has Beach Vibe

Written by SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel

For an authentic taste of the beach, stop by The Longboard Restaurant &Pub, 217 Main Street, Huntington Beach, just a block from the HB Pier.

Housed in the oldest-standing structure in Huntington Beach, built in 1904, The Longboard is one of the busiest spots in town with people dropping in for a sandwich or burger, drink at the bar, or leisurely brunch.

SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel picked up on the relaxed beach vibe as soon as we entered the restaurant.

The Longboard is upbeat with everyone talking about the surf conditions, sports and local news.

Friends wave to each other and pull up stools at the bar to linger over a beer and watch the games on the big screen TVs.

Restaurant manager and bartender Patrick Stanton greets new arrivals and keeps everyone’s glasses filled.

Whether you decide to sit at the sidewalk tables out front and people-watch, grab a seat inside to follow the game-day action…

or chill out in the enclosed patio behind the restaurant, there’s a comfortable spot to suit your mood.

Billing itself as “The greatest restaurant & pub on planet earth as we know it!” The Longboard works hard to live up to that promise, offering excellent food and service.

Brunch at The Longboard is served Friday – Sunday (9:30 am – 12:30 pm) and, after surfing all morning or jogging on the beach, it’s just the thing to re-energize yourself.

SurfWriter Girls ordered the Patio Omelette (turkey, tomato, avocado, mozzarella, cheddar and feta cheese) – and were glad that we decided to share it. The portions are huge.

With brunch orders there’s a special price on champagne and mimosas – just $2.50 – so there’s an incentive to indulge.

Now is a great time to go by The Longboard, if you want to beat the crowds. During the summer it’s not uncommon to see people lined up, waiting for a table. Our server, Erika, said “winter is the time the locals come in.”

Matt Correa, a Longboard regular who dropped by for a beer, told SurfWriter Girls, “I’ve been coming here since the day they opened.” The camaraderie and comfortable atmosphere keep him coming back.

Checking out the other menu items – breakfast burritos, burgers, New England-style lobster rolls, tri-tip French dip sandwiches, tacos, steak and Maine lobster combo, and more – SurfWriter Girls were eager to try them.

Ordering fish and chips to-go for Patti to take home to her husband Greg, we knew that we, too, would definitely be coming back to The Longboard.

SurfWriterGirls

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Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel hold the exclusive rights to this copyrighted material. Publications wishing to reprint it may contact them at surfwriter.girls@gmail.com Individuals and non-profit groups are welcome to post it on social media sites as long as credit is given.

Monday, February 16, 2015

Beach Bongo and Bikini Art

Shag – the Swinging Retro-Style Artist

Written by SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel

Josh Agle, better known as Shag to the many followers of his retro-style artistic creations, has a swinger’s view of life with a 60s sensibility.

Looking at his paintings of hip people in Hugh Hefner, Mad Men-type settings – from cocktail parties to backyard barbecues – you feel immersed in the go-go era.

Shag’s paintings are populated with an assortment of lounge lizards, glamorous women, Vegas Rat Pack types, night club-goers, and other cool cats (both human and feline).

Karen Adler, owner of the Picture Show Gallery in Seal Beach (231 Main Street), told SurfWriter GIrls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel that Shaq has a unique style that really captures the essence of the 60s.

Gesturing to the paintings on display in her gallery, she noted the attention to period detail that Shag takes with each artwork.

Adler, who has featured Shag’s artworks at the Picture Show Gallery for over a dozen years now, said, “Everything he does is creative, bright, and fun.”

Shag’s paintings are playful and draw you into his own mod world, filled with turtle-neck-wearing sophisticates, bikini-clad bombshells, martini-drinkers, and more.

In addition to the artworks on display locally at the Picture Show Gallery, Shag has his own gallery, Shag the store, in Palm Springs, located at 725 N Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs, CA 92262.

The Palm Springs gallery (and an online website) features a variety of original paintings and prints, cloisonné jewelry…

painted handbags…

tiki pillows and beach towels, glassware, and more.

So, when you’re feelin’ groovy take a look inside Shag’s retro world and slip into a pair of paisley bell-bottoms or neon mini-skirt.

SurfWriter Girls

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Thursday, February 5, 2015

A Sea of Love

Chocolates Add Romance to Valentine’s Day

Written by SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel

In the 1500s when the Spanish explorers sailed across the seas looking for treasures in the New World they found gold, silver, spices…and something more – chocolate.

Discovered in Mexico’s Aztec civilization, chocolate quickly became a favorite in the royal courts of Europe – prized for both its velvety taste and as an aphrodisiac.

SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel learned that the belief that chocolate had love-inducing powers originated with Aztec Emperor Montezuma himself, who was said to drink 50 golden goblets of chocolate each day.

By the mid-1800s, giving chocolates on Valentine’s Day as a way to celebrate romantic love was popular in much of the world.

The first chocolate-maker to create special Valentine’s heart-shaped boxes was Richard Cadbury of the famous British chocolate company.The Victorian boxes were so beautiful that people kept them after the chocolates were gone and they became treasured family heirlooms.

The art of making chocolate spread throughout Europe and the Swiss, Belgians, and French established themselves among the premiere chocolate-makers.

Familiar names include Nestle, Lindt, Tobler, and Godiva.

And, in America, Hershey, Mars, and that ever-popular Mrs. See’s.

National Geographic named Swiss chocolate company Teuscher the best chocolate maker in the world.

To see – and taste – why these chocolates are the best SurfWriter Girls Sunny and Patti drove down the coast to Newport’s Fashion Island to visit the Teuscher Chocolate Shop.

The upscale chocolates are like precious jewels…and just as dear.

When you enter the Teuscher shop you feel like you are entering a shrine to chocolate.

“It’s a small shop,” says Sunny, “but it’s overwhelming with all the different types and styles of chocolate to try… some shaped like ducks and elephants…

and planes and fish.”

“And there’s hot chocolate, too,” adds Patti. “From the first sip there’s an intense burst of rich flavor. You just want to take it all in and enjoy each sip.”

In fashioning its chocolates Teuscher finds the best ingredients from around the world. Marcus, the shop owner, told SurfWriter Girls. “The chocolates have no preservatives in them. Every two weeks an order of chocolates comes from Switzerland.”

Myths, folklore – and now even science – tell us that chocolate does in fact put people in the mood for love.

So, on Valentine’s Day, to heighten the romantic mood, be sure to give your sweetheart some chocolates, whether it’s a fistful of M&M’s or that gold standard of Swiss perfection, Teuscher.