Long Beach’s diverse restaurants mirror the city

Out of sheer curiosity, I decided one day to tour Long Beach from one end to the other and calculate the number of eateries in town. I found a few interesting things to report. While driving around town, I took note of the various eateries and discovered 91 places to eat, including seven ice cream parlors, six fast-food places, eight coffee shops or diners, twelve pubs and saloons, four bagel shops, as well as 16 Italian restaurants-pizzerias and six Japanese, eight Chinese, 16 American/International, and eight Latino/Middle Eastern establishments.

I couldn’t believe the sheer number, and when I polled various people and asked them how many restaurants they thought were in Long Beach, most of them estimated between 35 to 50.

This got me thinking about which restaurants had been in Long Beach the longest, and I was surprised to find that several have been here for at least 40 years or more. Among them are the Laurel Luncheonette, Nolan’s, The Saloon and Lido Kosher Deli and The Inn, which has been operating since the 1920’s under various owners.

I’ve became so intrigued by all this that I suddenlyhad a brainstorm. After watching so many of celebrity cook Rachel Ray’s tours throughout the country, I thought maybe, just maybe, she or her agents might be interested in coming to our culinary-enriched city by the sea for a tasting tour. So I Googled about it and, low and behold, I discovered the Food Network site and immediately sent an email to their editors with my request. They replied quickly but said that their editors would consider it when they got around to it. I’m keeping my fingers crossed.

What do Herald readers think about this conglomeration of eateries in our community? I would love to hear of your experiences about some of these places, especially the ethnic establishments. I had never eaten at a Japanese restaurant, but then one night my friends and I went to one in town to celebrate a birthday and I was truly amazed. The food was excellent, the service was different from any restaurants I had dined at before and, to top it off, a Japanese woman came out in her native garb and entertained us. She also had a kimono to put on our birthday boy. This was an experience I won’t soon forget.