James’ Beach

Good vibe at night. Not too crowded. Decent drinks. I love you man décor. Decent music. Multiple rooms. good option in venice.

Not sure why the hype about this place. Came here over the weekend and had a really typical C– bar/​dancing experience. Rude bartenders who shooed you away and rolled your eyes if you wanted a mixed drink from their menu instead of something easy, broey dudes drunkenly stumbling into you, and heat like you wouldn’t believe. They also allow smoking in their front «patio» area, so the lack of ventilation makes you feel like you’re choking.
The most hilarious thing was their dance area — my friend and I walked in and literally immediately turned around because it gave me flashbacks of those super sketchy frat parties in college with the bad fluorescent lighting and steamy heat rising up and no room to even stand lol.
I do get that this sort of thing isn’t my scene in general, so I’m predisposed to be picky about places like this, but even so this was REALLY bad. Even Canal Club is better.

3 stars for the patrons of this establishment.
No stars for the service. Literally waited 15 minutes to get out drink after moving to get «better service»
Service is slow. Even as we sat in front of the bar.
Atmosphere is great
Location is nice
Drink were ok

Ok food, slightly overpriced for what it is. The real bummer about this spot, is the smelly carpet in the dining room. Yes carpet in an restaurant…

Their burger is to die for. Just perfection. I’m always on the search for amazing gourmet burgers and this place has it! Definitely one of the best I’ve had
I know they’re known for their fish tacos. And while that was good I didn’t love it. Nor did I like how I have to build my own taco. Very premium fish though.
Servers are always very kind. Ambiance is classy meets beach vibe. Very nice balance.
House Pinot noir is good as well. Can’t wait to return.

My favorite spot in Venice! I come here when I want to get away or feel inspired to be creative… The food is bomb & the atmosphere allows me to observe And soak up my surroundings. It’s all around outstanding and the service is phenomenal. Even my dog gets treated like royalty! I’ve never had a bad experience here… I’ve been here solo, on dates, even my mom & step dad come here for a night out… There’s no wrong way or time to be here. Brunch, lunch, dinner, or just drinks– come here and stay a while!

Bangin’ grilled cheese and drinks, but my GOD are they are slow.
I had to ask the bartenders for everything — more drinks, condiments, napkins, etc. It’s a small bar with two bartenders. You see my drink is empty and has been for ten minutes, like, do your job.
This place screams pretentiousness and BS egos. If you’re going for that inflated, self-​important vibe, make sure your bathrooms aren’t in the same condition as the porter potty’s at Coachella.

Have never ate here but always have a good time on Friday and Saturday nights. With no roof in one section you can smoke but then you can go into the restaurant part and there is a dj, dancing and bar inside with a whole different vibe. All kinds of people and a great trendy place to hang out. After 11 people start rolling in and there can be a line so 10:30 is the magic time to beat the rush.

Dinner spot in Venice beach — great drinks, pretty strong, and nice quality fish dishes. Ordered appetizers to share among 4 ladies. Easy to split and just enough for a taste.

Is this years after the movie? Yes. But it’s worth repeating, the fish tacos here are definitely «the tits» made famous by the film «I love you man» their tacos here are most certainly the main attraction. Nestled in Venice this eatery does have fancier offerings and is actually a pretty nice establishment, not something you might have picked up watching the movie.
The tacos are probably so good because they make the tacos in house, they come our toasty, slightly crisp and flaky on the outside while still soft enough to give you that soft taco feel in your mouth around a very fresh and well seasoned piece of fish. I highly recommend.
Everything else I would say is fine, but not particularly notable.

Came here the other night for a dinner with some girlfriends. We got here around 7:30pm on a Friday and the ambiance was welcoming and calm when I first arrived.
Looking over the menu, I was shocked at how expensive the meals were! I decided to order the tofu tacos which come with black beans, guacamole and poco de gallo. My meal was served cold which was disappointing, but not that big of a surprise. You have to make the tacos by yourself, which was unexpected.
Towards the end of our meal, the ambiance shifted from chill to fratty real quick. Would not recommend this place for dinner. Over priced food and drinks, average service and loud atmosphere. Will not likely be coming back.

This place has the worst service EVER, it was truly unbelievable! We got seated immediately which was fantastic, but it took ages for our mimosas and water to arrive. They have free scones which I must say are super delicious and addicting (the flavors seem to change each weekend);however, we asked for more and we literally had to ask three different servers and wait an hour for them to bring out more. We ordered our food which also took ages to arrive. When it finally did show up, we were so famished that anything would taste delicious. I ordered the mahi mahi tacos which were good but never would I pay $ 24 dollars for them again! They were served with pico, guac, black beans, fish, and tortillas (3), build your own style. Everything was fine, but nothing was special. The fish was a decent sized piece but could have been more moist and flaky:/. The mimosas were only $ 5 each and were large, so was happy about that!
The restaurant itself has an awesome vibe — love the patio and all the décor and lights! However, this place is overpriced and the service is horrific! If you come here, be prepared to spend at least three hours here from start to finish!

Paul Rudd and Jason Segal are awesome. If they endorse a seafood shack, I’m on board. Naturally, I had high expectations for seafood in California coming from Chicago. James’ Beach did not disappoint. Unfortunately, they didn’t necessarily wow me, either.
The décor is certainly tasteful; I enjoyed the savvy lighting schemes, funny swimsuit lights, and classically dressed servers and bartenders. This is a place for the beautiful people, so we were certainly not out of place (I crack myself up). Nice to see beautiful women swoon to a joint like they do here.
The fish tacos were tasty. The Mahi was finely grilled, the tortillas were warm, and the condiments were fresh and tasty. It also filled me up sufficiently without making me bloated. However, for a place marketing itself as a chill beach spot, they were a bit overpriced. Still, worth coming for and recommended. The cocktail list is deceiving, to be frank. It specifically targets their specialty mules, mojitos, and margaritas that are much more expensive than the basics, which are still made with shelf liquor. You’re better served going with the tried and true classics at a lower, more manageable price point.
My beef with this joint comes with how quickly and abruptly they transform from dinner service to overcrowded night club. Our entire meal felt rushed, as people kept ponying up on top of our table as we attempted to have a civilized meal! Granted, we came in at 7:30 p.m., but still! They would be better served not doing dinner service in the outdoor portion of the establishment. Had we been indoors, we could have gone outside to socialize and not felt rushed.
I loved my LA trip, and if I’m in the area again, I’d probably stop in here for lunch over dinner and come only for drinks in the evening.

After my last Unilocal review, the owner had kindly reached out to me in an attempt to fix things. As I was only in LA for a brief period of time on vacation, it was more difficult to address the issues I had during my visit but Daniel still contacted me and did everything he could to fix things. As I did enjoy the scones and the truffle fries here, but most importantly the fact that Daniel attempted to make everything OK on my side, I will give this place another try next time I am visiting LA (hopefully some time soon!).
Most restaurants reach out to apologize to customers after a bad review, but I find that almost all of them do not ever do much other than say sorry and never follow up again after which leaves me feeling that they don’t actually care to keep me as a customer or not. Daniel did more than the average and it felt like he really did do everything to make it up to us which is why I would give this place another try. Thank you Daniel.

Worst service in my life
Food was average and way over priced
Don’t waste your time going there

I’ve been to James Beach at night for its great bar scene. But Sunday was my first time going there in the AM for brunch. The $ 5 mimosas or bloody marys is a GREAT deal. The mimosa has a mix of orange juice and strawberry purée with cava. It’s not too sweet and filled to the brim of a large cup. Pretty much as good of a deal as ordering a bottomless mimosa!
I ordered the Farmers’ Breakfast for the coast toast, which I had heard so much about. Everything on the plate was outstanding. The coast toast (James’ Beach version of French Toast) was absolutely delicious. It was crunchy on the outside and soft and vanilla-​y on the inside. Soooo good. The eggs and bacon were fantastic, and the potatoes topped off my delicious decadent brunch.
My friend got the egg sandwich and was also happy with her order. I can’t wait to go back and bring all of my guests from out of town. Whether you go at night or in the morning to nurse your hangover, James’ Beach is always a great choice.

My friends and I often go to James’ Beach for a great local spot to accommodate our large group for dinner without needing a reservation far ahead of time. It has a fun, upbeat atmosphere with great food! Opt for the tables near the tiki bar — a great spot to sit for happy hour too!
Shortly after you are seated, the server brings veggies and ranch dip to your table… a very nice starter and different than the typical bread served at other restaurants.
I’ve had a few different plates but my all time favorite is their duck confit… delicious. You can get it in tacos (many delicious varieties) but I opted to have it with a salad, which I really enjoyed.
The specials come from Canal Club, a Japanese spot across the street. I’ve had the ahi tuna poke from here and it is excellent!
I do have to say, however, service can be VERY slow at times. But then again, it’s usually pretty packed when we are there.

Ladies, if you’re looking for an ego boost… Come to James Beach during happy hour or when the bar is hopping! When you enter the restaurant, the bar is RIGHT THERE and I won’t lie to you, I got the «*** me» eyes by a lot of dudes… My Ego, yep, there it is! ;)
The only eyes I was giving when I ate at James Beach though was my «feed me» eyes because I came hungry… And, I left HAPPY and SATISFIED!
I was told that this place is quintessential Los Angeles, so with an open mind, I dove right in. I ordered the salad Nicoise (my favorite salad on the face of the planet) as an appetizer and the grilled salmon entrée (without the grain) as the main dish. As I waited for my fish dishes to be places in front of me, I nibbled on the jicama that was served to the table instead of bread… Ha, only playing into the quintessential LA stereotype.
The main events arrived within 10 – 15 minutes, which is totally acceptable and… YUM! I definitely favored the Nicoise over the salmon for it had more flavor, because of all of the different components, and I wish I asked for my salmon to be cooked a little more, but over all, I was VERY PLEASED and also thrilled with how easy it was to order off this menu (considering my food allergies).
The others in my group ordered the «famous» mahi mahi fish tacos and the beef brisket tacos, both in told– DELICIOUS!
So yep, when I gave the waiter and my food the «feed me» eyes, they obeyed my commands… I wonder if the dudes at the bar were «turned off» by how I eat as much as a linebacker ;)
James Beach for the win!

Driving up to the Venice hot spot James’ Beach bar with my eager friends was exhilarating! We could easily see that this place was the spot to be! The only trouble was that we could not find any parking at all around this bar except for the valet parking which costed 7 dollars (not bad at all for a close spot). It was about 10:30pm and the street was already packed with not only a lot of people, but a lot of good looking people.
Once we entered inside, I could tell that this place was popular for the young Venice community and consisted of pretty casual attire. The vibe completely lived up to its name, very beachy feel! My friends and I happened to know a bartender named Johnnie who was bar tending that night. Let me tell you this, Johnnie knows how to make some amazing drinks! My friend and I didn’t know what to have so we asked our bartender friend what he recommended. He concluded that we had to try an original vodka gimlet so we did and my brother had a traditional Jack Daniels and coke. Both types of drinks were to die for! They were mixed very well by our friend.
Anyways, after a couple of drinks it was time for my friends and I to talk to some ladies, which was hard because there were too many good looking ones to choose from! The atmosphere in this bar was very lively. The main room (Outdoors section as they call it) was perfect for starting up conversations because the music wasn’t too loud to where you had to yell over it, and it wasn’t too soft to where you can’t hear it. Perfect background music for introducing yourself to some cute ladies!
Then in an adjoining room, by the entrance to the outdoors room, there is a dance floor with a long bar on one side. In this room the music is booming! It’s a great spot to dance the night away; except for the fact that it did get extremely crowded and hot at around 12:15am but still fun none the less.
Finally there is a third room, it’s a tiny flight of stairs up but this section is designed to the code of a traditional styled wooden bar which makes it pretty fun! The music was bumping which created an exciting ambience. It’s a very homey but jamming atmosphere!
My group and I spent a lot of time in all three sections and enjoyed the three rooms equally! It’s nice because James’ Beach gives you three styles of bars (dancing, relaxed, traditional) with the entrance of just one bar and what’s refreshing is that they each have their own flavor of fun! The drinks from the bar were absolutely amazing and cheap compared to some of the bars I’ve been to in Santa Monica. We are planning another trip next weekend! I definitely recommend giving this young trending spot in Venice a shot and see if Johnnie can whip you up something great to drink!

Great place for cocktails and good music on a Saturday night. I’ve been there various times when I visit the Venice Beach area. The crowd is always animated and it’s always jam packed on the weekends.
This time I visited Venice, in addition to the obligatory evening cocktails, I also went back for Sunday brunch. It was a very different experience to go there during daylight hours. It looked like a completely different venue.
The service was really good. Our waitress was very attentive and explained all of the menu options throughly. The portions were HUGE. I ordered the Mexican breakfast. It came complete with huevos rancheros, stuffed chili, a quesadilla, guacamole and black beans. Can I just reiterate that it was enormous? :) The meal was delicious but I certainly couldn’t finish it. When I return, my plan is to potentially share a brunch meal. It will be better for my waistline.

Nettes Lokal mit übersichtlich kleiner Karte. Der Chopped Salat mit Lachs und der Krabben Avocado Salat waren top.
Montag ist Weinnacht und Flaschenweine kosten nur die Hälfte.

Fast am Beginn des Ocean Front Walks in Venice liegt etwas versteckt in einer Seitenstrasse das James’ Beach Restaurant. Es besteht aus einem geschlossenen Restaurant und einer Patio, wo auch die Bar ist. Während es innen etwas gediegener zugeht, ist die Atmosphäre draussen etwas lockerer. Viele bunte Lichter, Badehosen als Lampenüberzug und viel Grünzeug. Man sitzt bequem und wenn es Abends mal kühler ist, werden die Heizlampen angeworfen. Wie bei allen besseren Restaurants in Venice (so viele gibt es nicht) ist die Karte hier auch eher kurz gehalten, was ja meist darauf hindeutet, dass man frisch einkauft. Die Qualität des Essens war ok — mehr kann ich leider nicht dazu sagen, weil es insgesamt nicht schlecht war, aber mehr halt auch nicht. Auf eine Vorspeise hatten wir mal verzichtet, statt dessen hatten wir zum Hauptgericht ein paar Sideorders. Unangenehm aufgefallen ist mir die Menge an Knoblauch. Selbst der grüné Spargel schwamm in Knoblauch, was den Geschmack leider völlig überdeckte. Meine Begleiterin kann Knoblauch nicht so wirklich ab und bat bei der Bestellung drauf zu achten, dass bei ihrem Essen kein Knoblauch reinkam, was man komplett übersah. Überhaupt war die Bedienung etwas lasch und vergaß so einiges, obwohl nicht allzuviel los war. So wartete ich dann auch 10 Minuten auf mein Bier. Bei frisch gezapftem Bier mag das ok sein, bei Flaschenbier eher nicht.
Insgesamt ein eher zwiespältiger Abend. Die Qualität des Essens war wie erwähnt in Ordnung und es war sehr frisch. Die Knoblauchmenge und die lasche Bedienung waren nicht in Ordnung. Preislich bewegt sich das James’ Beach im mittleren Bereich. Da es in Venice in der Nähe des Strandes aber nicht allzuviele Restaurants gibt, kann man hier durchaus mal vorbeischauen.