By Chris MacDonald
Local restaurant owners aren’t surprised that 9 of 10 adults go to restaurants because it allows them to enjoy a favorite meal that has flavor and taste sensations you can’t easily replicate at home, and on hot summer days families can releax while someone else takes the heat. As the largest private employer in the state, California’s 86,779 restaurant locations feed more than $33 billion in taxes into the state economy, according to the National Restaurant Association – and much more!
Seafood & steak favorite, Captain Jack’s in Sunset Beach, serves customers a whopping 1,000 – 1,200 pounds of Red King Crab each week, according to Tim Haley whose parents founded the fine dining restaurant on June 25, 1965. His father, Jack Haley, grew up in Seal Beach, and the close-knit family continues to run the popular icon a block from the Pacific Ocean where they like to surf.
Moe Bonakdar, owner of Charo Chicken, says his two locations in Seal Beach and Huntington Beach feed around 200 hormone free, additive free, naturally-fed fire grilled chickens (along with tortillas, rice, beans and other sides) to hungry diners each day! The best-selling menu item is Lemon Garlic Chicken at this 41-year dining establishment.
Another local favorite, Athens West, prepares 120 pounds of gyro meat a day that goes into platters, salads and pita sandwiches served at their Seal Beach and Huntington Beach restaurants, according to owner Pete Lafkas, whose Greek diner has prepared fresh Mediterannean meals since 2003.
Five hundred New York style bagels (in 28 flavors) are baked fresh each morning and sold to customers at JT’s Bagel Company in Marina Plaza Shopping Center in Huntington Beach, said Anderw Murphy, owner of the 40-year business, popular with locals and Marina High School students.
Capone’s Cucina, a fine dining Italian restaurant in Huntington Beach Newland Center, has been in business for 35 years, serving around 50 hand-crafted pizzas per day, though they prepare a lot more pasta, seafood and gourmet faire, according to owner Dino Ferraro, who also owns Black Trumpet restaurant in Huntington Beach Seacliff Shopping Center. “Pizzas at Capone’s Cucina usually incude pepperoni, peppers, onion and mushroom or pear and prosciutto di Parma,” Ferraro said.
These popular restaurants are constantly updating menus to reflect the latest trends like consumer demand for “Practical Protein” – animal and plant-based – from everyday protein sources, like beef, poultry, fish, beans, and grains, plus real ingredients focusing on health and nutrition.