DIGS is the premiere luxury real estate lifestyle magazine serving the most affluent neighborhoods in the South Bay and Westside of Los Angeles, California.
Issue link: https://www.southbaydiggs.com/i/50080
LOCAL NUGGETS ALEX ABAD AND DORREEN SKINNER ABAD BLAKE & DIANA ROBERTS South Bay Digs Anniversary South Bay Digs recently celebrated it's one year anniversary party with Chez Melange serving small plates, fine wine and great tunes by Justin Hopkins. PARTY ON! STANDING ROOM WRITTEN BY: QUINN ROBERTS Sometimes the best surprises are found in the most unexpected of places. Put The Standing Room at the top of that list. Located in the back of Catalina Liquor & Deli at 144 North Catalina Avenue, The Standing Room has begun to make quite a name for itself in the 11 months since opening. Their may be no place to sit and enjoy one of their many burgers or sammies, but that hasn't stopped local residents from rating The Standing Room as the No. 1 restaurant in Redondo Beach. Self taught chef Lowell Bakke has created a Hawaiian/Asian Fusion menu full of RACHEL EZRA, WARREN DOW, GERARD BISIGNANO, JEANNIE PENNER-MORE interesting and unusual ingredients. Inspired by his roots, Bakke features such ingredients as pineapple, kimchee and shishito peppers throughout the menu. Preparing nearly everything in The Standing Room kitchen, including all the sauces--Hoisin BBQ, Korean aioli, Thai mayo, tomato jam--is something Bakke believes makes all the difference. "Knowing that we're not just squeezing something out of a bottle and that we make almost everything in house, I think that keeps people coming back," said Bakke. Cooking up a storm in the kitchen with friend Paul Kim, the two have become a well- oiled machine, especially during busy lunch and dinner hours. Customer favorites include the "dressed" and "cash" burger, the soft shell crab sandwich and truffle parmesan fries. "We wanted to put together a menu that is classic American comfort food with a twist on it," Bakke said. "Being from Hawaii, we wanted to do something with a Hawaiian and Asian fusion." Constantly coming up with new specials, The Standing Room recently added the "Elvis" burger, which not only includes such interesting ingredients as smoked gouda cheese and kurobuta sausage, but peanut butter bacon BBQ sauce. The burger also has jalapeno on it, a recent obsession for Bakke. "Our location attracts people. Some people that wouldn't eat here have to try it out because it is in the back on a liquor store," Bakke said. "It has blown up a lot faster than I thought, but what is undeniable through it all is our passion for food." PUBLISHER - WARREN DOW, RAJU CHHABRIA, ED KAMINSKY 12.16.2011 | SOUTHBAYDIGS.COM 97 THE