Shutters on the Beach

Shutters on the Beach has been on my "want-to-go" list because I heard that all their happy hour food is just $5 and is really good.  Since we were headed to Santa Monica's Concerts on the Pier, we thought this was a perfect place to eat and drink beforehand since it's walking distance.

When we first got to the hotel, we saw a bar in the lobby near a small patio. We checked out the menu and the happy hour food wasn't $5, but after checking with the waitress we found out there are two different happy hours... one in the lobby (which we were at) and one in the hotel's cafe, Coast Beach Cafe and Bar. And yep, it was the Coast Cafe that had the better deal and choice of items.

So my happy hour partner, Shaun-Mathieu, and I headed downstairs to Coast. As soon as we walked in, we liked the place. It's very nice, but not too froo-froo. There isn't an outside patio but you can see the ocean from the bar, so that was nice.

The Coast Cafe's happy hour is Monday-Thursday from 4-7pm and offers a nice selection of food, cocktails, wine, and beer. We tried everything you see below and we impressed with all of it except the nachos. They were actually very tasty but hardly had any cheese. The rest of it we just loved! The Fish Tacos were soooo good. And the oysters!!!! Great price and some of the best oysters I have ever had. We were even surprised the Pulled Pork Sliders were so good. They were made with pickle and cole slaw and were just delicious.

Nachos - $5

Fish Tacos - $1.50 ea.

Oysters - 3 for $5 or 6 for $9

Kurobuta Pulled Pork Sliders - 3 for $5

The drinks were a decent price. We tried three different cocktails: Cadillac Margarita, Mojito, and the Pomegranate Wave Martini. I had the Margarita and the Mojito. I liked both but the Mojito was definitely my favorite! I tried Shaun's Pomegranate Martini, but it was pretty sweet. Shaun-Mathieu tends to like more sweeter drinks than myself, but he even thought it was a bit too sweet. The prices aren't the greatest but they are completely awful either. I think since the food is so inexpensive, it sort of balances out.

Cadillac Margarita - $8

Pomegranate Wave Martini - $7

Mojito - $7

HH Menu from the Lobby Bar

So we definitely loved this happy hour and can't wait to go back. Our bill was a tad higher than our typical happy hour tours, but the food was quality so we were okay with throwin' down the extra bucks. On our next trip, I really want to try the Mussels and the Ahi. I would actually like to try the happy hour at the bar in the lobby, too. Check out the lobby's HH menu... not the best selection of food but I do like the drink selection.

Happy Hour

M-Th 4-7pm
$5 food, $4 beer, $6 wine, $7-8 Cocktails

Shutters on the Beach

(in Coast Cafe and Bar)
1 Pico Blvd.
Santa Monica, CA 90405
310.458.0030

Website for Coast Cafe and Bar