Anchored by the historic family-owned Bob’s Market, a stretch of Ocean Park Blvd. in Sunset Park has become a trendy neighborhood hotspot to eat, meet and greet. A little more family-friendly and welcoming than the big bougie boulevard to the west, they call it Mini-Kinney.
The strip from about 18th Street to 16th Street in the better part of Dogtown was once home to local mom-and-pop shops like Evett’s Model Shop, which called Ocean Park Blvd. home for 71 years. Restaurateur Bruce Horowitz and his son Jyan Isaac, who live in the south Santa Monica neighborhood would stop into Evett’s to buy remote control planes.
Since the pandemic, the father and son duo has opened Ghisallo Pizza and Jyan Isaac Bread, a soccer ball’s throw from the old model shop, garnering lines down the block. Famous for his seeded sourdough and chocolate hazelnut babka, the expanding bakery shop also offers bagels and bagel sandwiches with housemade gravlax and wild Alaskan salmon roe as well as a new line of sweet pastries like pan au chocolate croissants. With cozy outdoor patio seating, Ghisallo continues to evolve its pizza and salad menu with the addition of sandwiches from the Tre Mani lunchtime-only pop-up that makes schiacciata sandwiches stuffed with mortadella with horseradish and fennel, salami with blueberry jam, and roasted eggplant with a kiss of Calabrian chili.
Just next door adding to a friendly bagel battle is Layla Bagels, the hands-down current favorite on Ocean Park Blvd. with the long lines past the Santa Monica Moose Lodge to prove it. While a good part of the clientele comes from walks in the neighborhood, west siders are flocking to Layla’s for the sourdough bagels hand rolled and baked fresh daily, topped with fresh strawberries and peaches, scrambled eggs and bacon or heirloom tomatoes, cucumber, and pickled onion. They also have standard smoked salmon and tuna salad versions.
Aside from Bob’s Market, which still has one of the best butcher shops and most knowledgeable butchers in town since 1979, chef and Santa Monica local Maire Byrne was the first to put culinary roots on the Ocean Park Blvd. map with her two restaurants – Local Kitchen and Wine Bar and the artisanal Thyme Cafe and Market. The cafe and market have indoor and outdoor seating and grab-and-go options like the albacore tuna sandwich with currants, red onions, arugula and tomatoes with aioli on toast multigrain bread after your workout next door at Santa Monica Yoga. Or take out something seasonal from the extensive front deli case offerings like the Mediterranean farro and kale salad with fennel, Brussels sprouts, grilled vegetables, pine nuts, and Parmesan in a lemon shallot vinaigrette. The higher-end Local is a neighborhood hangout famous for its full bar and Italian specialties like chicken under a brick with charred onions.
Every day is National Dog Day at the original Love Coffee Bar, which has since opened a second location in Mar Vista and features Counter Culture Coffee in a setting that welcomes the local foot traffic and their four-legged friends with various espresso drinks and signature teas like the Pink Summer Refresher, a low sugar, caffeine-free concoction with crimson berry tea, tart cherry, anise bitters, and honey.
Cafe Bolivar Coffee and Arepa Bar is a good spot for an early morning start to the day with a variety of flatbreads stuffed with Caribbean-style black beans and cheese, albacore conserva, pulled pork, chicken breast or mango and avocado. There’s also a great variety of freshly brewed hot and cold teas and fruit juices.
And speaking of sweet rivalries, you’ll find the Santa Monica outpost of Yoga-Urt next door, featuring plant-based soft serve in rotating flavors like a lavender blossom, tantric tart, orange dreamsicle, and salted caramel zen. Across the street another chain has zeroed in on the Mini-Kinney phenomenon, Handel’s Ice Cream. The outdoor window on the corner of 17th and Ocean Park Blvd. across from the soccer field offers massive portions of everything from chocolate chunk and brownie dough to coconut pie and cotton candy.
There are a fun bunch of little boutiques, shops, and galleries spaced in between for unique gifts, like Goods, Minnie T’s, Leah Kirsch, Brooke Rodd Lifestyle, and Kids. The only unfortunate thing Mini Kinney has in common with Abbot Kinney is that it has a challenging parking landscape. Find a spot a little further down Ocean Park Blvd. and enjoy the stroll.
An homage to the local surf culture, Adler\Smith Gallery has taken over the cherished Evett Model Shop space, focusing on skating, surfing, and music. Owner Charles Adler has curated festivals for BeachLife, the Surfrider Foundation, and Eddie Vedder’s Ohana Festival. The gallery carries some of Pearl Jam’s musicians’ art as well as close to 300 other artists from all over.
Article by MICHELE STUEVEN of LA Weekly
