Wondering where Long Beach's in-the-know crowd is eating and drinking? It's easy to spot lines out the door, but some underlying trends are harder to see.
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp and SafeGraph, a dataset of commercial points of interest and their visitor patterns, to uncover which eateries have been most discussed this month.
To find out who made the list, we first looked at Long Beach businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month, and tracked businesses that consistently increased their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance. Then we analyzed foot traffic data from SafeGraph to validate the trends.
Read on to see which spots are sizzling right now.
Noble Bird Rotisserie
Open since late November, this traditional American spot is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "American (Traditional)" on Yelp.
Citywide, traditional American spots saw a median 1.3% increase in new reviews over the past month, but Noble Bird Rotisserie saw a 36.9% increase, maintaining a healthy 4.5-star rating throughout.
It's not the only trending outlier in the traditional American category: Long Beach Tap House has seen an 8.9% increase in reviews.
Located at 6460 E. Pacific Coast Highway, Suite 125, Noble Bird Rotisserie's centerpiece dishes feature chicken that's been pasture raised, brined for 24 hours and slow-roasted.
Noble Bird Rotisserie is open from 11 a.m.–9 p.m. on Monday-Thursday and Sunday and 11 a.m.–10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.
Next Door
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Next Door, the popular bar and Mexican and New American spot is a hot topic, according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Mexican" on Yelp saw a median 1.2% increase in new reviews over the past month, Next Door bagged a 3.8% increase in new reviews within that time frame, maintaining a superior 4.5-star rating. It significantly outperformed the previous month by gaining 1.2 times more reviews than expected based on its past performance. According to SafeGraph foot traffic data, Next Door saw visits more than triple in the past month.
Here's more about the business from Yelp: "We started as Agaves Kitchen and Tequila. As the lounge took off completely we revamped the restaurant with a full remodel and brand new menu as Next Door by Agaves"
There's more that's trending on Long Beach's Mexican scene: Joliza's Tacos has seen a 21.7% increase in reviews, and Little Vice has seen a 17.1% bump.
Open at 200 Pine Ave., Suite B, since early last year, Next Door's specialties include carne asada, carnitas, chile verde, fish tacos and more.
Next Door is open from 5–10 p.m. on Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.–10 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m.–9 p.m. on Sunday. (It's closed on Monday.) According to SafeGraph, it's usually busiest on Saturdays and Sundays, attracting a quarter of its total visitors over those two days. Given that, go on Wednesdays if you want to avoid the rush.
Zenmaru
Long Beach's Zenmaru is also making waves. Open since 2017 at 454 Pine Ave., the sushi bar and Japanese spot has seen a 1.3% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 1.1% for all businesses tagged "Sushi Bars" on Yelp. According to SafeGraph foot traffic data, Zenmaru saw visits more than triple over the past month.
Behind every business are the people who make it happen. Here's more on the owners from Yelp: "I am an experienced chef and I've been working in the sushi business for about 15 years. I am a proud owner of Sushi Zenmaru for 10 years now."
Regarding specialties, "We have a wide variety of teriyaki and sushi. Our fish is fresh and brought from the market daily. We have happy hour from 5-9 p.m. with AYCE sushi for $24.99 (discount for kids 6 years and under). We also have sushi-making classes."
Zenmaru is open from 10 a.m.–9 p.m. on weekdays, 11 a.m.–9 p.m. on Saturday and 2–8 p.m. on Sunday.
Arize Bistro
Then there's Arize Bistro, which is the city's buzziest breakfast and brunch spot by the numbers.
The Asian fusion spot, which opened at 306 Elm Ave. last August, increased its new review count by 16.1% over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 1.3% for the Yelp category "Breakfast & Brunch."
What does this business focus on? "Le Cordon Bleu graduate partnered up with a graduate from Thailand's No.1 culinary school to create irresistible, delicious, mouth-watering foods for you and your family to enjoy." — that's from its its Yelp page.
Menu favorites at Arize Bistro include chicken curry eggs, smoked salmon eggs Benedict and its waffle lobster sandwich.
Intrigued? The eatery is open from 8 a.m.–3 p.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m.–4 p.m. on weekends.
This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
