WALT'S WHARF - Seal Beach, CA

Welcome to WALT'S WHARF! Where their motto is: If it's fresher...it's still swimming! And it is true. It is one of our all time favorite places to eat for seafood. It is located in Seal Beach, Ca and owned by renowned Santa Barbara wine maker, Walt Babcock (Babcock Vineyards). Not only is the food impressive, but so is the wine list. Quite extensive, and reasonably priced.
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We started out the day not knowing what we were going to do for lunch/dinner. After our long bike ride up in the hills of Palos Verdes, we decided to reward ourselves for a job well done and go somewhere out of the Southbay, which is always much more fun! Way to save the marriage! Walt's Wharf is shifting gears from lunch to dinner during the afternoon hours of 3-4, and it was already late in the day, so we decided to make it dinner. I was a little bummed we were going to miss the lunch menu because I know they offer Fish Taco's and was looking forward to trying them. Oh, well, a fresh cut of fish is a welcome change! And, FYI, during 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. they offer a condensed menu. This happened to us one day, and it SUCKED. Ok well, maybe it didn't SUCK...but it wasn't what we were expecting. Still good I am sure, but not 1/2 as interesting as either the full lunch or dinner options. I must also inform you that this place is so crazy popular that there is ALWAYS a line, which typically starts around 5 p.m. They accept reservations for lunch, but not dinner. Which is never a problem if you wish to hang around for a couple of hours in the bar area....drinking amazing fine wine. When it is just the two of us, we try to get there before there is too much of a wait.


So we headed out.
Not very exciting as you can see. But it is only a short drive from Manhattan Beach, south into Seal Beach, about 20-25 minutes depending on traffic. I am always so excited when we go to Walt's Wharf I am like a giddy schoolgirl with her first crush who can't wait to see him again. Mine just happens to be a hot tasty piece of fish! I's got to HAVE IT...NOW. When when we come up on the Seal Beach exit sign....I am almost uncontrollable with anticipation! I know it is only a matter of time until we are there. Yeaaahhh!


On the way in, Laurence and I get to do a drive-by of one of our favorite attractions; the local Seal Beach Senior Citizens Resting Home, LEISURE WORLD! Ahhhh. Doesn't the name just make you want to move in? Without a doubt, we know we will be happy here one day! It is the best sight to see on the journey into the little Seal Beach community and it never fails to make us LAUGH. We will be sooooo close to our favorite restaurant later on in life. Gives me something to get old for, dag naammit! Why do we find this so funny? I have no idea, but we do. Every time.




If you can get passed Leisure World without stopping and checking in, you find yourself on the home stretch towards Walt's Wharf. It is a quaint little beach community, with lots of little shops up and down the Seal Beach pier street. The restaurant is located almost at the end of the street. The shops are cute and well worth a walk around either before or after your meal.


The restaurant itself is nothing fancy, but not a dive either. It is a little dark considering it is a beach restaurant, and wish it were a little brighter. It doesn't have what I would would consider a hip, or cool vibe; but caters rather to a rustic beach and mature crowd. It is a local favorite and has that comfortable neighborhood feel to it. It is rather large, with many different areas to eat and drink in. The bar is the brightest area in the restaurant, serves food as well as drinks, and is always packed with happy customers. There is also a very large upstairs area that is divided into three separate eating area. One is openly secluded (closed off with window panes) which could be used to hold a medium sized private party. There is a set menu for large parties. Their menu's are extensive; from salad entrees, to seafood, to meat, to pasta. But they are known for their grill. Everything at Walt's Wharf has some sort of grill aspect to it. And I have to say, no one does it better! All types of food are worth a try here.


After you are seated, you will be served the most amazing loaf of sourdough bread! It is hot, and smells great. Sourdough bread varies greatly from place to place, and this is one of my favorites...in fact, there is only one other restaurant that I think is slightly better. But Walt's Wharf's has a nice crust, not too thick (where it roughs up the roof of your mouth), and not to thin where it lacks crunch. It is rich in sourdough flavor - and with a nice spread of butter melted into it....oh so good. Just try not to overdo it, like I always do. Save some room for your meal!

Enough of all THAT! Let's talk about something truly exciting! The Walt's Wharf House Margarita! Who would imagine that it is one of the best margarita's I have ever had in a restaurant! How random is that?! Unbelievable! A wine maker, who KNOWS how to BLEND flavors, can also make a mean margarita! It is all in the blend, and who knows better than a Wine Maker to figure it out! Not so astonishing afterall I guess. But kudos to Walt for knowing how to do it right! It is served in a pint glass making it a generous pour, which is nice when it is so goood! It went down like velvet, with no sticky, tacky residue left on the back of the throat and tongue....and NOT SWEET! My only problem with the House Margarita was the use of Cuervo Gold Tequila, which leaves a distinct nasty bite lingering on the tastebuds. A better quality tequila, and this drink would be perfect. But still it was mixed very smooooooothly. Even with the afterbite, I could drink this all day!


Just when you think it will never get there, here it comes...one of Walt Wharf's signature appetizer's, the Oak Grilled Artichoke. We order this religiously, and RARELY are they not cooked to perfection. Artichokes are seasonal, and I must say, that this particular serving was a little on the tough side. Most of our orders have been very tender and flavorful. They are served 3 to a plate, with a smokey mesquite grill char on top, and Lea Perrins aioli sauce...you just can't get much better. The grill flavor is amazing! I highly recommend them.


All dinner entree's come with your choice of House Salad or Soup. We always substitute the House Salad for Walt's "Special" Salad, for 2 dollars more. It is worth it! It is slightly larger than the regular house salad, and has a wonderful medley of candied pecans, golden raisins, cranberries, sweet red onions, and blue cheese crumbles. It is topped with a very nice Dijon Vinaigrette. The whole salad is excellent, and much more interesting than just the regular House salad.


There are so many amazing fish options at Walt's that it is hard to choose. Today, I opted for the Caramelized Salmon with Orange Shoyu Glaze. If you love Salmon, you MUST give this a try! It is their most popular fish dish...and I can see why. It is probably one of the best I have ever had. The salmon portion is generous, as you can see, and topped with a Burre Blanc and Balsamic Reduction Sauce. The sauce combination is incredibly good and compliments theSalmon perfectly. I am a sucker for a good sauce, and this sauce is so good, that sometimes I have to ask for more! No need to be chinchy! Load me UP! The Salmon is served with Yukon Golden mashed potatoes and grilled asparagus. I am not a fan of their potatoes, so I always opt for the Walt's Special Rice instead. It has the most incredible, intense, smokey flavor, but has no bacon in it. It is truly one of a kind, and worth skipping the whipped, creamy potatoes for. The asparagus are always grilled to perfection...aldente with olive oil and fresh garlic. Yum, I wish I could go back right now! Oh, FYI: The only fish entree I have had here that isn't the greatest, in my opinion, is the Ahi Tuna...which I am a huge fan of. But I have had waaay better, so you might want to avoid that. For those of you who like to cook, and are fairly comfortable in the kitchen, The Caramelized Salmon recipe is listed on their website. Laurence and I have made this ourselves before, and must say, it came out pretty damn good. With as much Burre Blance sauce as I wanted! It makes an impressive meal for guests, or as a special treat for someone you love.



Laurence ordered the Salmon Burger. He said it was very, very good. So I had to try it..and it was tasty! I am skeptical and wary of most fish burgers because they can tend to use poor cuts of meat, and can be quite gamey tasting. This one was excellent because the Salmon was so buttery and mild that you could really taste the condiments, which worked very nicely together. It comes topped with guacamole, lettuce, tomato and has a very nice dill aioli...not too strong on the dill. The garlic fries that are served with the meal are a medium cut, sprinkled with parsley and also very good. They were fried nicely, not overly crispy, but just enough that they were not limp or soggy. If you are a fan of a fish burger, I would
highly recommend this one. I would definitely order this...and just may next time!


We decided to skip dessert, as we were obviously stuffed. But that has not stopped us from ordering it before! They have something that you absolutely MUST try if you visit Walt Wharf's...and is always subject to much personal anguish when we decision to forgo it...The Mud Pie. I am not a huge fan of mud pie as a rule, I prefer more cakey, doughy things and find that ice cream can be almost too heavy after a big meal. But this dessert is the exception! I will stuff myself with it willingly most days! It is completely homemade, and has the most amazing chocolate cookie crust I have every had, filled with coffee ice cream, and topped with a decadent layer of dark chocolate FUDGE on top. THEN, they pour a generous layer of carmel and chocolate sauce over the plate and sprinkle it with powdered sugar!!! OMG, if you love your sweets like I do, you will absolutely love this dessert! But the great thing about this is, it isn't sickeningly sweet because the bitterness of the coffee ice cream balances out the sweetness of the fudge and sauces...so it isn't overdone by any means. It is just too good, and is the signature dessert at Walt's Wharf. The only problem with this dessert is that you can't take it to go! Will make sure to get a picture the next time we order it!


By the time we left our table to leave, it was about 5:30. This was the scene upon our departure. As you can see, I was not hyping it up at all...there was a nice line already forming for Saturday nights meal. We have waited as long as 2 hours at peak time on a weekend, so plan accordingly.

After our meal, we walked around the streets of Seal Beach.
As I said before, it is a very cute little area, and is a good way to walk off some of your meal! However, there is a dangerous spot lurking amidst the shops that we discovered one day. If you decide to pass on the Mud Pie, there is an incredible little bakery called Sweet Jill's (same side of the street as Walt's but down closer to the pier). They make tons of amazing bakery items, that tend to be on the larger scale...which I am always delighted to find! They have these oversized cupcakes that are pretty tasty, but the cakes are probably a little better just because they are moister - in general I find that to be true...cupcakes vs. cakes.

And yes, they have Red Velvet cupcakes AND cake...which is not the best I have ever had, but pretty darn good! They also a nice variety of cookies and layered dessert bars, and have huge cinnamon rolls that are amazing!! So beware, if you pass on dessert at Walt's Wharf and go walking around, you just may wind up going home with a box full of goodies for later. We did!

We hope you will find your way down to Seal Beach and experience the wonderful food at Walt's Wharf and the charm of the little beach community. I am ready to go back!