Newport Seafood Beverly Hills - superbly low key

Gong Xi Fa Cai! Newport Seafood conjures up the festive Chinese dining experiences like Chinese New Year family meals. Newport is known for wonderfully fresh seafood and other superbly prepared dishes for family and friends to gather around and enjoy.

We usually head out to the San Gabriel location, potentially stand in line and wait for ??? and taunt each other’s appetites with thoughts about what we are going to order. Upon entering, the numerous tanks hold the stuff of dining fantasies that come true with your request.

The House Special lobster is a given. Beef loc lac, crabs any way you want,.steamed whole fish, kung pao chicken, fried tofu, geoduck, pea shoots, kangkong… Really - one would have to try very hard to go wrong with their dishes. The preparation is usually excellent. And local diners would have it no other way. The bar is very high in SGV, and I think most would agree that Newport passes on all marks. This makes the long drive more than worth the experience.

Newport did something very ambitious. As we all know, they struck out in to uncharted territory - at least for them - and opened another location on what I consider to be the eastern border of the Westside - Restaurant Row on La Cienega.

I quick-searched this site for posts in Newport Seafood Beverly Hills, and only found one hit where @paranoidgarliclover mentioned enjoying meal for a family celebration. I also recall @J_L confirming the high level of quality and preparation at this location. With these gold yes-votes in mind, we went today for Chinese New Year.

Fearing the massive crowds that make the San Gabriel location on festive holidays, we opted to head over at opening for lunch. The underground parking was easy - too easy - and upon walking up to the entrance, not a single hungry soul to be found. Walking in, the same - not one diner at any of the tables. We were practically floored with the absence of diners on Chinese New Year. By the middle of our meal, the dining area had about seven or eight other tables with diners - most were Asian and one appeared to be an extended family of ten.

The four of us were promptly seated, sorted out the menu, and ordered the house lobster, Yi Min, Beef Loc Lac, crispy fried tofu, pea shoots and the fish fillet with spicy basil sauce. We all agreed that all the dishes were on par with the SGV location in terms of prep and flavor - except the lobster. It was really good, but we feel the dish could use more saltiness - catering to local preferences? Everything else about the lobster was spot on.

Enjoying a whole fish is customary on Chinese New Year, which brings up why we had the fish fillet. It was frozen rex sole, which seems like a downer, but the dish was perfectly fine. The problem with the BH unit is the lack of demand for such dishes as whole live fish. This tells of the different type of diners that go here. I didn’t dig further after the waitress regretfully informed us. But based on what and how she said this, it sounds like the kitchen was anticipating the arrival of the live fish but had yet to arrive. “Red Thornyhead” (rockfish) is what they were expecting. Still, we would return here for our Newport Seafood fix without hesitation. The basic food experience is on par with the SGV location, and if certain live items are desired, I think calling ahead would suffice - ordering the standard live seafood items on a whim is more capricious here.

10 Likes

What is the BH markup compared to SGV these days?

The total including four beers (Estrella @ $8 per), soda and pu erh tea service was $246 pre-tip. Lobster was $29/lb.

Service was Westside style. Dining room is darkish/contemporary and has mostly 4-tops. Food came out as fast as any other Chinese restaurant.

Been to New Port BH a few times for lunch and it’s always been empty. In SGV we’ve gravitated to 626 Lobster, a Newport alumni spinoff which is pretty much identical but generally without the wait, though last night there was a crowd. They do take reservations for their private rooms.

1 Like

It’s really a shame that this location is empty - and I think location is the issue. Opening up in this general area is ambitious but do-able. But I feel if they had opened up further west, or at least in an area that is more eclectic/appreciative of truly exceptional examples of “ethnic” cuisine, they’d be doing much better.

1 Like

When I went, traffic from the Purple Line construction made access a bit of a pain. Perhaps they should consider moving the location to the renovated Century City mall…

Glad you enjoyed your meal! I’m also sad to hear that the place is near empty. The food, IMHO, was very good at our party and certainly worthy of more business.

2 Likes

Holy shit $29/lb. I guess that’s the no wait markup.

1 Like

Yeah, we didn’t know going in, but at the same time, had I known, I’d still go - particularly on Lunar New Year. All the other iterations of this place must have been insane - the wait, the elbows & asses, plus the drive and traffic to/from SGV or Little Saigon made the BH location our first choice.

1 Like

This is really good to know. I hope they survive. We will definitely go. I once inquired about whether or not any food talkers liked the B.H. locale. I heard crickets. Hopefully this thread will help.

True La Cienega may not be the best spot. But there are other large, upscale “ethnic” spots that are making it (Fogo de Chao). Newport may assume they have name recognition and not be advertising enough. Maybe they should participate in dine/LA. That might be a good way to get recognition in this area. I never hear about them. My cousin’s husband is Chinese and they live in this 'hood, yet they went to OC to celebrate the new year. Maybe folks prefer to go to OC, SGV or the Westside like you say. It’s so hard to figure out why a place succeeds or doesn’t.

2 Likes

My cousin’s husband is Chinese and they live in this 'hood, yet they went to OC to celebrate the new year. Maybe folks prefer to go to OC, SGV or the Westside like you say.

My parents would disown me for paying $29/lb for lobster, CNY be damned

3 Likes

Then there’s that :smile:.

But isn’t it just a few steps away from Lawry’s? I know some people who self park in their garage when they go to Lawry’s.

For a holiday, I would prefer a place that’s packed with festive, happy people. Wait time, sharp elbows and all.

I find empty restaurants depressing. So I could see driving to SGV for Lunar New Year,

The whole vibe at BH Newport is different than the one in SGV. That neon-lit bar and the dark(er) ambiance give it a rather non-Cantonese seafood house feel to it. Plus, no birdcages and live fish tanks.

And not to beat a deadhorse, but I’ve said it before (at least on Chowhound, if not here). It is hard to maintain a die-hard, genuine Chinese restaurant west of DTLA. West of DTLA, the demographic considers a Chinese meal to be a special “one-off” event – like, hey, “let’s do something different tonight, and be adventurous, how about Chinese?” In the SGV, it’s what basically people will go out for, week-in and week-out.

The fact that they’ve done it now for 2 years, going on 3, is a testament to their war chest. Because from everything I know, that place is not in the black.

1 Like

[quote=“ipsedixit, post:14, topic:5031”]
That neon-lit bar and the dark(er) ambiance give it a rather non-Cantonese seafood house feel to it. Plus, no birdcages and live fish tanks.
[/quote]You’re right. That doesn’t seem quite as cool or “festive” as @Bookwich wrote. They could at least have the fish tanks.

[quote=“ipsedixit, post:14, topic:5031”]
West of DTLA, the demographic considers a Chinese meal to be a special “one-off” event – like, hey, “let’s do something different tonight, and be adventurous, how about Chinese?” In the SGV, it’s what basically people will go out for, week-in and week-out.
[/quote]I thought about that too.

It can be done though. I’ll give Crustacean (Vietnamese not Chinese) as an example. Yes, they have detractors. I have a Vietnamese friend who thinks Crustacean is ridiculous. But “Mama” An has definitely figured out how to make it work successfully on this side of town. They are definitely in a better (enviable) location. But she also gives customers a really good experience. @paranoidgarliclover’s idea of Newport moving to the Century City Mall could be great.

1 Like

Crustacean is to Vietnamese as Mr. Chow is to Chinese.

'Nuff said.

2 Likes

… and those koi swimming underneath your feet in the aquarium beneath the glass floor as you walk to your table at Crustacean should feel damn lucky they’re at a non-Asian restaurant, else they’d be on the “live” menu.

1 Like

Yeah, yeah. I knew I’d get a response to that effect from you or someone else. I took a chance… I like to walk on the wild side.

I like three things and three things only on Crustacean’s menu, and those three things I love.

If I’m correct, the biggest complaint of Newport Seafood is not the food, but the unpleasant interior. Crustacean has a festive interior. Even the koi are happy. I know this why? I asked about all the babies. They said they reproduce so much they don’t know what to do. If I’m not mistaken, the complaint was Newport B.H. doesn’t have a fish tank? If I’m not mistaken, they’re also not doing well?

Apologies @bulavinaka. This convo didn’t go as planned, which seems to be a FTC theme lately. Great report. I am looking forward to going to N.S.

P.S. @ipsedixit for what it’s worth I have actually spent time in Vietnam - not with a tour guide, but a local family of a friend.

1 Like

Hilarious

How much is lobster supposed to be per pound?

1 Like