![\"SocialList14](\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/SocialList14_01.jpg\")
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The Social List’s take on <\/em>escargot vol-au-vent. Photos by Brian Addison.<\/em><\/p>\n It\u2019s not as if The Social List (TSL) has been struggling\u2014by any means. The Retro Row restaurant is always bustling with eager beer drinkers looking to have some Houblon Chouffe on tap while also enjoying the very handsome staff.<\/p>\n But for Erica Norton (sister of Luis Navarro, both co-owners), her experiences in Europe, the very experiences that roused her to take on TSL in the first place, still linger\u2014and still inspire. Which is why she and Navarro have decided to alter their menu entirely just six months after opening. Not only is it being done in the name of keeping it fresh and seasonal, but to highlight some of the simple things Norton fell in love with while traveling.<\/p>\n TSL\u2019s escargot [pictured top<\/em>], a take on escargot vol-au-vent<\/em>, aims precisely for what Norton remembers in France: tons of garlic, generous parsley, little salt, white wine, stuffed between puff pastries\u2014niftily in the form of stars to represent TSL\u2019s branding\u2014and served bubbling hot.<\/p>\n And the Wee Scotch Egg [pictured above left<\/em>], TSL\u2019s version of the English classic, is quite possibly one of the best scotch eggs I\u2019ve had this side of the Atlantic: a hard-boiled quail egg is wrapped in housemade pork sausage, tossed in breadcrumbs, and deep-fried. One of the keys to their scotch egg is the savory sausage that is seasoned to perfection (not with excessive salt but spices and herbs) and a baby endive salad that adds a perfect amount of bitterness and tartness thanks to its light vinaigrette.<\/p>\n These are ultimately small yelps within a very loud cry away from TSL\u2019s former menu, which focused largely on bread-centered tapas that, while good, lacked the meatiness and uniqueness of their new menu.<\/p>\n The Napoleon Burger.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cThe coolest thing is the fact that we\u2019re being forced to up our game,\u201d Navarro said, \u201cLong Beach is just blowing up with amazing restaurants. We\u2019re happy to know that we can\u2019t just throw down a burger\u2026 With Chianina, Simmzy\u2019s, Restauration\u2014all these places, we have to keep reinventing ourselves. That\u2019s what part of this process is and we\u2019re honestly happy to be a part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n The vegetarian is not left to whither away in rabbit food isolation as The LBC, TSL\u2019s veggie sandwich option, takes a grilled portabella mushroom and shoves artichoke and spinach between the mushroom steaks to add a creamy veggie option that even appeals to the meat eaters.<\/p>\n TSL deviates away from its former menu in other ways as well, bringing on cleaner flavors that are not only palate enhancers but genuinely look gorgeous on the plate. Perfect for this season is their persimmon and baby endive salad, which sit around a beautiful lump of burrata and sprinkled with pomegranate seeds. The sweetness of the persimmon, the saltiness of the burrata, and the tartness of the pomegranate seeds combine to offer an incredibly balanced flavor that is also incredibly addicting.<\/p>\n The persimmon and baby endive salad with burrata and pomegranate seeds.<\/em><\/p>\n Even TSL\u2019s take on the Italian-American classic chicken marsala shows a cleaner side: ditching the rustic style typically associated with the dish\u2014large chunks of mushrooms, shallots, and typically some form of roasted potatoes\u2014TSL blends the mushrooms into a creamy sauce, pan fries some Mary\u2019s free range chicken to create a crispy outer layer, and places it atop mashed potatoes before pouring the sauce over it. And for a lunch, it might be on par with At Last\u2019s famous brick chicken.<\/p>\n Navarro and Norton both noted that they wanted to create a buzz around lunch\u2014and if the quality they offered here is maintained, there\u2019s no question they\u2019ll maintain an midday audience.<\/p>\n The Social List is located at 2105 E 4th St.<\/em><\/p>\n {FG_GEOMAP [33.77192,-118.16647899999998] FG_GEOMAP}<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It\u2019s not as if The Social List (TSL) has been struggling\u2014by any means. But that doesn’t mean that owners Luis Navarro and Erica Norton don’t like to reinvent themselves or their menu.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":211,"featured_media":68237,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","inline_featured_image":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":"","_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_":"","_author_alias":"","cap-aim":"","cap-description":"","cap-display_name":"","cap-first_name":"","cap-jabber":"","cap-last_name":"","cap-linked_account":"","cap-newspack_employer":"","cap-newspack_job_title":"","cap-newspack_phone_number":"","cap-newspack_role":"","cap-user_email":"","cap-user_login":"","cap-website":"","cap-yahooim":"","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_email_html":"","newspack_email_type":"","newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_hide_page_title":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_show_share_buttons":"","newspack_sponsor_byline_prefix":"","newspack_sponsor_disclaimer_override":"","newspack_sponsor_flag_override":"","newspack_sponsor_only_direct":"","newspack_sponsor_url":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_show_updated_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-2946","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2946","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/211"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2946"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2946\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/68237"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2946"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2946"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2946"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_spnsrs_tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_spnsrs_tax?post=2946"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=2946"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"SocialList14](\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/SocialList14_12.jpg\")
\u201cThe escargot I had was divine,\u201d Norton said, \u201csimple and straightforward, classic French. These small things are what I want to bring people, to always elevate them before they move onto the next place.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"SocialList14](\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/SocialList14_009.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"SocialList14](\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/SocialList14_07.jpg\")
TSL\u2019s new burger, aptly named The Napoleon [pictured above<\/em>], is an unapologetic dedication to the inner carnivore with beef on top of beef\u2014yes, you read that right: taking an awesomely lean but flavorful Harris Ranch beef patty, TSL opts to top it with pulled tri-tip and served with some au jus on the side for dipping. Part burger, part French dip, TSL tacks on some spicy aged gouda fondue [note: pictured is the regular sliced gouda], fried onions, and a garlic aioli smashed between a brioche. In other words: decadent, just like Napoleon himself.<\/p>\n![\"SocialList14](\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/SocialList14_03.jpg\")
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