A red carpet entrance, pink walls, shimmering champagne glasses, and extravagantly adorned booths have some customers comparing a new Long Beach restaurant to Barbie’s Dreamhouse, but the inspiration is actually pulled directly from the real world.
Nigel’s at Anchors Away is an ode to the color and glamor of the Miami restaurant scene, with eye-popping, popular eateries like the sushi spot Sexy Fish, according to Nigel Ohrberg.
He opened Nigel’s last month with the goal of bringing a new level of whimsy to Long Beach — and to the dock where he’s worked for seven years.
Tucked behind Nordstrom Rack in the Marina Pacifica shopping center, Anchors Away Boat Rentals started with just one vessel and has since turned into a thriving rental business with a fleet of 21 Duffy boats.
Ohrberg said people “were just so enthralled” with taking short trips on the small motorized boats. As the rental business boomed, Ohrberg brainstormed what to do with the extra space he had along the water and, ultimately, landed on starting a restaurant so that the fun didn’t have to stop when people debarked from their boats.
“People got off the Duffies and didn’t want to leave the water here, so we wanted to create a fun space for them,” Ohrberg said.
With its champagne wall and dancers adorned in frills and feathers on weekends, Nigel’s is an experience. Ohrberg himself can often be found greeting people in his signature pink suit.
Coming from the north, you’ll have to take an unassuming staircase tucked between the Nordstrom Rack and the entrance to the lower-level parking. But soon, you’ll be greeted by a small bar cart and the champagne wall, where you can ring a bell and receive a glass of bubbly through a pink curtained window.
Beyond that, pink Duffy boats sit in the water, inviting people in. After lunch every Wednesday through Friday and after dinner on Wednesdays and Thursdays, Nigel’s offers a free, 20-minute boat ride through Alamitos Bay.
“We just thought it would be fun to create something different here in Long Beach, something no one’s ever seen,” he said.
It took three years to get Nigel’s open, but for Ohrberg, his hard work has paid off, and, he said, they had over 12,500 customers come in during the first month.
Popular items on their menu include the Chicken Picatta Perfection for $24, the Viva Petit Trio Plate, which includes a 4-ounce steak, Nigel’s chopped salad and a cup of roasted tomato soup for $28, and the Admiral’s Salmon for $32.
Subtle nods to Ohrberg’s family can be found in the menu, with a couple of drinks named after his wife and daughter — Leah’s spritz and the non-alcoholic version called Lily’s spritz. And the chicken picatta comes right out of his mom’s recipe book.
What makes Nigel’s really work, according to Ohrberg, is how close they are to the water.
“A lot of restaurants say they’re on the water, but literally every table here is on the water, and some are even floating,” Ohrberg said.
Tables — including the plush cabanas that can be reserved for groups of up to eight — line the dock overlooking the water. Pink floating booths will also soon be available.
Reservations can be made on Nigel’s website.
Nigel’s at Anchors Away, 6276 E Pacific Coast Hwy., is open Wednesday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Saturday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.