6:50am | Aaron and Rachel head downtown for a celebratory steak – and more – at 555 East, one of Long Beach’s most highly-regarded steakhouses.
The Skinny
Dark and handsome. That’s the most simplistic explanation of 555 East. A classic American steakhouse at the price you’d expect. The menu has something for every red-blooded American and the décor feels like Old Blue Eyes himself is at the corner booth.
The Fat
The walls are covered with nostalgic photographs and rich wood accents. The floors are black and white checkered in a room full of tables. It was quite for a weekday and we were able to get a table without a soul nearby, which was great since we were celebrating Aaron’s birthday—and what better way to celebrate than with a great steak?
The hostess who showed us to our table had all the personality of the podium she was stationed at. We know, life is rough, but last we checked smiling helps! Thankfully, our server was everything you would expect from a staff person at an upscale restaurant—very friendly, professional and wonderfully helpful with the menu.
We got straight to a drink order and never looked back. The margarita martini is a dizzying flavor of lime and tequila without anything else getting in the way. A word of warning, even for tequila lovers, this drink can easily make you tres sheets to the wind. The mojito is an honest to Castro classic. They pour a mojito as it should be; refreshing, crisp, with a kiss of sweetness.
Our server steered us to an amazing appetizer of baked goat cheese with roasted garlic. It was a delectable! It was a lot of food for two but it was just too good to stop eating. The fun part was building each bite. Using a foundation of sliced toasted baguette we laid down a layer of rich roasted garlic. Then covered it with a creamy glob of goat cheese all topped with fresh bruschetta that stood tall one glorious bite after another. YUM!
The better half of our team obviously doesn’t eat meat so we don’t go to a lot of steakhouses. So of course, Aaron opted for a cut of steak. I ordered the Prime Culotte, the tenderest cut of Top Sirloin. At twelve ounces it’s described as a baseball cut, but sitting on my sizzling steel plate it looked more like a basketball cut! The steak was rich and juicy and cooked to perfection, but it was too much steak for me. I got to a point where I was tired of chewing. For a side I went with the garlic mashed potatoes. The amount of garlic was perfect and the texture was smooth, almost too smooth. I like a little inconsistency in my mashed potatoes; it reminds me of the work that had to go into making a side dish.
Since it was a special occasion, Rachel ordered one of the pseudo-vegetarian friendly menu items, the seared ahi. For my fellow veggies out there, if you eat the occasional piece of fish, this is the dish for you! The deep red color and black sear were gorgeous. Rolled in a magical mixture of spices and sesame seeds each piece was a work of art. The texture was practically creamy and chewing it was absolutely heavenly. It came with veggies which were served perfectly al dente and were a great compliment. I also got garlic mashed potatoes, and unlike my counterpart I loved every “too” smooth bite. It was a like a potato dream come true.
Our waitress picked up on the fact that it was a special occasion and surprised us with crème brulee! Despite bursting at the seams we couldn’t say no. Trust us, it was worth the overstuffing. There are few culinary joys more than breaking the crisp sugary cover. The silky custard underneath melted in our mouths—a perfect way to end an amazing meal.
Chew with your mouth closed and happy eating!
555 East
555 E. Ocean Avenue (Valet and entrance on Linden)
(562) 437-0626
555east.com
Lunch: Mondays-Fridays, 11:30am-3:00pm
Dinner: Monday 5:30pm-9:00pm; Tuesdays-Thursdays 5:30pm-10:00pm Fridays-Saturdays 5:30pm-11:00pm; and Sundays 5:00pm-9:00pm