Beach Food – Here Comes Hermosa

Greenbelt owner Michael Santomieri has seen Pier Plaza transform from an “elbow-to-elbow” bar destination to upscale dining. Photo Hermosa Beach’s rising incomes over the past 20 years, combined with advances in social media, changing dining habits, city regulations and risk-taking by well-funded restaurateurs have had a profound impact on the city’s dining scene. Pier Plaza came to life in August 1997 when Pier Avenue was closed to automobiles from Hermosa Avenue to The Strand in what one city official characterized as a “social experiment.” It propelled city sales tax revenues to an all-time high in 2000. Revenues for businesses that collect sales tax were just shy of $300 million, with about 40 percent of this coming from eating and drinking establishments. Michael Santomieri, owner of Greenbelt on Pier Plaza, was the manager of the popular Sangria restaurant during this period. He recalled the plaza being “packed with people, shoulder-to-shoulder. Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears and Scottie Pippen all showed up and sometimes the entire Lakers team would hit up the plaza after a game,” Santomieri said. With few exceptions, the downtown dining scene was more about bars and…

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