Eatery - The Attic (CA)

3441 E Broadway, Long Beach, CA 90803
Pricing - $$ | Dining - Casual | Cuisine - American (Southern)
www.theatticonbroadway.com


We came to The Attic via suggestion of a friend who had heard about it through his boss. Long Beach is a little out of our norm in terms of visiting but there's quite a bit to be explored there too. The Attic looked just like a regular street-facing house that happened to have a lot of people inside. Modeled after what seemed to be a home from the South, it carried menu items that I was accustomed to seeing in Louisiana (or any Cajun/Creole focused place), and the decor inside was reminiscent of such as well. Our drinks that meal ranged from my lemonade to Duc's "The Lolita" ($6 - apple, lemon, and ginger juice) to Thomas' "Hurricane" ($10 - rum, spiced rum, orange juice, grenadine, and amaretto). They certainly did not skimp on the juices for the Lolita which had a smooth but spicy kick to it. The Hurricane unfortunately did seem watered down and orange juice was the main flavor profile.


Our appetizer to start was the Fried Green Tomatoes ($10 - served with Vidalia onion relish, alligator andouille sausage, and Cajun buerre blanc). I had looked for hushpuppies on the menu but found none - this had to do. The cornmeal crust was nice as were the sausage and buerre blanc but the tomatoes were sliced a tad too thick and were not tangy enough. Perhaps these were just a bland batch to start with. I've certainly had better. Their New England Clam Chowder in a cup held the illusion of being too small a serving but the heartiness of the base and the abundance of clam in the mix made the size appropriate. It first made us curious because the coloring was yellowed but perhaps the spices made that difference. I found it quite good though not the traditional New England clam chowder which we were more accustomed to.


That soup was my "entree" for the meal seeing as I had eaten beforehand. However, the two men did decide to order full entrees themselves. Duc's was their Chicken and Okra Gumbo ($14 - chicken, okra, alligator Andouille sausage, bell peppers, onion, celery, and spices slow-cooked with brown butter roux over white rice topped with scallions), a large plate of the classic treat which was aptly thick. We found hardly a piece of okra to our disappointment, and the traditional gumbo flavors themselves were not very prominent. In fact, it came off bland though the pieces of meat were manageable. As for our friend, he went for a Reuben sandwich which came in its toasted bread glory with several layers of meat. We had a taste and enjoyed it but wondered what it was doing on the menu at The Attic which seemed southern food-oriented. The fries the sandwich came with were a hit and came with their house sauce! All in all, fairly okay food but nothing to make a trek out there for.

Photography by Duc Duong.