Rusty Pelican — Restaurant in Long Beach

So we decided to come for Easter, a familyof4. We were expecting a southern style seafood spot and were confused when we saw Vietnamese food mixed in with the menu. It gave off vibes of a mixed identity with the location. Though I do have to say the koi pond was beautiful and the kids loved seeing it. The decor is definitely reminiscent of that old southern style place with fish and pelicans decorating the place and I didn't even mind the carpet on the walls. Our server was attentive and brought us extra tea for our specialty peach teas (which were amazing) and extra sweet potato fries as im sure she noticed the small portions on our plates (we were not charged extra for them either). Now the food was a mixed bag. The kids plates were perfect, though unfortunately the same isn't said for mine and my husband's. I had the Philly w/ sweet potato fries and a side of gumbo and my husband had the Ruben w/ sweet potato fries and the chefs platter. Im lead to believe that the Philly was made with steak-ums meat (photo) as its a taste and texture hard to replicate. The gumbo was...strange, tasted like it was made with a pack of brown gravy. It didn't taste bad but the flavor was off. My husband's Ruben was delicious though unfortunately the bread was soggy and falling apart but he still enjoyed it. Now the chefs plate....it was a mix of egg rolls, cheese sticks, crab ragoon and chicken strips. The egg rolls and crab ragoon were lacking on flavor but the cheese sticks and chicken strips were fine, even good. With all that said we enjoyed our time and even some of the food but there are a few hiccups here n there. If they could decided on their identity and make a few tweaks to the food it'll be an easy 5 stars to give! I hope to return again and enjoy their food once again!

TLDR- food needs some tweaking, service is great, and mixed atmosphere between coastal southern...

Unfortunately I have to be a bit negative, but there were positives. Not sure if it's normal but you pick your own seating. It took 15 minutes or more to get drinks and food ordered, it seemed longer. The food did arrive quickly. Wife got a cheeseburger and fries. She wasn't impressed. It was greasy and not flavorful except it was hamburger. My experience was better. I had breakfast, 2 eggs, bacon, hash browns and 2 pancakes. Fyi, the hash browns come with onions so beware, the waitress did let me know that. Phew, not into onions for breakfast. Everything was cooked exactly how I like breakfast, yum. My wife wanted a dessert to share, we got the Mississippi mud pie. It has a pecan crust, small cream cheese layer, next is chocolate cream, then whipped topping. You'd think it should be cool to cold but was apparently microwaved. Ugh. Once we got past the warm outer part it was much better cool. We were told the beignets are the best around outside of New Orleans but didn't try them ourselves. The atmosphere was quaint like you'd want from a local restaurant. Plenty of decor inside and out to match the name. It was mostly clean inside and out. I did get a little sticky something on my hand from pulling the chair out (syrup I'm guessing). There seemed to be enough parking for the restaurant size. I'd go back for breakfast:). Prices were a bit high, but for mid February 2024, sadly it's what we...

It's an excellent place to to have lunch during the week for work. You can get in and out of there in under an hour, and catch up on the news. We have been going there several times a week for 4 years now, and they know what we want to drink when we walk in the door, and what I usually want to eat. I really like that they go to the effort to remember my drink order, and when they do that, I encourage it by tipping better, sometimes up to 50%. My favorite server is Kayla, as she was the first to go above and beyond, going so far as to make sure we have tall drinks to go because she knows we work outside, without having to ask.

The food is really good, and there's something for everyone there. Whether you want breakfast at lunchtime, or it's cold, wet, and miserable out and get the Vietnamese pho, the menu is incredibly eclectic. If you can't find something on there from American to Vietnamese, there's no help for you. My husband and I have had most of the menu by now, and everything is excellently, and consistently made, and substitutions don't bother them at all. It's my favorite place to go during the week, the food and people are excellent, and you...