Fishing With Dynamite — Restaurant in Manhattan Beach

Very fresh seafood, fresh ingredients and perfect seasoning. Even their fries were perfect. I was perusing the google mapverse for a great restaurant near LAX because we are only here for two nights before flying back home.

I always read the lowest reviews of the top rated restaurants to see what is my worst case scenerio and the only one that didn't have hygiene or quality issues was FwD but it seemed so popular that I was afraid I would need a reservation.

I asked the hotel for recommendations but their list didn't even list any of the google top rated eateries or picks from local food review magazines.

The hotel staff told me there were plenty of restaurants at Manhattan Beach so I had options should FwD turn me away. I am glad I risked the ride to FwD because the food was amazing.

My mom enjoys a good New England clam chowder but hates dairy ingredients specially if they are very milky or creamy so you can see how hard it is to please an already picky eater. Needless to say, she was very happy with all our food choices.

If we can't find another place for dinner tonight, we are coming back to FwD a second night but this time we will go earlier so we can enjoy the pier by the beach (just two blocks down from this restaurant which located on twelveth street and manhattan blvd).

The only real issue is the temperature in the area, we are from sunny and HOT humid Florida so we are not used to cold windy days or nights so bring a nice sweater or jacket; personally, I could have used some gloves too.

We ordered the Blue Crab cake (which was all crab meat), NE clam chowder (light and delicious with sliced fingerling potatoes instead of diced potatoes), squash rolls (they were bread rolls but I thought they were eggrolls when I was placing the order), a japanese rice (forgot the name but it is the only risotto type dish my mom ever liked), and a spicy fried fish sandwich (the fish patty was too thin and the breading too thick but the fries were the best I have ever tasted - crisp outside with fluffy inside and perfect seasoning).

Some reviews complained about staff attitude so I was being nice and polite to avoid problems. Everyone seemed very nice and friendly but it is less face time and attention than some fine restaurants, reason could be less staff serving or just how they roll in Manhattan beach. I was not in a rush and the food was delicious so I didnt mind waiting a few more minutes for food or a table (we were seated in 15 minutes without making reservations and placed my order 15 minutes after getting my menu). We also weren't picky and accepted the first available table outside instead of waiting for a couple to finish their dinner inside (read a review where someone waited and lost the table to another guest cause the walked away while they waited; I also stayed within the eyesight of maitre'D so they knew we were next).

The hotel staff was right, Manhattan beach is filled with restaurants so there is always a backup option. I am just so happy we were able to get a table so we could experience this culinary delight at Fishing with Dynamite. This is definitely a place to try if I ever come back to Los Angeles, California.

To explain the pictures, the crab cake look so yummy we started eating before I could take a better picture but I hope you can see all that crab meat in there. The japanese rice had a raw egg yolk you have to mix into the rice to make it extra creamy in the seafood broth.

Pricing was very affordable when you consider prices for fresh seafood. We spent $60 per person without dessert but we ordered 5 dishes so I am sure the average is less per...

Came here for my birthday lunch, and it happened to be their 11th Anniversary. We were excited to try their prefix lobster boil menu. The meal and experience was a mixed bag.

The Good: The cocktails are great, tasty and well presented. The food here is excellent, everything was well seasoned and balanced. The flavors were interesting and enjoyable. For their anniversary menu we had Salmon Tartare with potato chips and a Hamachi sashimi in an apple ponzu sauce. Both amazing. For the second course, we had halibut in a chive buerre Blanc sauce. I could eat this dish everyday and be perfectly happy. For the third course, we had the New England Lobster boil. Also amazing. And for dessert, probably the best key lime pie I've ever tasted.

The Bad: The dining space is super tight so if you have to get up in the middle of your meal and you're sitting up against the wall, be prepared to do a little sideway shimmy in between the tables which can be a little awkward if both your tables are full of food and glasses. Also, all ingredients aren't listed on the menu either. For instance for the salmon tartare, there were yellow dollops of a delicious sauce but we had no idea what it was and our lobster boil had sausages and carrots in it but wasn't listed (the boyfriend doesn't eat pork).

The Ugly: The bread served with the lobster boil had 2 short strands of hair mixed in the butter they slathered on top of it. In addition to that, our lobster boil didn't come with corn in it (although it was one of the ingredients that was actually stated on the menu!). The timing of when the dishes were served was a bit awkward as well. There was too little time between the first and second course and too much time between the second and third course.

To their credit, they did deduct the cost of the cocktails from the total bill for the hair and cornless boil. But for a lunch that was $300+ we expected better from...

FWD is my favorite restaurant in Manhattan Beach. Dinner was fabulous tonight and we are all big fans of the restaurant now. We sat at the chef’s counter, which was really great because you can see them preparing the shellfish. Our server Elijah was very prompt and did a great job. They have a lot of great options on the menu, so it was hard to choose because I wanted so many different items. It’s quite small on the inside, but in a cozy sort of way. Parking in the area was pretty easy for us, we found metered parking a block away.

As the name suggests, they specialize in seafood. We started off with the Peruvian Scallops and they were incredible. Oysters are my favorite, but this was a refreshing change. Next we tried the Littleneck Clams raw and they too were very good although I prefer oyster or scallop. We tried a cup of the Clam Chowder and as big fans of chowder in general we were really impressed with this version of it. Next came the Cape Cod Squash Rolls and they were great. I loved the honey butter that came with them, they taste very similar to a Parkerhouse roll. The Hamachi Sashimi was also a standout. The sauce with it was so good that I could drink it, and the wish was very refreshing. Next came the Shoft Shell Crab, which was fried and very good. I prefer my Soft Shell Crab sautéed, but this was a nice fried option. For entrées we chose the Koshihikari Rice, which is similar to risotto, with an egg in the middle that you can mix in. The Uni really adds a strong seafood flavor to it. We also got the Chilean Seabass, which was cooked perfectly although the portion was pretty small. Finally for dessert we had the Chocolate Pretzel Bread Pudding and it was terrific. The salted caramel sauce was really next level.

Overall a fantastic dinner, and I would highly recommend to anyone, especially any seafood fan. I plan to be back in the future to...