Up until mid-2008, I would have agreed with all of the 4 and 5 star ratings on a restaurant that I have loved for over 30 years. In mid-2008 though a new chef started stamping his ego on the classic menu. The clam chowder - no comparison to the old menu. The sourdough bread...GONE. The Beach House Salad, long a cool crisp favorite, is now a yuppy mess of garden greens (fancy weeds), goat cheese, and mandarin oranges. Too much spice. Too much experimentation. Our Christmas Eve was ruined with indigestion and disappointment that we now have to find a new place for our traditional dinner.

My wife made a reservation at the Beach House in Laguna for dinner for 2 on my birthday a week and a half before hand. She called the day before the dinner to confirm the reservation, everything was fine. But when we showed up they did not have are name on the list and were looking at us like we were crazy.

Right on the ocean in Laguna Beach. I like brunch but its always crowded. Good food, atmosphere and prices are comparable to brunch's everywhere. Staff fast and friendly.

We love going to the Beach House for our girl's birthday get togethers. We always sit on the patio and spend several hours enjoying the food, drinks and the weather !

On our most recent visit to this restaurant on July 8th, 2008, we arrived early enough to order from the early bird Sunset Dinner menu. The prices for the items on this menu are approximately half of their counterparts on the regular menu --- I definitely recommend giving the selections on this menu a try as all represented very good values for the high quality preparation that this restaurant offers. Our four selections this evening from this menu were the Sand Dabs, Lobster Tail, Fillet Mignon, and Chicken Marsala --- all were fresh, hot and flavorful.

We sat on the far corner of the outermost desk, just above the beach & surf only 15 feet below -- the view was excellent, although some of us had to wear visors because there is no shelter from the sun in this section of the restaurant.

We particularly enjoyed the service that was provided. All of the restaurant employees that we encountered, from the hostess to the waitress were very friendly. Our waitress was named Mary and we think that her bubbly personality made the dinner even more enjoyable that evening. She happily went that extra mile to assist us with some special needs related to the elderly members of our party. She was also very helpful in explaining menu items and making sure that they were prepared just the way we asked for them to be prepared. She helped us save a few dollars by recommending the ordering of a 'split' bottle of Spanish sparkling wine for only $7 instead of ordering two glasses of white wine for much more.

In sum, we will return to this restaurant the next time we visit Laguna Beach for the value, food quality, the noteworthy view and the exemplary service. I'm rating it as 'highly recommended' for folks visiting Laguna Beach.