The Shack in Playa del Rey has been a favorite local watering hole in Playa since 1972.
They are best known for their Shack Burger (or if you dare, the Double Shack Burger) which is a 1/4 pound cheeseburger topped with a Louisiana Sausage link. All of the ingredients are great quality and was routinely voted as a top-10 burger in all of LA (along side the likes of the Fathers Office burger, etc.) before the gastro-burger took over the list. They also have great pub food – including potato skins, chili, chicken wings, hot dogs and chicken sandwiches.
What’s Nearby
The atmosphere is classic 60’s – 70’s so-cal surf bar themed – a reminder of the times in Playa before the rock jetties were built on Toes Beach (Playa Del Rey Beach) and it was known as one of the top surfing spots in LA. Today the bar is still a surfer spot, but it attracts all types of customers from bikers to LMU kids looking to play a game of flip cup and drink cheap beer to families out for an afternoon at the beach. Overall it’s a great place to grab a beer with friends & family and have a good time.
They have an annual Chili Cook-off every August and recently started an annual rib-off every June. If you get a chance to check out the Chili Cook-off, I highly recommend you go – you get to drink beer, talk to the chili cooks, and taste up to 10 chili recipes and figure out which you like best. Come hungry, this will fill you up quick.
One thing to note is the building next to The Shack, which near as I can tell is the oldest building in Playa. According to the Los Angeles County Assessor’s Office website it was built in 1911, but I’ve seen uncited sources as early as 1903 and seen pictures of it in PDR labeled ca. 1908. It was the first bank in Playa Del Rey, and has seen many tenants in it’s lifetime (grocery store, bar, marketing company, etc.) – in the 1980’s it was the “California Bar and Grill” who’s sign still is painted on the brick facade. It is currently home to a real estate company.
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