BajaNomad

Sid's Blue Beet and Sid's Steakhouse, Newport Beach, CA

Gypsy Jan - 5-30-2013 at 04:15 PM

For those of you who grew up in the area or traveled there during a certain time.

There was a terrific reminiscence published today in The OC Weekly.

We knew Sid and his wife, Michiko, very well.

http://blogs.ocweekly.com/stickaforkinit/2013/05/sids_steakh...

[Edited on 5-30-2013 by Gypsy Jan]

DENNIS - 5-30-2013 at 04:28 PM

WOW...What a step back into the past. I used to work for Sid when he had the Blue Beet by the Newport Pier. He started the beet back in the Coffee House days, actually in Laguna, then moved to Newport. I could tell you stories for days.
I knew Bill Lindley as well from the days back when he tended bar at the Black Knight in Costa Mesa, early sixties. The man had full understanding of the word, "Party."

Thanks, Jan. That was fun.

Thank you too, Dennis

Gypsy Jan - 5-30-2013 at 05:31 PM

It's funny, when I was of age, meaning legal to enter a bar for 21 and over, I couldn't bring myself to enter the Blue Beet - it was too intimidating.

But I was fascinated by the music coming from inside, so I would sit and listen.

DENNIS - 5-30-2013 at 05:35 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Gypsy Jan

But I was fascinated by the music coming from inside, so I would sit and listen.


You must remember Felipe, the Flamenco Guitar player. He was there for years.

Yes, I Do

Gypsy Jan - 5-30-2013 at 05:49 PM

And now I am going to challenge you to remember the couple who played at the fish restaurant/oyster bar on the peninsula the name of whicht I can't remember.

Helen and Bass?

She drank French 75's.

And they had a house compound at the top of the peninsula that was full of adopted kids (way before Angelina and Brad).

They would invite me for lunch, meaning I had to make twenty-five peanut butter and strawberry jam sandwiches for the kids.

Great fun.

DENNIS - 5-30-2013 at 05:58 PM

You stumped me. I was a bartender for fifteen years in that area and never once was asked for a French 75. Not even once.
There were only a few restaurants in Balboa...Karams, Dilmans...The Pavillion.
Can't think of who the entertainers were.

Delaney's Restaurant in Balboa

Gypsy Jan - 5-30-2013 at 06:03 PM

My misfiring synapses finally dredged up the memory.

I don't remember their last names, but they were famous in Paris and got a long gig there at Delaney's.

[Edited on 5-31-2013 by Gypsy Jan]

DENNIS - 5-30-2013 at 06:09 PM

Ahhh yes...Karams sold to Delaney's. Later, Delaney's bought the Sea Shanty over near the Cannery and Lido Isle.
I can't remember everything. :biggrin:

mulegejim - 5-30-2013 at 06:15 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by DENNIS
Ahhh yes...Karams sold to Delaney's. Later, Delaney's bought the Sea Shanty over near the Cannery and Lido Isle.
I can't remember everything. :biggrin:


Delaney's sure brings back some memories for me back in the days. Jim

sd - 5-30-2013 at 06:29 PM

Delaney's has been The Bluewater Grill for several years, great grilled fish. Blue Beet is open and does a good bar business and serves decent meals, specials on Thursday nights roll back prices to those of years ago.

Sid was not popular with the City officials, making his stories so much fun to follow.

Dennis - Cannery Village area has changed a great deal. Many new work/live style high end homes were built several years ago, taking away some of the charm in my opinion. Still many great places to eat in Newport.

DENNIS - 5-30-2013 at 06:43 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by sd
Delaney's has been The Bluewater Grill for several years, great grilled fish. Blue Beet is open and does a good bar business and serves decent meals, specials on Thursday nights roll back prices to those of years ago.

Sid was not popular with the City officials, making his stories so much fun to follow.

Dennis - Cannery Village area has changed a great deal. Many new work/live style high end homes were built several years ago, taking away some of the charm in my opinion. Still many great places to eat in Newport.


Thanks for the update. I was raised in Newport/Balboa and went south early seventies and never looked back.


Sid was definitely unpopular with the city. He was going to run for city counsel until he was pulled over one day and they found a loaded pistol in his car.
He was hard to work for, ol' Sid. It was a hard bar to work too.

Remember the Alley West down the street/alley from Sids? Worked there for years too. it changed names to The Ritz or something like that.
I should have kept a scrapbook. :lol:

sd - 5-30-2013 at 08:34 PM

Don't recall Alley West.

My Grandfather took some fun photos. There is still a Dory (panga type) operation operating at Newport Pier. He took photos in the early 60's where the ladies selling the fish are in nurse type uniforms. It is a fun stop if you are in the area. Near the Blue Beet.

elizabeth - 5-31-2013 at 06:00 AM

Interesting...the day after I turned 21 I started working at the Blue Beet by the pier in Newport Beach as a "bar maid"!

Bomberro - 5-31-2013 at 06:12 AM

Sid saved our business. He stood up for us at a Costa Mesa city council meeting one night in the mid 1980's as they were about to deny our plans for an auto repair business and they had already set such stringent requirements on our small location it would have been impossible for us to make a living. He went after the council with guns blazing quoting facts and figures of existing businesses they owned. They folded and approved our plans and only because of Sid holding them to task. He was quite a guy. We tried to thank him but he would have none of it, just wanted things to be fair!

SFandH - 5-31-2013 at 06:25 AM

Is Blackie's still there?

nbacc - 5-31-2013 at 07:18 AM

I loved the Blue Beet!!! Being brought up in Newport Beach(Newport ele, Newport Harbor High School and OCC) I remember Blackies also. I bought lots of candy there. Have not been back to Newport for several years. Had a good time last time I visited but realized I have become a redneck and it is too rich for my blood now. Nancy

DENNIS - 5-31-2013 at 07:33 AM

Remember the Beach Ball?
I know we all remember the Stag, so I won't ask.
Woody's Wharf?

DENNIS - 5-31-2013 at 07:35 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by nbacc
Being brought up in Newport Beach(Newport ele, Newport Harbor High School and OCC) Nancy



You probably went to Horace Ensign as well. I did.

DENNIS - 5-31-2013 at 07:37 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by SFandH
Is Blackie's still there?



Yes. Still there, but Chuck Frye sold it to someone else.

I have a buddy who keeps me up on a lot of this stuff.

What a fun thread. It's like a reunion.

sd - 5-31-2013 at 07:39 AM

SF andH -

Blackie's is still there, open's at 6AM. Beach Ball is also on the same block. You can have an early morning c-cktail and then stop at Charlie's Chili at the base of Newport Pier for some great chili. Or, Jane's corn dogs is a couple doors away.
Cross the boulevard for Crab Cokker fish and chowder.

SFandH - 5-31-2013 at 08:01 AM

The Beach Ball too!! Wow! I got laid off in the mid-70s recession and spent a lot of my unemployment checks in those two bars. Body surfing the wedge, fishing the pier.

[Edited on 5-31-2013 by SFandH]

Woody's Wharf Was Sold in the 90's

Gypsy Jan - 5-31-2013 at 08:02 AM

To Chuck Norris ("Texas Ranger") and his wife.

Woody still used to hang around the bar, get s-faced, and then they would call a taxi to take him home.

[Edited on 5-31-2013 by Gypsy Jan]

Hook - 5-31-2013 at 08:27 AM

I didnt start going to the Blue Beet until the nineties. It was still cool.

But Woody's was always my favorite bar in that area. Love bars with courtesy docks. Intimate little dance floor that they moved a few tables off of at about 8pm, or so. Always seemed like a good band was there.

Good strong drinks at Woody's and the food was really good for bar food, too.

I'm sure many of you remember Bruce McCoy (I think that was his last name) at the Beach Ball. He was an institution there in the late 70s and 80s. I had him as a student in college and we did a couple TV shows from there for cable TV.

Also enjoyed Josh Slocums way back.

Is Mione's Pizza still on the Island?

[Edited on 5-31-2013 by Hook]

Going to Woody's on Sunday

Gypsy Jan - 5-31-2013 at 08:34 AM

Was something of a ritual with my friends.

I'll never forget the afternoon that a fifty-foot-plus yacht plowed into the dock and all the bikini-bedecked lovelies fell off the railing into the nasty dirty bay water.

[Edited on 5-31-2013 by Gypsy Jan]

question for you Newport locals

tripledigitken - 5-31-2013 at 09:19 AM

Can anyone of you Newport locals help me remember the name of a Pizza joint on the peninsular? Just as you enter the peninsular off of highway 1 it was on the right side.

We use to meet up with friends there when going up to the Golden Bear in Huntington Beach. Several times going back over the years I have not seen it.

just saw Hook's post, I don't think it was Mione's.



[Edited on 5-31-2013 by tripledigitken]

Hook - 5-31-2013 at 09:23 AM

No, Mione's was on the island. You crossed on the bridge side and it was about a block and a half ahead on the right.

It's Great Fun

Gypsy Jan - 5-31-2013 at 09:38 AM

Playing "I recall" with you guys!

Dennis, I knew of Alley West, but never visited. Yes, the Ritz was originally located there, then moved to Fashion Island (Bren bucks persuasion)

Now, more fun memories - Dillman's, Socrates Prison, the XXX Pussycat Theater and the breakfast diner next to the Balboa Main St. Post Office the name of which I can't remember (the owner's husband was a fisherman), also the extremely dive bar near the ferry landing.

[Edited on 5-31-2013 by Gypsy Jan]

nbacc - 5-31-2013 at 10:09 AM

I did go to Horace Ensign, What year did you graduate from HS?

DENNIS - 5-31-2013 at 10:13 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by nbacc
I did go to Horace Ensign, What year did you graduate from HS?


1959.......then on to OCC. Then the army.

nbacc - 5-31-2013 at 10:13 AM

You don't have to answer that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ha nancy

Fred - 5-31-2013 at 11:07 AM

Great thread. Heading down to Long Beach this week-end for a wedding on the 7th, but I will have 4 or 5 days to down a few cold ones as some of these places I used to hang out at. I grew up in Long Beach (Joe Jost's) and plan to hit that place also.

mulegejim - 5-31-2013 at 12:15 PM

Once again, thanks for the memories.....I had forgotten a lot of the places names over time. Didn't live in the area.....was in the Eagle Rock, Pasadena area at the time but visited friends a lot in the 60s and 70s. Also, one of the great spots is the American Legion Post on the water. Jim

DENNIS - 5-31-2013 at 12:25 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by mulegejim
Also, one of the great spots is the American Legion Post on the water. Jim


Still great, as far as I know, and a real money saver. It's on 15th street.

John Wayne and Dillman's

Gypsy Jan - 5-31-2013 at 12:33 PM

So very glad you are enjoying this thread,

As many of you know, John Wayne loved Mexico and Baja especially.

I remember the night that he was at Dillman's exotic meats dinner (lion, tiger, rhinoceros, etc. and by the way - YUCK) and a Newport Beach pollice escort was waiting for him outside.

One officer to take him home and the other to drive his car.

Fred - 5-31-2013 at 02:38 PM

Another of John Wayne's "fav" was Gulliver's. Seems he never had to wait for a table. Go figure.

DENNIS - 5-31-2013 at 02:41 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Fred
Another of John Wayne's "fav" was Gulliver's. Seems he never had to wait for a table. Go figure.


OK....some places came in after I left. Where's Gulliver's, Fred?

sd - 5-31-2013 at 04:02 PM

Barry Goldwater had a place years ago at Balboa Bay Club and could be seen often in the Harbor on his Yacht. Joey Bishop- Rat Pack lived on Lido Isle until his death a few years back. Nick Cage sold his fantastic home here several years ago to Terrible Herbst family (Las Vegas slot machines, gas stations, etc). They have recently sold it for $28 million and new owners are doing a total remodel.

Another fun resident years ago was Dennis Rodman who owned a place on the ocean front. After run in's with police while driving he purchased a black limo with flames. He was in town a few months ago, looked great.

Shorehouse cafe was located on Main Street and Balboa Blvd near Balboa Pier. It closed a year or so ago.

The Fun Zone is mostly gone. A Museum has taken over several of the buildings. The ferris wheel is still there, the Merry Go Round and bumper cars are gone.

sd - 5-31-2013 at 04:09 PM

Any fishing memories? I grew up 40 miles from Newport, and we did a one week family vacation in Newport each year. There are 2 Piers, Newport at 21st Street and Balboa at Main Street. Newport Pier had live bait for sale when I was a kid. I would purchase tickets and each one was good for one anchovy. Had lots of fun! Still open 5AM - midnight every day, but no more live bait. Newport Pier has a restaurant and Balboa Pier has Ruby's diner - burgers and shakes, etc.

DENNIS - 5-31-2013 at 04:19 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by sd
good for one anchovy


Remember those Anchovy? They were the size of Trout.
When I was a kid, I learned about fishing around the Pavillion docks. Used a hand-line and caught small Perch. They wouldn't let us fish in the Bait Tanks. :lol:

DENNIS - 5-31-2013 at 04:26 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by sd
Barry Goldwater had a place years ago at Balboa Bay Club and could be seen often in the Harbor on his Yacht.


I bumped into him in one of the Coast Highway boatyards once. I walked around the corner of a building and he was walking in the opposite direction and we banged right into each other.
I'm 5'-11" and he was maybe no more than 5' tall. Short, for such a large man.



.

[Edited on 5-31-2013 by DENNIS]

Fred - 5-31-2013 at 06:03 PM

Dennis: Gulliver's is up on MacArthur. Across from the OC airport. Great prime rib. Also in the bar area "nooners. Tumbler of gin or vodka for a buck at happy hour (12 to 7).

DENNIS - 5-31-2013 at 06:10 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Fred
Dennis: Gulliver's is up on MacArthur. Across from the OC airport. Great prime rib. Also in the bar area "nooners. Tumbler of gin or vodka for a buck at happy hour (12 to 7).


Thanks, Fred. Tumbler of Gin for a buck? WOW....Must be fine stuff.

Fred - 5-31-2013 at 06:28 PM

I bet the price has gone way up since I have been there. LOL

DENNIS - 5-31-2013 at 06:48 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Fred
I bet the price has gone way up since I have been there. LOL


Yeah....I wouldn't doubt it. Can't hardly get a glass of water for a buck.

mulegejim - 5-31-2013 at 08:41 PM

Haven't seen The Arches mentioned yet...had some fun times there over the years. Also, another Wayne hangout. Jim

sd - 5-31-2013 at 10:44 PM

Arches is out of business. In it's place is A Restaurant.

DENNIS - 6-1-2013 at 08:59 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by mulegejim
Haven't seen The Arches mentioned yet...had some fun times there over the years. Also, another Wayne hangout. Jim


Probably not late into the night since all of the waiters....and the owner....wore shoes that curled up at the toes, like pixies. :lol:

Another great joint in that area, across the highway, the Villa Nova.

mulegejim - 6-1-2013 at 09:12 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by DENNIS
Quote:
Originally posted by mulegejim
Haven't seen The Arches mentioned yet...had some fun times there over the years. Also, another Wayne hangout. Jim


Probably not late into the night since all of the waiters....and the owner....wore shoes that curled up at the toes, like pixies. :lol:

Another great joint in that area, across the highway, the Villa Nova.


Right on about the Villa Nova......which has just been sold. Not sure about it's current state. Even though I live in San Clemente now don't get to Newport area much anymore. Boy are we dating ourselves.

DENNIS - 6-1-2013 at 09:13 AM

Let's not forget The Chart House, Five Crowns, Villa Marina and the Village Inn on the island.

WOW...no wonder I drank a lot. I only did it to support the business community. :biggrin:

Hook - 6-1-2013 at 09:19 AM

I think Gulliver's is long gone.

Villa Nova was still great and had surprisingly good prices for the location when I last went there in around 2008. Waiters were still dressed to a T.

Earlier brain cramp must be admitted here. The mention of Rodman made me realize that Josh Slocum's was the bar he owned, I believe. I never liked that place much. Oh sure, there were hot, HMO babes in their at night that were fun to oogle, but that's about it.

The place I remember was along Mariner's row and had an outside bar and a few tables on the right side of the place. You came in the front door, walked maybe 5-10 steps and then went outside to a nice, intimate outside bar. Maybe Billy's at the Beach??? Is it still there??

mulegejim - 6-1-2013 at 09:27 AM

Villa Nova in Newport sold for $6 million
3/26 Update: The Winery in Tustin signed a lease with Villa Nova's new owner. The second Winery restaurant is expected to open in the PCH space this fall.



MORE PHOTOS »
The Villa Nova restaurant property in Newport Beach was auctioned Thursday; the $6 million winning bid came from Michael Moshayedi, who also owns the property where Joe's Crab Shack operates. He is expected to lease the restaurant to The Winery.
SAM GANGWER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
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By NANCY LUNA

ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

nluna@ocregister.com
In a restaurant auction that lasted a heart-stopping 22 minutes, the old guard bid farewell to a coveted coastal property while its hipster successor waited eagerly in the wings.
Capping a 20-year run as owner of Villa Nova, Andy Crean sold the premium property along Mariner's Mile last week in an auction that came down to a nail-biting bidding war in the final minutes. In the end, Newport Beach resident Mike Moshayedi, who owns the Joe's Crab Shack property nearby, snagged ...

You can google Villa Nova for more info. Jim

Hook - 6-1-2013 at 09:39 AM

Andy Crean. Was he a relative of Johnny Crean, of Fleetwood fame and Crystal Cathedral fame?

sd - 6-1-2013 at 09:39 AM

Billy's at the Beach is still there. Chathouse just closed this week, their lease was not renewed.
Went to Five Crown's a couple of months ago, great prime rib and service.

DENNIS - 6-1-2013 at 09:43 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by mulegejim
Boy are we dating ourselves.


Oh sure we are. The nice thing is, we're still around to do that.

The Villa Nova was built and operated by Bill Driver, probably with his brothers money...Driver Eddy Construction Company. They were big.

Six Million sounds like a steal for the water front location.

The name, Crean, shown below, rings a bell, but I can't remember why. Something about Newport real estate business....I think.

DENNIS - 6-1-2013 at 09:55 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by sd
Billy's at the Beach is still there. Chathouse just closed this week, their lease was not renewed.
Went to Five Crown's a couple of months ago, great prime rib and service.



OK...A Five Crowns story:

My good friend Baer, who eventually had his own joint in West Newport, Baer's Lair, was tending bar one Sunday late afternoon. They were, in fact just opening for the day, when two men walked in wearing Bermuda shorts.
Baer says to them, "Sorry. You can't come in here in shorts. House rule."
So, one of the men pulls out a big Secret Service ID and flashes Baer with it, and Baer looked him in the eye saying, "I don't care who you are. You can't come in here in shorts." They quietly walked out.

A couple of hours later, the men returned, dressed properly, and not alone. There were a half dozen others and in the center of them was Pres. Richard Nixon, who at the time was in residency at the Western White House in San Clemente.

It was a more simple time.

John Crean Built an Empire Building RV's

Gypsy Jan - 6-1-2013 at 09:59 AM

Then he took his company public and was ousted In a hostile takeover.

He hosted a goofy cooking show in his garage with a local socialite assistant that was pretty entertaining.

He started another RV manufacturing company somewhere in the Inland Empire, last I heard.

The Arches restaurant was great, especially for late night dining in the old style. Loved the Beef Stroganoff.

Loved the Five Crowns, especially the piano bar, but I didn't like it the night we had a car stolen from valet parking.

The Stuft Shirt (a high school prom destination) was owned and then reinvented as a Mexican restaurant by the guy that went on to build the (now defunct) Red Onion empire.

Villa Nova - meh. Stuffy and snobby.

Josh Slocum - great harbor view, but bad food and strong drinks before and after Dennis Rodman.

Also, the Cannery, fun place.

Alta Coffee - they tried to take their funky hippy style to Starbucks levels and failed.

[Edited on 6-1-2013 by Gypsy Jan]

DENNIS - 6-1-2013 at 10:02 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Gypsy Jan

Villa Nova - meh. Stuffy and snobby.


That had to be after Driver got rid of it.

sd - 6-1-2013 at 10:13 AM

The Stuft Shirt (before my memory) was then Window on the Bay for many years. Stayed vacant for a long time and now a high end bridal shop.

Alta Coffee - still open and busy. Nice outdoor patio, service normally with way too much attitude. Exception of a couple great people.

Cannery, opposite Blue Water Grill has ample guest dock parking, a rarity in this Harbor. Great patio dining and upstairs happy hour 7 days a week.

Dennis, I love the Nixon story!

Hook - 6-1-2013 at 10:35 AM

Baer was a sometimes visitor to OCIR (Orange County International Raceway), where I got my first job, outside of a paper route. He was a friend of Bill White or Larry Vaughn, cant remember which and he was a bit of a partyer, as I recall. Probably Vaughn's friend as he seemed like more of a partyer than White.

Was Baer a big cigar smoker, Dennis? I seem to remember Vaughn and Baer smoking up a storm.

I think White was married into the Irvine Company family before Bren and he lived in Irvine Cove.

I was all of 16 at the time. This was around 1969. Just a side angle to all this.

DENNIS - 6-1-2013 at 10:35 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by sd
The Stuft Shirt (before my memory) was then Window on the Bay for many years. Stayed vacant for a long time and now a high end bridal shop.



It opened as The Stuft Shirt in the early sixties. It was so POSH, it was mysterious. It had nothing to offer to common rounders and was rarely mentioned.

DENNIS - 6-1-2013 at 10:43 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Hook
He was a friend of Bill White or Larry Vaughn, cant remember which and he was a bit of a partyer, as I recall. Probably Vaughn's friend as he seemed like more of a partyer than White.



Vaughn's friend, for sure. Vaughn got into the Raceway as a result of family [parents] friends, the Irvine family.
Quote:

Was Baer a big cigar smoker, Dennis? I seem to remember Vaughn and Baer smoking up a storm.


Baer smoked Marlboros. Never saw him with a cigar.
He's still happening. Saw him with his new bride down here about a year ago. he lives in an old Mobile Home park in Costa Mesa. Has plenty of money from a recent windfall.....I forget what.

.

[Edited on 6-1-2013 by DENNIS]

cliffh - 6-1-2013 at 03:21 PM

thanks for the memories, spent lots of time in all of those bars plus Zubies and the Chicken Coop and the legion will be having a cold one there soon. CH