A local’s guide to steak houses in the South Bay, and exactly what to order at each one.
Welcome to the South Bay steak tour. We’ll stop in Manhattan Beach, Hermosa, Redondo, El Segundo, Torrance, Lomita, and up on the Peninsula. Along the way, you’ll find wood-fired chophouses, a prime rib institution from the 1960s, a Brazilian churrascaria, and a counter where you grill your own Wagyu. At every stop, I’ll tell you the steak to order, what it tastes like, and the starters, sides, and desserts that complete the meal.
Price guide (per person, before drinks): $ = under 30 dollars · $$ = 30–60 · $$$ = 60–100 · $$$$ = 100+
The Arthur J
903 Manhattan Ave, Manhattan Beach · $$$$ · Steakhouse
Best for: Anniversaries, client dinners, a classic martini
Our first stop is on Manhattan Avenue, just up from the pier. Chef David LeFevre (MB Post, Fishing With Dynamite) opened The Arthur J with the Simms family as a tribute to their grandfather, and the dining room still looks like a 1960s supper club. Every steak is cooked over a wood-fired grill, so the crust picks up a gentle smokiness, and you can choose from Angus, Prime, and Wagyu. Each steak comes with one sauce. Sides are ordered separately.
What to order: The dry-aged, bone-in Kansas City strip. Dry-aging gives it a deep, nutty, almost buttery flavor, and it’s big enough for two to share. For a first visit, the Steak Sampler lets you compare a tenderloin, a Prime strip, and an American Wagyu cut side by side.
Round it out: Start with the roasted bone marrow toast and a basket of warm Parker House rolls. Get the crispy Brussels sprouts and beef-fat steak fries for the table, and finish with one of their tall layer cakes or the cherries jubilee. No reservation? The front lounge serves a burger made from chuck, brisket, and short rib, topped with Nueske’s bacon, Emmental, and caramelized onions.
The San Franciscan
2520 Sepulveda Blvd, Torrance · $$ · Classic Steakhouse
Best for: Dinner with family, a big appetite, live music after the meal
Head inland to Sepulveda in Torrance, and you’ll find a South Bay landmark. The San Franciscan has been carving prime rib since 1963 and is still family-run. Grab a seat in a red leather booth and settle in, because dinner here is a full meal: soup or salad, a side, and a generous cut of beef. When dinner wraps up, the room shifts to live classic rock and karaoke.
What to order: The prime rib, in the “Franciscan” cut. It’s slow-roasted until the center is rosy and tender enough to cut with a fork, with a well-seasoned outer edge. It comes with au jus and creamy horseradish. Expect leftovers.
Round it out: Fill up on the house sourdough before your entrée arrives, and choose the baked potato as your side. Reviewers rave about the lobster too, if someone at the table wants surf and turf.
The Bull Pen
314 Avenue I, Redondo Beach · $$ · Classic Steakhouse
Best for: Old-school martinis, dinner with family, a great-value steak
Back in Redondo, where PCH curves inland, the Bull Pen has been serving steaks since 1948. It’s moved a few times and now sits in a strip mall, but inside it’s still dark and clubby, with black booths and live music on weekends. The same family has run it for three generations, and the cooking is simple on purpose: hand-cut beef, lightly seasoned, so the meat speaks for itself. Every entrée comes with soup or salad and a side.
What to order: The ribeye. It’s well marbled, rich, and regulars say it comes out right every time. On a Friday or Saturday, get the slow-roasted prime rib instead, which is only served on weekends. You can also add sautéed mushrooms, bleu cheese and chive butter, or a peppercorn crust.
Round it out: Start with a martini and a shrimp cocktail, and keep an eye out for the salad made tableside. The New York steak is topped with an onion ring, and if anyone at the table isn’t in the mood for steak, the Bull Pen burger is a local legend.
Porterhouse
223 Richmond St, El Segundo · $$$ · Steakhouse
Best for: Date night, bourbon lovers, a relaxed neighborhood dinner
Now we’re on Richmond Street in downtown El Segundo. Porterhouse is warm and rustic inside, with exposed brick, wood, and a fireplace, and the bar has a long list of bourbons. Chef Bijan Shokatfard serves the classic steakhouse cuts alongside a few creative dishes you won’t see at a typical chophouse.
What to order: The 36-ounce porterhouse, the restaurant’s namesake. A porterhouse is two steaks in one: the beefy, firm New York strip on one side of the bone and the soft, mild tenderloin on the other. It’s made for sharing. Dining solo? The 16-ounce ribeye is the other house favorite.
Round it out: Start with the Porterhouse Caesar, made with baby gem lettuce, shaved Parmesan, and herbed croutons, or the duck carpaccio. The Korean BBQ pork belly and the Thai-style pasta with Wagyu beef show off the kitchen’s creative side. They also host bourbon and mezcal pairing dinners regularly, and happy hour runs Tuesday through Friday.
The Rex Seaside Steakhouse
221 Avenue I, Redondo Beach · $$$$ · Steakhouse
Best for: Date night, celebrations, a cocktail before dinner
Next, we’re in Riviera Village in South Redondo. Chef Walter Nunez (formerly of Faith & Flower in downtown LA) cooks classic steakhouse food with subtle pan-Asian touches. Every steak goes over a white oak fire, and the beef ranges from USDA Prime to American Wagyu to Miyazaki A5 from Japan.
What to order: A steak flight, which lets you taste several cuts on one plate. There’s also a Wagyu version if you want to compare the richer marbling against Prime. For a group, the bone-in tomahawk or porterhouse easily feeds two or three people.
Round it out: Start with the steak tartare, which gets a deep, savory flavor from black garlic and preserved mushrooms, and pair it with a milk punch. The vegetable sides are generous. For dessert, the butter cake is warm, rich, and caramelized at the edges. If you’re full, try the soft-serve or the pavlova. Upstairs, the Drift Cocktail Lounge is open Friday and Saturday nights.
BOA Steakhouse
3110 N Sepulveda Blvd (Manhattan Village), Manhattan Beach · $$$$ · Modern Steakhouse
Best for: Celebrations, dressing up, a lively bar
At Manhattan Village, BOA is the South Bay outpost of the West Hollywood steakhouse. You enter through a 10-foot wooden door into a sleek dining room and a busy bar. The menu covers the steakhouse classics with a few modern touches, and the sides are big enough to share. There’s a dress code, so plan to dress up a bit.
What to order: The signature 40-day dry-aged New York strip. Forty days of aging concentrates the beef flavor and adds a nutty, almost blue-cheese depth, while the strip keeps a satisfying chew. For a splurge, the A5 Japanese Wagyu is so marbled it nearly melts. Order it in a small portion and share.
Round it out: The Caesar salad, made tableside, is the way to start. For surf and turf, add the live Maine lobster, or try the cedar-plank salmon. On Wednesdays, most bottles of wine are half price.
SLAY Steak & Fish House
1141 Manhattan Ave, Manhattan Beach · $$$ · Steakhouse
Best for: Wine lovers, a quiet dinner, tables that want both steak and fish
Back on Manhattan Avenue in downtown Manhattan Beach, Chef David Slay (of Park Ave in Orange County) runs a quieter, vintage-feeling steak and fish house. Steaks are cooked in cast iron for an even, deep crust. Much of the produce comes from Slay’s own garden, and the wine list includes bottles from his vineyard in the Santa Rita Hills.
What to order: The coffee-rubbed Prime ribeye with peppercorn sauce. The coffee rub cooks into a dark, savory crust that brings out the ribeye’s richness, and the peppercorn sauce adds a little heat. For something lighter, the peppered Prime flat iron comes with hand-cut fries.
Round it out: Start with the jumbo lump crab cake, which is all crab and no filler, served with fennel rémoulade and an apple-citrus salad. The twice-cooked ahi is a house specialty: the fish is seared, chilled, and seared again to order. Pair everything with a glass of the Slay Pinot Noir.
Pacific Standard Prime
1810 S Pacific Coast Hwy, Redondo Beach · $$$ · Modern California Steakhouse
Best for: Whiskey lovers, Sunday brunch, a polished dinner that still feels relaxed
Back on PCH in Redondo, Pacific Standard Prime looks plain from the street, but inside it’s warm and lively. Executive Chef Christine Brown changes the menu with the seasons. The beef comes from all-natural, ethically raised ranches, and the bar pours more than 400 whiskeys, bourbons, and ryes.
What to order: The dry-aged porterhouse. You get the strip and tenderloin on one bone, and the aging deepens the flavor of both. Build your plate with one of the house sauces and add-ons. For something richer, ask about the Australian Wagyu.
Round it out: Since the menu follows the seasons, ask your server which vegetable sides are at their peak. Come back on Sunday, when brunch includes steak and eggs.
Steak & Whisky
117 Pier Ave, Hermosa Beach · $$$$ · Steakhouse
Best for: Whisky flights, date night, a quiet dinner a block from the beach
On Pier Avenue in downtown Hermosa, Steak & Whisky is the calm, grown-up option on a busy bar street. It comes from Blackhouse Hospitality, the group behind Little Sister. The room seats only about 50 people, so it feels intimate. The steaks are dry-aged in-house, anywhere from 21 to 120 days depending on the cut, and each one comes with your choice of two sauces.
What to order: The Prime Porterhouse, a big, bone-in cut with the strip on one side and the filet on the other. Pair it with béarnaise for richness, or fresh wasabi for a clean, sharp bite. For a group, share the tomahawk.
Round it out: Start with the steak tartare and the crab cake, which is all crab with no breading. The charcuterie board changes weekly. If someone at the table wants seafood, try the seared scallops or the butter-poached whole lobster. Finish with a flight from the deep whisky list, which includes plenty of Japanese bottles.
Fogo de Chão Brazilian Steakhouse
2121 Rosecrans Ave, El Segundo · $$$ · Brazilian Steakhouse
Best for: Big groups, birthdays, trying a little of everything
Our next stop is the Rosecrans corridor in El Segundo for Brazilian churrasco. At Fogo, gaucho chefs carry skewers of fire-roasted meat through the dining room and carve slices at your table. Flip your card to green for more, and to red when you need a break. One set price covers all the meat plus the Market Table, a spread of seasonal salads, vegetables, and charcuterie.
What to order: The picanha, a cut from the top sirloin cap and the signature of Brazilian churrasco. It’s salted generously and roasted with its fat cap on, so the edge turns crisp while the inside stays juicy. Ask the gaucho for an end slice, where the crust is thickest. Also try the fraldinha (bottom sirloin) and the lamb.
Round it out: Take just a little from the Market Table, and save room for the meat. If you have space for dessert, the papaya cream is a light, traditional Brazilian finish.
Wagyu Butcher Japanese BBQ
2104 Artesia Blvd, Torrance · $$ · Japanese Yakiniku
Best for: Small groups, trying Wagyu without a huge bill, an interactive dinner
On Artesia Boulevard in Torrance, Wagyu Butcher is a counter-style yakiniku restaurant done the Osaka way, where you grill the beef yourself. The chef-owner ran a yakiniku restaurant in Osaka before coming here, and from your seat you can watch the butchers slice each cut to order. The beef includes US Prime, American Wagyu, and Japanese Wagyu, and the prices are surprisingly fair.
What to order: The chef’s choice course, which is like a guided tour of the cow. It moves from beef tongue and cheek to short rib, skirt steak, and sirloin. Each cut needs only a few seconds per side on the grill. The upgraded course adds beef sashimi and slices of Japanese A5, which is so marbled it practically melts on the grill.
Round it out: The course opens with kimchi, namul, yukhoe (Korean-style beef tartare), and a green onion salad, and finishes with beef curry and yuzu sherbet. Extra cuts come two pieces at a time, like sushi. They’re closed on Sundays.
The Steak Library
1937 Pacific Coast Hwy, Lomita · $$$$ · Steakhouse
Best for: A Wagyu splurge, romantic dinners, serious beef lovers
Heading south on PCH into Lomita, The Steak Library is easy to drive past, but it’s worth stopping. The owner has spent more than 20 years supplying restaurants across the country with meat, and the menu reflects that experience: USDA Prime, American Wagyu, and authentic Japanese Wagyu, including Kobe. The single dining room is small and intimate.
What to order: The Prime ribeye, the cut reviewers keep praising. It’s richly marbled with a deep beefy flavor. The cuts run large, with a 20-ounce Kansas City strip, a 32-ounce tomahawk, and a 40-ounce porterhouse. For the table, add a small portion of Kobe A5 to taste the difference.
Round it out: The Wagyu cotton candy skewers are the signature bite: a little sweet, a little savory, and a lot of fun to watch arrive. Get the potatoes on the side, and if you want something from the sea, the charred squid gets great reviews.
Chart House
231 Yacht Club Way, Redondo Beach · $$$ · Steak & Seafood
Best for: Sunset dinners, visiting family, anniversaries with an ocean view
Now we’re down by King Harbor. Chart House has been on the Redondo waterfront since 1969, and the waves break almost right under the dining room windows. It’s part of a national chain and best known for seafood, but locals have long come here for prime rib at sunset.
What to order: The herb-crusted, slow-roasted prime rib. The herb crust seasons the outside, and slow roasting keeps the inside pink and tender from edge to edge. It’s the house signature.
Round it out: For surf and turf, add the Alaskan king crab or the macadamia nut-crusted mahi. The coconut crunchy shrimp makes a good shared starter. Finish with the Hot Chocolate Lava Cake. Weekday happy hour features prime rib sliders and is one of the best deals in town.
Kincaid’s
500 Fishermans Wharf (Redondo Beach Pier), Redondo Beach · $$$ · Fish, Chop & Steak House
Best for: A day on the pier, business lunches, surf and turf
Kincaid’s sits at the north end of the Redondo Beach Pier, with floor-to-ceiling windows and a patio over the water. It calls itself a classic “fish, chop and steak house,” and the menu covers all three. It’s polished but relaxed, and unlike most stops on this tour, it’s open for lunch every day.
What to order: The filet mignon. It’s the most tender cut on the cow, mild and buttery, and it’s at its best paired with a lobster tail. That surf-and-turf combo is what regulars come back for.
Round it out: Start with a cup of clam chowder. The almond-crusted scallops and coconut shrimp are other house favorites. Window and patio tables are first come, first served, so arrive early for a sunset seat.
Think Prime Steak House
29601 S Western Ave, Rancho Palos Verdes · $$$ · Steakhouse & Piano Bar
Best for: Live music, Sunday brunch, a long night out
Our last stop is up on the Peninsula, on Western Avenue in Rancho Palos Verdes. Brothers Kashi and Paul Aghilipour opened Think Prime in 2008. It has a dining room, a fireplace lounge with a pianist and singer most weekend nights, and a garden patio with big screens for game days. Portions are generous, so plan on leftovers.
What to order: The ribeye. It’s well marbled and full of flavor, and regulars say it comes out perfectly cooked every time. For a group, split the tomahawk.
Round it out: The sides are a highlight here, so order a few for the table. Tuesday is the prime rib special, Wednesday happy hour is oyster night, and Sunday brunch is a neighborhood tradition.
Where Will You Go for Your Next Steak Night?
From the old-school charm of The San Franciscan and The Bull Pen to the premium cuts at The Arthur J and The Steak Library, the South Bay offers plenty of ways to enjoy a great steak dinner. Whether you prefer a lively restaurant near the beach, an intimate date-night destination, or a waterfront table with a view, there’s no shortage of places to explore.
Next time you’re craving a perfectly cooked steak, skip the drive into Los Angeles and discover what the South Bay has to offer.
