Iconic restaurant begins $2M expansion

LONGBOAT — Mar Vista Dockside Restaurant & Pub patrons may have to deal with a little dust and a smaller menu for the next five months or so, but they can still enjoy the waterfront views in Longbeach Village during the roughly $2 million expansion project owner Ed Chiles began this week.

A front-end loader tore into the old kitchen Wednesday morning, as contractors picked through the rubble to save Old Florida kitsch pieces that have defined the restaurant during its history, according to the Longboat Observer, sister paper of the Business Observer.. The redevelopment project, which will take place in two phases over the next year, includes the addition of a second story office and storage area, a new interior and a 37% larger kitchen.

The expansion will allow Chef George Quattromani to experiment with more specialized tasting menus, which include small plate specialties such as citrus grits and fish and squash from Chiles' garden. “Chef George's tail is just going to be wagging,” Chiles says “That old kitchen was hot as Hades.”