The other day I had to get out of the house, and I remembered a recent post on The Aesthetic about on of my neighborhood eateries. I've only lived at the beach for a couple years, so while I could tell Sloopy's has been around a long time, I had no idea it had been there since 1967. And while I've been there plenty of times, I never knew that they were known for their milkshakes. So I trekked down the beach and up the hill to Sloopy's. My neighborhood, El Porto, used to be its own city, and once upon a time it was the hippie/artist enclave. It still manages to hold a little of that laid-back spirit, which is I guess what makes me feel comfortable here, though I worry how long it can hold out. Inside Sloopy's, its easy to feel what it must have been like thirty years ago. The place is filled with plants, shellacked wooden benches and tables, a fire pit, and theres hardly a roof - its essentially outdoors. They put up a new menu on the walls last week thats godawful. Everyone that came in was horrified, though I don't think the staff understood why. A jumbled handwritten folksy wall of writing has been replaced by what looks like a humongous street sign. I'm tempted to offer to hand-paint a new one for them for free. Regardless, the spirit is still there, the sandwiches are still good, and I discovered that yes, the milkshakes are very good.

The Aesthetic: Sloopy's is good