2nd Floor Food Art Drinks, Huntington Beach

It would be easy to spend an entire evening simply staring at the walls of the 2nd Floor dining room, as they are covered in striking portraits and vivid design work from local tattoo artists. Cocktails in hand, guests leave the comfort of their cushy black booths for a closer look at haunting Day of the Dead skeletons, macabre circus figures, and intricate abstracts. Every Wednesday, their art-viewing experience is enriched by strains from live musicians playing classical covers of rock music from the likes of Journey and Jimi Hendrix.

As visitors take in the music and art of the dining room, chef Wendie Huffman is hard at work in the kitchen, whipping up the innovative contemporary American dishes lauded by reporters from OC Weekly. Pulling from her years of classic culinary training and experience in high-end restaurants, the expert chef folds tangy sauces and imaginative ingredients into steak and seafood specialties, such as the blackened mahi-mahi with fresh mango salsa and the grilled filet mignon kebabs with garlic chipotle pepper. She piles natural-beef patties with mountains of decadent toppings—from teriyaki pork to chili—to craft her signature Colossal burgers. Her culinary creations take on playful names like Confused salmon and Pearl Jammin bread pudding, rather than solemn names such as Sad Jim’s Tear-Stained Spaghetti.