Joe Jost’s Tavern in Long Beach

We lucked into this one, hit Long Beach at the right time (lunch) and needed a place to stop. Joe Jost’s came up on Yelp and sounded perfect – they serve only a handful of food options and offer 3 sizes of beer. The food list is dominated by the “Special” – a Polish sausage (that looks more like a hotdog) split length-wise and stuffed with a pickle spear served on rye bread with cheese and mustard. They also serve Marmions peanuts and pickled eggs. It’s a perfect bar.

On the beer front, they offer tiny-sized pours perfect for a working lunch, medium-sized pours for a bit more kick, and large-sized “schooners” (in chalice-shaped glasses) if you’re drinkin’ for keeps. All their beers choices really clustered around the light lagers options (Bud Light, Michelob Ultra, Coors Light), so don’t expect too much variety. The range is more about price than style.

This has got to be one of the best dive bars in the area. If I lived in Long Beach, I’d live here.