Salads and Signature Beverages at Lemonade, Manhattan Beach

By Michael Jenkins on December 12th, 2012

I was first introduced to the cafeteria style offerings of Lemonade during Taste of Abbot Kenney a couple years ago. I had no clue at the time, but was soon swept away by their puckeringly tangy lemonade and expertly made salads and proteins. I’m so happy they’re in Manhattan Beach!

Where have you been, old friend!? Outside Lemonade Manhattan Beach.

Inside Lemonade, Manhattan Beach

It’s been a while since I’ve been to the Metlox Plaza, where Lemonade is located, so seeing the bright store-front there was like unexpectedly running into an old friend: I knew we’d be having dinner together that night.

A few of the many selections in the Lemondade Marketplace.

With all of their seasonal selections laid out for easy viewing, it’s hard to decide on a salad from their Marketplace, a collection of vegetables and ready made salads. Fortunately, you can add variety to the single, double, and triple portions to mix things up a bit.

I ordered a Two Portion ($8.50), and mixed it up with four different selections:

Cedar smoked salmon ‘nicoise’, basmati, egg, green bean
Snap peas, edamame, sesame
Sweet potatoes, pistachios
Wheat berry, green beans,bermuda onions, goat cheese

I’m a big fan of edamame and the snap pea combination was right on point. The sweet potatoes left me wanting for a bit of salt and texture but made for a good variation on the other items. The wheat berry was a highlight, being nutty in flavor and texture. The salmon and basmati was the winner, though, with a pleasant smoky flavor from the fish.