Chamber Profiles: Glory Days Grill comes to Seal Beach

How can you charge $3.99 for a “super fresh” hamburger with all the “fixings” and still stay in the restaurant business?

“We only change the burger price to $3.99 on Tuesday to market our delicious burger,” says co-owner Jack Deaton of Seal Beach’s newest eatery, Glory Days Beachside Grill.

“We can do that because we buy all our ingredients directly from our supplier, no middle man, and as a result, we get the best product available and then have the opportunity to lovingly start all our menu items from scratch, (including salad dressings) really ‘hands on,’ and to create truly fresh and great food. Glory Days Beachside Grill is more than a “burger joint,” however.

Other specialties are fresh salads, fresh pizza, Beef Dip and thinly sliced Pastrami sandwiches.  New dishes include chicken and veggie bowls served over delicious brown rice.

Dick chimes in, “We pass judgment on every item on the menu, everything is Jack and Dick tested.  Just look at us and you can tell we love to eat and serve good food.”  Hmmm. No comment on that but they both seem extraordinarily pleased with being restaurateurs.
Jack and principal partner, Dick Brown, together with other investment partners, are “joined at the hip” when it comes to the restaurant business.

All partners are local, living in Long Beach, Lakewood and Seal Beach so they are well familiar with the area and appreciate the opportunity of which being in Seal Beach affords.
Locally, “21 years at the Glory Days Sports Grill in Lakewood, corner of Carson and Woodruff,” comments Dick, “it’s been more than creating a successful restaurant. It has become a way of life, for we have found our most satisfaction comes from our involvement with the community and we look forward to establishing that same support with new friends and organizations in Seal Beach.

“We are proud to serve special needs children and families every Thursday at our Lakewood restaurant and we often times supply food to homeless shelters and families in times of sorrow or . We have enlarged the seating capacity for our new restaurant (formerly Finbar’s on PCH), which will help meet another need of the community…a space for organizations to hold meetings.

“We also have a space designated for the younger set, a game room which resembles a light-house, visible to the parents in the restaurant. We welcome after-game gatherings where families can enjoy fun games and food, away from our adult serving area. If an organization wants to hold a fundraiser, we donate 20% of their sales for the event back to the organization.

“Our theme, played out in an extensive rock formations, is ‘down-home California’, so we have re-created three stages of our state, the Sierras, which has a water-fountain, (think spring), for the kids, central coast gold rush décor followed by a coral reef depicting the coast ending in Seal Beach.

Jack comes from a diverse background, including catering and law enforcement.  He was formerly the Chief of the Long Beach Park Rangers, and surprise, he and Seal Beach’s very special Police Chief Joe, worked together when Chief Joe was a lieutenant that over saw Ranger activity.  On the catering side, Jack was given a very special recipe from an employee for bar-b-que tri-tip.  Jack has taken that recipe with his BBQ skills and turned it into a catering business, which has led to a fun and successful annual tri-tip cook-off.  Sounds like a new and fun event for Seal Beach!
Being new members of the Chamber, the partners are poised to immediately show support. “Lucky for us,” says the duo, “we have met a lot of nice Chamber members, for instance, Diana and Gary Bean, and we are fortunate through members like them to get involved so quickly. “Right now,” continues Jack, “we are looking forward to supporting the Seal Beach 5K-10K Run, the Classic Car show, which we believe is one of the best in Southern California and the upcoming Health Expo in March.

“We are open to sponsoring other cultural activities also, and we have heard a rumor that “Free Shakespeare in the Park” may be coming to Seal Beach in the summer.  Sounds like a winner to us. We are especially excited to be working with the Chamber to hold a Grand Opening Ribbon Cutting and Chamber mixer at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, January 29, to which the public is invited.  Please come and join the fun! We’ll be pleased to meet you!
“We think of ourselves as ‘Team Glory Days Beachside ‘and we will soon launch a program how persons in the community can become part of the team and part of our family. Because Family is #1 to us, we will have a ‘Glory Days’ photo wall, where your Glory days” or any memorable moment of your life, at any age, may be posted. We will take great pride in your association with us as well as taking pride in our business.”
Jack continues, “I would like to personally thank Brian Kyle of O’Malley’s on Main, for his support of the Glory Days brand and for mentoring me in the ‘Seal Beach Way’ of doing business.  We are very grateful for the opportunity to serve this great Seal Beach community and hope our restaurant will be another enhancement of the unique Seal Beach experience.”

Dick adds, “All the business around here such as Temecula Olive Oil Company, Nicks, and Patty’s just to mention a few have been very welcoming.  Lastly, we would like to thank the Seal Beach Chamber for being the best and Darren DeLeon for introducing us to them.”

Folks, these guys are the real deal!  Genuine home boys from the get-go if ever I met one and will serve the Seal Beach Community with heart and soul.  Or as Dick commented “Angels have always looked out for us.  We are blessed.”

Contact info:  e-mail jxsrbtr@verizon.net; (562) 685-5123; 620 Pacific Coast Hwy (web site to be developed.)  Grand Opening, Ribbon Cutting and Chamber mixer:  Wednesday, January 29th, 5:30 p.m.