A Newport Beach institution since 1951. The Crab Cooker is housed in a wooden red building at 22nd Street and Newport Boulevard, no reservations, paper plates, plastic forks. The food — and the line out the door — is unironic seafood: skewered swordfish, halibut, scallops or shrimp, broiled over a wood-fired grill, with clam chowder, slaw and a chunk of rye bread.
It is not cheap, but it is consistent. Richard Nixon was a regular when he was president; the family photographs in the dining room run back to the original 1950s owners. Bring cash, expect to wait at peak hours, and order the Manhattan-style chowder.