Longtime Hermosa Beach Chef Returns With Candlelit Italian Wine Bar

Luca Manderino isn’t new to Hermosa Beach. The chef’s been preparing Italian food in the South Bay since 2005 with Sosta Enoteca. This time around, Manderino reworked Hermosa’s former Casa Vincenzo into an Italian wine bar named Sosta, which opened on October 1.

Sosta means “the resting place” in Italian. Manderino’s Venetian menu is a mix of small and large plates of handmade pasta, risotto, and gnocchi grace the menu, along with a seafood-centric antipasti that includes spaghetti with salted anchovies, and cuttlefish crudo. If smaller plates aren’t ideal, Sosta also serves steaks and whole branzino, but expect that part of menu to rotate with the seasons. As expected, the wine list is completely Italian.

Just like the menu, Sosta’s 1,000 square feet space maintains a stripped-down feel with clean white walls, and wooden tables made by Manderino’s own hands. He took almost four months to build out the open kitchen. Sosta is a nice return for the local chef. After running Sosta Enoteca for 11 years, he was forced to close in 2016 when the building was slated for demolition. Hours are Tuesday to Saturday from 6 p.m. until 11 p.m.

Sosta. 439 Pier Avenue, Hermosa Beach, CA

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