Breakfast, lunch and dinner. Our BBQ will be prepared to our proprietary specs by our HACCP- and USDA-certified manufacturing and distribution partner. Heat and serve.
Fresh-ground espresso from an in-house barista, açaí bowls scooped to order, pastries from a local Santa Monica bakery, and breakfast sandwiches. We plan to partner with a local bakery, because a destination built in this community should be built with this community.
Brisket cut to order when possible, or held in our signature au jus on the line when it’s busy, whole smoked turkey legs, plus sandwiches, tacos, salads and Southern sides.
Sunset views every evening, with events to be determined. Beer and wine by the glass from a local winery and brewery. A destination built in this community should be built with this community.
Concept rendering
Smoked low and slow to our proprietary specs in a USDA- and HACCP-certified manufacturing and distribution facility, then cut to order whenever possible. When it's busy, it's held in our signature au jus on the line, so every order comes off the line tender and hot.
Concept rendering
Whole smoked turkey legs, big and juicy, smoked low and slow to our proprietary specs in a USDA- and HACCP-certified manufacturing and distribution facility until they're fall-off-the-bone tender. Held hot and humid in a glass case behind the counter and served to order.
That's a cliché I was raised on by my dad, former NFLer Al “Bubba” Baker. We’re proposing to make this bluff our home field, playing on the same team as the City of Santa Monica. Food, private catering, corporate partnerships, and a curated calendar of ticketed programming all flow directly back to the City through our proposed percentage rent structure.
From Daddy Junior's restaurants in 1950s Jacksonville to the bluff above the Santa Monica Pier.
Our success is your reward.
I'm Brittani Bo Baker. I was raised on clichés like that by a father who didn't just play in the NFL. He dominated it. Al “Bubba” Baker still holds the unofficial all-time NFL single-season sack record, set as a rookie. He learned the pit as a boy in Jacksonville, Florida, at the barbecue restaurants his uncle, “Daddy Junior,” owned in the 1950s. When he retired from football, he took that craft to the street corners of Avon, Ohio, and built a family business from there.
I didn't just grow up in that business. I ran it. I learned every position at our family restaurant, Bubba's-Q, in Avon, Ohio, and served as managing partner from 2006 to 2019. In 2009, my father and I co-invented a patented food product, took it to Shark Tank, and scaled it into more than 20,000 retail doors.
In 2019, I took my hospitality career to Tampa, Florida, where I owned and operated a food truck and catering business until 2022. In 2021, I finished in the Final 4 on Food Network's BBQ Brawl. Today, I lead FoodBizCoach.com in Los Angeles, where restaurants across the country hire me to maximize their revenue.
Two decades of operating, scaling, and building winning teams. That's what I bring to Santa Monica.
Our success is your reward.
Brittani Bo Baker · Owner, BBQ Beach Cafe & Catering
Every one of these events started with a relationship built on trust. Teams and brands counted on us for their biggest days, and I led our team in delivering them at scale, from logistics and food cost to labor, staffing, and setup.
One breakfast menu, then one menu for lunch and dinner from 11am until close.
Come to the beach — or we'll bring the beach to you.
On-site and off-site. Weddings, corporate events, milestone celebrations — run directly by our own team, on the bluff overlooking the Pier.
Ask about our fine dining catering menu.
Weekly programming on the bluff, plus off-site catering and press and partner events.
Sunset views over the Pacific and the Pier, every night of the week.
Professional telescopes and guided views of the night sky.
Local talent, and occasional major names in an intimate setting.
Giant lawn games, bocce, volleyball and a beanbag lounge. No ticket required.
Dashed items show proposed program slots. Specific dates are confirmed with partners and clients.
Our Pass and service line, Kitchen (Room 109) and Dry Storage (Room 110) at the Camera Obscura Building, scaled from the building floor plan with every piece of equipment placed to size. It's a warming kitchen with no hood and no open flame.
Rooms and doors are scaled from the Camera Obscura Building floor plan (132 ft 3½ in between grid lines 13 and 1): Kitchen, Room 109, 308.66 sq ft; Pass, 138.75 sq ft; Dry Storage, Room 110, 131.63 sq ft. Equipment is drawn at typical sizes for each type. The dining room, finishes and ocean view are shown to give a feel for the space.
Food moves one way, from the kitchen through the door to the line. Guests move the other way, from the menu wall down the line and out to the dining room. The two paths meet only across the counter.
Our brisket and turkey are smoked by our family’s co-packer and delivered frozen. They thaw under refrigeration, then are reheated and held in controlled-vapor cabinets that keep them moist for hours, with no hood and no open flame.
Brisket is cut to order whenever possible. When it's busy, it's sliced ahead at the station beside the oven and held in our signature au jus on the line.
Guests line up along the menu wall, build their order down a 14-ft line and pay at the corner by the entry. Turkey legs are served to order from the heated case behind the counter.
Tray in hand, guests head into the dining room, with the Pacific in view.
Branded goods available in store at the Camera Obscura Building and online.
Product images are renderings of planned merchandise.
Camera Obscura Building · 1450 Ocean Avenue, Santa Monica. Our answers to the City's application, in the order the questions appear.
This isn't just any barbecue. Our recipes are custom-tailored by our USDA, HACCP-certified manufacturing and distribution partner: tender brisket with a lightly smoked, fully flavored bark, custom brines, whole smoked turkey legs, and Southern sides like extra-creamy mac and cheese, collard greens, and cool, crisp coleslaw. Everything arrives prepared to our specifications and is finished on-site. No hood required.
It's a legacy generations in the making. My great-uncle, “Daddy Junior,” ran his pits in Jacksonville, Florida, in the 1950s. My father took it from the NFL to the street corners of Avon, Ohio. I've carried it everywhere since. I don't just love barbecue. I bleed it.
This concept was built for this space. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, carry-out, catering, and events all run from one warming kitchen, so every hour and every square foot earns.
Put us in, coach.
Monday–Saturday 7:00am–10:00pm · Sunday 7:00am–9:00pm
Select later evenings for ticketed events, all within Palisades Park's 5:00am–midnight hours.
*For beer, wine, and pastries, we plan to partner with local businesses, with final pricing TBD, because a destination built in this community should be built with this community.
**We plan to pursue a Type 41 (beer and wine) ABC license for evening service.
I didn't just learn barbecue on the pit. I learned it on the production floor. I've managed plant operations across multiple production kitchens, scaled a patented food product into tens of thousands of retail doors, and today I coach independent restaurants on maximizing their revenue through FoodBizCoach.com. This operation will be built the way I'd build a plant, on QSC: Quality, Service, and Consistency.
The kitchen. Our brisket and turkey arrive fully smoked and prepared to our specification by our USDA, HACCP-certified partner. On-site, they're reheated, held, and finished in our commercial warming and holding equipment. No hood needed.
The line. Brisket is cut to order whenever possible, and when it's busy it's held in our signature au jus on the line so guests aren't kept waiting. Tender smoked turkey legs and breakfast sandwiches are held in a glass heated display case behind the counter, where guests can see them, and are served to order by our staff. There's one counter with two registers. Guests order, watch their plate come together, pay, and head for the view.
The guest. We estimate around 60–80 seats in the shared dining space, and it's our understanding that guests can also use the City's deck and patio seating.
The details. All service ware is compostable and compliant with Santa Monica's Disposable Food Service Ware Ordinance.
My dad always said you play like you practice. We plan to build a café warming kitchen that plays the same every single day, whether it's a slower Tuesday in February or the Fourth of July.
We'd be honored to be a part of making this one of the most booked spots on the bluff, hosting our own events and partnering with the City on its programming.
Private rentals. We'll market the dining space for weddings, corporate gatherings, birthdays, and milestone celebrations, managed start to finish by our Catering & Events Coordinator.
City events. We understand this is a shared space, and we'd love to be part of the City's programming. We'll coordinate schedules, staffing, and service so the café and each event run smoothly side by side, keeping the café open to the public whenever possible. If an event needs the full space, we'd welcome working together on a buyout with a food and beverage minimum and advance notice.
Catering. Our on- and off-site catering menu goes well beyond barbecue, serving a wide range of events, tastes, and guest counts. We propose first right of refusal as the preferred caterer for City events and third-party rentals in the building.
Revenue. For events we source, we propose the City receives its 8% of gross sales. For City-sourced events, the rental fee belongs to the City, and in exchange for first right of refusal, we propose increasing the City's share of our catering sales from those events to 10%.
Our success is your reward.
I'm Brittani Bo Baker. I was raised on clichés like that by a father who didn't just play in the NFL. He dominated it. Al “Bubba” Baker still holds the unofficial all-time NFL single-season sack record, set as a rookie. He learned the pit as a boy in Jacksonville, Florida, at the barbecue restaurants his uncle, “Daddy Junior,” owned in the 1950s. When he retired from football, he took that craft to the street corners of Avon, Ohio, and built a family business from there.
I didn't just grow up in that business. I ran it. I learned every position at our family restaurant, Bubba's-Q, in Avon, Ohio, and served as managing partner from 2006 to 2019. In 2009, my father and I co-invented a patented food product, took it to Shark Tank, and scaled it into more than 20,000 retail doors.
In 2019, I took my hospitality career to Tampa, Florida, where I owned and operated a food truck and catering business until 2022. In 2021, I finished in the Final 4 on Food Network's BBQ Brawl. Today, I lead FoodBizCoach.com in Los Angeles, where restaurants across the country hire me to maximize their revenue.
Two decades of operating, scaling, and building winning teams. That's what I bring to Santa Monica.
Our success is your reward.
Stadiums. Leagues. National brands. We've fed them all, in some of the most demanding venues in sports.
Beyond sports, we've delivered large corporate catering across every shift and team size, with menus spanning a wide range of cuisines, not just barbecue.
Every one of these events started with a relationship built on trust. Teams and brands counted on us for their biggest days, and I led our team in delivering them at scale, from logistics and food cost to labor, staffing, and setup.
We've played in the biggest stadiums in America. We'd love for this bluff to be our next home field.
We propose $3,500 per month November through February and $4,000 per month March through October ($46,000 per year Minimum Annual Guaranteed Rent), or 8% of gross sales (excluding sales tax, gratuities, and refunds), whichever is greater, reconciled annually.
We propose that minimum rent be waived for the first 90 days of operation during ramp-up, with percentage rent applying from day one.
8% of gross sales, excluding sales tax, gratuities, and refunds.
We'd be honored to be the concessionaire that helps Santa Monica check off another goal in its Vision Plan: bringing food and beverage concessions into its parks (Action 1.4.2).
We understand the City's renovation will bring the kitchen to life with plumbing, sinks, drains, HVAC, electrical, water, and restrooms. Our capital contribution is built on that scope, and we'd ask that it be listed in the lease as the City's delivered work. The City lays the foundation. We'll help build the home.
We also know the City wants to collaborate with its concessionaire, and we welcome that partnership on equipment as well. Consistent with how the City has partnered with other concessionaires, we propose discussing a tenant improvement allowance or equipment reimbursement. Any equipment the City invests in stays with the building, strengthening a City-owned asset for the Games and for years to come. Before lease signing, we propose building one shared equipment list together, so everyone knows exactly who's providing what and nothing gets bought twice. Every dollar the City invests frees ours to go into opening inventory, our team, and marketing, the things that drive sales and the City's 8%.
We're committing a minimum capital contribution of $75,000, and we anticipate our total investment will reach $100,000 or more. Our commitment covers our full opening investment, from equipment to staffing, marketing, and inventory, so any City allowance directly strengthens the launch rather than replacing our contribution. This includes but is not limited to:
To secure the space, we propose a $3,500 security deposit at lease signing.
5 years
15 years (5-year initial term plus two 5-year renewal options)
We propose a 5-year initial term, extended by the length of the 2028 operational pause, with two 5-year renewal options at the operator's option.
We understand the full property will be licensed to Switzerland from mid-June to mid-September 2028, and we fully support a complete operational pause. We propose: