One of the world’s top chefs has shifted his palette from New York City fine dining to classic cookout fare, bringing a new food paradise for hungry patrons at Pacific Park.
The Santa Monica Pier’s amusement park introduced "Snackville" on June 7, a colony of customer-pleasing stands serving burgers, fries, churros, ice cream, funnel cake and frozen fruit treats. The new locale is the first of $10 million in capital investments committed to Pacific Park via new operator SC Holdings, and is the culinary concept of Michelin Star Chef James Kent.
"When you’re hanging out by the Santa Monica Pier with the seagulls flying around … you never really think ‘oh, let’s bring a Michelin-starred chef in to help us make a really awesome smash burger,’ but that’s the door that’s been open … and we’re super excited to have [Snackville] here," Pacific Park Senior Director of Business Affairs Nathan Smithson said.
Kent has a rich history in the NYC food scene, serving as chef de cuisine at Eleven Madison Park before opening Crown Shy and SAGA in the landmark Art Deco building in the mecca’s Financial District. Since opening, both Crown Shy and SAGA have been awarded Michelin stars, adding to Kent’s already-solidified legacy.
Working on the project for about six months, Kent saw Pacific Park as the "perfect opportunity" to try out new foods after testing his concessions skills during the 2023 US Open tennis tournament. Making new menus and introducing a host of Snackville mascots, Kent was beaming with pride during the grand opening.
"It’s a different world from what we do, we work in a high-end, kind of fine dining world," Kent said. "But I think with those skills, you can always go [different] and work [to] make delicious food … we’ve had a lot of fun working for this."
The five pillars of Snackville start at the Pacific Park entrance with Smashie’s Burgers, serving smash burgers charbroiled on the griddle, topped with American cheese, grilled onions and the new "Smashie Sauce." The complement to the burger can be found at Mr. Nice Fry, with fry varieties including "Skinny Dippers," "Swirly Fries" and "Tater Wheels."
Desserts are plenty in the new space, such as Kent’s chance to take churros "up a notch" at Churrita Churros. Noted as the first time churros have been made fresh on the Pier in "decades," the sweet shop can serve churros with or without soft-serve ice cream in flavors like cinnamon sprinkled, dulce de leche or chocolate filled.
Located just inside the Snackville entrance is Scoops Creamery, handing out treats like hand-scooped ice cream, milkshakes and sundaes, while Cosmic Funnel Cake serves the signature boardwalk treat with several topping options.
Kent stated that whether it’s fine dining or classic treats, everything starts with setting systems and protocols for team members to execute, and he didn’t want to "overthink things" in the planning process.
"I can’t give them a recipe that has 20 ingredients, it’s too complicated," Kent added. "We need to do three or four things that can be done really well … my chefs are having a good time and they’re proud."
Making the trip to Snackville from its homestead in Arizona is eegee’s frozen fruit drinks, located inside of Mr. Nice Fry. A staple in the state since 1971, eegee’s has 30 locations across Southern Arizona and brings flavors like peach and strawberry across state lines for the new experience.
With this combination of food favorites, Kent explained that he’s bringing a dining experience to the Pier that "everyone has a reference point" for.
"This is iconic Americana where we’re standing … [it’s about] how do we support that and do things that people understand, [but] do it a little bit better," Kent said.
