Paradise Cove Beach Malibu: Hidden Gem Beach & Cafe Guide
A Hidden Gem Beach in Malibu: Paradise Cove Beach
What place comes to mind when you think of beaches in America or California?
Besides world-famous beaches like Santa Monica and Venice Beach, there are multiple attractive beaches that are beloved by locals or famous as filming locations!
This time, as our 8th beach introduction!!, we’ll introduce Paradise Cove Beach, which, as its name suggests, is as attractive as paradise and hugely popular with locals!
1. What is Paradise Cove Beach?
Paradise Cove Beach is a beach on private property in Malibu, California, located about 13 minutes by car and 6.8 miles from Malibu Pier.
While the beach itself is relatively small, it’s one of the popular beaches due to its hidden gem charm and peaceful environment that makes you forget the hustle and bustle of the city.
2. About the History
Paradise Cove Beach was once home to the Chumash Indian tribe.
In the late 1800s, it was known as “Smugglers Cove,” where many founders of California’s Chinese community secretly landed.
It later became part of the Marblehead Land Company owned by the Rindge family.
They built a private railroad to prevent the Southern Pacific Railroad from passing through their land.
This railroad was 15 miles long and was primarily used to transport agricultural products.
The Rindge family later tried to block the construction of the Pacific Coast Highway (now PCH: Pacific Coast Hwy), but eventually had to sell part of their land in the 1940s.
The Paradise Cove land was then bought and sold by several owners, and in the 1950s, the Morris family, who are still the current owners, acquired the land.
They purchased about 70 acres at $3,500 to $25,000 per acre. (Reference: 1 acre is about 4,047 square meters, Tokyo Dome is about 11.5 acres)
From the late 1950s through the 1960s, the beach became so popular that many movies and TV shows were filmed there.
Bob Morris, son of Joe Morris who purchased the land, returned to Malibu with his family and opened Paradise Cove Beach Cafe in 1998, utilizing his experience.
This still hugely popular beach and cafe is bustling with tourists and locals every day.
3. Paradise Cove Beach Pier
Paradise Cove Beach has a small pier.
From here, you can overlook the cafe, beach, and ocean, and the sea breeze feels wonderful.
There’s a sign that says “Paradise Cove Beach,” so it’s recommended to take photos there!
It was also a filming location for the 2000 movie “X-Men”!
4. Paradise Cove Beach Cafe
At this cafe, the terrace seating and indoor seating have separate reception areas. The terrace seating tends to be more crowded on many days, so you need to make reservations in advance or allow plenty of time.
Indoor seats are often guided to window seats with beach views, so there’s a high chance of dining while watching the beach from either seating area!
You can enjoy American casual cuisine centered on seafood, with many unique and delicious drink and dessert options.
The pineapple mojito I ordered this time (a drink with pineapple, rum, sugarcane juice, lime juice, and mint) had a refreshing taste and was delicious!
Also, the enormous cake weighing 2 pounds (about 900g) (World Famous-Mile High Chocolate Cake $15.95) is so large that they recommend sharing it!
It was voluminous, rich, and very delicious, and of course, you can take home what you can’t finish, so please try it!
Check out this Instagram for more details!
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5. Other Malibu Recommendations
5-1. Malibu Pier
Malibu Pier is Malibu’s most famous and popular beach!
The blue and white based buildings are very stylish and cute, perfect for photos.
The large pier has restaurants, cafes, and souvenir shops, making it one of the most popular tourist spots!
5-2. El Matador State Beach
El Matador State Beach is one of Malibu’s hidden gem beaches where you can enjoy amazingly beautiful scenic views!
Actually, this was a filming location for the 2004 movie “The Notebook.”
It’s a truly recommended beach that recalls the happy scenes of young Noah and Allie together!
Since you need to walk down a steep path to reach the beach, I recommend wearing comfortable shoes.
Also, the parking lot is quite small, so it’s good to go on a less crowded weekday with plenty of time!
5-3. Point Dume
Point Dume is a hill where you can enjoy beautiful sunsets, and it was the filming location for the final scene of the 1968 movie “Planet of the Apes.”
The nearby parking lot has very limited spaces, and there are almost no street parking spots available.
It might be more reliable to park at the Zuma Beach parking lot and walk up the hill!
5-4. Leo Carrillo State Beach
This beach was a filming location for the 2006 movie “Letters from Iwo Jima” and the 2003 movie “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl”!
Although it’s away from the center, it’s still one of the popular beaches, so please visit!
5-5. Neptune’s Net (Restaurant)
This is a restaurant where you can enjoy delicious seafood-centered cuisine, and it was a filming location for “The Fast and the Furious” (2001) and “Iron Man 3” (2013)!
It was a great restaurant where you can dine while enjoying delicious food and spectacular beach views, so please try it!
Please also check out this blog!
Head to Malibu! Neptune’s Net—Fast & Furious Filming‑Location Restaurant
6. In Conclusion
Paradise Cove Beach is a private beach beloved by many people as a particularly relaxing spot in Malibu!
While there are multiple attractive beaches in the Malibu area, beaches where you can dine at cafes are limited to Malibu Beach and this one, so please enjoy delicious meals at Paradise Cove Beach Cafe!
We introduce other attractive spots on Instagram! Please take a look!
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