When husband and wife Levi and Harmony Fried lived in Israel, they couldn’t find any good beer in the country. So, they decided to make it themselves.
“We brewed beer out of our garage,” said Harmony. “We’d drink it with our friends, and then we started selling it. I’d serve snacks with beer every Friday. We were paying our rent that way.”
At the time, Levi was a medical student at The Technion, and brewing beer was something he did with Harmony on the side. Since they were so successful with it, they looked into opening up their own beer business in Israel. But, it proved to be too difficult.
“It was just so expensive, and because we are not natural-born Israelis, trying to traverse the system was not easy for us,” said Harmony, who is from the Valley and attended pastry school in New York City.
The two decided to move to Long Beach, where Levi had grown up. In 2017, they opened up the Long Beach Beer Lab, a brewery and restaurant that serves kosher-certified dairy and parve foods like artisan pizza and breads, grilled cheese sandwiches, hummus plates and salads. Customers can also swing by and pick up groceries such as flour, sourdough starters and housemade dips.
The beer flavors include Tiki Dole-Light, which is a sour double piña colada IPA, May the Schwartz Be With You, a dark lager and Dad Beer, a German pilsner. The labels for each of the beers feature a funky design, many featuring Long Beach Beer Lab’s mascot, a “Lab” rat.
The Frieds try to use environmental best practices when brewing their beer and making their food; they have 30 egg-laying chickens, and they partner with local farmers to bring in items such as milk and mushrooms. The business is solar-powered, and the Frieds donate the restaurant’s leftovers to the Gray Panthers, which feeds the elderly and homeless in Long Beach.
“We like the circle of sustainability,” said Harmony.
When COVID hit Southern California, Long Beach Beer Lab stayed open and changed their business model. They offered grab-and-go menu items as well as the groceries.
“We were more of a bakery and grocery store then,” said Harmony. “When we lived in New York, we’d go to these stores where you could get fresh produce, pasta, cuts of meats and cheeses and sit down. They don’t have that in Southern California. But now that people are sick of staying inside, we’ve gone back to a service model so customers can sit down, eat and drink.”
The Frieds, who have two sons and live a block away from Levi’s childhood home, frequently host events at the Long Beach Beer Lab. Recent ones have included a fermentation workshop and a “Sip and Shop” afternoon, featuring local artists selling their works.
“We offer fun things for the community to experience,” said Harmony.
While the Frieds love what they do, Harmony said that running a small business can be difficult. “All of your heart and soul and time goes into, and you get very emotionally involved. It’s hard to find a balance between life and work.”
But, according to Levi, they don’t try to simplify their operation.
“Everything takes time and effort, and I think that comes across to the people who buy our products.” – Levi Fried
“Nothing we do is easy or fast,” he said. “Everything takes time and effort, and I think that comes across to the people who buy our products.”
One of the motivating factors for the Frieds is the support from the Jewish community.
“We were surprised at how many Jewish people come from L.A. to enjoy our food,” Harmony said. “That’s why we decided to continue with it.”
For the Frieds, community is what it’s all about in the end.
“Our vision is to have a place for the community,” Harmony said. “Our favorite types of customers are people who stop by after their run in the morning, come back for lunch and have pizza and beer with friends and then take a loaf of bread home for dinner. It’s a beautiful community space.”
Long Beach Beer Lab, 518 W Willow St, Long Beach, CA 90806 (562) 270-3253 lbbeer.com
