House painters in Laguna, CA

Laguna Beach has lost two of its most beloved beachfront haunts — and furious locals fear yet another piece of the ritzy coastal town’s casual charm is being bulldozed along with them.

Driftwood Kitchen and its sister spot, The Deck, served its final meals on Monday, shutting down to clear the way for massive redevelopment — including a brand-new luxury resort.

The longtime oceanfront restaurants closed after Labor Day following a decade of service — where diners could scarf down jumbo crab cakes and High Tides practically in the Pacific.

Unlike other area eateries that have gone bust in recent years amid the soaring cost of doing business, owners wanted patrons to know that they didn’t close because they were drowning in red ink.

“Over the past decade, we’ve seen more than 50 restaurants in Laguna close for financial reasons — we want to emphasize that is not the case here,” Driftwood Kitchen wrote in an Instagram post.

The properties, part of a larger parcel of land that includes the Pacific Edge Hotel, will disappear as long-planned redevelopment commences.

The new, resulting resort, catering to high-end travelers, should arrive in about three years, it has been reported.

Right now, regulars are seeing red.

“Another charming, vintage, coastal Orange County icon being bulldozed and replaced with some monstrosity,” one commented on a local’s social media account. “I don’t understand how this is happening. What’s next in Laguna? An Amazon fulfillment center and an AI facility?”

“Laguna is slowly losing its charm and turning into a money hungry resort conglomerates,” another lamented.

Others vented that big business is ruining the small beach town, stripping it of its character.

“No one wants to go to the places that look like Santa Monica x 20,” a local sniped.

“This is a huge loss, poor decision,” another local mourned online. “It was popular. Truly sad.”

The Deck launched in 2012 and the Driftwood Kitchen a year later, earning awards, hosting charity galas and shucking nearly a million oysters during its time there.

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The land reportedly changed hands in 2024 — when developers Dune Drifter purchased the property for $80 million.

The new owners have been working through the permitting and approval process with the city since then — and are now ready to break ground.

If you missed this season's Pageant of the Masters in Laguna Beach, fear not. We've got you covered.

Updated Tue, Sep 8, 2026 at 11:41 am PT

(Festival of Arts Pageant of the Masters Photo)

LAGUNA BEACH, CA — Laguna Beach's storied Pageant of the Masters draws thousands to the idyllic coastal enclave every single summer.

The pageant celebrated its final show this past weekend, marking the end of the summer season.

This year's pageant theme was "The Greatest of All Time" and saw recreations of iconic works of art from artists spanning history.

The show recreated works by Michelangelo, Picasso, Monet, Van Gogh, Vermeer, Frida Kahlo and Norman Rockwell.

"Being part of the Pageant is unlike anything I've ever experienced. For a few moments each night, you become part of a masterpiece and part of a tradition that has inspired audiences for generations," Pageant volunteer Jennifer Mason said. "There's something incredibly special about knowing that people travel from around the world to experience this show, and that you're helping bring art to life right before their eyes."

In addition, attendees were treated to depictions of Rome's Trevi Fountain and the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.

"This year's production celebrates the artists and artworks that have stood the test of time and continue to inspire generations," Director of the Pageant of the Masters Diane Challis Davy said. "Whether you're an art lover, a first-time visitor, or someone who has attended for decades, 'The Greatest of All Time' offers a chance to experience these masterpieces in an entirely new way."

The final show featured the pageant's well-known still "living pictures" with an extra twist — during the performance, pageant actors broke out of their portraits and sprang into action.

During the Festival of Arts, visitors were given a chance to explore and purchase original works from 120 Orange County artists across all mediums.

Guests met artists, enjoyed live music and entertainment, witnessed art demonstrations, or engaged in one of the hands-on art workshops offered at the festival.

In addition, the final day of the show marked the conclusion of the festival's annual car raffle, where one lucky attendee won a brand-new 2026 Volvo XC90 B6.

During this season’s historic El Niño event, on the west coast, one unfortunate aspect has been the coastal erosion that the slew of hurricane swells has wrought.

For instance, recently, massive 20-foot backwash waves absolutely decimated Aliso Beach in Laguna Beach as El Niño-fueled hurricane swells battered Southern California. The severe coastal erosion has completely transformed the shoreline, leaving behind a trail of destruction that looks more like a disaster zone than a picturesque beach.

Check out the video below, titled “Giant Hurricane Waves destroy a Southern California beach! 15′ – 20′ Backwash!”, as the chaos is captured in high def.

The video’s caption perfectly summarizes the devastation: “Big Hurricane surf and hightide destroys the infamous Aliso Beach in Southern California. This is some ultra RAW documentation of the crazy El Nino season and wild surf.” The channel’s creators added they will continue to document the “coastal chaos happening from what many have dubbed ‘Swell Nino!'” before warning viewers: “Hope you enjoy the beauty and chaos and any beach-goers in Southern California please be safe!”

That warning couldn’t be come at a better time. Along with the erosion and annihilation of beaches, beachgoers have also been rocked by the influx of swell.

Aliso Beach was recently the site of a near-fatal tragedy amidst the towering surf. A woman walking along the shoreline was suddenly swept away by a powerful rogue wave. As the massive surge pulled her into the churning ocean, lifeguards and emergency responders rushed to the scene. She was ultimately rescued from the violent shorebreak and airlifted via helicopter to a local hospital for emergency medical treatment.

Meanwhile, the coastline gets no time to recover. Another massive swell, this one generated by Hurricane Marie, is currently hammering Southern California. While the arrival of Hurricane Marie may bring world-class waves for expert surfers, it also carries the grim threat of further coastal erosion, deadly rip currents, and dangerous conditions.

With heavy ocean energy continuing to pound the sand, officials urge extreme caution.

Keep a safe distance from the shorebreak, respect the unpredictability of the ocean, and never turn your back on the waves during this historic run of surf.

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By the time I reached the top, my shoulders were burning, my calves were screaming and I could no longer say exactly how many steps I’d climbed.

On the way down, I had counted 223. On the way back up, balancing a sack across my back, I arrived at 225. I chalked the discrepancy up to exhaustion.

The route at Thousand Steps Beach in South Laguna gains roughly 250 feet in elevation within a quarter mile from the sand to the highest point of the Ninth Avenue hill. And I was one of around 60 people making the climb again and again with sandbags weighing anywhere from 5 to 50-plus pounds.

This was Sandbag Saturday, a free training session founded by brothers Dante and Joey Finiguerra. There’s no registration required — attendees just show up and grab one of the heavy-duty, polypropylene sacks the brothers provide and fill it with as much beach sand as they want. A portable luggage scale allows the more serious athletes to keep track of their progress week after week.

My quads and I were intimidated. But it turned out to be one of the friendliest workouts I’ve ever done.

The workout got its start in December 2023, when Dante, a former Navy SEAL and fitness coach, posted an invitation on Instagram for what was originally supposed to be “Water Jug Saturday.” He encouraged his followers to fill 5-gallon jugs and join him and Joey, a triathlete, for military-style drills on the sand, in the water and up the stairs and adjacent hill.

When a friend pointed out some weighted bags lining the path at the bottom of the staircase one day, the siblings quickly abandoned the water jug idea. Sandbags were easier to sling over shoulders and balance on heads. And perhaps just as importantly, “Sandbag Saturday” rolled off the tongue a lot better.

Long before Dante joined the military and Joey started running marathons, Thousand Steps Beach was always where they got their best workouts. As teenagers growing up in the area, they climbed the staircase barefoot, sprinted the hill overlooking the Pacific and stretched their limbs on the shoreline. They spent nights camping on the sand after long days of surfing. Joey later proposed to his now-wife there.

3

“The beach really has meaning to us,” Dante told me when asked about the workout’s origins. “From 18 to 22, I trained for the Navy here almost every day. I always wanted to come back and give this to the community and to anyone who I felt would appreciate it.”

After serving for nine years, Dante’s military background is evident in the fitness sessions he designs for Sandbag Saturdays. Participants perform duck walks, suitcase carries, bear crawls and overhead holds reminiscent of the log and boat carries in Marine boot camps. But despite its inspiration, the atmosphere couldn’t be further from the “Full Metal Jacket”-esque training days that might come to mind.

“We don’t do the typical hardcore yelling at you,” Joey told me before leading the group on a recent Saturday. “Everyone can go as slow or fast as they want.”

Among the regular participants are active-duty firefighters, lifeguards, professional boxers, National Guard personnel, yoga teachers and locals just looking for a fun way to get their cardio in. For some, the gatherings are family affairs. When I was there, Dante and Joey’s mother and sister joined in, and a handful of young children carried tiny sacks too.

“I think people see us and it looks like there’s a barrier of entry with the sandbags and all,” said Anthony Gudenau, who joins Sandbag Saturdays regularly. “But I’m amazed at the different types of people that show up regardless.”

The group’s growth might be due to the sense of inclusiveness that becomes especially noticeable on the staircase. While doing the steps myself, I noticed participants regularly inviting curious, inquiring beachgoers to join in the following weekend.

“I love how we all pump each other up when we pass one another going up and down,” said Carmen Benedick, a local who has attended every Saturday for the past six weeks. “It’s not unusual for strangers who aren’t even part of it to also encourage you. The sense of community is amazing.”

Perhaps that’s why so many people keep coming back. Sandbag Saturday has evolved into a kind of outdoor third place, where the endorphin-releasing workout is only part of the draw. For all the sore glutes and calves, what lingers most is the appeal of turning this into a weekend ritual.

“I just want to keep doing it for free every Saturday,” Dante told me. “As long as it’s bringing a positive force to people’s lives and making them feel proud for doing something extremely hard.”

When the morning finally wrapped up and the temperature started to climb, participants stacked their sandbags into a towering formation. A few climbed onto the pile to practice gymnastics-style balances while others headed into the water.

Then, one by one, the bags were sliced open, and the sand spilled back onto the beach where it had come from. I grabbed my belongings and headed up those 223 — or maybe 225 — stairs one last time.

Live music on the Irvine Bowl stage at the Coast Film & Music Festival in Laguna Beach

Films on Forest draws a crowd under the string lights on the Forest Avenue Promenade in downtown Laguna Beach

Five concert nights at the historic 2,600 seat Irvine Bowl headline the 8th annual festival, October 16 to 25 in one of California's most beautiful beach towns.

We're thrilled to bring another year of world class music to the Irvine Bowl this October.”

LAGUNA BEACH, CA, UNITED STATES, September 7, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Coast Film & Music Festival returns for its eighth year this October, and the whole town is the venue. From October 16 to 25, filmmakers, musicians, artists, athletes and curious audiences will gather in Laguna Beach for ten days of independent film, live performances and conversations, capped by five nights of live music at the historic Irvine Bowl in Laguna Canyon.

The festival's live music series, Concerts in the Canyon, brings a lineup that would be at home in a big city amphitheater to a 2,600 seat outdoor bowl tucked into the canyon hillside. Preservation Hall Jazz Band opens the series on Saturday, October 3, followed by Aloe Blacc on Sunday, October 4, presented alongside the Laguna Plein Air Painters Association invitational. The closing weekend of the festival brings three straight nights of music: Rainbow Body with Ignacio Maria Gomez on Friday, October 23, Ben Harper with special guests Donavon Frankenreiter, G. Love and Lily Meola on Saturday, October 24, and Amos Lee with the same special guests on Sunday, October 25. All shows are rain or shine, with reserved seating.

"We're thrilled to bring another year of world class music to the Irvine Bowl this October," said Enich Harris, cofounder of the festival and the concert series.

A venue you have to see to believe

Laguna Beach is seven miles of coves, cliffs and clear water on the Orange County coast, halfway between Los Angeles and San Diego. Painters discovered it first. California Impressionists began arriving after 1900, drawn by the light and the views, and the art colony they built still shapes the town today. Laguna is home to the Festival of Arts, founded in 1932, and the Pageant of the Masters, along with the Laguna Art Museum and dozens of galleries. It is also one of the few cities in Southern California surrounded by wilderness: roughly 22,000 acres of protected canyons and coastal hills wrap around the town, so a five minute drive from the sand puts you among sycamores and sandstone.

The Irvine Bowl sits right at that edge, at 650 Laguna Canyon Road, inside the Festival of Arts grounds and a short walk from downtown and the beach. Dedicated in 1941 and named for rancher James Irvine, whose land made it possible, the amphitheater was built into a natural bowl at the mouth of the canyon. For more than eight decades it has been home to the Pageant of the Masters. What makes it special for a concert is scale. With 2,600 seats rising up the hillside, every seat is close, the canyon walls hold the sound, and as the sun drops the sky over the ridgeline does the lighting. In November 2025, Jack Johnson & The Moonshine Conspiracy sold out two nights here. This year the bowl becomes the centerpiece of the festival with five nights of music.

"Coast has grown from a film festival into something much bigger, a gathering around film, music, art, ideas and the experiences that bring people together," said Ben Warner, cofounder of the Coast Film & Music Festival and the Coast Film Foundation. "This October is our most ambitious program yet. We're excited to create something that feels distinctly Laguna Beach while inviting people from across Southern California to come experience Coast, discover something new and leave inspired."

Ten days across town

Beyond the bowl, the festival unfolds at venues within walking distance of each other in downtown Laguna Beach, including the Rivian South Coast Theater, the Festival of Arts grounds and Forum Theater, the Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center, the Surfing Heritage and Culture Center, and the Forest Avenue Promenade. Programming includes:

Films and filmmakers: independent films spanning adventure, environment, surf, outdoor culture, music and the human experience, each paired with post screening conversations with the filmmakers, athletes and subjects.

Films on Forest: free outdoor screenings and live music under string lights on the Forest Avenue Promenade in the heart of downtown.

Coast Summit, October 22: an afternoon of ideas built around the theme "Intelligence of Nature," exploring what the natural world can teach us about living, creating, designing and building the future.

Hobie Night, October 20: a locals' favorite celebrating the creativity and culture inspired by the Laguna Beach icon.

Coast Changemaker Dinner, October 21: an intimate evening honoring leaders using creativity and innovation to drive change.

Emerging filmmakers: screenings, education and mentorship connecting the next generation of storytellers with established industry leaders, including the Coast Film Foundation's annual scholarship for a graduating Laguna Beach High School senior.

Get Outside: guided outdoor experiences and stewardship programs that connect festivalgoers with the coastline, ocean, trails and open space that make Laguna what it is.

Tickets and passes

Festival passes are on sale now at coastfilmfestival.com. Several pass options include general admission or VIP seating for all three closing weekend concerts at the Irvine Bowl, plus unlimited access to films, programs and workshops. Concerts in the Canyon tickets for October 3 and 4 are sold separately, with reserved seating and weekend bundles available. Tickets for October 23, 24 and 25 are available individually or through festival passes.

Single event tickets are limited, so passes are the most reliable way to guarantee access.

The Coast Film & Music Festival is produced by the Coast Film Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to fostering filmmakers and amplifying stories that entertain, inform and inspire people to see the world differently. Proceeds support the foundation's year round community, education and filmmaker programs.

Come curious. Leave inspired.

About Coast Film & Music Festival

The Coast Film & Music Festival is an annual celebration of film, music, art, ideas and outdoor culture in Laguna Beach, California. Through films, live music, conversations and community gatherings, Coast brings together filmmakers, artists, musicians, athletes, environmental leaders and curious audiences from Southern California and beyond. Learn more at coastfilmfestival.com and follow @coastfilmfestival on Instagram.

Coast Film & Music Festival mike.fig@me.com Visit us on social media: LinkedIn Instagram Facebook

Coast Film & Music Festival 2026, October 16 to 25, Laguna Beach

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