Do It. Ice Cream Man at Prospector.

This Thursday is Long Beach's Ice Cream Man's annual holiday event where he and his crew hand out free ice cream and hot chocolate at the Prospector.

There are also three local bands playing at Prospector that night, including Still Flyin', Crystal Antlers, Hasselhoff Curtainrod for $5 admittance.

Prospector is an excellent steakhouse-by-day-bar-by-night kind of place and in a good location in Long Beach, at the intersection of 7th Street and Junipero Boulevard, close to some excellent bars, cafes, and wine bars on Long Beach's 4th Street.

Prospector is located at 2400 E. 7th St. The show starts at 10 p.m.

-- Lauren Williams

Advance Notice. Alkaline Trio at Alex's.

The hardcore band Alkaline Trio will be making a stop at Long Beach's best dive bar next week, and those interested should get their tickets pronto.

Alex's Bar will be hosting Alkaline Trio Nov. 13 for $20. If you're not into hardcore at all, Alex's has other surprisingly big-name bands stop by. The Bronx and The Donnas have been known to play there.

Some highlights this month include Mr. Mister Miyagi, a karaoke back-up band, which is always fun. Mr. Mister Miyagi goes on stage Dec. 4. It's worth checking back in to Alex's calendar because they often have very good bands last minute or with little announcement.

Alex's Bar is located at 2913 E. Anaheim Street in Long Beach.

-- Lauren Williams

Eat Out. Joe Jost's [Thirsty Thursdays!].

The above pictured green blobs covered in pepper and resting in a nest of pencil pretzels are pickled eggs, and Joe Jost's in Long Beach goes through about 10,000 of the seemingly unappetizing eggs each year.

Joe Jost's has the distinction of being Long Beach's oldest standing pub and one of the oldest standing bars west of the Mississippi River (and also, strangely, doubling as a bait-and-tackle shop). It's been up and running for over 80 years, once serving as a drinking hang out for Navy men in the 1940s and now serving all kinds of locals, from cool fixie-riding college students to older salts.

Despite it's age the place is in great shape, and has old barbershop-style chairs in the back, along with traditional pub games.

Sandwiches are very affordable costing about $3-5, but a large mug of beer can be a bit hefty, around $6.

Joe Jost's is located at 2803 Anaheim St.

-- Lauren Williams

Eat Out. Reno Room [Thirsty Thursdays!].

If you love all things local, then you'll love Reno Room. This tiny bar captures a bit of L.A.'s past, once serving as the drinking home to famed-LA poet, writer, and all-around curmudgeon Charles Bukowski.

Now, the bar is a strange mix of college students and older locals, there are a few good beers on tap, including Blue Moon, pool tables in the corners, and strangely, a Mexican restaurant is both part and independent of the bar.
Coco Reno's is the wonderfully greasy Mexican restaurant within, but not really part of Reno Room. Serving up all the expected Mexican dishes, enchiladas, burritos, and hearty helpings of red rice, you can order a drink from Reno Room while still sitting in Coco Renos. They also have a nice margarita.

Reno Room is located at 3400 E. Broadway in Long Beach.

-- Lauren Williams

Eat Out. Fern's [Sunday Brunch].

Spending your Sunday afternoons in a dumpy dive bar in Long Beach may seem kind of trashy, but Fern's is a bit different.

By no stretch of the imagination could one call this place classy, with a mural of a topless horned woman with a bifurcated tongue on one wall and the floor that looks more like the foundation, but Sundays here are $1 Busch day, happy hour all night, and at times, barbeque, grilled cheeses and PB&J nights, this place on Sunday is the place to be.

It's definitely more of a punk-style bar, but has probably one of the best jukeboxes I've ever seen (have you ever been able to find Elvis, Tom Waits, the Stones, the Clash, Siouxsie, Bauhaus, Dylan, Johnny Cash, Iggy Pop, and the Damned on one jukebox?)
And the beer selection is great, with at least three different kinds of Angel City brew, but you may have to wait a while. The sassy bartenders may give you the snub.

Note: This place is definitely not for the faint of heart. This place defines the phrase "dive bar".

-- Lauren Williams