The Shellback Tavern, a laid-back Manhattan Beach watering hole that’s spiritually akin to Margaritaville (before it went corporate), has a loyal customer base of local regulars. Winded beach volleyball players often wander into the dive after a sweaty game on the sand, and residents strolling along the nearby coastal promenade, known as the Strand, routinely come in to enjoy chilled beers and bar snacks, including a $14.95 breakfast special consisting of a bloody mary and a Jimmy Dean breakfast sandwich. 

But Shellback Tavern isn’t just locally beloved. Recently, longtime owner Bob Beverly heard a story from some customers who’d recently hiked up the Amazon River. When the hikers descended from the boat that had zipped them up the river, they encountered a group of hikers making their way back; to their amazement, one of said travelers was wearing a Shellback Tavern trucker hat. 

Beverly was delighted when he heard the tale, but he wasn’t shocked. For the past five years or so, the bar’s candy-hued trucker hats — bearing its name and an illustration of the Manhattan Beach pier — have been spotted all over the world. They sit atop the heads of celebrities, like business scion Mark Cuban and actor Josh Peck, whose hat is practically part of his daily uniform. Many a Real Housewife, athlete and country musician have sported them while out in public. 

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The interior of Shellback Tavern is seen in Manhattan Beach, Calif., on Jan. 29, 2026.

Also available in patterns like camo and in slightly pricier patchwork varieties, with seasonal offshoots for Christmas and July Fourth, the $15 Shellback Tavern hat has become a status symbol for a certain set of discerning customers. The demand for the beach bar’s hats is seemingly bottomless, to the point that Beverly’s staff receives “multiple deliveries per week” in........

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