And while there may not be many surfer dudes or bikini-clad babes catching waves in this part of town, the crowds are still piling in for the taste of southern Californian street food and the venue’s breezy beach shack vibe.

Over the last few weeks, SoCal has been getting itself ready for the Sydney party season.

The colour scheme has been updated from pink to white while larger dining tables have been brought in for the big groups.

SoCal are also in the process of installing a new neon sign, perfect for those summery Instagram snaps, as well as a colourful cactus mural for the side of the stairwell.

While the food menu may have changed several times since opening, it has always remained focused on fresh and modern southern Californian street food with a Latin American twist.

Some of the venue’s most popular dishes include the snapper ceviche, a colourful tumble of raw fish and kiss peppers in a zesty ginger mescal marinade ($22) and the Baja fish tacos with a refreshing pineapple salsa and slaw ($6 each or $3 on Taco Tuesdays).

The real stars of the menu however are the smoked meats, which include Adobo chicken, beef brisket, pulled pork and crispy lamb, cooked in the in-house smoker.

“Our style of smoking is low and slow and the whole process can take up to 3-4 days,” says SoCal’s general manager Michael Meates.

“First we brine the meat for a day, then we cover it in a spice rub and then we smoke it for usually around 14-16 hours.

“It’s quite a long process to get it to the plate but the taste is definitely worth it!”

Meats aren’t the only menu item to be given the smoky treatment.

“We also have three smoked cocktails on offer — two Old Fashioned-style cocktails and one that is our take on a Negroni with mescal instead of gin,” said Mr Meates.

The drink menu also includes Mexican beers such as Pacifico, Corona and Negra Modelo, largaritas, as well as an extensive tequila and mescal offering.

And not that you needed another reason to drop by, but for the rest of the warm weather season SoCal will also be running a bottomless rosé promotion which includes two hours of all-you-can-drink rosé.

Yes, you can bet those new larger tables will be put to good use.