Proving that it's more than just food and drink, Bite At The Beach delighted crowds this year with new food tastings, wine, and waxing (yes, waxing!).

The August 12 event, produced by the Manhattan Beach Chamber of Commerce, featured a wide array of food and drink offerings from local restaurants and producers, and included wine for the first time, which was "a good call," according to Mark Lipps, chamber president and CEO.

Also new this year was a four-course culinary experience, which patrons enjoyed while seated at the bar of Lisa's Bon Appetit food station. After finishing Absolution Craft Beer and four rounds of tapas-style treats from Chef Oscar, one group moved out and the next group sat down. As testament to the station's popularity, there was a line of patrons waiting for spots throughout the afternoon.

"That station was a great out-of-the-box idea," said Lipps. "Next year we will encourage all of our vendors to get creative with their space."

Surprisingly popular was another new addition - a waxing station from BOX Human Landscapers offering nostril waxes. "Who would have thought that BOX Human Landscapers would have been so busy at a beer and food festival?" said Lipps. "Yet they had a non-stop line of customers getting their wax on."

Other crowd-pleasing stations included burgers from Simmzy's, chicken and waffle bites from Second Story at the The Belamar Hotel, tri-tip and quinoa salad from GROW, a variety of colorful juices from Pressed Juicery, fig jam and prosciutto sandwiches from The Ripe Choice, and gluten-free pasta from Lido di Manhattan Restaurant.

"It was a sudsy, deliciously good time," said Lipps. He added that his staff was "chomping at the bit" to begin planning the 2018 Bite at the Beach, and they already had several new ideas that they are going to keep under wraps until next year.

The event, held at the MBS Media Campus, was sponsored by Southern California Gas. Sponsors also included Chevron, DoLA.com, LA Talk Radio, MBS Campus, Yelp, and On Location Marketing.