Jan. 13–As competition heats up along Pacific Coast Highway, Shorebreak Hotel in downtown Huntington Beach is embarking on a $3 million makeover that includes a new restaurant, expanded private dining and major d?cor changes to its 157 rooms.

"At the end of the day, it will be a brand new property," hotel general manager Justin Simpson.

The refresh comes nearly two years after DiamondRock Hospitality bought the surf-themed boutique hotel for $58.5 million and installed new management.

One of the more significant changes will be the April debut of Pacific Hideaway, the hotel's new restaurant. Zimzala, whose menu has changed a few times since the hotel opened in 2009, closed last Sunday. Pacific Hideaway will feature a menu of modern American food inspired by Asian and island flavors.

"Locally, that's what people eat around here," Simpson said. "If you're a surfer that travels different coastlines around the world, we're catering to what that person would eat."

The restaurant's redesign includes reducing the seating to 100 seats and reconfiguring the space to take advantage of ocean and pier views.

Roll-up garage-style doors will be added to create an "indoor-outdoor" feel between the main dining room and the patio, Simpson. The open dining area will maximize water-facing views, which were limited under the Zimzala layout. The restaurant is also adding two private dining rooms, which will eliminate about 80 seats.

The tradeoff: Shorebreak can now offer private dining for large groups and corporate meetings.

While the restaurant is undergoing major construction, Simpson said the changes to the hotel rooms are focused on d?cor and furnishings.

The refresh began this month, and impacts about 10 to 15 rooms every two weeks. The updates should be complete by early March.

"We're doing it so it makes sense and there's little to no impact to the guest," Simpson said.

The hotel is within The Strand, a mixed-use commercial development including retail, office and parking. The 100,000-square-foot property is owned by Cypress Equities of Dallas. The hotel's exterior, along 5th Street, is also getting a reboot.

Shades of marine blue will replace orange and yellow colors. "It will pop and look a lot better," Simpson said.

The makeover caps a two-year effort by DiamondRock to revamp the Shorebreak, one block north of the Huntington Beach Pier. It's the Bethesda, Md.-based company's 28th property and its fourth on the West Coast. After acquiring the venue for $58.5 million, the firm tapped Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants to manage the hotel. The operator, based in San Francisco, specializes in running boutique hotels and restaurants.

Last summer, the first major change was doubling the size of the hotel fitness center to include more cross training equipment such as truck tires, squat racks, and a 40-foot wide rock climbing wall.

Industry consultant John Strauss said the upgrades plays into Huntington Beach's growing reputation as an interactive and experiential destination.

"The Shorebreak and its ongoing renovation and repositioning represents the evolution of Huntington Beach as a more upscale and luxury sub-market along the Orange County coastline," said Strauss, international director at Los Angeles-based JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group.

Simpson said Kimpton's specialty is creating a hotel environment that fits into the local culture. "We're not trying to be the destination. We're trying to be part of the destination."

As such, the hotel also caters to locals with various promotions.

Over the holidays, they held an "outlaw the in-law" promotion encouraging locals to have their in-laws stay at the hotel at a discounted rate. "We threw in a bottle of wine," Simpson said. "That local promotion did extremely well."

The Shorebreak revamp comes as the overall hotel industry is on the upswing, according to market research firm IBISWorld. Industry revenue in 2016 rose 2.7 percent to $169.5 billion. Much of that growth is tied to increases to consumer spending and travel, IBIS said.

With travel up, room rates in California are also rising. As of November, the cost per room in California was up 6 percent year to date, according to Atlas Hospitality Group, an Irvine-based firm that tracks the hotel industry. The company doesn't have data specific to Huntington Beach, however, room rates in nearby Newport Beach were up 1.3 percent. Anaheim hotel rates jumped 8.3 percent for the same period

In downtown Huntington Beach, developers are taking advantage of the increased interest in travel.

Last year, the Pasea Hotel & Spa opened on the grounds of the Pacific City complex along Pacific Coast Highway. The Waterfront Beach Resort, a Hilton property in Huntington Beach, is undergoing a $140 million expansion. Retail and food venues continue to open at Pacifc City, a luxury retail center with expansive ocean views.

Simpson said Shorebreak's makeover "will keep us competitive in the market," he said.

Strauss, who helped broker the 2015 purchase of Shorebreak, said hotels in Huntington Beach also provide a more affordable option in coastal Orange County, which is "home to some of the finest hotels in the United States."

The average room rates in Dana Point, Laguna Beach and Newport Beach hover between $300-$450 a night, while Huntington Beach rooms run between $200-$250.

"Huntington Beach offers a bit more of a value proposition," said Strauss, who follows the California hotel sector.

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