CLIPBOARD : THE SEAL BEACH INN AND GARDENS

It is the front of the place--with its eye-catching wrought iron draped in bougainvillea--that gives one pause. While it is unusual to see such a place in the middle of a quiet residential section of town, there are more surprises for those who delve further. For that is what the Seal Beach Inn and Gardens is--a place of surprises, and of romance.

Opened in 1924, it was the first bed and breakfast inn in Southern California, according to manager Wendy Stewart.

The inn’s proprietor, Marjorie Bettenhausen, seemed destined to own such a place--her last name means innkeeper in German.

If the inn reminds visitors of all things French, it is by design. Bettenhausen bought the outside gates from an old Paris hotel, and the wrought iron on the front of the inn is from New Orleans. All of the 23 guest rooms are graced with silk wallpaper and antiques, much like inns in the French Mediterranean.

There are bridal suites for those celebrating honeymoons or anniversaries. Those at the inn pride themselves on its romantic atmosphere.

“We get visitors from overseas, a lot of local people, honeymoon couples, anniversary couples . . . we get everybody,” Stewart said. “There’s a lot of repeat business as well, people coming back every year for their anniversary and the like.”

Stewart credits the staff and Bettenhausen for the place’s popularity.

“I’ve never seen a place that has had so much attention paid to it,” she said. “The 20 people who work here are always tending to things and every day (Bettenhausen) is in here doing something to the rooms, adding things, rearranging things.”

Visitors come to relax, and do so by taking advantage of the swimming pool, the private library and especially the well-tended gardens.

“The garden is beautiful, with magnolias, azaleas, gardenias, Easter lilies, bougainvilleas, every flower imaginable,” Stewart said.

Homemade breakfasts are served in the recently refurbished dining room. The distinctively European meal has become so popular that the inn gets many local people who stop by just for breakfast, which is served to non-guests for $7.50.

Address: 212 5th St., Seal Beach

Telephone: (213) 493-2416

Miscellaneous information: Rates range from $98 to $145. The inn is available for outdoor wedding ceremonies and receptions; however, no alcohol can be served on the premises.