I am not a California guy, but I'd say look at Manahttan Beach.....

We stayed actually in El Segundo but MB was a stones throw away. Much cleaner/nicer than VB, SB is nice, but IMO more people, of course you have the Boardwalk there as well.

MB offers a less crowded beach IMO, great food places. It is safe as well. If you want the retro, cool vibes Venice is you, but it has a lot more draw backs. Much more pan handling, homelessness is more obvious. Keep in mind I am basing what we saw from 2017 (VB and SM and 2021 with MB.