Two Years In, Si! Mon Is Still a Stunner of a Los Angeles Seafood Restaurant

"Si! Mon has quickly become a Venice Beach Boardwalk-adjacent destination that puts diners a few hundred feet away from the ocean but feels transportive enough inside that you don't need to decamp to the beach after (unless you want to). Here, chef José Olmedo Carles Rojas slings his interpretation of Panamanian cuisine informed by Los Angeles's diverse neighborhoods and other Central American foodways. The result: A never-boring cacophony of flavors and influences that feels new every time you go."

"The delightful uni shooter is a slick two-slurp operation involving a shot glass of uni, littleneck clam, and achiote-spiced ponzu, all perched in a small bowl holding the ponzu's overflow liquid. Dungeness crab guacho, Si! Mon's irresistible Panamanian rice stew, gets spiked with rum. It's not always on the menu, however, so go for the coconut-marinated kanpachi baked in a lustrous banana leaf if you crave a seafood main during Dungeness crab off-season."

"Si! Mon's gluten-free fried chicken drumsticks are the stuff of legend: mercilessly crispy from its double-fry and doused with an herb-allium blend that includes pulverized scallions, mint, basil, and rosemary - a veritable lightning bolt to the tongue that Carles has lovingly named "chicken salt." Pair with nontraditional pupusas revueltas packed with chicharón and loroco and you're in for a good time - both dishes go well with curtido."

Si! Mon sits a few hundred feet from the Venice Beach Boardwalk and offers an interior that feels transportive enough to keep diners inside. Chef José Olmedo Carles Rojas blends Panamanian cuisine with influences from Los Angeles neighborhoods and other Central American foodways, producing a constantly inventive menu. Signature items include a uni shooter with littleneck clam and achiote-spiced ponzu, Dungeness crab guacho spiked with rum, and coconut-marinated kanpachi in banana leaf. The gluten-free double-fried chicken drumsticks are coated in an herb-allium "chicken salt" and pair well with pupusas revueltas and curtido. The space combines jewel-toned mid-century seating with a beachy patio and active bar, with weekday street parking and a $10 lot nearby.

Read at Eater LA