Los Angeles: La Cevicheria
The Skinny: So I first heard about La Cevicheria months ago while listening to a KCRW Radio show called Good Food, but I never got a chance to eat there til today. La Cevicheria was spotlighted for it’s specialty on Ceviche, the Bloody Clam version specifically. Unfortunately, that one dish wasn’t available when I was there, but the owner of the place recommended some other things instead, so we went with that. We started with Aguachiles which are whole raw Shimps marinated in and served with Lime juice, Cilantro, Onions, Garlic, Cucumbers, and Jalapeno sauce. I also got the Ceviche with Shrimp and Octopus. My friend who I was with, got the Ceviche with the same liquid mix as the Bloody Clam Ceviche, but with imitation Crab, Shrimp, and Octopus. Both versions of our Ceviche had slices of Avacado, Lime Juice, Cilantro, chopped Tomatoes and Onions. The only difference between the two marinades was that my friend had Mint Leaves and Worcestershire sauce in his.
The Good: The first dish we started off with were the Aguachiles which had 12 whole Shrimps bathed in a bowl of cold citrus-y soup. Each shrimp was sweet and had a good meaty texture, but while they were supposed to be spicy from the Jalapenos, I hardly noticed it…at first. I thought the dish was more refreshing than anything else, but then I tried the La Cevicheria Habanero hot sauce separately. It looked like regular American Mustard but it tasted slightly fruity and burned like spitfire, causing me to sweat out beads after trying globs of it. Then thinking that the cold marinade in the Shrimp dish would help, I spooned some out and sipped it only to have the Peppers from both of those things burn the crap out of my mouth. It was still good though…painful, but good.
As for my Ceviche, it was good. It started off tasting kind of odd, but after mixing everything together with some squeezed Lime Juice, drops of Tapatio, and some more Habanero sauce, the flavors eventually came together. It just tasted like how a seafood Ceviche should taste with the Octopus and Shrimp adding some meaty textures to contrast the crisp onions. I did try my friend’s Ceviche which uses the same the Bloody Clam marinade, and the flavors were more bold thanks to the Worcestershire.
The Bad: I actually been to La Cevicheria twice. The first time I came, the place was closed and the owners wouldn’t be back for a month. Then with the 2nd visit, they didn’t have the one dish I wanted to get, the Bloody Clams. I guess it was just bad luck on my part.
Would you come back again? But of course! Those Bloody Clams will be mine someday!
More Info: yelp | 3809 W Pico Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90019 | Cash Only | The Aguachiles was about 15 bucks and our Ceviches were about 10 bucks each. La Cevicheria also serves Burritos, Tostadas, and regular Latin American lunch fare.
– MJ
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