Santa Monica, Los Angeles · restaurant
Counter service and patio seating, with $115 Grand Cru caviar sitting casually on the menu next to the requisite Sancerre selection. West Side Oyster Club does East and West Coast oysters, fried oyster po’boys, and lobster rolls built for the walk back to the car—fast, casual, and entirely unbothered by the luxury.
East and West Coast shellfish from the raw bar — shucked to order, served on ice with mignonette.
Award-winning New England chowder, thick and briny, served in a sourdough bowl above the Pacific.
The hero item — cold Maine lobster on a buttered split-top bun, built for the walk back to the car.