The Hungry Cat - Santa Monica (CLOSED)

David Lentz’s newest of his contemporary culinary empire, Santa Monica’s cavernous, beachside outpost screams upscale New England seafood shack. There’s no shortage of seafood options with a raw bar of goodies on the half shell and in the shell—better yet, opt for the eponymous seafood tower ($145)—lobster and clam rolls, several grades of caviar, plus plenty of composed plates of land and sea. Depending on the season, kabocha squash soup might join Nantucket bay scallops and sage brown butter or whole, grilled striped bass ($28) is dressed in carrot purée, spigarello, hazelnuts, blood orange and chermoula. Of course, another way to enjoy the fruits of the sea is an oyster with an Old Bay–rimmed, vodka chaser, as in the Maryland Mary ($12), a tasty (and eye-opening) weekend cocktail.