For those intrigued by the combination of Louisiana-style cuisine with a Southern California sense of spice, a new dining option has recently debuted in Westwood. With the bulk of its other locations in Orange County and Northern California, the Boiling Crab has ventured to the Westside with the opening of its second Los Angeles spot after popular reception at its Koreatown location. The new Westwood Boiling Crab opened Monday, Feb. 9.
The Boiling Crab isn’t quite the typical, formal sit-down seafood restaurant.
Diners are immediately greeted with wafts of savory seasonings on arrival, presented with huge bibs that are tied around their necks by the servers and given huge bags full of seafood upon ordering to make for a fun finger-food experience.
To top it off, the tables are covered with disposable lining so that condiments like ketchup and lime juice can be freely squeezed over the fries and seafood without the need for plates and utensils.
According to marketing manager Winnie Vu, who has been with the Boiling Crab for seven years, the move to open a restaurant in Westwood was a “no-brainer decision” as the popular chain is continuing to expand to meet long lines of customers.
“This was part of a natural growth into different parts of Los Angeles,” Vu explained. “Westwood is a great location in terms of up-and-coming restaurants and hip places. It’s a fun environment with high energy since UCLA is just around the corner as well.”
Inspired by traditional Louisiana seafood boils, Vu said the Boiling Crab offers a new take on traditional cuisine.
“We took the seafood boils to a new level by creating our own seasonings,” Vu said.
The ever-popular “Whole Sha-bang” sauce, which is a combination of cajun, lemon pepper, and garlic butter flavors, accompanies orders of shrimp and crawfish. The three flavors within the Whole Sha-bang can be served individually as well, for those who prefer not to mix the seasonings or aren’t fans of spice.
As for the best-selling menu items, Vu said that the crawfish and the cajun fries have always been very popular.
“Crawfish is my personal favorite,” Vu said. “Once you figure out how to properly eat it, you can’t go back to anything else.”
Shrimp, which is a more friendly option for those unfamiliar with peeling and eating seafood, has “gained huge popularity through the years,” according to Vu.
In addition to crawfish and shrimp, the menu also offers oysters, king crab legs, fried catfish, fried shrimp, cajun hot wings, and gumbo, with the crawfish, shrimp, oysters, and crab legs sold by the pound. Blue crab and dungeness crab are seasonal options and are sold at market price.
Extra add-ons, which come mixed in the bag of seafood and seasonings, include corn-on-the-cob and sausage.
Boiling Crab opened its first location in April 2004 and celebrated its 10th birthday last year.
The Westwood Boiling Crab is located at 10875 Kinross Ave.
For more information, call 310.208.4888 or visit theboilingcrab.com.
