15 Jul Breathe It In At Salt Air Venice

Restaurateur David Reiss (Littlefork, Sunny Spot, A-Frame) has opened another hot-spot….a New England seafood shack in Venice Beach….Salt Air. Located on Abbot Kinney, Salt Air is a bright, open beach-y bistro with white brick walls and a glass-enclosed open kitchen. On the cocktail side, Brian Butler (A-Frame, Sunny Spot) has created a wine and beer based cocktail list. I selected the High Ball made with cardamaro, lime, house ginger beer and forbidden bitters which was spicy and refreshing.   Moving on to the food, Chef Greg A. Daniels, formerly of Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Perry St in New York, helms the menu of seasonal seafood dishes. Corn bread fritters with molasses butter – These crispy little gems oozed with cheesy goodness and fresh corn inside.  The molasses butter melting on the outside added a bit of rich sweetness….yum! Mussels in coconut curry, scallion, cilantro and grilled bread – the curry was subtle and there was a little kick in the broth that once the bread was gone, we were slurping up with our spoons like soup. House Salad with boston lettuce, arugula, avocado, radish, fines herbes, mustard – vinaigrette – a light refreshing salad that, while a little salty, was perfect to have after the mussels Grilled Octopus, beluga lentils, pickled onions, chorizo – the warm lentils and chorizo were balanced by the tang of the pickled onions and the the octopus was perfectly cooked Lobster Roll, connecticut style, scallion, corn relish – a very fresh lobster roll with no mayonaise, instead the lobster is poached in olive oil and was tender and flavorful Corn sauteed with scallions, jalapeno, cilantro – nothing beats fresh corn in the summer Monkeybread with creme anglaise – like grandma’s cinnamon rolls, the monkeybread had a crispy caramelized coating On the next visit, I plan to try the fish skin chips with harissa and roasted cauliflower with pistachio pesto and a few more cocktails.