"Expensive party restaurants often have bad food—call it correlation, not causation—but La Mar is the Peruvian transplant here to squash that claim. The dining room with furnishings seemingly plucked from a luxury showroom feels right at home on Bellevue’s Old Main, only the menu is stacked with really great stuff. Snacks like flaky chicken empanadas or wonton tacos stuffed with creamy tuna tartare would be demolished at a wedding cocktail hour. Blowtorched Nikkei nigiri highlights hamachi that nearly disintegrates beneath bright sauce drizzles. Even the complimentary taro chips and herby green dip are poundable. With a massive space and ample weeknight reservations available, a serious birthday dinner or after-work team drinks become effortless to plan. Food Rundown Cebiche Tasting The trio of marinated raw fish includes the halibut- and hominy-filled Clásico, a peppery orange-hued Limeño with calamari and plump shrimp, and a Nikkei version accented by salty soy and Japanese cucumber. While we wish the halibut cubes were diced a bit smaller, this is a great way to share some standout cebiche with the whole table. photo credit: Aimee Rizzo Nikkei Nigiri Be careful with the nigiri—some taste delightful, others are bland. The keyword here is “hamachi.” photo credit: Aimee Rizzo Wontacos We cannot understate how good these crackly little isosceles triangles of creamy-spicy tuna and bright aji amarillo squiggles are. If the night exclusively entails pisco sours and a fistful of wontacos, hats off to your better judgment. photo credit: Aimee Rizzo Langostinos Melcocha But this plate of crispy blue shrimp tossed in tangy-sweet melcocha sauce belongs on your table, too. The idea is to assemble lettuce wraps with the crustaceans in question along with the accompanying mango salsa, and we can’t think of a better kind-of-light dinner. photo credit: Aimee Rizzo Chaufa Aeropuerto It’s a hot stone pot filled with rice, quinoa, pork belly, pickled vegetables, and some other stuff that doesn’t nearly get as crispy as it should, despite being housed in a scalding cauldron. Not bad, but there are better menu pursuits. Lomo Saltado La Mar’s pinkies-up version of the steak and fries classic is infiltrated with snooty little touches (read: microgreens). The thing’s freaking delicious, we’re afraid. Just note that lomo saltado purists may become angry—nay, furious—with the clunky fried potato hunks in place of fries." - Aimee Rizzo
