CENTO Raw Bar
Restaurant · West Adams
4919 W Adams Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90016
Highlights
Seafood tower & mosaic cheesecake in a mermaid grotto
Seafood tower & mosaic cheesecake in a mermaid grotto
"A mermaidcore seafood restaurant in West Adams received a 6.3 review from The Infatuation; the review highlighted the seafood tower and the design as standouts, while other dishes fell short." - Rebecca Roland
"We’re not sold on everything on Cento’s menu, but the oysters at this beautiful, Atlantis-coded raw bar always taste high-quality. You can order Cento’s freshly shucked bivalves on a platter, or in a seafood tower adorned with Peruvian scallops and uni bumps swaddled in shiso leaves. Both options are great, and come with what might be the best mignonette in Los Angeles." - sylvio martins, nikko duren
"West Adams’ Cento Raw Bar is a marvel for many reasons — its immersive mermaidcore design one of them. But the food also delivers on pure aesthetic appeal, including the mosaic cheesecake, a rich ube confection layered with multicolored strawberry jello morsels on a sweet but not too sweet graham cracker crust. It’s one of the most unmissable desserts in Los Angeles right now for its earthy ube flavor and the kaleidoscopic effect of the gem-hued jello, which glimmers like stained glass. Get it as a finishing note for a celebration, or for any reason and season." - Eater Staff
"A highly stylized raw-bar experience whose interior reads like a mermaid’s cave—wavy plaster moldings, creamy oval sconces, bioluminescent floor tiling, and tiny, conch-spiraled chairs—paired with a small, fantastical menu. Standout orders include an indulgent seafood tower presented on a modular green-glass stand with oysters on the half shell, uni, Peruvian scallops, crab legs, and fatty lobster claws, and a distinctive tuna crudo piled with gazpacho-grated tomatoes and perilla leaves. More of an art installation than a neighborhood joint, the food is lush and buttery and designed to engage all the senses." - Eater Staff
"Cento Raw Bar, a restaurant by the team behind neighboring Cento Pasta Bar, serves seafood towers, crudos, and caviar sandwiches in an otherworldly space that resembles a sun-washed sea cave. The restaurant comes from chef Avner Levi, director of operations Adrien D’Attellis, and creative director Brandon Miradi; Avner’s first restaurant, Cento Pasta Bar, opened in December 2021 after a long-running tenure as a pop-up at Downtown’s Mignon Wine Bar. At Cento Raw Bar, Avner serves a seafood-oriented menu that’s meant to pair with wine and cocktails. Raw shellfish like oysters, uni, Peruvian scallops, and crab legs are served on a custom-made modular glass tower designed by Miradi, alongside hamachi crudo, cold squid ink noodles, and ’90s club-inspired cocktails. Cento Raw Bar offers walk-ins only, so prepare for a wait if headed over on a weekend evening. — Rebecca Roland, editor, Eater Southern California/Southwest" - Matthew Kang
