Haute Top 5: Best Seafood Restaurants in Los Angeles

Connie and Ted's is a must experience for the seafood lover, especially given that it's fashioned after the clam shacks, oyster bars and fish houses that dot the New England coastline. Delicacies from master chef Michael Cimarusti are simply prepared and fresh, fresh, fresh. Make sure not to miss clam chowder and stuffies (clams stuffed with linguica, butter, garlic and breadcrumbs that true east coasters will know as "quahogs") and the lobster roll. As a side note, you've got to love a guy that pays homage to his grandparents and their love story through food.

Though Water Grill's original downtown location is arguably its most iconic, there's something about sitting by the ocean while eating seafood that feels truly authentic, which is why we've decided to highlight its more recently opened Santa Monica eatery. Here you'll find a masculine, nautical space thanks to wood beams and flooring, as well as dark and steel borders, white tiles and an antique pulley system, all inspired by vintage fish markets and antique ships. Have a whole fish or an item from the extremely extensive raw bar, including a truly impressive list of oysters from the Atlantic and the Pacific. We favor the latter, naturally, especially the Carlsbad Blondes from California and the Holliewood's from British Columbia.

Michael Cimarusti, as you might have noted, is on our list not once, but twice. What can we say? The man is a master of the sea. At his Melrose Ave. fine dining establishment, Providence, he keeps things fresh with local delicacies like Santa Barbara sea urchin and spot prawns, while still managing to focus on international sea fare like Japanese Kampachi and Norwegian cod. Regardless of what you eat, you'll leave a happy customer at this stunning gourmet eatery, which will be, without a doubt, one of the most memorable meals you're likely to have in the City of Angels.

Fishing With Dynamite is, as its name suggests, a seafood dynamo.At this intimate, 36-seat eatery from James Beard's 2006 Los Angles Rising Star Chef David LeFevre, every dish is dynamite. The restaurant pays homage to his youth on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, serving up both Virginian and New England-style seafood. The menu is divided into clever columns: Oysters, Raw Bar, Platters, Old School, New School and After School. The first three are fairly self explanatory we should think, housing a variety of North American delicacies like Kumamoto oysters from Willapa Bay, Wash., the best jumbo shrimp we’ve ever tasted and the mouth watering Peruvian scallops.

Mastro's Ocean Club has it all: an epic view, a classic environment and fabulous seafood. Put on something nice and head to Malibu to take in the view of the Pacific (the restaurant actually sits just above the water) and prepare yourself for an experience. Besuited waiters will serve you everything that comes from the sea here, including loaded seafood towers, chilled Alaska king crab legs, caviar, crab cakes, sushi and entrees such as Chilean sea bass, Scottish salmon, twin lobster tails and a live lobster of your choice.