The Best Seafood in Oakland, by the Record

The chef grows his own peppers for the ceviche, which tells you something about how seriously this Rockridge Peruvian restaurant takes its headlining dish. Each one arrives layered with fried corn, seaweed, and fish that's been marinated into something vivid and fiery. The chicharron and shrimp chupe hold their own as follow-ups, and the sake pisco sour is a quiet argument for rethinking a classic. Snug room, wood accents, a small parklet outside.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best seafood restaurants in the Bay Area
2. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in Oakland

A former pop-up that found a permanent home inside Au Lounge in downtown Oakland, Chef Smelly's draws on Creole family recipes to put out Cajun-spiced seafood and soul food. Garlicky Dungeness crab and blackened shrimp anchor the menu, and the platters run large enough to qualify as a commitment. The San Francisco Chronicle named it among the Bay Area's top seafood spots. Dress accordingly: this is crab-cracking, garlic-breath, no-apologies territory.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best seafood restaurants in the Bay Area

1. The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In Oakland