LV Mar, Redwood City

Reviewer: Foodnut.com LV Mar 2042 Broadway Redwood City, CA 94063 650-241-3111 LV Mar Website

Photo Courtesy LV Mar

Why did we dine here? – LV Mar is a Latin focus restaurant in downtown Redwood City that serves Elevated Latin tapas, platters & cocktails in a modern, comfortably upscale dining room and sidewalk patio. They also run the nearby La Viga, which is a more casual. We had a good experience at La Viga, so it was natural for us to try this restaurant. Last visit was for dinner in 2018

Next door is a great California Italian Pizza (Try the Sausage Honey Pizza), Salad restaurant: Vesta

We came for lunch, but saw that their dinner menu has some interesting different dishes. The chef was willing to cook a dinner dish for us!

Insider Tip – Come during dinner when the menu is more extensive

Cuisine – Latin
Location – Downtown Redwood City
Opened – 2015

Service – LV Mar had friendly service but many long pauses. The place was also not that full at lunch. Dinner had even more pauses, they need to work on service.

Verdict – LV Mar is a fun little restaurant that has a cook that knows his stuff. Better food than you would expect in the suburbs. Pacing was slow, with the kitchen short staffed at lunch time. This is a nice place to stop in for cocktails and a bite or two. The brunch menu looks great for the weekend.

Is this restaurant worth a 5 minute drive? Yes. 30 minute? Maybe. 1 Hour? No

LV Mar Signature Dishes – Cerviche, Cayos Dorados, Tacos del Mar, Atun Dorado

LV Mar’s Menu is pretty wide ranging. A large variety of starters, tapas, and larger plates. Several options for vegetarians

Website LV Mar Menu

LV Mar Food Picks:
Two-Course Tasting Prix-Fixe: choose one Starter plus Antojito or A La Vara for $19 or Platos Fuertes for $24. This was a very good deal, considering the platos almost cost that much on their own. We ordered 2 of these. Price below are the normal price.

Ensalada de Arugula ($10) arugula, pomegranate, persimmon, goat cheese, walnuts, serrano ham, sweet chipotle dressing was a well done salad. Not overwhelmed with dressing, and definitely a modern balanced sweet – savory salad.

Sopa de Calabaza ($5) roasted butternut squash puree, pumpkin seed, cinnamon, ancho chile dust foam cup was akso a great starter. Really well done soup that did not taste like Trader Joe’s. Rich deep flavor.
Yes this was a cheap starter, so you would not get the benefit of the Lunch Prix Fixe.

Tacos del Mar ($15) beer battered halibut, pico de gallo, chipotle lime aioli + crispy scallop, sweet habanero cream on a jicama tortilla +grilled octopus and chorizo, fennel, serrano chile sauce. They let you opt for grilled instead of deep fried fish, which is fantastic. Really nice variety in the 3 tacos.

Cayos Dorados ($20) seared scallops, mixed lettuce, queso fresco, black beans, corn, cherry tomatoes, crispy tortilla, chipotle lime dressing is another favorite dish here. More like a salad that a traditional seared scallop dish. A little bit of spice is added in there. This is not a majorly filling dish, so those neating hearty fare should order something else.

Guacamole Simple ($10) was a large bowl of guac and some nice black chips.

Patatas con Jamon ($12) was almost like fried mac and cheese.

Carne a la Parrilla ($33) is a big steak dish and was done well.

OK: (Order if you like this dish)
Ceviche Mixto ($19) was a tad sweet.

Tacos de Pancita de Puerco ($12) are a bit plain and very spicy.

Pans: (We would not reorder these dishes)
None

Do you agree with our review? Have you found other similar restaurants that are better?

Restaurant Map: