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Seafood Shop El Cristalazo Goes Full Time in La Puente

The former backyard seafood spot now has a storefront.

El Cristalazo
El Cristalazo
Matthew Kang
Farley Elliott is the Senior Editor at Eater LA and the author of Los Angeles Street Food: A History From Tamaleros to Taco Trucks. He covers restaurants in every form, from breaking news to the culture, people, and history that surrounds LA's dining landscape.

La Puente’s own El Cristalazo is officially open for business, following a soft-opening period at the end of last month. The exceedingly popular (on Instagram, at least) backyard seafood operation went legit with a storefront a few weeks ago, bringing their rare Escuinapa brand of mariscos to anyone who dares enjoy them.

As LA Mag reported recently, chef Ninive Vargas’ formerly underground operation offers a version of Mexican seafood rarely seen in the States, from pen shell clams to assorted ceviches and the namesake cristalazo, an outsized seafood jumble marinated and tucked into a giant martini glass.

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Hours for El Cristalazo run from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily in a corner location of a strip mall in La Puente.

El Cristalazo
1665 N. Hacienda Blvd.
La Puente, CA 97144