San Diego Reader

• Restaurant | Seafood | Clairemont

Cocteleria La Playita

• 5185 Clairemont Mesa Boulevard, San Diego, CA 92117 | Directions
• 858-565-2300 | Website

Advertising itself as “mi adicción,” the 16-year-old La Playita is habit-forming. Peeling paint, wall-mounted shark jaws, and a sign indicating that oysters from the Gulf Coast “may cause severe illness or even death” assert the restaurant’s no-frills ambiance. Regardless, “the oyster soup saved my marriage,” a regular informs me, the only gringo around. Taking a tip from the locals, I tried the mixed ceviche tostada ($5), which rivals the best of Ensenada street carts. The breaded shrimp tacos ($2.50) are first-rate, though the fish proved lackluster. Spice things up with a house chile de arbol and garlic sauce (very hot), and a slew of Tapatio’s lesser-known cousins. Tecate micheladas provide bliss on sweltering Indian summer days.

— Chad Deal