By: Freddy Monares
Dorados Ceviche Bar sits on a block of its own offering flavors that are guaranteed to excite the palette.
The restaurant is located at 440 S. Atlantic Blvd. in Monterey Park, about two miles northeast of the College and literally has its own block. The cottage-style restaurant not only serves delicious food, but also puts customers in a very relaxed environment.
Bushes placed on the outside of the building lend a hand in doing this, as the wind blowing them back and forth distracts you from busy Atlantic Boulevard. Inside, the walls give the feeling of being in a bed and breakfast without having to drive the distance. The overall mood of the place is friendly and inviting. First time customers will have to try the sampler, a plate made up of all the ceviches offered at the restaurant.
The plate comes with a good amount of ceviche and sufficient tostadas to scoop the ceviche with. Fish ceviche, shrimp ceviche, aguachile, Equadorian ceviche, octopus escaveche and surimi and avocado were all the seven ceviches that made up the delicious sampler.
Although the fish ceviche is good, compared to the rest, it was the least favorable and easy to pass up on the plate. The shrimp ceviche stood out on the plate as one of the most flavorful. The amount of lemon added was perfect. The texture of the shrimp snapped once bitten into and was unforgettable.
Aguachile was second on the flavor charts. This ceviche has a very spicy kick and a savory taste making this selection hard to stay away from.
Octopus escaveche was third on the sampler plate and did not disappoint. Octopus, although exotic to most, is very rich in texture and flavor. Surimi and avocado is another that is satisfaction guaranteed. Avocado added to ceviche gives the impression of eating a cocktail. It’s great.
Surimi is a ground-like paste made to look like crab and tastes just as good. The surimi has a string cheese-like texture and compliments the avocado very well. Although ceviche is the strong point of this restaurant, they do offer other tasty foods. Fish tacos, shrimp tacos and cocktails are also found on the menu.
Fish tacos are a must at any seafood restaurant, and Dorados delivers these tacos exceptionally. Ordering just one of these crunchy and chewy tacos is not enough.
Each are filled with cabbage, guacamole and a Mexican sour cream called crema that packs a punch of flavor. The taco that stands out the most at this restaurant is the queso con camaron taco, which translates to cheese and shrimp taco. Biting into this taco is like tasting a piece of heaven. The taco consists of a sugar and chipotle sauce that looks like a mole, cheese and shrimp. No other seafood taco stands up to the flavor it emits.
Vegetarians can also find a flavorful taco at Dorados. The vegetarian taco is filled with grilled onions, peppers, cabbage, salsa and topped with a slice of avocado. This taco will have non-vegetarians craving it as well as vegetarians.
To wash all this down Dorados offers soft drinks and agua de sandia y limon, which translates to watermelon and lime drink. Don’t waste money on the soft drinks. Go right for the large agua de sandia y limon. The drink is refreshing and full of healthy flavors.
The prices are very reasonable for being a seafood restaurant. All of the colors involved with the plates not only make them delicious but a sight to see.
Why is this article written like a series of bullet points and not like a readablearticle? Seems more like and exercise in writing single sentences.