Holbox UPDATE - Los Angeles

A cashier and a counter, food stalls surrounding, communal dining area all around. Holbox is simply a stall in the grand scheme of Mercado a la Paloma, a powerhouse seafood service so good even Michelin had to give a star. 

It's a rather long menu for a stall, but they don't have any throwaways. It's a list of overwhelmingly delicious descriptions so just start with a ceviche if you need time to think. The Mixto has such succulent shrimp, meaty octopus, and a sole so fresh it melts in your mouth. The lime is tart but not burn-your-mouth sour, playing with the sweeter flavors of the shrimp and sole and adding a bit more pop to the pulpo. 

Savor between sips of Sparkling Lemonade, a substantial 5-dollar delight that's refreshing and smooth. It's easy to drink, maybe a bit to easy as the bathroom is a bit of walk toward the back.

More ceviche with a buttery sea-meat Kanpachi & Uni Tostada, as their house made hot sauce has a punch. 

Uni is great, but Smoked Kanpachi is exceptional. You can feel the cleanest smoke sate the senses, as shrimp and scallops add sweet to the savor and smoke. 

Barely-briny bay-scallop bullets bathe in an emerald emulsion. Loud lime and perky pepper accent the Aguachile. 

From raw to cooked, the Smoked Kanpachi Taco is tantalizing on the tongue. The smoke spirals all around the buttery, almost-gooey fish. 

The Scallop Taco has milder flavors, with caramelized onions and a creamy sauce, giving the seared scallop some space to speak for itself. 

Have you ever seen a Pulpo so pretty? A spectacular mass most tentacular atop a nutty pepper sauce, this may just be the best octopus I've ever eaten. 

$150 for food worth three times more, two gluttons stuffed to the gills with a couple of boxes for some very tasty bits. Not only is Holbox the best seafood in town, it is by far the cheapest. Considering all I have to do is order at the counter for no-fuss, unpretentious plates of the freshest seafood in town, I see no reason to go anywhere else ever again. 

Holbox - Los Angeles

The service is surly at best, but if you can brave the cashier starting daggers into your forehead, it's worth the aftermath. 

Glower at me all day if you will, just give me my free Oyster. It's the best treat on a half shell, buttery brine in a salty sea. 

Fear not, the hatred at Holbox comes cheap. For a mere $110, we four are facing beautiful platters and impressive piles of the freshest seafood in LA. 

A generous helping of Fish & Uni Ceviche snakes across a plate; a feisty Kanpai is thickened with tomato, ripe avocado mollifies onions with audacity, all soaked in a bold vinegar sting. The uni is melty and sweet, perfect pieces fresh enough to taste like it's live. Pick it off the top and eat it separately, though, enjoy it one nibble at a time. The ceviche overpowers its more delicate flavors if you eat it all together.  

The Coctel Mixto is a gamble for one who dislikes tomato, but a single bite makes me a convert. The supple shrimp are spritely, the tender octopus nods in agreement, and the oysters seem to sing in this amplifying sauce. This cocktail is nothing like the heavier marinades. It floats the flavors rather than sinking in the stomach and makes this red martini good enough to drink. 

Tacos de Pulpo en su Tinta: wow, what a mess. What a gorgeous, glorious mess, a finger-licking, ink-smearing, hot, steamy mess. A perfect corn tortilla achieves an impossible level of smoothness, full of octopus fried to a crisp and braised to a melt. The calamari ink stain turns the black beans to velvet silk. 

The specials board boasts a Grilled Rockfish Collar. The broad bones conceal delicate flesh, some of it so fatty it's fish-butter. The side of beans and rice completes the set. 

The Scallops are just spectacular. Perfectly seared scallops are stunning, but that bed of roasted poblano peppers steals the show. I cannot find the words to describe the dance those flavors do on my tongue. It is simultaneously a sultry bachata and a long, slow, seductive tango.

I'm in love with Holbox, and there isn't a single thing I would change except the service. I love the casual counter set in a colorful market, and I love the heavy wooden tables with their intricate high-back chairs, a beautiful casual-cafeteria space. It's so easy to eat at ease, and with next-level seafood like this, it's easy to savor every sliver.