After a $10 million dollar renovation, Crustacean Beverly Hills offers two distinctive culinary experiences. Master Chef and Owner Helene An, debuted Little C this summer as a pop-up experience, offering a more affordable price point menu for guests to enjoy elevated Vietnamese Street Food.
When the restaurant opened in 1997, Chef Helene, also known as “Mama An,” soon became a celebrity in Beverly Hills. Not only do diners appreciate this talented chef’s creative menu, but also its elegant ambiance and cultural tradition. The eye-catching floor of Crustacean has a glass panel pathway for guests to see colorful koi fish below.
Always changing it up, in 2022, the beloved House of An hospitality group unveiled its new Anna May Bar at Crustacean Beverly Hills. Named after legendary Asian American actress and fashion icon Anna May Wong, the elegantly decorated lounge offers a casual dining experience with comfortable seating, and an outdoor patio overlooking Bedford Drive.
This summer the Anna May Bar has been turned into Little C, a pop-up elevated culinary experience celebrating Vietnam’s rich and flavorful culinary heritage with Vietnamese Street Bites. Dining outside on the sunny terrace, we looked over the beverage menu.
Besides an array of taste-tempting cocktails such as a Haku Espresso Martini and a Ying & Yang made with Ketel One, the bar also makes some refreshing spirit-free Mocktails.
The Lychee Cloud is made with lychee, coconut and yuzu. It’s served with a ruby red rose petal. Bartenders also make a special Limeade served in a clear bag with a straw.
Life was not always easy for Mama An. She is a true American success story. One of 17 children, she was raised in the northern region of Vietnam. In the 1970s, she was forced to flee the country with her family by boat during the fall of Saigon. When her mother-in-law arrived in California, she bought a 20-seat restaurant in San Francisco.
When An and her family arrived in San Francisco, they transformed the space into Thanh Long. Soon this authentic Vietnamese restaurant quickly amassed a huge following. With her success, An and her family moved down to Southern California and opened Crustacean in Beverly Hills.
In 2019, Chef Helene An’s pioneering influence earned her the Smithsonian’s Culinary Arts Pioneer Award. They honored her for her expertise in elevating Vietnamese cuisine in California and for her immigrant journey.
Little C offers an exciting sensory experiences from cocktails to desserts. Chef An once told me that she believes that food and cocktails should not only look good but should be good for you. She uses the freshest and finest ingredients, rich in antioxidants and immune-boosting ingredients.
Street fare can be ordered from a check off menu. Hand it to your server and each item is delivered to the table.
In the ‘An Nhau’ Bites section there are four different items to select. We chose Chicken ‘Cha Gio,’ a popular Vietnamese appetizer made with rice paper wrapped around savory protein and various vegetables and aromatics. We also ordered the crispy and savory ‘Banh Hoi,’ made with woven vermicelli noodles, fresh tiger prawns, herbs and a delicious dipping sauce.
Inside the lounge is a Bahn Xeo Bar, where a chef is preparing traditional Vietnamese crepes. The traditional Bahn Xeo is filled with chicken and prawns, while the French Colonial-style crepe is filled with Escargot and A5 Wagyu.
It looks like an omelet, but tastes more like a crispy, stuffed rice pancake. This is a popular street fare item in Vietnam.
One can watch the chef pour rice batter made with rice, flour and tumeric powder into the hot skillet. He then adds the savory proteins and and folds it into a fried Vietnamese crepe. It’s served with a pleasing dipping sauce and fresh herbs to cool the heat.
One of the most immersive dishes on the menu is Goi Cuon. It’s a DIY culinary experience. A plate with translucent rice paper stretching from one end of the plate to the other arrives. It’s soft and slightly thick. Then a plate of filling arrives such as roasted duck, with vegetables and two dipping sauces.
First we put the fillings on the lower end of the plate and then folded both sides inward. Next we rolled it up like a cigar from the bottom up. Last we dipped it in the flavorful dipping sauce and took a bite.
Finish your meal with five powdered sugar topped beignets served with vanilla ice cream and berries.
Little C has been so popular that the menu has been extended through the end of August. After August, dine at Crustacean this fall and winter for their iconic salt and pepper calamari served in an octopus-shaped glass bowl. The flavors came alive with a touch of heat from sweet red chili, and a hint of earthiness from the slightly charred scallions on top. The dish was served with a bowl of Thai basil aioli for dipping. For vegetarians and vegan diners, the dish is offered with a heart of palm, instead of squid. Both are equally delicious.
A fan favorite appetizer is featured in a cigar box. Open the lid for an aromatic experience of smokey herbs wafted around the table. Two perfectly cigar-shaped rolls with wedges of fresh lime are tucked inside. The cigars are made with crispy paper thin pastry sheets called Feuille De Brick, which are wrapped around a mix of tuna tartare, Vidalia onion and silky avocado mousse. To make the cigars look even more authentic, Tobiko caviar is placed at one end, mimicking ash.
Those who prefer a vegan version will enjoy the beet tartare. It looks just like beef yet offers a cleaner taste. It is made with chopped roasted beets, a splash of yuzu vinaigrette, a layer of smooth avocado and vegan caviar on top. The plant-based Zeroe vegan caviar is made from seaweed grown naturally off the coast of France. Fresh edible flowers and sprouting leaves adorn the dish, also served with the thick and crunchy white rice crackers.
Colorful green steamed vegan dumplings glisten with a black truffle chili ponzu sauce. Chef An’s yin and yang cooking philosophy is seen in the thick tempura eggplant fries that dazzle with a zing of Thai red chili gastrique, chopped onion and green Thai basil sprinkled on top.
Crustacean is one of Los Angeles’ most beloved dining experiences. The restaurant is closed on Mondays, and open for lunch and dinner on Tuesday through Sunday.
