Our Story

Crudo e Nudo anchors Santa Monica’s vibrant Main Street as a celebrated sustainable seafood restaurant and biodynamic wine bar, just steps from the beach. Since transitioning from a pop-up to a brick-and-mortar in April 2021, it has earned spots on the Los Angeles Times “101 Best Restaurants” (2023) and The Infatuation LA’s “Best New Restaurants” (2021).

Crudo e Nudo advances the sourcing and awareness of California’s rich seafood biodiversity, and is the brainchild of Chef/Owner Brian Bornemann—a Santa Monica native who honed his craft at Michael's, The Tasting Kitchen and Viale dei Romani. Inspired by trips to southern Italy and developed from his crudo program at Viale dei Romani, Brian showcases the Mediterranean tradition of serving great, local fish with amazing olive oil and wine into something that’s uniquely Los Angeles.

The chalkboard menu, hand-written daily, features 20+ species that rotate with the Pacific Ocean’s macro and micro-seasons and are harvested from waters between Baja and Monterey: red and purple uni, whelks, ridgeback shrimp, spiny lobsters, vermillion rockfish, abalone, bluefin tuna, spot prawns, and more. Whole fish from Brian's trusted purveyors are humanely harvested using the “ikejime method” and dry-aged in-house.

Open every day starting at noon, the jewel box dining room and sidewalk patio offer a breezy atmosphere for a post-beach happy hour of oysters, tinned fish and spritzes or a leisurely lunch over mussels and farmers' market salads. Come evening, one can enjoy an elegant dinner or explore the Neptune's Flight tasting menu—an ever-changing, multi-course meal. Wine Director Simona Topuzovska curates a focused program of biodynamic wines from small producers, available by-the-glass (and even enjoyed from a porrón), half bottle and bottle. Her pairings are intentional, raw and unfiltered, which draws a deep connection to the restaurant's name and seafood-driven menu.