Jan. 14, 2025

A Mexican restaurant specializing in shrimp, octopus and fish entrees has opened on the east side of Sioux Falls.

La Playita, or “The Little Beach,” at 5216 E. Arrowhead Parkway is the creation of Yvonne Alvarez and her husband, Javier Solis Sr., along with their family.

Fans of Mexican seafood restaurants who have been traveling to Sioux City or Omaha to eat will enjoy all their favorites and new dishes, Javier Solis Jr. said.

“We have seafood but we also have our own seasonings that we’re bringing here, our own dishes. Yes, you have your typical seafood here, but you also have things that you’ve never had before for your palate.”

The menu is extensive with 17 seafood appetizers, many of which are filling enough for a meal; eight shrimp entrees; eight with octopus; and more than 30 tilapia, salmon and mahi-mahi dishes.

“We do fish on the grill, which is smothered with a special homemade sauce, slowly cooked in there. … Some stuff is a little spicy but you can tell us ‘not too spicy,’ and we’ll arrange that for you,” Solis said.

There are a half-dozen specialties, including the La Playita Molcajete with a variety of seafood, along with soups and seafood boils with a choice of crab legs, shrimp, mussels, crawfish or clams.

Most of the items range from $20 to $40.

If someone is new to the cuisine, the staff will be happy to explain the dishes, Solis said.

For those who prefer steak and chicken, there are fajitas, a grilled chicken breast, grilled rib-eye steak with vegetables and sirloin bites cooked in ranchero sauce with beans and rice.

The decor inside the restaurant, which seats just over 100 diners at tables and a few booths, has a beach vibe with a thatched “roof” above the bar, fishing boat suspended from the ceiling and a surfboard on the wall.

La Playita will serve beer, wine and wine-based cocktails, but not until later this month when it’s licensed, Solis said. For now, there are several other options, including Pepsi products and lemonade or orange juice drinks that are mixed with carbonated water.

Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday.

Before Sunday’s opening, the family invited friends and relatives for a preview meal. The reaction?

“They said they didn’t like it – they loved it,” Solis said. “It’s my mom’s food, so when they say that, it makes me so happy because her food is the best.”

Newcomers to bring seafood-focused Mexican restaurant to city’s east side