If you’ve ever tried to opt for sustainable seafood dishes at a restaurant using Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch guide, you know that the seemingly-simple guide can be tough to follow. Why? Often, the restaurant staff isn’t knowledgeable enough to tell you what you need to know — like whether the grilled salmon’s the sustainable kind that’s wild-caught in Alaska, or the farmed kind known to wreak havoc on the environment.

That’s why eco-pescatarians love dining at Santa Monica Seafood Cafe, with its sleek oyster bar and always-busy dining area. While not all seafood here’s sustainable as at Border Grill, the staff at Santa Monica Seafood’s knowledgeable about their food and where it comes from — which makes it easy for diners to make greener choices.

I went for the Grilled Mahi Mahi Flat Bread when I stopped by a couple months ago. According to the oyster bartender, the mahi mahi was caught in Hawaii — making my fish dish a “good alternative,” according to Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch. Plus, the tasty dish came with organic greens –

Of course, I’d love Santa Monica Seafood even more if all its seafood was sustainable. The family-owned and operated company is, on the bright side, taking some steps in a green direction. Last October, Santa Monica Seafood announced a 5-year partnership (PDF) with Monterey Bay Aquarium. The goal: To shift Santa Monica Seafood’s purchases toward sustainable sources — a pretty big feat, considering the fact that the company’s the largest seafood distributor in the southwest.

It’s unclear, however, how green Santa Monica Seafood will go. The agreement simply states that Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program will “support” and “help” Santa Monica Seafood find greener seafood suppliers, and make “a stepped-up outreach effort to its 1,500 client chefs and restaurants.” And the quote from Michael Cigliano, executive vice president of Santa Monica Seafood — “Ultimately, our goal is to reach a point where a majority of all our seafood purchases come from sustainable sources” — implies that 100% sustainable seafood isn’t the goal, and that currently, not even 50% of what the company sells can be considered sustainable.

All that’s to say that Santa Monica Seafood’s making green strides — but discerning eco-pescatarians should take advantage of the knowledgeable staff and still ask questions when making their seafood choices.

As for the dining experience itself: The mahi mahi flat bread was deliciously warm with a tasty pesto aioli. And though the popular cafe was full, my friend Bryan and I found seats at the oyster bar where service was friendly and efficient. Next time I want to try the grilled salmon — after verifying it’s wild-caught.

Santa Monica Seafood. 1000 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica. 310.393.5244. Also a retail store and cafe in Costa Mesa.

Earlier: A Sustainable seafood guide for the digital age

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