Fodor's Expert Review Salt Fish House

A couple of blocks from Arcata's festive plaza, this hip seafood restaurant inside a beautifully converted old machine shop offers seating in an airy dining room and on a large side patio. Specialties include classic panko-crusted cod and chips and seared-rare steelhead, but you could also make a meal of small plates from the raw bar—shrimp cocktail, ceviche tostadas, and raw or grilled Pacific oysters among them.