The Italian-Californian fishermen's stew of crab, shellfish and tomato broth, claimed by every coast town on Monterey Bay and served across Carmel.

Cioppino grew out of Italian immigrant fishing communities on the California coast, a pot built from whatever the boats brought in, thickened with tomato and wine. Monterey Bay's Sicilian fleet made it a peninsula dish as much as a San Francisco one, and it never left the local table. In Carmel it spans the price scale: the house pride at Dametra Cafe on Ocean Avenue, and a scallop-loaded version at Nora's comfort-food dining room on San Carlos Street.

Where to eat Cioppino in Carmel-by-the-Sea

2 editor picks for Cioppino in Carmel-by-the-Sea, ranked by editorial score. All Carmel-by-the-Sea signature dishes · Cioppino across every city.

  • Dametra Cafe

    Order The cioppino; the house treats it as its proudest plate.

    Dametra Cafe fills its Ocean Avenue corner in Carmel every night, serving Mediterranean plates and cioppino while musicians work the dining room.

    DetailsDirections

  • Nora's

    Order Cioppino with scallops, or the lamb chili named for grandmother Nora.

    Nora's brings the Nimri family's comfort cooking to San Carlos Street in Carmel, ladling cioppino, lamb chili and fried chicken since summer 2025.

    DetailsDirections

Book food experiences in Carmel-by-the-Sea

Thai Cooking Class in Monterey★ 5.0 (65)

Viator · 1.5 h

Thai Cooking Class in Monterey

The ONLY Thai cooking class in Monterey! Fun & Tasty Party + Memorable Experience Plan your special holidays, surprise date night, birthday, bachelorette parties, comp...

fromUSD 135 Check dates

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More places to eat in Carmel-by-the-Sea

Not on this list, but among the highest we score in this city. Every one is in our guide with its address, hours and what to order.

Make it at home

Serves Serves 41 hr 15 minIntermediate

Ingredients

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 fennel bulb, diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, sliced
  • 1 tsp chilli flakes
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 250ml dry white wine
  • 800g tinned crushed tomatoes
  • 500ml fish or shellfish stock
  • 500g firm white fish, cubed
  • 500g clams or mussels, scrubbed
  • 300g prawns, shell on
  • Cooked Dungeness crab legs if available
  • Parsley, lemon, grilled sourdough to serve

Method

  1. Sweat the onion and fennel in the oil for 8 minutes, then add garlic, chilli and tomato paste and cook 2 minutes more.
  2. Pour in the wine and reduce by half.
  3. Add tomatoes and stock and simmer 20 minutes to build the base.
  4. Add the clams or mussels, cover and cook 4 minutes until they begin to open.
  5. Slide in the fish, prawns and crab and simmer gently 5 minutes until just cooked.
  6. Season, shower with parsley and lemon, and serve with grilled sourdough for the broth.

Editor tip. Build the tomato base ahead if you like, but cook the seafood only at service; each species needs its own few minutes, added in order.

Common allergens: Shellfish, Fish.