I live about 30 miles from the always-teeming-with-tourists Venice Beach, California. But it’s not just the tourists that fill up the restaurants. Foodies of every stripe abound in this area of top trendy eateries while on their quest to fulfill their food bucket lists.

So, when my husband and I stumbled upon the tiny Venice Beach Wines about 10 years ago, and we were blown away by the Smoked Whitefish Crostini, I did something very uncharacteristic: I told no one—not even my closest friends.

That’s because I had visions of telling 2 friends, and them telling 2 friends, and so on, and so on, and I’d end up never being able to get a table again! Instead, I have kept my mouth shut, and in the 10 years since discovering this place, I have never been shut out.

And I am oh so grateful! Located in a beachy bungalow on Rose Avenue, this friendly neighborhood spot won me over from the moment I walked in the first time.

The front porch supplies most of the seating, which consists of a continuous bench along the perimeter with small rectangular metal tables. Simple, cute, and cozy.

In fact, it can be so cozy that once the stranger sitting next to me felt completely comfortable taking the napkin off my lap and using it! We had a laugh over it—but only because it wasn’t my Smoked Whitefish that he took!

As its full name suggests, VBW offers an extensive and diverse list of wines, and I’ll say the same thing about their beers.

We usually come to sample their current selection of cheeses and charcuterie, but we always find it hard to pass up their Smoked Whitefish. It’s salty, creamy, smoky, with a hint of horseradish, and served on toasty crostini—YUM!

These tartines are so good, I’ve developed my own knock-off Smoked Whitefish Crostini recipe. It is so simple and makes a delicious, somewhat sophisticated appetizer that will surely impress your guests. You can buy crostini or make them easily from a baguette, since they’re just mini toasts.

Smoked Whitefish Salad on Crostini Recipe

Servings: 4

Ingredients
½ baguette, or 16 crostini
½ cup light mayonnaise
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon horseradish
⅛ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon pepper
8 ounces smoked whitefish
16 slices radish or watermelon radish

Instructions
1. Slice the baguette and spray both sides of the individual slices with olive oil spray.
2. Toast in a toaster oven until golden brown. The crostini can be warm or room temperature for serving.
3. While making the crostini, mix together the mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, horseradish, salt, and pepper in a bowl.
4. Taste your mixture to see if it needs adjusting to your tastes.
5. Put aside ⅓ of this mixture to spread on the crostini.
6. Crumble the smoked whitefish into the bowl and mix with a fork until it is combined well.
7. Spread the mustard-horseradish mixture on each of the crostini.
8. Add a tablespoon of the smoked whitefish mixture to each of the crostini, and arrange on a plate.
9. Top each of your crostini with a slice of radish or watermelon radish.

Tips
1. Another option for serving is to leave the smoked whitefish salad in a bowl, and place the crostini and bowl on a plate.
2. Both the smoked whitefish salad and the crostini can be prepped ahead. However, I don’t recommend combining the two more than a half hour before serving.

Try our Smoked Fish Dip Recipe next!

Where to Buy Smoked Whitefish

There is a difference between whitefish and white fish. The first is a type of fish found in the Great Lakes of North America, usually called Lake Whitefish.

The term white fish, on the other hand, usually refers to a broader category of white-fleshed mild-tasting fish, including whitefish. That being said, for the Smoked Whitefish Salad Crostini and the Smoked Whitefish Dip, either fish work well!

You can find smoked whitefish here online.