Cajun Seafood Restaurant Coming to North Park

Shrimp Heads, an eatery specializing in Cajun seafood boils, will open in North Park next Saturday, January 26. The 1,800-square-foot free-standing building on El Cajon Boulevard includes its own parking lot. Owner Shirley Ng also runs Uncle John’s, a beloved half-decade-old diner in downtown Los Angeles that serves classic breakfasts and Chinese-American dishes by day. Ng worked at a Cajun seafood restaurant during college, and when she took over the diner in 2016, added a dinner menu that featured Cajun-style seafood boils.

Open from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, Shrimp Heads will offer build-your-own, eat-with-your-hands seafood feasts. Diners can choose from a range of seafood, from shrimp and crawfish to lobster tails, clams, and whole Dungeness crab that can be seasoned with garlic butter, lemon pepper or Cajun spices. Boil add-ons include Brussels sprouts, quail eggs, sausages, and potatoes.

Other dishes will include fried catfish, chicken wings, shrimp and grits, and fried okra and a number of Chinese dishes including salt and pepper shrimp, spicy pork chops, and beef fried rice. There will even be a vegan version of the boil, as well as plant-based options like fried tofu with salt and pepper and Cajun mock shrimp. The eatery will also serve Micheladas and sake-tinis as well as Thai tea with ice cream.