Looking for a place that offers great food, creative drinks, and a lively nightlife scene? Sea Monkey in Pittsburgh’s Strip District brings all three together in one unique destination. From globally inspired small plates to energetic late-night vibes, it’s quickly becoming one of the city’s most exciting spots to visit.
Sea Monkey is a Destination for Dining and Dancing in Pittsburgh’s Strip District
It’s late on a cold, February night in Pittsburgh. A Wednesday, in fact. Proper nightlife is somewhat hard to come by in the Steel City, even under the best conditions — and a bleak winter weeknight is, quite possibly, the worst conditions.
Yet the dance floor at Sea Monkey is full — and the revelers are clearly having a great time.
It’s remarkable to find a throng surrounding a highly skilled DJ on a Pittsburgh weeknight; it’s even more impressive that this particular weeknight came only a few weeks after Sea Monkey opened its doors. The new concept from the Richard DeShantz Restaurant Group was greeted with excitement at its January 2026 debut, both as a late-night destination for drinks and dancing and an evening spot for adventurous dishes.
Blending Dinner Service with a Nightclub Experience
“We really treat them like they’re two separate occurrences,” says Jason Preston Roach, Sea Monkey’s general manager. “We try to bridge the gap between them; that 9-10 p.m. hour is very important to us,” as Sea Monkey staff wraps up dinner service and shifts to a nightclub vibe.
That doesn’t mean, however, that atmosphere is lacking during earlier hours. Whether the sun is up or down, Sea Monkey has the feeling of a high-end resort bar: paper lanterns, reggae-tinged dance music and a scoreboard-sized LED wall. It’s a chill night in a submarine — or a dance party in Atlantis.
“‘Global inspired’ was a term that was really popular a couple years ago. We’re a step to the left of that — we’re ‘travel inspired,’” Roach says. The goal is to “find some balance between all those cultures and all those foods.”
Let Sea Monkey’s Menu Take You on a Trip
The menu is rife with unexpected flavors, such as the must-get Turkish Dumplings and the yuzu-forward Savoy Cabbage. A raw menu includes king salmon, beef tartare and a selection of maki rolls and bowls; caviar service elevates the experience.
“We’re kind of going with the term ‘refined playfulness,’” Roach says. “Nothing on the menu is a full entree,” with various bites and complementary flavors designed to “seduce the palate.”
And a Bar Program to Match…
Strong, assertive cocktails define the bar menu. The Amalfi Coast, an apricot-forward remix of an Aperol spritz, sets the tone whether as a pre-meal drink or a first sip before the dance floor. There are tiki-inspired cocktails to choose from — rum lovers should order the Ube Mai Tai, while Mango No. 5 will put a certain one-hit wonder in your head — but less sugar-forward drinks as well, like the excellent, balanced Under the Sea Monkey. (An attached speakeasy, Vieux Carré, opened in March.)
A nightclub shouldn’t have food this good — and a good restaurant shouldn’t have such a successful nightclub. Sea Monkey does both, making it something of a unicorn — or a seahorse, perhaps — in the Strip District
Story by Sean Collier
Photo by Devon Colebank