Enjoy the teriyaki salmon on sticky shiitake rice at Ocean Prime. (photo by Jill Weinlein)

The resort-like terrace with curved booths at Ocean Prime Beverly Hills offers large shade umbrellas for diners to enjoy a prime steak, freshly made sushi, grilled seafood and one of their signature cocktails.

When the demand grew for lunch and dinner reservations, the staff expanded outdoor dining by placing tables in the breezeway between the main dining room and large bar area. They also arranged additional outdoor seating facing Wilshire Boulevard in the open courtyard space of the nearby U.S. Bank, offering the most outdoor dining space of any restaurant in Beverly Hills.

October is National Seafood Month and executive chef David Vilchez and his team have prepared a special menu to celebrate. Vilchez once told me he was inspired to become a chef in his teens, while watching chef Emeril Lagasse create gourmet dishes on his cooking show. One of his first kitchens was in the Navy as a culinary specialist. Later, he enrolled at Le Cordon Bleu and was introduced to the European style of cooking.

Bryan Graham, the congenial general manager, greeted us and showed us to our table. I’ve known Graham since he joined the Ocean Prime Beverly Hills team in 2015.

Before diving into the seafood specialties, my husband and I started with one of my favorite items, a beautiful, floral-looking wedge salad. Vilchez slices a head of iceberg in half, then tops it with chopped, slightly sweet marinated tomatoes, tangy pink pickled onions, candied bacon sprinkles, large crumbles of savory blue cheese and thin radish spheres. Artistically, it’s a standout, and when drizzled with a cabernet buttermilk dressing, it’s delicious.

Next we ordered a dynamite sushi roll wrapped around tempura shrimp and topped with chopped shrimp bathed in a spicy mayo and generous sprinkling of black and white sesame seeds.

Other menu items included the teriyaki salmon on sticky shiitake rice that is elevated to a new level with a pour of slightly sweet soy butter sauce.

My husband’s Chilean sea bass arrived on pillowy whipped potatoes dazzled with a pour of Champagne truffle sauce.

Among the special seafood items, Vilchez is preparing decadent seared scallops with lobster ravioli. It’s served with caramelized cubes of roasted butternut squash, flash-fried shallots, toasted garlic and a generous pour of a brown-butter cream.

Additional entrées include a lemony sole with crispy garlic potatoes, twin lobster tails with drawn butter and asparagus spears, crab cakes with a mustard cream sauce and Alaskan king crab legs.

I remarked to Graham how nice it is to still see familiar faces on his staff. He shared that the secret to Ocean Prime’s success is how restaurateur Cameron Mitchell rewards and nurtures hard working associates.

Mitchell started a Young Leaders Program last fall, where a select group of dining room managers and sous chefs from each Ocean Prime location spent nearly one year working in research, menu development and presentations. With the help of the leadership team, the group traveled to California’s wine country to learn about food and wine.

In September, Ocean Prime reopened for lunch, and the staff are seeing a positive response from guests coming for a change of scenery and mid-day break from working at home.

At Ocean Prime, they truly live up to their motto of putting people first by offering exceptional service and cuisine.

Takeout is available for those who prefer to dine at home by ordering online through DoorDash. Now open Monday through Thursday starting at 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. On Fridays, the restaurant stays open until 10 p.m. Saturdays the hours are from 4 to 10 p.m., and Sundays 4 to 9 p.m. $$-$$$. 9595 Wilshire Blvd. (310)859-4818.