Q. What is it supposed to be on the show? A. A tattoo parlor. Q. Where is it supposed to be on the show? A. Somewhere in Miami. Q. When did we see it on the show? A. In Episode 5, of Season 5, "First Blood". After a young hostage has his throat slit by Carlos Fuentes during a police raid, Angel and Debra interview him in his hospital room.  He tells them that he saw a small tattoo on the assailant's hand. Debra asks if he can draw what he saw, and the kid makes a crude sketch of the tattoo. Later, Debra is looking for a tattoo expert to help her make sense of the drawing, so Angel recommends she talk to Vince Masuka. Masuka reveals that he has a large tattoo of his own, on his back, of a nude woman warrior riding a dragon. He says that if the tattoo was done locally, he knows someone who will know about it. Vince takes Debra to his tattoo parlor, where she speaks with the woman who runs the place, Michael Angelo. Debra shows her the drawing of the tattoo she's looking for.  The woman says it looks like an eye to her... but can't tell her anything more. Before they leave, the woman puts the moves on Debra, who warns Masuka never to speak of it again. Q. What is it actually in real life? A. A tattoo parlor.

Q. Where can I find it in real life?

A. This scene was shot at S.T. Tattoos, at 2118 Lincoln Blvd,  in the West Los Angeles / Venice area.

It's on the west side of Lincoln Blvd, a block north of Venice Blvd, and less than a mile north of Marina del Rey.

The S.T. initials come from the fact that the shop was originally opened by Suicidal Tendencies front man Mike Muir, and original EVOL singer, Jason "Clown" Brown, in 1998.

S.T. Tattoos has its own website, at www.sttattoo.com.
(Looks like they do some great work, if tattoos are your thing.)


Dexter hasn't filmed many scenes in Venice. The only one I can recall is the interior of The Swamp bar.


But they've shot a lot in neighboring Marina Del Rey, where this season they filmed the scene of Dexter in the park with baby Harrison, and in previous seasons shot the wedding scene (between Dexter & Rita), the scene of Debra & Quinn busting the Skinner's assistant, the bloody hotel scene , the Narcotics Anonymous meeting, Lila's coffee shop, the boating store, the police station exterior, the pharmacy, the used car lot, Trinity stalking a woman, and Lundy getting shot in the hotel parking lot - all in Marina del Rey.




The photos below were shot by Rick, in 2010.







Here is an aerial photo of the tattoo parlor. And here is a map link.

Q. How the heck did you figure out where it was?

A.  In previous seasons, I've usually had to hunt down the locations after viewing the episodes, using clues from the various scenes.  By the 5th season, though, I'd developed a small group of fans, spies & tipsters who kept an eye out for Dexter filming in their neighborhoods, and would let me know in advance when something was about to film there.

Between those reports, and my own personal reconnaissance around town, by the time the first episode aired, I already knew most (but not all) of the filming locations, and only needed to watch the episodes and match up the scenes with the correct locations.

This group of helpful fans includes Kerry, Rick, Joel, Geoff, Ellen, Julie, Susan, Jeff, and others. My thanks to all of them.

This particular info came from Rick, who not only told me they were filming at the Slave Boutique, but who also shot the photos you see above.  (Thanks, Rick!)