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Showing results for tags 'Raw Bar'.
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So I did not see this (Voltaggio Brothers Steakhouse) listing and figured it may help those when planning a visit to the area. Reservations here non-existent two weeks out so we did the next best thing and got there about 4:45 (they open at 5 PM), and scored a table in the bar area. If you are OK eating in a "lounge" type environment it is fine; chairs are cushy and tables are low. The wait staff was attentive, but not overbearing and knowledgeable. My only gripe was it took about 30 minutes to get our drinks (mixed and wine, so nothing complicated) when we got there, but after that the food from salad and apps to dinner was timed properly without issue. Caesar Salad (interesting twist with the anchovy hushpuppies) Beefsteak Tomato Heart Salad Oysters Rockefeller - Since they were green the presentation was inspiring, but flavor was excellent) Parker House Rolls and Cheddar Biscuits - if you remember the Parker House rolls from CitiZen, they are not that good, but good in their own right. Filets - Wagyu beef was very flavorful. Scalloped Potatos We did not have dessert as we were catching a show and ran short on time. I would go back, when we have more time - plan on spending ~$100/person with a drink.-
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Cristina and I ducked out of a business cocktail thing early and took advantage of the fact that we had a sitter, and stopped into the relatively new Star Fish on Heights Blvd for a drink and snacks. The chilled seafood tower did not disappoint. Drinks menu is extensive, and will reward multiple return trips to make my way through the various martinis, gin & tonics, and sparkling wines. The "Saltwater" G&T, with star anise and "ocean water tincture" was delicious...a hint of brine, but nothing crazy. -
Jeff Black here. My new Restaurant is now open. Downstairs is a Gulf Coast inspired Oyster Bar (Pearl Dive), upstairs we have bocce ball and a bar named Black Jack. Let me know what you think. JB -
i think it only seems natural that i'm the one to start this thread, eh? in any event, Laura Hayes profiled French Quarter Brasserie recently. gone are the most comfortable bar seats in all of history. in is a spin-off of a Cajun-inspired Fairfax spot. -
RW Update: Last night had a great dinner at 1789 -- scallop ceviche "margarita," mussels, softshells, and more scallops for the lady as an entree. I told the waiter it was her birthday (which it was -- thank you, RW gods!), and her dessert (warm choco cake with the mintiest mint choco chip ice cream you'll ever have the fortune to come across) arrived with a candle and a birthday card from the staff. Lunch at Oceanaire yesterday -- Surprise! The RW menu is dinner only (damn you, RW gods!). I just don't get the appeal of this place, unless you like feeling like you're on a loud, overcrowded ship -- if I need seafood again and can't make it to O'Learys in Annapolis, I'm heading to Kinkead's. Strike one: the oyster po' boy looked like a package of van de camps fish nuggets dumped onto two giant pieces of puffy bread. Strike two: the following conversation -- Me: "Where do you get your crab meat from?" Waiter: [eyes dart side to side, shuffles a bit...] "They're a Chesapeake Bay Style crab cake, one of our most popular choices." Lady: "They're huge! And full of meat." Me: "Yes, but where do you get the crabs?" Waiter: "We get them from Philips; they provide most of the crabmeat in the region." Me: "Which is from Indonesia." Waiter: "Yes, but it's a very large crabcake." (Fortunately, the waiter went back to the kitchen to check and that day for some reason they had Marlyand blue crab.) Strike three: I still didn't like the crabcake. Too much breadcrumbs and parsley edging out the crab. With such a fat stomach and thin wallet, I decided to cancel my lunch at Vidalia tomorrow and go back to Breadline for the heirloom tomato salad and some chocolate + marscapone cookies, at half the price of a RW lunch (and no tips!). -
If you're ever in Napa, there's a location of Hog Island Oyster Co. in the Oxbow Public Market (which is sort of like "Napa's Ferry Building Marketplace"). There's also a third location in Marshall, where I've never been, but if you're staying on the coast, it's no further than Napa. All three locations are mapped here (ignore the mileage figure - each location is just over an hour from the Ferry Building, depending on traffic, which can get pretty bad):
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Looks like Jeff Shively's no longer there. Anyone know what's up with changes to the menu and Executive Chef at Sea Catch? The crab cakes are different (still good but different) and the pumpkin/pecan tart is gone. -
In NYC over the weekend for a birthday getaway. Was able to spend several hours getting acquainted with The Dutch, the new-ish spot from Andrew Carmellini in SoHo. Unfortunately didn't ever make it over to a proper table as I was using the place as a meetup for folks. But got to try several of their items via the bar. Definitely get the fried oyster mini sandwiches (order several), the hot fried chicken (semi-famous in his cookbook), and anything they're recommending from the raw bar. The real standout, though, is the service. Top notch at every station -- the killer bartenders somehow made dealing with the Friday evening post-HH rush seem effortless and kudos to the beverage director Brynn who took care of us with a little extra. I'd recommend going for lunch or early in the evening during nice weather when the sun is still out and occupying the counter seating alongside the open windows. -
Because of three people, my dining companion and I spend five hours trekking to Swan Oyster Depot in Nob Hill. Call me crazy, but just don't ever call me apathetic (pathetic is fine; just not apathetic). We found a parking space *way* up high (it is in the Nob Hill neighborhood), but only about three blocks away. Even though it looks flat, if you see that intersection where the person is crossing the street, and take a right there? You'll be walking up at a 45-degree angle. You'll also be waiting in line - justifiably, I will add. To make the line seem longer, right through that glass window on the left side of the restaurant is a tantalizing display of today's offerings. Swan Oyster Depot is nothing more than a counter, with no seats other than what you see at the bar, so when it fills up, it fills up quickly and with a vengeance - I don't know what the seating capacity is, but it couldn't be more than fifteen. When you finally get in (the wait isn't *that* long), you'll note the knickknacks of a very old establishment - in this case, over one-hundred years old - which include the James Beard "America's Classics" award they won in 2000, and a motley menu featuring the day's seafood. Note, by the way, the vehemently written sign about not having a website. On the bar in front of you, you'll see Swan's napkins, a brief history of the restaurant, and a better-than-expected wine list, which breaks down into two possible choices: a bottle of Muscadet, or a few glasses of Anchor Steam ($6). Swan isn't built for dining; it's built for eating. Eating quickly, and eating well. That quote by Bourdain (in the center picture above) isn't at all wrong, and quite frankly, I think Swan Oyster Depot deserves a James Beard Award not just for being an "America's Classic," but for "Outstanding Restaurant in America," although this is an owner-driven restaurant which may not even make it eligible. How much of an owner-driven restaurant? The first thing we ordered was Smoked Salmon ($13 - when I saw the size of the plate, I panicked, thinking we got the $24.50 item, but there must have been something else listed that I didn't see) and six Malpeque Oysters ($18-ish). The salmon came out right away, and it was as good as any smoked salmon I've ever eaten - there was some *extremely* potent horseradish on the bar as well - so potent that you need to beware of it, using only a few fibers. The Malpeques didn't arrive, so I figured that Swan was following the trend of "serving things whenever they're plated" - I was wrong. Next up was a half-dozen Cherry Stone Clams ($14), and these were the best Cherry Stone Clams I've ever eaten: batting two-for-two. As good as they look - that's how good they were. Then, a cup of Clam Chowder ($2.75) that was perhaps my favorite thing in the entire meal. It was so good that we ordered an entire *quart* to take home (I think that was $20, and worth every penny). Alongside of that, a Prawn Cocktail ($14.50), and if you could say this meal had one weakness, this would have been it. These were great; they just weren't life-changing; the clam chowder, on the other hand, was something akin to a religious experience. Back to the owner-driven part ... a gentleman who was clearly in charge (there were probably a dozen people working the counter, about one for each diner), asked me if we'd like anything else, and that's when I thought to mention the Malpeques, which never arrived. He *immediately* asked who took the order, and to be honest, we didn't quite remember, and even if we had, he asked the question in a way that oozed menace, and goodness knows I wouldn't want to get an employee in trouble just because an order was forgotten, so we simply said we weren't sure. Don't get me wrong - this guy wasn't going to scream at the person (at least, not in front of the customers), but he was going to make *very* sure that this didn't happen again on this evening. He was starkly polite - picture a manager of an old-school New York City deli, and you'll have the exact countenance. In fact, Swan Oyster Depot reminds me of a deli more than any seafood restaurant I've ever been to in my life, with the possible exception of Durgin Park in Boston, but when I first went to Durgin Park in the 1980s, it had already lost the battle to becoming a tourist trap, so ... deli. (In fact, Durgin Park has gotten *so* touristy that it's now owned by, gulp, Ark Restaurants, which has an $80 million market cap trading on the NASDAQ.) Within one minute, a half-dozen Malpeques appeared, with a sincere (but unnecessary) apology from the manager, and should I even bother to say it? Okay, let me take a different tack: I invented a saying, long ago - "The bigger, the blacker the blotch, the badder the bivalve," meaning that oysters should ideally have a pearly white interior shell, and when you find ones that have large, black blotches, they're usually the bad apples - still perfectly edible; just not the best of the bunch. Well ... About the non-blotchiest Malpeques I've ever come across. Not only were they blotch-free; they were just plain free: They were not added to the check. How's that for putting the customer first? All this food came out to just over $100 before tip (this accounts for the oysters being removed, but also accounts for the quart of clam chowder, so $100-110 was the "true price" of this sensational meal - on a whole, the best raw seafood I've ever eaten, and a restaurant experience unlike any other. To quote that great American statesman, Anthony Bourdain, "If I died eating at Swan's counter, I would die a happy man." And of course, as I flew into a panic when the manager told me Swan Oyster Depot was cash-only, he reassured me that there was an ATM across the street, just as he has done a thousand times before. PisS - There is a very slang, somewhat crude, French word for "men's urinal" that I have never before seen used in a real-life situation, not in DC, not in California, and not in probably twenty visits to France. Until now.
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Co-worker is raving about this place...anybody been? Emphasis on fresh seafood. Website 829 Frederick Rd, Catonsville, MD 21228 -
So last week was my week in Bethany. We didn't really eat out much this time, but met friends at Seacrets. It certainly wasn't for the food, not for getting s***t faced, but it was for the novelty of eating outside under full sized palm trees with a sand floor. It was the first time I had been there in probably a decade. Time has pretty much stood still (G-Love and Special Sauce was the headliner band that night). It is also a different experience when you are there with your child, and they hand you the "rules" for being there with someone underage (kind of funny considering my daughter is 5. They just opened a distillery on-site in June, which is new. Okay, now on to the food--it was pretty bad and the service was pretty bad as well. My wife and another friend had salads, one topped with grilled shrimp, the other with tuna. The first time they made the salad with the tuna, it cam with tuna salad. They acknowledged the mistake, re-made it, asked how the tuna should be cooked and it came about 15 minutes later well done. Regardless, they comped it which was nice. I had "Jamaican Tenders" and a side of fries. They were pretty dried out, not very spicy, not very good to say the least, and pretty puny. Someone else got a veggie wrap which looked pretty good and they seemed to like it. Bottom line--don't come here for the food, some here for the ambiance or to get a frozen rum drink called a "Pain in the Ass", served in a plastic cup and sit in an oasis like setting with a canopy of palm trees and a sand floor. If you don't take yourself too seriously and you enjoy the company you are with, you will have a good time at this classic. -
My friend Katie Loeb runs the bar program at Oyster House (1516 Sansom Street), so I'm not completely unbiased, but I very much enjoy both raw and cooked options there. One of their specialties is fried oysters with chicken salad, a Philly tradition dating from a time when oysters were cheap and chicken was expensive. Or something like that. Food's good, drinks are good, there's pretty much always a cask beer on. And Nodding Head brewpub upstairs makes exceptional, moderate alcohol beers for pre- or post-imbibification. -
Water Grill is the best seafood restaurant in all of Southern CA. Serious. And, it's in downtown L. A. a couple of blocks from the Bonaventure. Unfortunately, it's not cheap. Probably comparable to Kinkead's in price. -
I have never been in SoBe's in Clarendon but it appears to be trying a new concept with the grand opening this week of the Rock and Raw Bar at Sobe's. If the product is quality it might be a nice addition to the area. It woud appear to be a niche not yet filled in that crowded neighborhood. -
We went to GrillMarX last night for dinner. Located in the new Fair Hill Shopping Center in Olney, they opened six days ago. If yesterday was any indication, they will do well. They were packed. The only problem we had was that they were so popular that they were not able to seat us until 8pm even though we had a 7:30 reservation. I think that they are still getting the hang of how to time their reservations. They were doing a thriving bar business and the raw bar was very busy. Dinner started with a dozen Wellfleet oysters. Very fresh, briny, plump and well presented. They were served with lemon, hot sauce, freshly grated horseradish, and a grapefruit mignonette. My son ordered the Kona ribeye, which is marinated in Kona coffee, brown sugar, spices and herbs. Very flavorful if not to my particular taste. He ordered it rare, and it came rare. I ordered the regular boneless ribeye, asking for it to be on the rare side of medium rare. Again, it came exactly as ordered. We ordered baked potatoes to go with them but though seriously about the classic paring of creamed spinach. The steaks are 14 ounces and were quite good. My wife ordered the crab cakes, asking for the mustard sauce to be on the side. When they arrived, the sauce was on top of the crabcakes. When she said that she had ordered the sauce on the side, they whisked them away and replaced them with new ones, sauce on the side, in 90 seconds. They came with a very good salsa of corn and red peppers. The wine list is not large, but well selected for the menu and considering that this is Montgomery County, well priced. Unfortunately, as in most restaurants, the wines are fairly young. We ordered a 2006 Franciscan Oakville Estate Magnificat that at $65 was the oldest, and one of the most expensive bottles on the list. A fair price for the wine for MoCo restaurants. We later added a half bottle of 2007 Stonestreet Cab that was not nearly as good as the Magnificat. Glassware was adequate and they brought us new glasses with the second bottle. Dessert was the Amaretto Mascarpone Cheesecake for my son and the Apple Crisp for me. The Apple crisp was huge, came with two scoops of vanilla ice cream and was quite tasty. I didn't taste the cheesecake, but he didn't seem to dislike it as it disappeared quickly. Service was friendly, and efficient. Because my son ordered iced tea in addition to drinking the wine (actually, my wife had less than half a glass of the Magnificat and we drank the rest), the waiter brought him two glasses at a time due to how packed the place was. All in all I think this is a great addition to Olney, which needs more restaurants of this category. I look forward to them ironing out the scheduling, but I can't say that it was their fault, folks seemed to want to linger. If I had any complaint it was that the place was quite loud, but that is to be expected when there are that many people there at the bar. We will definitely be back. -
Was at Rockfish Saturday night with some girlfriends after a day at the salon. We normally go to Rockfish when we miss the deadline for brunch at Carrol's Creek and Chart House. But we had a really nice dinner. The wine selection is not huge, but we managed to find a good wine that was very reasonable. I started with a cup of MD crab soup, it was very good, had all the requisite flavors and the vegetables were not mushy. I really enjoyed it, it would have been even better last week in all the rain. I am really a big fan of MD crab soup when done right. It is one of my favorite soups. I then had the fish tacos- an app as an entree. There were three tacos with two very generous pieces of battered cod in each tortilla. On the bottom was a really good slaw with a little avocado puree. I thought they were good, although as I got full I ate the stuffing and left the tortilla. It had good flavor as was a little different from the normal entrees on a lot of Annapolis menus. My dinner mates had the crab and lobster pastas. The crab one looked incredible. The lobster smelled phenomenal, but you had to take the meat out of the shell and cut it and that made it really messy and difficult to eat politely, they should go ahead and take the meat out of the shell before serving the dish. Anyway this place is normally very solid, a little dark inside, but nice and a little more casual than O'Leary's or etc. -
I tried the newly-opened Catch 15. The menu looked pretty unfocused, but it is close to a friend's office and takes reservations, so we figured we'd give it a try. It was profoundly mediocre. We sampled about 10 dishes and all were a solid "eh." I wouldn't ordinarily even post, but because it's new, I figured that I'd pass along word: don't bother.- 2 replies
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One thing I've noticed, both on this thread, and also from personal experience, is how valuable it is for a restaurant to be close to LAX airport. After a long day of travel, you just don't want to deal with Los Angeles traffic on your first night - I've found you the perfect restaurant. Fishing With Dynamite is a raw bar and seafood specialist in Manhattan Beach, about a 7 mile drive from the airport hotels. The Chef de Cuisine is David LeFevre, who has spent time at Charlie Trotters, Le Moulins de Mougins, Water Grill, as well as a couple years hoping all over Asia (and his Asian influence shows at Fishing With Dynamite). We have a common friend in Josh Raynolds (a wine writer for The International Wine Cellar). Look for Fishing With Dynamite to be a James Beard Award contestant in the future. Since we're 3 hours behind on the east coast, I got there at around 5:30, and it was still empty on a Wednesday. The menus online are current, save for handwritten daily specials (which should interest you). I started out with a pint of Jamaica Red Ale ($6.50) by Mad River Brewing Company in Blue Lake, CA while I perused the menu. Wanting to see what Chef Lefevre could do with the "Traditional" section, I started with a bowl of New England Clam Chowdah ($9), a sensational bowl of chowder made with littlenecks in shell (and comes with a bucket for the shells), made with Neuske's bacon, Weiser Farm Potatoes (both thinly sliced baby whites and, I believe, sweets (although those could have been squash), and some lovely house made oyster crackers which you should try one of, dry, then immediately dump the rest in. This could have used the smallest pinch of salt, although it might have been my body chemistry; not the soup - other than that, it was just about the perfect bowl of chowder. Knowing I'd get seafood with some type of lemon in it, I switched over to a 6-ounce glass of Seguinot-Bordet "Reserve Sainte-Victoire - Vielles Vignes" Chablis ($14.50) - they also offer 3-ounce pours at a discount. "Can you vouch for your crab cake?" I asked my knowledgable bartender (who, from overhearing him, is clearly a cocktail expert). "Of course I can," he said. "What if I told you I just woke up in Baltimore this morning?" I asked. The staff all laughed. Maryland Blue Crab Cake ($16) was delicious blue crab, the whole crab, lump and fin meat, but not in a traditional Maryland style at all. Breaded with what was seemingly a lemony panko and served atop a whole grain mustard remoulade, and served alongside a salad of red cabbage and house made dill pickle slices, this was a delicious, somewhat acidic, virtuoso presentation of Maryland Crab that you should not hesitate to order. Alongside it: Chef David's Mom's New England Squash Rolls ($5) - I had *no* idea about what the presentation of these would be - it turns out they're something resembling Parker House rolls, but with squash, and much denser, served with rosemary butter for spreading and dipping. An order of four was too much, so I took two home the next morning to have with my coffee. (As of April 3rd, 2014, if you go to their homepage, the 2nd and 3rd pictures are reasonable facsimiles of my chowder and crab cake, the chowder is slightly different (especially the oyster crackers), but the crab cake is almost a dead ringer for what I had.) Despite the name, and informality, and location just off the Pacific Ocean, this is a deadly serious seafood restaurant that you're going to be hearing about in the future, and I would return in a minute, next time going for the "Modern" section of the menu since I've already seen how Chef Lefevre can succeed with the more traditional items. If you're tired, and in a LAX hotel with a car, your spirits will be awakened if you come to Fishing With Dynamite - although the menu is small, there's plenty more to explore here than I did on my brief visit. This restaurant is owned by the same people who own Manhattan Beach Post.
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Congratulations to Dave Pressley, aka shaggy, who will be stepping in as an equity GM at The Light Horse beginning next week. Dave will be coming from Ardeo+Bardeo (and, before that, Eventide). In his own words, "I have really enjoyed working for Ashok and gleaned a lot of knowledge from him. I just couldn't resist the opportunity to work with a great friend of mine, work closer to home and have a more flexible schedule, allowing me more time at home with my wife and daughter. There are a lot of challenges I'll be facing with the Light Horse, but I look forward to taking them on and making it a dining destination in Old Town."
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I've been walking past the construction zone that became Roof Bethesda (and Smashburger) for a while now, so I was pleased to see it finally open and thought I'd check it out. From what I've been reading, I thought it was going to be more of a hip, rootop bar scene that also happened to have food, but I was happy to see that I was wrong...well, maybe not wrong, they're certainly going for the hip bar part...it's also a serious restaurant. And a darn good one at that. Let me start with a negative though. Unless your restaurant has some sort of really wacky concept, I really, really don't need the server to start with a long winded explanation of the menu. It's a restaurant. It's a menu. Appetizers are smaller than entrees. Yes, I can see that the cocktails are on top, and the wine is on the bottom. I get it. I've dined before. Don't get me wrong, our server was excellent and friendly...I know this comes from the top. Stop it. Anyway, we started with a Smithwicks draft, $7, and a Russian Mule, $10 (I think that's what it was called), an excellent drink with vodka, ginger and lime juice served in a copper cup, which stayed nicely chilled throughout the meal. Cute. We skipped appetizers and went right to entrees, Tagliatelle Pasta and Clams Handmade egg noodles, local clams, garlic, butter, tomatoes, $18 and Mountain Trout Almondine French beans, red bliss potatoes, almonds, caper-brown butter sauce $18 Both were excellent and, as you can see, reasonably priced. Nothing especially earth-shattering or creative, just simple and well made. Exactly what I tend to look for in a restaurant. We finished with a Sticky Toffee Pudding ($10 on the menu, charged $8) which could have used a big big scoop of ice cream instead of the chantilly cream on top, but was warm and tasty despite that. Food aside, I do have a few issues though. The main one is the lack of separation between the bar and the main dining area. It was loud, and the bar crowd was practically spilling into the dining room on a Monday night...can't imagine what it'll be like on a Friday or Saturday night. Might take some work to convince people that this is as much a restaurant as a bar. But the main room is beautiful....it's on the second floor of the building and is pretty much all window...you get a very nice view of the neighborhood. Also, and I know I sound like a broken record here, the menu on the website was vastly different from the menu we received, and didn't specify prices. Drives me crazy. I was really looking forward to the churros mentioned online, and was disappointed when they didn't have them. Ideally? Update the menu on the website daily. If that's too hard, note on the website that it's a sample menu, and post the full one daily on your Facebook page. Easy. In general though, this was one of the most pleasant meals I've had in Bethesda in a while. I know it's early, but it looks like I'll be adding this to the rotation along with Grapeseed, Food Wine and Co., and a few others as long as it doesn't get too loud and bar-oriented. -
Uptown Tap House opened last night in the old 4P's space in Cleveland Park. The decor is pretty much the same as the 4P's. It isn't clear they really did much work other than install a few fans and replace the signage. UTH is owned by McFaddens/Sign of Whale people. The restaurant held a neighborhood night last night offering a "3-Course Tasting Menu" and free Champagne. I'm pretty confident the champagne had never seen France, but i'm happy to take free alcohol. Not surprisingly, the restaurant staff was overwhelmed, and sadlythe kitchen ran out of many of the food items by our reservation time, so our tasting menu of the house specialties was severely limited. (I was eyeing those big ribeyes that were going out, but never got one.) Items we had: - Fried chicken salad - A few pieces of chicken fingers on top of some iceberg lettuce. - Spinach and Artichoke dip - They ran out of chips, so a quick trip to CVS alleviated the issue. Tasted like the spinach and artichoke dip that ever bar in town serves. - Crab cakes - Easily the best item of the evening - I found them to be rather good - lots of crab, not too much filler. Really pretty tasty and a good size. - Seared salmon - Sad overcooked piece of salmon on top of some overcooked spinach. - Lots of cheesecake Overall, pretty much uninspired bar fare. It will be interesting to see what the owners plan to do with the space and food, but as of now, you can't really compare the food to that offered at many of the neighboring bars on the Cleveland Park strip. -
This article in Washington Business Journal appears to be correct - my deep, deep inside source tells me P.J. Clarke's will be opening in the old Olives space, and that it's a "done deal." Signed, dotted. Confidence level: Medium-High to High (an extremely trusted source, but I had to rush off the phone, and didn't really have time to discuss specifics). As for the food in New York? I've only been to the one on the Hudson, but my impression is that Old Ebbitt Grill has itself some competition. Cheers, Rocks.
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Lunchtime. Hunger. New York City. What are there, like a thousand places to eat? Actually, there's probably more, especially if you count all the street meat that's around; carts, trucks, kiosks, people selling tamales out of their granny carts, sidewalk food sold by squatting women in Chinatown - and on and on. Now compound that hunger problem with finding yourself in one of those places in New York City that sees a million people a day; people scurrying through its grand spaces, not there to eat but on their way from somewhere or to somewhere, generally in a hurry. And it happened to me last week (though I wasn't in a hurry), when I ended up here, to visit that store at the top of the stairs"¦ Normally, giant railroad terminals aren't thought of as great places to eat (well, maybe in Italy, where you can often find a decent panini and a perfect espresso); they're usually where you can grab a crappy sandwich or half-cooked hot dog, on your way, as I said, to or from somewhere. Grand Central actually has a food court in its lower level, which certainly does a booming business at lunch. But look a little further underground and you'll stumble across this"¦ Its official name is Grand Central Oyster Bar & Restaurant, and it has been sitting in the lower level of Grand Central Terminal for practically 100 years, falling into decline in the late 60s to early 70's then rescued, renovated and now once again feeding hundreds of seafood happy customers on a daily basis. Don't forget to check out the Gustavino tiled ceiling in this landmarked building"¦ I like to grab a seat at the counter, because that way you get fed fast and you get to watch the show"¦ Remember, this ain't Le Bernardin folks. So start off with a bowl of clam chowder (I like Manhattan-style)"¦ Chock full of briny clams (get there early), slightly spicy and with a handful of those oyster crackers crushed into it, it hit the spot. Then I moved onto the real reason I was here"¦ Perhaps the finest oyster po-boy you can find in the city, simply loaded with perfectly fried oysters, a little shredded lettuce and a swab of tartar sauce to top it all off. A squeeze of lemon brought it to perfection"¦under $10! Even though I like the counter at lunch, the full menu is serious. Plenty of daily/seasonal specials. And the oysters? On any given day, the blackboard menu is likely to offer up at least 2 dozen varieties"¦ I don't get here for lunch as often as I should, but for food this good, in a beautiful and historically landmarked building, it's worth a trip. And that goes for whether you're hopping on a train or not.
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Perhaps check out Fork on Market- 3rd and Market - a convivial bistro open 7 days a week(Old City- also where Amada is on Chestnust so you just can't go wrong in the area). A great location to grab a drink too- 2nd St. -
The Lobster Joint (next door to Katz's Deli) is what TackleBox coulda, shoulda been, serving New England "comfort food" in a low key, benches and beer, order at the counter setting. Generous plates of fried seafood served in lobster roll style buttered and toasted buns. Enjoyed the crispy oyster roll ($15), onion rings, good fried calamari and solid raw oysters. A solid place to get a casual, relatively quick dinner. Or to spend time catching up with friends before heading out to other places. Not expensive but your bill can add up fast, depending upon what you order.
