The Clam Bar
Fine dining restaurant · Greenwich Village
169 Thompson St, New York, NY 10012
Highlights
Intimate seafood bar with exceptional cocktails & caviar
Intimate seafood bar with exceptional cocktails & caviar
"Just down the road from the OG Lunch, Clam Bar opened in 1981 but got a recent glow-up, complete with kale caesar, tuna poke nachos, espresso martinis and prosecco on tap. Still, you’re here for the seafood shack classics: Go for the warm lobster roll (market price) doused in garlicky butter on a soft potato bun, and crispy fried clam strips or calamari. The all-outdoor setting shaded by yellow umbrellas is the perfect place to eat before or after you hit the beach." - melissa kravitz hoeffner
"We love the setting of Clam Bar—it’s a roadside clam shack on the way to and from Montauk with umbrella-shaded picnic tables. The always-satisfying lobster roll is pretty similar to what you’ll find at Bostwick’s: finely chopped lobster meat on a toasted potato bun with a little celery and minimal mayo. The luxe hot lobster roll is also very much worth the trip, with bright red knuckle and claw meat poached in garlic butter, tucked into a toasty bun, and topped with pea shoots and scallions." - melissa kravitz hoeffner, team infatuation
"ZZ’s Clam Bar, Major Food Group’s seafood spot that opened in 2013, has ceased operations and been repurposed into extended private dining for neighboring Carbone; it had maintained a Michelin star until losing it in 2022, though it was not immediately clear when ZZ’s closed." - Luke Fortney
"Opened by Major Food Group in New York in 2013, the tiny 12-seat clam bar at 169 Thompson Street near West Houston Street quickly made waves: it earned a Michelin nod a year later and kept that star until it lost it in 2022. The menu featured items like prawn ceviche, cured sardines with oranges, tuna carpaccio topped with foie gras and bone marrow, plus caviar and oysters by the half shell, and drinks that were already luxe at $20; GQ called the place “ornate, extravagant, shocking, over-the-top” and described it as “a state of mind, an affirmation of privilege.” Over the years the ZZ’s name was exported to other concepts (including Miami) and, according to Major Food Group, the brand later expanded dramatically into a members club; meanwhile the original Thompson Street location has been closed, scrubbed from the business’s pages, and repurposed to provide extended private dining for Carbone." - Emma Orlow
"A New York City restaurant that was stripped of its Michelin star in the most recent updates, illustrating the guide’s return to issuing downgrades after a pandemic-era pause." - Bettina Makalintal
