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Anastasi Seafood
Categories: Food Specialty Food Seafood Markets Restaurants Seafood Seafood Markets, Seafood [Edit]
1101 S 9th StPhiladelphia, PA 19147
Neighborhood: Bella Vista
(215) 462-0550
- Hours:
Tue-Thu 9 am - 9 pm
Fri-Sat 9 am - 10 pm
Sun 9 am - 8 pm
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street, Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- Free
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Caters:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
35 reviews for Anastasi Seafood
Review Highlights
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"Try the crab mac and cheese." In 2 reviews -
"its always fresh and reasonably priced." In 3 reviews -
"The mussels are fantastic." In 4 reviews
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35 reviews in English
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Review from Nicola M.
Washington, DC
5/16/2012
One of my favorite restaurants of all time. Super casual, pop up restaurant in a seafood market after 5pm. So reasonably priced for the amount of food and the quality, it's actually sacrilegious. I go here when visiting home, and I've never had one thing that was not incredible. From everyday standard menu items, to specials, this place has got seafood in the Italian Market down pat.
The raw oysters, which are my favorite, are always plump, fresh and sweet. I order a dozen, and for $2 a pop totally worth it. I've had oysters many places elsewhere charged up to $4 a piece and these are by far the best. The lobster bisque is delicious- along with their other soups. I love getting the lobster as my entree which usually sets me back $20-$25 when it's on special, nothing for a succulent, perfectly cooked lobster with heaping sides of delicious garlic mashed potatoes and vegetables. The mussels are delicious- recently our sweet, competent and patient waitress (Gianna) told our table that there was a special with bacon infused sauce, to which i turned my nose up (bacon with mussels? yuck!) but i ate my words when i tasted them- they were delicious. The grilled octopus salad with the pineapple citrus dressing makes my mouth salivate thinking of it, and their pasta dishes are done well too. Smelts? Hellz yes. Shrimp Cocktail? Sock it to me. Crab-stuffed ANYTHING? I could go on and on...
One suggestion: I love a good glass of white with seafood, and they could definitely improve their wine selection, or opt to offer the option to BYOB for a corkage fee (I am happy to bring my own delicious wine).
Thanks Anastasi for great quality, service and prices! I am forever yours...
xoxoxoxo -
Review from Rachel S.
Royersford, PA
5/12/2012
As long as you can handle the "fishy" smell in the front, Anastasi is worth a try. You become accustomed to the smell rather quickly, IMO.
Anastasi is a fish market / seafood restaurant / bar located in the heart of the Italian market. It's pretty small with only a few tables, but on this particular Friday night we got in without any problem.
Upon entering, we were greeted by a friendly hostess who sat us quickly. A busboy brought over a bowl of chowder crackers, which made me happy. I hate when restaurants leave the crackers in a bowl on the table. Ugh. I think of all the dirty fingers in there....very unpleasant.
Their menu is not terribly creative but their fish is very fresh. We shared a caesar salad before our dinner which was a little heavy on the dressing, IMO. Croutons were more chewy than crunchy, but, I tend to like a crunchy crouton. The kalamata olives were a nice touch.
For dinner, I had the 3 cheese ravioli with blue crab served in a creamy vodka red sauce (gravy). The raviolis were huge and the blue crab meat that topped the entree was quite delicious. My dad settled on the shrimp scampi since they don't offer grilled calamari anymore. It was tasty, but unimpressive.
Their bar had a nice selection of beer, wine, and cocktails. I really enjoyed the white cranberry cosmo- YUM!!! -
Review from Ron C.
4/29/2012
While wandering the Italian Market the weekend before Valentine's Day Michelle and I decided it was time to eat. With all of the amazing choices in the area we realized that we haven't been to Anastasi's in quite a while.
The restaurant is located in the center of their retail store which is very different. The quality of the seafood here is excellent so a good meal is sure to be had. We started with a dozen oysters which were fresh and delish. As it was Shad season one of their specials was a pan fried Shad Roe. This was the complete roe sack lightly sauteed. Neither of us ever had this dish before and it was interesting. Do yourself a favor and order a seafood salad here. Shrimp, Scallops , Mussels and Lobster tossed in a nice light dressing over Romaine. They have a full bar and a few great microbrews on tap (I went with the Yards Love Stout). Service was on point although the restaurant is quite small. All manner of seafood for sale to prepare at home or a full menu of fried/broiled platters as well. Definitely a must go to spot. -
Review from S B.
Wynnewood, PA
5/25/2012
This place sold us a dead lobster (as well as two live lobsters) and they were not at all apologetic or accommodating when we called from home to try to resolve the situation. A disappointing response.
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Review from Annie N.
Philadelphia, PA
Updated - 5/16/2012
update on the actual restaurant....so cool! its like having dinner at an italian family's house, only one that makes the tastiest softshell crabs ever. everyone was super nice and i LOVED and i mean LOVED my meal. check this place out for a low key but super friendly experience. thumbs up!
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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4/2/2012
i haven't eaten at the restaurant, but the seafood market is reasonably priced and the crab legs we… Read more »
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Review from Andrew T.
Philadelphia, PA
1/31/2012
This is a very uneven seafood restaurant. You'd think for a small, intimate restaurant located in the Italian Market that seats just a small amount of people, and is partially a fish market, would be that secret "WOW" place you've yearned for to rave about on Yelp.
Anastasi is not the place I was hoping it would be. The food was pretty decent, but uninspiring (Seafood Unlimited is still my go-to seafood place in Philly). The broiled seafood trio was unfortunately bland. My partner's fried seafood sampler was ok, but it didn't have any star quality.
I really, really wish this restaurant had some better food going for it, because it has all the other ingredients (location, charm, the fresh fish) to make it something stellar. It is not. -
Review from Jack H.
Washington, DC
1/20/2012 1 Check-in Here
I'm not a fish guy. Childhood in a fishing village on an island in Puget Sound means I can tell quality, but that I'm generally sick of it. My girlfriend's father, however, is a don't-take-"no"-for-an-answer type of guy, so we were going to Anastasi for a holiday family celebration.
The whole party was about as disruptive as a four-person table can be in the center of the small dining room, which is bordered by the frozen counters of an indoor fish market (being in the evenings sealed tightly enough that the fishy smell is tolerable and the room keeps warm). The staff up to the owners themselves humored us and attended everything pleasantly and speedily. The waiter was, not to his great discredit but certainly not toward helping the rowdiness of the situation, a bit of a chummy guy.
The food was so perfectly what it was advertised as and what it should have been, being smack in the middle of the Italian Market, that I'd like to call it "the comfort food of gourmet." I got muscles in white wine sauce over noodles I can't remember how to spell, someone ordered a fish entree which looked great, and two incredibly-cheap lobsters were devoured by the others. I can't promise they always have cheap lobster, but they do seem like they'd probably always have a randomly seasonally cheap offering of some sort.
The wine was just fine, but I was ordering on my girlfriend's father's credit card, so I didn't try any of their nicer bottles.
Don't come here for food tourism: go get a cheesesteak or something; come here in the day to get authentically good fish and in the evening to eat only if it's an occasion. It was as great as any people could have made it, but it was still a little cold and fishy. Worth it if you only go out twice a month. -
Review from Kevin W.
Philadelphia, PA
9/26/2011
The phrase "looks can be deceiving" have never been truer for this place. I have to admit, looking at it from the outside I was VERY skeptical about buying my seafood from them.
My first and initial response was that they were expensive. I guess compared to a normal grocery store they were. I went ahead and got some shrimp, sea scallops and squid anyway and I have to say, it was probably the freshest seafood I had ever bought at a store. This is now on my go to store for all my seafood.
Bottom line; Costs a little more than the grocery store, but the quality is FAR worth it! Do NOT go to the store one block over. -
Review from Gab R.
Hurleyville, NY
9/28/2011 1 Check-in Here
Had the amazing jumbo crab cake with delicious seasoned fries.
http://yelp.com happened to be there filming and they shot us slurping delicious raw oysters. Oh lord...
Limited seating, so don't come with more than 4-5 people. -
Review from Rebecca P.
Philadelphia, PA
6/11/2011
This is a review of the restaurant, not the market.
In a word: gross. Prior to eating here (several months ago), I purchased fish a few times from their market and enjoyed it at home. However, after dining in here, I can hardly walk by the place (in fact I go out of my way to avoid it when walking to my favorite taqueria). Anyway I think they used old fish that they did not sell at the market and then they cover it with gross sauces. Also clam chowder was somehow tasteless with stringy clams. The sides were lackluster and I left annoyed that I had spent any money here. The best part was probably the beer I ordered. Prior to eating here I had purchased a crab cake during the Italian Market Festival and was far from impressed, but not yet repulsed. I will never return. -
Review from Dan F.
1/23/2011 2 photos
"Hidden Treasures from the South Philly Sea"
Let's just get right to it.
Glass of Sauvignon Blanc: right on.
Red Soup of the Day: Red clam chowder. Complex, wonderfully aromatic red gravy, tender clams ... accept the offer of red chili flakes, wipe down the bowl with delicious bread.
Side caesar salad (see photo): crisp and gooey as sin, with briny Kalamata olives, freshly shaved Parmesan, and perfect herbed croutons. Important note: it was lavishly studded in capers. This was an unexpected, and initially unwelcome, surprise. But one bite and I was sold.
And Because I Wasn't Fat or Full Enough ...
Crab Mac & Cheese (see photo). This, my friends, was the B to the O to the M to the B. Not sure why I even ordered it, as I'm never one to go for M&C. It just doesn't interest me enough. And yet ... theirs is worth every crunchy, chewy, tender-lovin' hot and bubblin' crabtastic gobful you should be so lucky to try. I am one picky mother-lover, and rest assured, you will not be disappointed.
Also want to give a huge shout out to my server. She had that place running ... tight as a ship. Ba dum bum. Loved her!
If you're running around Italian Market / Bella Vista way, you really owe it to yourself to take a load off your feet and enjoy the seafood stylings.
Note to lobster lovers: while they don't have lobster on the regular dining menu, they're also a full seafood store, and if you call in advance they will cook you one to order to eat there ... as you draw butter out of each delicious claw.Listed in: Eat Me
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Review from Vincent F.
Philadelphia, PA
6/4/2011
It doesn't need to be fine dining to rock. This place rocks. We get takeout here at least once a week. It's inexpensive and tasty. The people there are super nice too. What more can you ask for?
Oh, you want to dine in? They can do that too!
Awesome fish market too.. -
Review from Jing G.
Los Angeles, CA
3/26/2010
Only recently since my love affair with small markets began, have I even began to think about coming here.
It's not exactly on a posh street and the dingy-ness of it is a little off-putting, but we wandered in here anyway after a day of visiting butchers and buying different things. Not a whole lot of seafood places in the area.. at least, the ones I saw had their goods outdoors and that's even more off-putting. The mussels looked dead in everywhere else we went to.
Anyway, we came in here and picked up 3 lbs of P.E.I mussels.. the nice man sorted each one individually and threw away the ones that were obviously dead. That's about 110 mussels, give or take, for roughly $7. After we prepared them we found only 2 to have been dead and uneatable... awesome!! -
Review from Eva H.
6/14/2010
We buy a lot of fish. We do not like shopping here.
Service is strange--they're smiley to your face, and then behind the counter (but within earshot) they rip customers to shreds. We've gotten some off shrimp, and the last time we were there the tuna (which thankfully, we didn't purchase) was looking so brown and old I pitied whoever ended up getting it. Hopefully, it was the trash bin.
Got some decent red snapper over the weekend for bouillabaisse; however, the exchange was downright bizarre:
Me: "Can you fillet the snapper and reserve the head and bones?"
Employee: "I guess we'll do whatever you want."
It was 90 degrees, and they didn't even bother putting the purchase on ice. Blecch.
Ever spent 15 minutes pulling out pin bones with a plyer? Well, that's what we did with our incredibly inexpertly filleted fish.
The restaurant has very good clams casino, however.Listed in: In and around the Italian…
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Review from Brendan M.
Philadelphia, PA
4/16/2009
This is a charming little market/restaurant if I've ever seen one. This joint has been in the Anastasi family for 4 generations, a fact that you can observe if you come for dinner on the later side (say 8ish) and during the course of your meal everyone filters out except the family hanging out at the bar while you finish up your meal. When you have settled the bill someone will let you out of the now closed restaurant and you are one your way - full, satisfied, and intrigued by this little spot.
I haven't been here for the Fish Market part, but it sure looks like an authentic buy something they caught today kind of spot for fresh fish. Smells like it too! We had the three-course dinner special and loved it. I generally prefer pork and steak to fish but was absolutely satisfied with my fish and even had some mussels. Yum!
Probably not the best date location if you are towards the early stages of a relationship, but if you are comfortable with adventures and each other, trust me this place is worth it.
Enjoy. -
Review from Carol C.
Philadelphia, PA
2/9/2012
So cute! Decorated for Valentine's Day. Buck a shuck oysters and clams @ happy hour most days - super fresh & good! Love the Crabcakes and the soups & will return for more. Like that it's not stuffy. Great Saturday or Sunday afternoon stop. Hope they start brunch menu!
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Review from Susan G.
7/11/2007
Though I haven't eaten in the Restaurant part of Anastasi, I have in fact purchased seafood there.
We picked up some really nice Cod and Blue Fish just today. I was pretty surprised actually because the last time that I was in there I wouldn't have purchased anything! But this last time everything was really clean and I can tell you it tasted yummy too!
I think the trick is that you have to get here early...anytime after 1 you're just not getting good stuff!
It's located on the south side of the Italian Market so it's pretty convenient if you're already shopping. I'll be back for some more yummy sea dwellers :) -
Review from Cory H.
WALL STREET, NY
9/5/2011 1 Check-in Here
A delicious lunch.
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Review from TL C.
Philadelphia, PA
2/10/2010 1 photo
I'm just so impressed! I mean I just moved to Philadelphia from SF BA (you know the place by the bay) and yet the seafood in Philadelphia is so much better, fresher, more variety and I have no way to explain this. I love seafood and would have no problem never ever eating land protein again if I could afford to eat seafood. In SF that's impossible @ $20+ per pound of every limited types of fish (yes you've got your salmon, ahi tuna and shrimp but not much more) and even then it's often of questionable freshness. But in Philadelphia the first place I walked into (Anastasi) has a wonderful selection, reasonable prices and is so clean that if you eat at the little restaurant/ bar area you are not even aware of the fishy smell from the market side.
Kudos Anastasi you do fish good! -
Review from Sylvia M.
Philadelphia, PA
5/27/2010
Dining in- personally, I think it's overpriced and theres no need to pay that much for that food... the place itself is kind of mediocre and its not fancy at all so I dont understand why they are so expensive.
Fish market itself is pretty damn good. The guys behind the counter know their stuff... If i ever have a question about what kind of fish i need for a recipe they always have recommendations. its always fresh and reasonably priced. the fried food is good too, they can either deep fry it for you OR (amazing) you can take it home and prepare it yourself.
overall this place is pretty good if u want to make your own meal at home. -
Review from Colleen S.
Philadelphia, PA
6/22/2011
Tried Anastasi's for the first time and was very pleased. They have nice outdoor seating, it was perfect for dinner on a nice day. My boyfriend had crabcakes, broiled not fried, which he said were delicious. I had an order of crab macaroni and cheese that was one of the best things I've ever eaten. It was super creamy, super cheesy and had the perfect amount of crab meat mixed in. They also had some great happy hour specials while we were there, great priced beer and margaritas.
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Review from demetrios s.
Philadelphia, PA
1/13/2011
the fish is the freshest you can buy on land. i have bought red snapper here. i boiled some and broiled them and i was in culinary heaven. the durados, from the meditteranean were fresh and meaty. the fish case is fresh. the fish come scaled and gutted, to reduce the smell. please cook the fish whole and enjoy the tasty cheek morsels and other bits of the fish. As a Greek person who loves seafood, I cannot say enough great things about this place. The diver scallops were so plump and the taste after i fried them was amazing. a little old bay and terragon and that is it.
cannot speak for dining in, but i enjoy cooking the food myself.
At $6 or $7 a pound for fish, a much better option than a big mac and fries or pizza and coke -
Review from G S.
Philadelphia, PA
3/17/2011
I have had a lot of items off their lunch menu and some from their dinner. Everything I have eaten there has been the freshest and tastiest of what ever that was I have had pretty much anywhere. And the price is beyond reasonable for this quality. I am born and raised in NYC - over there, you don't get half as good quality for twice the price.
I especially love the shrimp salad sandwiches. Something so basic, you'd think. But the shrimp are so fresh, they don't cut them into little pieces - they are whole - they snap in your mouth, there's a lot of them and perfectly seasoned.
It's all the attention to small details about how the food is prepared, the cooking times, the seasoning and presentation.
Absolutely fabulous and such a unique place. It's not for everybody, being in a fish market but it will definitely impress most anybody you are with. It's like a best kept secret kind of feel. -
Review from Michael K.
HUNTINGDON VY, PA
10/14/2011
The market offers all kinds of good stuff that you can take home and make with your family, a wide array of fish, pasta, salads, and shellfish. But the restaurant: When I go out for seafood I'm not really to concerned with the ambiance or my surroundings at all. So never mind that this restaurant is in the middle of a fish market. I like it because the food is damn good. That's as far as it goes. They have a full bar and the staff is friendly, but its all about food. If you aren't sure about something, just ask the staff, they usually know what's good and when it's good. They have the means to store all this seafood properly and they know how to prepare it for you. Nice variety of options. The mussels are fantastic. The crab cake is pure jumbo lump. The mediterranean salad is delicious. They always have a great fish of the day. Wild Salmon, whole bronzino, fried flounder, lobster, crabs, mussels, raw oysters: whatever you're looking for, they've got it and it's gonna be good. Try the crab mac and cheese.
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Review from Geronimo G.
Philadelphia, PA
7/29/2009
The most perfect crab place you can imagine. Buy cold steamed crabs, feisty live crabs, or order hot steamed crabs and sit at the high tables on the awninged italian-market sidewalk. Have a chat with the owner/buyer. Plenty of local fish, bluefish, bronzino and tuna steaks. Chesapeake blue crabs, snow crabs, clams, oysters.
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Review from James B.
Philadelphia, PA
1/16/2011
I love this place! Since moving into the neighborhood I've been buying fish here and never a bad experience. Call in your order and they will have it ready for when you arrive. They'll even clean the shrimp as to save you time before that big party! Awesome!
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Review from Cliff C.
Philadelphia, PA
7/14/2008
nothing and no one to see here, try take out for the mixed seafood soup in cream of coconut I think, It costs around 27 dollars but is so worth it, get some jasmin rice for it when you get home and it tastes just like the sea, very fresh ingredients simple home cooked feel to it. Not so good nitty gritties but the food is great.
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Review from Terry C.
Los Angeles, CA
5/25/2010
Interesting place for lunch... After about 10 minutes, you don't even realize the fishy smell of the market on the other side of the glassed in restaurant. The service is amazing and quick. I was disappointed that my crab cake sandwich did not come with fries, but I stole some from my partner's plate - I love old bay fries! He had the soft shell crab sandwich and said it was the best soft shell crab he ever had! It was a good place to eat, but it was a bit uncomfortable with the orange roughy, red snapper, and haddock starring at me from their ice packed display counters... Note to self - sit with your back to the fish, that way no guilty conscious!
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Review from Nicole R.
PA
2/12/2007
The weirdest thing about Anastasi Seafood is its dual identity as a fish market and restaurant. This tends to take away from the whole fish market aspect (you can be waiting there forever to buy some clams before anybody notices you) and makes the restaurant feel like it's on the boardwalk. It is on Italian Market, which has some boardwalk-like characteristics so I guess that's fair enough. The food was good, a little expensive for the lack of ambiance but very tasty and well-prepared. The fish is always pretty fresh and reasonably priced. I don't think I would ever go back to the restaurant (maybe for takeout) but I would definitely go there for tilapia or sushi grade tuna.
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Review from Mr P.
Philadelphia, PA
10/3/2009
Walk in the door and like it right away. Simple, unpretentious, and friendly. The seafood are fresh and well prepared. But not a place if you are on a diet, I guess that goes for almost any place in Philadelphia. The portion are huge. I came from the BayArea, where sometimes the portion are so small you thought you have ordered the appetizer instead. Always have something for lunch the next day.
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Review from Cherie S.
Philadelphia, PA
6/27/2009
I LOVE THIS PLACE!! Born and raised on their seafood.((best in the city)) I go there aleast twice a month. I am a big "Blue Crab" fan.The staff here is very friendly and family oriented. I believe their prices reasonable to me.
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Review from Linda H.
Philadelphia, PA
9/29/2011
This was an experience where everything was right. I didn't leave work until 8:15 so I called to ensure that they would still be serving when we arrived 10 minutes later. Having gone to restaurants that close their kitchens 1/2 hour early(in Manayunk) this was a concern. Upon arrival we were greeted very pleasantly by Ryan with no hint of our somewhat late arrival. We had excellent calamari, lightly battered very delicate and crisp with an wonderful chunky roma tomato dipping sauce. Upon his recommendation I ordered a chilean sea bass which was really excellent and very flavorful. My husband ordered the broiled seafood platter which made him very happy. Even near to closing time the chef was en point. I also had a very perfect martini. About midway through our meal Ryan locked the front doors but made a point of coming over to our table to reassure us to take our time eating, and not to rush. This was said sincerely, it was not a ruse to hurry us. I am in the service industry as well, and for me a new bar was set. This level of customer service combined with great reasonably priced food is rare. I was always a fan of this restaurant but I will now come more often and recommend it to all of my clients as well.
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Review from Emily M.
Philadelphia, PA
7/21/2009
We bought live blue crabs last weekend, jumbo and large. Both very good size and quality. Price was very reasonable and selection was good. Very pleased.
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Review from Bella Vista R.
Philadelphia, PA
2/21/2010
The only place I get mussels in Philly. Consistently good with very few open shells. At $2 a pound and right down the street, whats not to like?
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Review from Won S.
Philadelphia, PA
7/19/2009
This is a pretty cool place. The oysters are great. I don't know if they fast the oysters there, or the suppliers do, but that was one secret I learned from my uncle a long time ago about oysters. You leave them in a big tank of slightly salty water for a day or two, and it they crap out everything, and the oysters taste excellent as a result. The oysters here, tasted like they were fasted, which make for great eating. The clams on the half shell are good and the shell fish in garlic and oil is greasy but good. Stick to the shellfish I think. I was dissapointed with the Linguini and clams I got, but I got it because I knew I would be too stuffed from the plates I got from the raw bar. Also, a great place to get a fresh Peroni on tap, that I haven't had since I left Brooklyn. What keeps it from being 4 or even 5, is the quality of other entrees they have and the ambience. Iff they got rid of everything else on the menu and just kept it as a raw bar that served crabs, it would be 4 stars. If the place wasn't a bit loud in the early evening as they cleaned up the fish market, or were in a different place, seperate fro the fish market, it would be a 5. They have a prix fixe, but the first two courses are sort of salad kind of things. Skip it and go off the menu starting with the raw bar. After dinner walk over to John's and get some italian ice and you are set to go.
