The Mermaid Oyster Bar

NYC has a million and one seafood joints... A lot of them are good but this one is fun, hip and cozy in one of my favorite hometown hoods. Da Village. MacDougal Street has some of the best eats in the city and all on one street. Artichoke is across da street, Minetta up the street, Meskerem a stone's throw away, Luxor cafe and Kati Roll to name a few but Mermaid is da bomb...

(My little buttercup)

(East Coast Little Necks and Oysters - Sans beard)

No need to close your legs... The best smelling kind of clam laid out in front of my snout to lick and slurp. So fwesh and good.

(Lobster roll, Old Bay fwies and slaw)

(Side shot. Squirt)

Not your standard Maine style lobster roll in a top split buttered bun but it's no chopped liver either... Wait, I love chopped liver, nevermind. The roll is very nice but I prefer the top split bun to hold in the lobster. With rolls like this, the filling falls out way too easily. Speaking of the filling... The lobster was chunky, sweet, moist, tender, lightly dressed and seasoned. Perfect. The Old Bay dusted fries were crispy and delicious but a tad salty. The slaw was pretty weak and bland... It was like no one even tasted it.

(Mousse thinger)

(Fortune Teller fun!)

This was so cool. It's a plastic film in the shape of a fish that you put on the palm of your hand and it tells your fortune depending how it curls or flips based on the heat you're giving off. I think mine was "fickle". No shit, Sherlock.

This restaurant just oozes New York City standards that most restaurants around the nation can only wish to achieve. I'm not talking about fine dining achievement but a wonderful menu that you can eat on a daily basis. There's a lot more great stuff on the menu but I'll save it for next time.

Burp.

3.5 Stars.

79 MacDougal Street
New York, NY 10012
212-260-0100
http://www.themermaidnyc.com/oyster/