First, little video going down to Lower Level GCT....
You will have noticed halfway down we passed the famed Oyster Bar...many, many years ago I knew people who worked in the Grand Central area who would go out of their way to have a bowl of clam chowder and a drink there.. I believe it was closed for a while, refurbished and reopened..
People love to complain about places like this that they are not as good as they once were
Grand Central Oyster Bar
Category: Seafood
Grand Central Station89 E 42nd St
New York, NY 10017
Neighborhood: Midtown East
(212) 490-6650
Announcement
Come experience our new Oyster Happy Hour Mon-Wed 4:30-7:00pm & Sat 1-5pm! $1.25 oysters!
http://cdnob.responsiven…
http://cdnob.responsiven…
- Nearest Transit Station:
- Grand Central - 42 St. (4, 5, 6, 6X)Grand Central - 42 St. (S)Grand Central - 42 St. (7, 7X)
- Hours:
- Mon-Fri 11:30 am - 9:30 pmSat 12 pm - 9:30 pm
- Attire:
- Casual
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Price Range:
- $$$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Loud
- Ambience:
- Casual, Touristy
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
645 reviews for Grand Central Oyster Bar
Review Highlights What's this?
"The New England Clam Chowder wonderful as well." In 125 reviews
"The Oyster Bar is a tradition every time I visit NYC." In 69 reviews
"The Saloon room and bar (feels like an insider club." In 52 reviews
Rating Distribution | Trend
640 reviews in English
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Review from Justyna K.
New York, NYI love Grand Central. Really just for the architecture of the main lobby. I love oysters. So naturally I'm going to love an oyster bar in Grand Central.
That being said I just want to get it out of the way that the design of this place is great. Love the arched dome ceilings and the saloon has an old fashioned feel.
The food was pretty good too. The oysters were delicious and fresh and all the other seafood options we ordered were also very good.
A really great only in New York thing. -
Review from Chaun S.
Queens, NYHost was unfriendly..
When at lunch. We did not like the seating she offered and was told all the other areas was closed. I said that is BS two tables over is closed...? She replied Yes. Of course ten minutes later they start seating people. Odd. hmmm of course not just Rude and Wrong.
The menu was huge. I hate menus that are all over the place.
Ordering the Bronzini... still waiting for favor ,, it had none. We also had the fried scallop dish, the came looking like chicken nuggets and tasted just like it
The only thing that was good was the Chicken dish, guess you cant really mess that up. Asked to sub the potatoes for sweet potatoes which was on the menu..told that we could not do that ,, really - Potatoes ?!?
End note: Tasteful food, Tasteless service.! -
Review from Chris S.
simply. awful.
We had made a reservation not knowing how much it would fill up or how large the place was. We showed up for our 6pm seating and were greeted by a pleasant hostess who promptly seated us. That day had been 100 degrees outside and the main dining room had to be in the 80s and humid....and LOUD. We were seated and in 2 mins knew that we were either leaving or had to find a more suitable seat that would allow us to cool down prior to eating.
The restrooms are a winding maze into another seemingly different restaurant called 'The Saloon' but used the same menue. My wife came back saying it was cooler there and that we should move. At this point the same hostess tried telling us we were unable to switch tables and got very annoyed by our audacity to ask.
We walked into 'The Saloon' anyway. The manager at this location was just as taken aback. 'If you had reservations in the main room you cannot come in here'....even though it was half full. He gave in after putting up a fight and seated us by a group of 8+ guys meeting each other for drinks (and a high school reunion from the exuberance they all showed when a new one showed up).
I ordered 4 items from the raw bar and we put in our dinner order at the same time. The raw bar items took 40 mins to show up. While they tasted fresh I realized the waiter did not know his shellfish and told me certain clams were 'bigger' and others were 'smaller'. He was exactly wrong. No biggie but just odd for an oyster bar to not know what they are selling.
Our entrees showed up. My Tilapia fillet was RAW. The first 1/8th of an inch was seared and the rest was just cold/raw. The rice side dish also tasted old. The grains were tough and it had no flavor. The waiter was deeply concerned and worked to get my new item out quickly (although he suggested I switch to shrimp because they are fast/easy to cook.....shrimp, really?). anyway, in less than 5 mins my new fillet was in front of me and was cooked properly and tasted good. The rice was also a fresher batch, blah blah blah. My wife's food was 'fine' as she put it to me.
I had 2 cocktails in the 50 mins we were waiting for our entrees. When my fish was screwed up, the waiter offered me a drink which I refused. He brought one anyway. It was a nice gesture but I didn't really need a 3rd since we had more plans.
I didn't need to be gushed over and I wasn't expecting a free meal since they made it right so quickly. However, the worthless manager could have come over and expressed his concern that a seafood place mis-cooked a simple fillet.
Truly dumb mistake on my part for picking such a tourist trap of a place and thinking it would be a memorable meal.Listed in: Chris' 2013 Anthology -
Review from John D.
Vaughan, CanadaOyster bar wasn't all that and a bag of sea shells. Mid range quality seafood at top notch pricing. The only redeeming value is the ambience -
Review from Eddie K.
Oysters were great!
This place is huge, but we were lucky enough to sit in the Saloon room. They had a pretty good draft beer selections. But the star attraction is the oysters. We ordered two dozens and wished I wrote down what we ate, but they were so good. They were plump and juicy. I saw they have Oyster Happy Hour, but just on select days. The fried calamari was just okay. Nothing to rave about. The Key Lime pie was really good.-
Awesome oysters -
And key lime pie
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Review from Robert L.
Greenbelt, MDThe day I went with some business colleagues the service was superb and the dining room about 80% full for lunch. The scallop salad special i got was both the best salad and best seafood dish I've ever had. The apple pie was good though not my preferred style. If you like the apples more on the crisp side instead of the soft side in a pie then you will love it. -
Review from Garth W.
Seattle, WAMeh. Cool atmosphere, all old-school and in Grand Central and all. But so very not special. Had Ipswich fried clams for an appetizer -- good, but they are fried clams. And they were just good. Fried clams are no miracle of culinary achievement. Next, oysters. They have a nice selection. But while oysters may well be a culinary miracle, shucking them and serving them with a kind of vinaigrette and cocktail sauce from a jar does not really earn many points. Finally, grilled Maine scallops. Apparently, the scallops in Maine come mainly in the plain, because they were poorly seasoned and bland. Overcooked squash and one lone baby potato accompanied for $30. Three stars because they have lots of oysters and shuck them cleanly. And because it's in a cool place. If neither of those qualities is likely to make you feel good about a $80+ simple dinner, look elsewhere. -
Review from Christine B.
Kennewick, WAWe ordered two of every oyster! Was so good!! -
Review from Kim D.
So...for the location and atmosphere this is why it gets a higher rating...as for the quality of oysters...I've had better. I did enjoy the environment and having a chance to eat at a historical spot and enjoy the place but I dont know if I'd have a meal here. I did have a "snack" of raw oysters and cherrystone clams with some pinot grigio. One big "bonus" it did have was that the bartender serves wine to the brim here...so that maybe is where you get your money's worth. Still...it's a cute place to visit and I'd recommend it for the atmosphere but maybe just have a glass of wine.
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