CajunSea & Oyster Bar
“Alvin the bartender dealt some of the best service that we had while visiting the city.”
“I came by here with a couple of my cousins for happy hour and the bartender, Julius was so attentive and charismatic.”
“I have to say CajunSea strikes The boil-a popular Cajun restaurant at downtown Manhattan out in taste, environment and service.”
CajunSea & Oyster Bar
Takes Reservations: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Has TV: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
PokéStop Nearby: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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Being a native Houstonian, I have every cajun place in Manhattan bookmarked as soon as I learn of them. I had the chance to visit CajunSea last week, when catching up with Marissa L. after work.
We were seated pretty quickly after arrival, though the bad and restaurant were just about full. Service was super slow, and we waited a long time to order water and drinks. I would have had two more drinks in the hour we were there had anyone come by to see us (and I was turned around in my seat, trying desperately to catch someone to come over).
For food, we of course went for a boil – the Lobster combo, which comes with 1.5 pounds of lobster, corn, potatoes, sausage, and we selected crawfish (over shrimp and clams). The crustaceans were very hard-shelled, IMO. Even using the little shell cracker, the crawfish and the lobster were incredibly hard to get at. And the meat itself was bland and slightly overcooked, even though it was drowned in a very spicy sauce (we picked "classic cajun" in "spicy," and it delivered).
We had garlic bread on the side, and didn't order dessert. Since we sat through an hour's worth of happy hour but only got one drink, we were feeling a little unloved and got the check and ran.
If you're in the neighborhood and craving a boil I'd say go for it, but I likely won't be back.
Great food, great service, I will be back!
I was initially drawn to this place because of the $1 HH oysters. After checking out the menu, I decided to go with THE BOIL and it was sooo good. Each boil includes corn and potatoes. I loved the potato and savored the tiny piece in there. The service was also excellent. We weren't rushed. The server constantly checked on us to make sure everything was okay.
I'm excited to return for the HH oysters.
I was looking for an oyster spot around Penn Station, and CajunSea came up on Yelp. This is a large, bright restaurant, with plenty of seating. The ambience is fairly casual, more of a crab boil, bibs, and oyster seafood restaurant than an oyster, martinis and white wine place. We got a pound of crab legs to share, and they were very garlicky. A little too garlicky for my taste. The oysters were okay – neither amazing nor terrible.
My mom, aunt, and I are in town for a girls' weekend and found this place on Yelp since it is near our apartment. We were all very pleased!
My aunt is not a fan of spicy food so she was skeptical. She ended up loving the garlic and butter shrimp boil. My mom and I both did Cajun shrimp boils and loved them! The bomb spicy was a nice kick! We all appreciated the plastic gloves. I've never seen anywhere else do this. It really saved our hands!
We also made it in time for the $1 oyster happy hour special. They were great! Large and well selected.
Our server was great. Attentive but not pushy.
It didn't feel like a tourist trap at all, which was a concern given its location.
Wow! Happy hour is amazing here. $1 oysters and $4 beers kept our entire group happy until 8p, and then we stayed for dinner, and the experience got even better.
Yes, service is slow. But the food is worth it, and the price is right. The seafood boils let you choose between garlic butter and Cajun spice (mild, hot or crazy). The medium level of spice was just right, even for our folks from Louisiana. And those dollar oysters? As good as you can get, even at higher prices. The only dish that had trouble was the crawfish, which were a little overcooked (they don't pop out of the tails when that happens, which makes them a little more work to eat). Everything else was perfect.
I'll be back when I am in town next week.
This is such a hidden gem near Herald Square. What a great find for happy hour!
They have extended happy hour specials from 5pm until 8pm: $1 oysters, $4 beer,and $8 beer/wine/pitchers. We opted for the combo specials: $12 for 1/2 dozen oysters and wine or assorted cajun appetizers sampler (wings, fried gouda cheese bites, fries) and beer. We also got the spicy jambalaya, which was pretty good.
Overall, the food here is decent, and the value for what you get is even better. The oysters were fresh and the wings and fries were good. The fried gouda cheese bites were too salty for me though.
This place is HUGE and the entire bottom floor was completely empty. Maybe because it was a Tuesday night?! Also, I think it's because the happy hour specials are only valid at the bar. I'm not sure I would come here for dinner, but definitely recommended for happy hour!
I've found my new happy hour oyster place.
$1 oysters M-F 5-8. That's right, til 8 o'clock! A lot of these NYC dollar oyster places end their happy hour way too early. How does one even make it on time after work? Not at Cajun Sea though. They've also got 6 oysters + a glass of wine for $12, a basket of appetizers + a beer for $12, $4 select drafts (Landshark, Goose Island IPA, Coors Light), $9 pitchers, and $8 wine and well drinks (which aren't really HH price, IMO).
To start, we ordered a dozen oysters. They were "chef's choice" so I'm not sure what type they were but it tasted fresh and they were plump. I normally just squeeze a bit of lemon on them and I'm good to go, but I loved their mignonette! They added cilantro to it so it was a nice, surprising change and added a lot of flavor to it.
We also had the appetizer baskets (3 chicken wings, 3 pieces of fried gouda, and french fries). The french fries were great. The chicken wings were not very good. The gouda was good but a tad oily. It comes with this wasabi mayo dipping sauce, which I enjoyed.
It was surprisingly empty for a Friday at around 7. Maybe because it's somewhat hidden? Not complaining though – that just means I won't have to wait as long for my oysters! Next time, I think I'll try some of their seafood.
So far cool location to grab a beer and relax food looks appetizing and drink selection during happy hour appears reasonable. The service was a bit slow at the bar but the servers were friendly. It took a minute for the food to come ok but it was delicious. Nice lil spot to come to but over priced