Mermaid Oyster Bar

“And another dozen of little neck clams and we favored the west coast oysters more since they had more flavor.”

“We shared plates and it was all just perfect- great flavors, seasoning, etc.

I love a good lobster roll and Mermaid's did not disappoint.”

“We ordered scallops as an appetizer, a dozen and a half of oysters and bay fries and they were all amazing in their own regard.”

Mermaid Oyster Bar

Takes Reservations: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
PokéStop Nearby: Yes

Price range.

$$ Price range $11-30

8 reviews

  1. Had to come back again! This place has the best oysters we have ever had. Period. We took advantage of the happy hours this time and had 2.5 dozen east coast oysters this time between the 3 of us! The service is as always great and this time they even offered a complimentary yummy dark chocolate mousse dessert! Will definitely come back again when we are back in NYC!

  2. The Mermaid Inn is one of my favorite spots for $1 oysters in the city! I've been to this location and the East Village location, and I actually prefer the East Village one because it is much larger. However, the food is consistently great!

    Whenever I come, I always go with one other person because it's easier to find tables for 2 during happy hour. When it comes to oysters, I don't joke around. I get anywhere form 1 1/2 to 2 dozen oysters and share with the other person I'm with. The oysters are always so fresh and relatively large, and I love throwing on the vinegar and tobacco and dousing them with lemon and chasing with beer or white wine.

    I've also had some of the happy hour specials like the fish tacos, Mac and cheese, and calamari. However, I really only come for the $1 oysters.

    At the end of the meal, you get a complimentary chocolate mousse dessert and a fortune teller fish. Though I don't believe in fortune telling, this is a fun way to end your meal!

    Love this place!

  3. 4-4.5 stars. Did I just find the best Monday happy hour ever? I think yes. I knew I would like this place as soon as I walked in: it's elegant and cozy with small tables all along a long hallway and also some seating outside. There's a bar at the front.

    We ordered a couple of cocktails ($8 each) and 20 oysters ($1 each). The oysters were SO fresh. They took me to the ocean with every bite. Service was very fast and extremely friendly. Plus, at the end, they gave us free chocolate pudding desserts in cute little cups.

    It's a great place for a date or just Monday Funday drinks/snacks. Didn't try any of the other food but I'm sure it must be excellent as well!

  4. They run an awesome happy hour deal! For someone who is not an oyster-aficionado, I really enjoyed my experience at the Mermaid Oyster Bar. During their happy hour, each oyster is $1 and my party of two also got an order of calimari ($7.50) which, combined with a beer, will fill you up pretty nicely!

  5. One of the better Monday happy hours in town: $8 cocktails, $1 oysters, and the tiniest fish taco you ever did see. I didn't even know they could make crispy taco shells in that size. It was the size of the taco emoji.

    I'm not a huge oyster person, as I think they taste like ocean-flavored mucus, but for some reason, I couldn't stop eating the cocktail sauce. I also really enjoyed the calamari, though calamari is up there with cereal and instant ramen of things that are hard to screw up. My sweet shrimp and pea sprout tendril salad (try saying that five times fast) was a delicious bunch of greens and giant, halved shrimp. The "small plates" are actually big enough for one person (unless you're starving, in which case I recommend one of the HH dishes and a "large plate").

    Best part of the meal, though, hands-down: the free chocolate pudding at the end. I'm not ashamed to say that I licked the ramekin clean. Perfectly rich and creamy: the small size actually makes you savor each bite, instead of making you desperately wish for more.

    The only thing that I did miss were the everything crackers and butter that they gave at the East Village location – those would have been the perfect accompaniment to the salad. Also, they don't serve the clam chowder at this location during the summer months, only during the winter months.

    Also, the front part of the Oyster Bar is crazy loud. My friend and I had to keep shouting at each other. If you want a quieter meal, I would suggest switching to the East Village/UWS Mermaid Inns or asking for a table in the back.

    NEXT TIME: the almost famous lobster roll, lobster mac n cheese

  6. This place was amazing!

    We had a reservation for a Monday and walked right in to all day happy hour, score.

    Pretty good happy hour deals, so we partook in a $3 calamari to start as well as the pink flamingo cocktail, glasses of Sauv Blanc, and pints of beer off their HH selection.

    Entrees we all shared the Fish Tacos, Blackened Tuna, and the Lobster Roll served with old bay fries.

    We cleaned all three plates so basically the food was delicious. The fish tacos were by far my favorite. The crispy battered tilapia was perfection.

    Service was attentive, and friendly all around. Loved the ending touch of the complimentary chocolate pudding and the fortune fish. I've never seen those and those were fun!

    I highly suggest making a reservation. Highly. Bc the space is snug and cozy and even at 6:30p on a Monday we snagged the last booth table with our reservation.

    A must visit.

  7. I just missed Happy Hour at my regular spot, so I decided to come here for some oysters. Happy Hour $1 oysters are limited to the chef's choice of an East Coast and differs everyday. A good note to know is that you get to order 24 oysters at a time. I didn't wait too long for my oysters, so the 24-oysters-at-a-time deal wasn't bad. I got (do not judge) 60 oysters in total. That was a great Happy Hour steal! However, I did eat one bad boy. Nonetheless, that was not a big deal at all. The oysters were perfectly shucked. I just wished they put the horseradish in a separate ramekin, but that's just a personal preference. I also enjoyed a sweet and refreshing drink called the Pink Flamingo. Before leaving, the restaurant offers a complimentary dessert. That was such a sweet way to leave a guest in awe.

  8. This has to be one of if not the best happy hours in the city – and it goes all night on Monday if you're tryna get a little *~*weird*~* to start your week off right. This review is solely based on my recent experience at the happy hour special . . .

    Me and #brian came here for a #oyster date. We are definitely into the oyster life, and have found ourselves at really every big oyster deal in the city – definitely about that dolla oysta life cuz home girl does not have the kind of cash to get those full priced oysters. Funny story actually – on me and #brians first date, he brought me somewhere to get oysters and they were $4, and I felt too bad so I got one oyster – yes one SINGLE oyster. Legit rogue move for sure, but hey he's still dating me so whatever.

    OK back to mermaid . . .

    Anyways, so don't worry because you don't have to worry about $3 oysters here. They have an unreal happy hour special with $1 oysters, and $8 cocktails, and we aint just talkin gin and tonics. I had a wonderful fruity drink since I was feelin #coolforthesummer and #brian of course went with a manly drink on the rocks (per ujj). Solid selection of cocktails and $5 beers.

    They also have a bunch of regular food on the happy hour menu including some really yummy tacos, and unreal mac and cheese. I guess it's hard to mess up mac and cheese but this one was finger lickin good.

    It can definitely get crowded, but we showed up at prime happy hour time and were able to snag a seat upon arrival. Highly recommend this joint, and will certainly be back.

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Macdougal Street 79
New York 10012 NY US
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Monday, 5:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Tuesday, 5:00 pm - 10:30 pm
Wednesday, 5:00 pm - 10:30 pm
Thursday, 5:00 pm - 10:30 pm
Friday, 5:00 pm - 10:30 pm
Saturday, 4:00 pm - 10:30 pm
Sunday, 4:00 pm - 10:00 pm