10 East 16th Street (between Union Square W. and Fifth Avenue) 212-529-3800 www.citycrabshack.com
Seafood. I have the utmost respect for an excellent lobster roll. Add house fries plus creamy, crunchy cole slaw and seafood nirvana has been achieved. City Crab Shack clearly knows its way around an ocean along with the authentic sea shanty vibe of a town on the coast of Maine. The New England clam chowder provides a perpetual explosion of flavor, due in no small part to the clams your spoon will repeatedly discover. As an added touch, there’s even one nestled within its shell, floating happy as a you-know-what. But not as delirious as you’ll be if you go oreganata with their baked top-neck clams. That breading is pure poetry, some of the tastiest to pass my lips. Which quickly brings to mind the lobster and crab mac ‘n’ cheese. Best. Edible oxymoron. Ever. Consider the mic dropped.