City Crab

Spending my weekdays working and my weekends down the shore, I didn't really get to indulge in New York City's Summer Restaurant week like I do winter's. I did however get to have a great lunch with my friend Jackie. After discussing menus and locations, we came up with City Crab, located on Park Ave between 19th and 20th Street. This was a good location for both of us considering we work in the area. We also thought seafood was a good lunch idea, especially since it was a hot summer day.

Arriving a little late, Jackie was sitting at the bar enjoying a beer. The host brought us upstairs where we seemed to have our own little dining section. I remember the host asking Jackie if he could carry her beer, which definitely gives him point for customer service. Unfortunately, the customer service ended there as the waitress didn't seem too happy to be there. She didn't have much to say and she would disappear for long periods of time.


The food made up for the poor service. For appetizers Jackie ordered the Gazpacho which I wasn't too impressed by, but my Prince Edward Mussels were delicious. The gazpacho tasted like a salsa dip, but the mussels were fantastic. Although I picked the winning appetizer, Jackie picked the winning entree as she ordered the seafood bake. The seafood bake came with a whole lobster, two clams, corn on the cob, and of course the classic seafood bib. The lobster was not only a good size, but so flavorful. The clams were also good, but lets be serious--the lobster was the main event. I ordered the crab and lobster cake sliders which were good, but I feel like I was ripped off when I saw Jackie's plate. My plate did come with sweet potato fries though, so that made me happy. The crab cake was better than the lobster cake, but both were pretty legit. The crab cake was fried and drizzled with a white sauce whole the lobster cake was shredded lobster meat mixed with a healthy amount of citrus. The portion seemed small compared to Jackie's, but it was actually a pretty good lunch portion as I left full.

We both ordered the chocolate gelato for dessert. I thought they had a pretty aesthetic presentation of the gelato with the glass and the whipcream, but I feel like it wasn't what I expected. Chocolate gelato makes my mouth water, but I didn't even finish my dessert.

The decor reminded me a typical seafood spot as a huge crab hung from the ceiling. Definitely not a romantic spot, but a good place to kick it with some friends and enjoy some great seafood. I would probably go back to City Crab for their Crabby Hour--half price appetizers and drinks.