SEAMORE'S

There's such a buzz about Seamore's that it almost transcends the honking masses of vehicles trying to escape the city on a Friday evening... certainly NOT the best time to jump in line to join the rest of the New Yorkians who all decided to stay in town and try out The Meatball Shop boy's new nautical venture.   If it weren't located on the stretch of Broome Street that leads into the Holland Tunnel's escape towards all things summer, the beach-shack sensation that Seamore's achieves would be even more successful.  But even so, as soon as you conquer the extended no-reservations-policy wait, the laid-back seashore vibe is contagious.

That wait, however, will be long.  I mean, we were quoted an hour and forty-five minutes, but with the bounty of restaurants nearby, I feel like many might put their names in and then surrender to a less swarmed destination.  So what we initially feared an almost two hour purgatory turned into a mere twenty minutes, thus shifting the mood to an even more delightful level. The soundtrack is as lively as the crowd, although it's a little hard to hear over the din of street noise and ebullient conversation: this is not a place for serious discussions, or really much of any
 discussion at all.  Aside from necessary banter to decide on what to order from the many potentially shareable offerings, most of your energies should just be focused on enjoying the surrounding, the party-like atmosphere, and most importantly, the super-delicious food.



We basically stayed exclusively piscine throughout the evening except for our very first dish.  As soon as the arrive in the market, I cannot resist grilled shishito peppers, and these were exemplary.  Big fat ones, bigger and fatter than any I've ever seen, with their mysteriously unpredictable variances in spiciness, they were charred and just oily enough to cling to flaky salt crystals.  A generous squeeze of lemon added a nice summery touch.   There are an array of other shareable starters plates, like curried mussels, a fiesty ceviche,   and even guacamole that could be paired together to make a snacky meal.

Along with loaded sandwiches (which include a vegetarian and meat offering for the nautically-averse), there are the Big Fish Tacos.  We went for the classic: a seared filet with a smear of black beans, pico, avocado and crema over an open flat corn tortilla, which was kind of between soft and crisp, toothsome verging on tough.  But it was definitely sturdy enough to hold in all of its toppings, which combined to a deliciously lively effect.

There are three salads upon which you could add your choice of the daily selection of fishes, but more appealingly are the Reel Deals: bowls combining the three daily side dish offerings and your choice of fish.  On the docket that night was flounder and sword, porgy and monk... we went for the latter two.  The monkfish was absolutely perfect.  The outside achieved a beachy char and the meaty fish was just succulent.  It comes with a little tuft of healthy greens aside and that night's daily sides of a pearly Israeli couscous, crisp, corn-off-the-cob and a braise of stewy collards.  The corn was billed as a charred salad, but just tasted of raw fresh kernels... which worked well with the added sauce (I chose a piquant salsa verde), but the misadvertising was noticeable.  The porgy seemed blatantly undercooked, but I was

Add avocado to anything fro $2.50

 dining with someone who palate might'nt be as sensitive as mine, and he didn't raise a fuss (and I didn't notice 'til the rosy-raw interior showed it's gelatinous face).   Maybe that was in part because of the mouth-watering miso brown butter sauce he chose... which would atone for almost any evil.   I say almost because it taste the slightest bit fishy, too, on the done edges, but I think this was simply a blip on the radar.  Everything else at Seamore's was perfectly executed at our tables and from anything I could see on surrounding one, from a fat, juicy skate sandwich to the crispy fish taco that almost resembled a huge corn dog splayed across the flat tortilla. 

 And what couldn't be a more perfect way to end the evening but a cup or cone of Odd Fellows soft serve, which rotates its daily flavor just like the fish board.  We lucked out that night with a revolutionarily refreshing kaffir lime, its citrusy floral funk sprinkled with a islandy crunch of coconut granola.  You're only given easy options at Seamore's: choose a fish, pick a sauce, cup or cone, topping or not.  'Cause it might not be that automatic to get a table at here, but once you're in, the eatin' is easy.

390 Broome Street, Nolita, NYC 
tel.  212-730-6005