John Dory Oyster Bar to Open

Published on Monday, November 1, 2010, by Alex Van Buren / Edit Post

The John Dory, a very well-received Chelsea seafood restaurant that nonetheless shut its doors last year due to menu items with hefty price tags, is reinventing itself—how New York!—as the John Dory Oyster Bar. The new incarnation will be in midtown's Ace Hotel, alongside The Breslin, operated by the same chef-owner duo April Bloomfield and Ken Friedman. But Chef de Cuisine Josh Even is focusing on smaller seafood dishes than at the original, including live sea urchin in the shell and an eel and parsley pie.

Set to open on November 8, the new John Dory features a less expensive menu, with most items under $20. That said, there is lobster chowder on the menu, along with caviar and oysters, so this "downscale" version of the original remains a far cry from a burger-and-beer dive or fish-and-chips shack.

John Dory Oyster Bar [Midtown]
In the Ace Hotel, 1196 Broadway, Manhattan
212-792-9000

ALLNew York City Digest
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  • Went Monday. Decor is fantastic in every way, from the tiles to the barstools, to the fish decor, to the live aquariums, to the lighting. Service is another story completely. Very nice 20-something wait staff who know absolutely nothing about the menu or service. We ordered, they delivered a plate, and then it took at least 5 minutes for two servers to locate the silverware and bring it to us....+READ

    Went Monday. Decor is fantastic in every way, from the tiles to the barstools, to the fish decor, to the live aquariums, to the lighting. Service is another story completely. Very nice 20-something wait staff who know absolutely nothing about the menu or service. We ordered, they delivered a plate, and then it took at least 5 minutes for two servers to locate the silverware and bring it to us. Three of the items on the menu were not available but the wait staff took the order anyhow and then after each order had to come back and say sorry, we don't have that. It took three failed orders for us to realize we better finish our drinks and head elsewhere. There were just four oysters on the menu selection but the server didn't know the names of them. It's an oyster bar, remember? The whole thing was embarrassing. Hopefully, they will get their act together otherwise, uh oh.-COLLAPSE