I don’t have a single photo to share because everything was devoured. Friends took us here because they love it and know the chef- I’m not a huge seafood fan so I just figured I’d find a couple things I like and stick to that. I cannot stress enough how absolutely DIVINE this place was. Every single dish that came out was truly perfect in every way. I don’t even like crab cakes and I am dreaming about their crab cakes. The flavors, how everything was prepared, the presentation, absolutely amazing. The service was outstanding. The drinks were delicious. You can tell everything at this place is thoughtful and purposeful, I cannot wait to go back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Lucas Smith
Seven people ordered almost everything on the menu. There was nothing that fell short of spectacular. The kind of place that you wake up the next day and your first activity is setting up an opportunity to go again in short order.
The skate dish may be the greatest plate of food I have had in the state of CT. The pot de crema may make you cry with joy.
Just incredible.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Josh Barouh
Had the most amazing dinner with my wife while in town from Austin, TX. Everything was outstanding, and there were some really unique standouts including the clam tartare, sunchokes, and the best clam chowder I have ever had. Imagine a chicken soup for the soul but the clam version…light not heavy. Oysters were incredible, seared duck was insane. Absolute must try when in New Haven.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Joseph Gennaro
They can roast my clams any day
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Ethan
I would go back for oysters (excellent) and cocktails (good). The small plates we shared were only okay, which was disappointing given the price. (And surprising to me, as I adore their other restaurant, Tavern.)
The thing that really took away from the meal was the sense of pressure we felt the entire time -- it seems like management is (heavily) prioritizing throughput over the guest experience.
We got a text the day of our reservation informing us that we'd be limited to 90 minutes (for a party of 2) -- a pretty important stipulation that wasn't telegraphed anywhere during the reservation process. From the moment we were seated, we were asked immediately & frequently for our orders. We were also Very Strongly Encouraged to put all of our food orders in at once, which creates pressure to over-order because we could only vaguely guess at how filling the portions would be and it now felt like we only had one shot at it. The check landed at our table about five seconds after our dessert did.
Also, this may seem petty but I do have to mention the water glasses: small (6oz?), only ever filled 2/3 of the way, and always refilled when they get down to 1/3. It felt like someone was coming over to fuss at our table every few sips we took. Diligent but avoidably frustrating.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 2
Gage Seymour
This place is amazing! The food is outstanding and it has an amazing view. I would recommend ordering an appetizer for everyone and an entree for everyone to ensure everyone leaves full. It is pricey and personally I would rather go to the union league for the amount of money, but is was a solid meal.
Truly one of the best dining experiences I have had in quite some time. Beautifully rustic cozy in door seating, including a nice bar and stunning deck seating over looking the river. Our intention was not to get ribs, but when we were seated we were told there was only one order left if we were interested which of course made us interested so we had them and I am so glad we did. They were tender, and juicy and sticky, everything you would want in a rib. We also ordered a few appetizers and the items were coursed out nicely by our server. The roasted little neck clams, a small app for sure, were perfection, they were tender and the flavoring was present but not overpowering the clam. Have never had clam toast and was curious to try. It was a large piece of very toasty, crusty bread covered with chopped up clams and garlic. Very garlic forward but absolutely not too much garlic, loved this dish also. The burrata, which I get at many restaurants, was again one of the best I have had. The cheese was not icy cold (which is my preference) and the vinegared strawberries cut the richness of the cheese perfectly. The toast it was served with was the thinness of a potato chip with a great flavor. For dessert we had the donuts, again loved. As you are eating them you expect the caramel to be sweet but since it is made with tahini it was not sweet at all and was a great counterpoint to the donut, I didn’t taste a lot of the sesame but what I had added nice texture. I cannot wait to return to this restaurant to try more items from the menu.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Arslan Umarov
Treat yourself to a nice dinner. The decor is stunning—a perfect blend of modern elegance and subtle nautical charm that creates a sophisticated yet incredibly inviting atmosphere. Every detail is thoughtfully curated, making it a beautiful space to enjoy a meal. An option to sit outside.
Superb service. Our server was attentive, incredibly knowledgeable about the menu, and offered fantastic recommendations. The entire staff was warm and professional, making us feel truly welcome from start to finish.
Absolutely spectacular food. The seafood was incredibly fresh, and the oysters were the star of the show—perfectly shucked, briny, and delicious. Every dish I tried was beautifully prepared and bursting with flavor. If you're a seafood lover, this place is heaven.
It's the perfect spot for a special occasion or any time you want an exceptional dining experience.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Lindsey Carnegie
Another amazing experience! The food, service and atmosphere was incredible! Our server, Patricia recommended all our dishes for us and they were perfect! The tator tots were probably my favorite (I could eat them everyday)
Fair Haven Oyster is an amazing dining experience, top-notch food and service. Cannot recommend highly enough!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Camille Pronovost
We enjoyed specialty cocktails, little neck clams, and lobster salad outside on the deck overlooking the marina.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Mary-Anne Mingrone
Everything is so fresh! The staff are very attentive and courteous. We only came for apps. I had a dozen little neck clams. So good. Shucked to perfection. Not one piece of shell was found! So delicious! Because I'm getting older, I can't remember what my friend had and it was just last night! LOL I know she enjoyed it immensely. Love the view. Sat on the deck. It was a beautiful evening. Definitely will be back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jessie Huang
Our first visit to the restaurant and felt that we were not welcomed at all. We brought our 2yr old at her last minute request as an additional guest to our reservation for 4 and were sitting on the deck. The waiters told us repeatedly that there were no additional chairs because they had reservations. My child sat in my laps, which was fine. However from the beginning until we left, there were multiple tables with at least one spare chair either empty or for a jacket. One of them was even put on the side. The waiter threw in a used lemon wedge from the table into a dish we were still working on and was going to clean it away without asking. When we pointed out she said sorry and left the dish as is, with the waste lemon wedge in it for us. We got both sparkling and tap water but never got a refill of water. The service is just lacking. Will not go back in any occasion or recommend to anyone although I liked the food. We frequently visit tavern on state and have had much better experiences.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 1
David Simon
Ok, it can be a bit noisy, but the drinks and food are one-of-a-kind: clever and delicious.
I don’t have a single photo to share because everything was devoured. Friends took us here because they love it and know the chef- I’m not a huge seafood fan so I just figured I’d find a couple things I like and stick to that. I cannot stress enough how absolutely DIVINE this place was. Every single dish that came out was truly perfect in every way. I don’t even like crab cakes and I am dreaming about their crab cakes. The flavors, how everything was prepared, the presentation, absolutely amazing. The service was outstanding. The drinks were delicious. You can tell everything at this place is thoughtful and purposeful, I cannot wait to go back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Seven people ordered almost everything on the menu.
There was nothing that fell short of spectacular. The kind of place that you wake up the next day and your first activity is setting up an opportunity to go again in short order.
The skate dish may be the greatest plate of food I have had in the state of CT.
The pot de crema may make you cry with joy.
Just incredible.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Had the most amazing dinner with my wife while in town from Austin, TX. Everything was outstanding, and there were some really unique standouts including the clam tartare, sunchokes, and the best clam chowder I have ever had. Imagine a chicken soup for the soul but the clam version…light not heavy. Oysters were incredible, seared duck was insane. Absolute must try when in New Haven.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
They can roast my clams any day
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I would go back for oysters (excellent) and cocktails (good). The small plates we shared were only okay, which was disappointing given the price. (And surprising to me, as I adore their other restaurant, Tavern.)
The thing that really took away from the meal was the sense of pressure we felt the entire time -- it seems like management is (heavily) prioritizing throughput over the guest experience.
We got a text the day of our reservation informing us that we'd be limited to 90 minutes (for a party of 2) -- a pretty important stipulation that wasn't telegraphed anywhere during the reservation process. From the moment we were seated, we were asked immediately & frequently for our orders. We were also Very Strongly Encouraged to put all of our food orders in at once, which creates pressure to over-order because we could only vaguely guess at how filling the portions would be and it now felt like we only had one shot at it. The check landed at our table about five seconds after our dessert did.
Also, this may seem petty but I do have to mention the water glasses: small (6oz?), only ever filled 2/3 of the way, and always refilled when they get down to 1/3. It felt like someone was coming over to fuss at our table every few sips we took. Diligent but avoidably frustrating.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 2
This place is amazing! The food is outstanding and it has an amazing view. I would recommend ordering an appetizer for everyone and an entree for everyone to ensure everyone leaves full. It is pricey and personally I would rather go to the union league for the amount of money, but is was a solid meal.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Everything was perfect: mussels, peppers, branzino, lobster roll, angel cake. Wonderful staff. Amazing find!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Truly one of the best dining experiences I have had in quite some time. Beautifully rustic cozy in door seating, including a nice bar and stunning deck seating over looking the river. Our intention was not to get ribs, but when we were seated we were told there was only one order left if we were interested which of course made us interested so we had them and I am so glad we did. They were tender, and juicy and sticky, everything you would want in a rib. We also ordered a few appetizers and the items were coursed out nicely by our server.
The roasted little neck clams, a small app for sure, were perfection, they were tender and the flavoring was present but not overpowering the clam. Have never had clam toast and was curious to try. It was a large piece of very toasty, crusty bread covered with chopped up clams and garlic. Very garlic forward but absolutely not too much garlic, loved this dish also. The burrata, which I get at many restaurants, was again one of the best I have had. The cheese was not icy cold (which is my preference) and the vinegared strawberries cut the richness of the cheese perfectly. The toast it was served with was the thinness of a potato chip with a great flavor. For dessert we had the donuts, again loved. As you are eating them you expect the caramel to be sweet but since it is made with tahini it was not sweet at all and was a great counterpoint to the donut, I didn’t taste a lot of the sesame but what I had added nice texture. I cannot wait to return to this restaurant to try more items from the menu.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Treat yourself to a nice dinner. The decor is stunning—a perfect blend of modern elegance and subtle nautical charm that creates a sophisticated yet incredibly inviting atmosphere. Every detail is thoughtfully curated, making it a beautiful space to enjoy a meal. An option to sit outside.
Superb service. Our server was attentive, incredibly knowledgeable about the menu, and offered fantastic recommendations. The entire staff was warm and professional, making us feel truly welcome from start to finish.
Absolutely spectacular food. The seafood was incredibly fresh, and the oysters were the star of the show—perfectly shucked, briny, and delicious. Every dish I tried was beautifully prepared and bursting with flavor. If you're a seafood lover, this place is heaven.
It's the perfect spot for a special occasion or any time you want an exceptional dining experience.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Another amazing experience! The food, service and atmosphere was incredible! Our server, Patricia recommended all our dishes for us and they were perfect! The tator tots were probably my favorite (I could eat them everyday)
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Fair Haven Oyster is an amazing dining experience, top-notch food and service. Cannot recommend highly enough!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We enjoyed specialty cocktails, little neck clams, and lobster salad outside on the deck overlooking the marina.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Everything is so fresh! The staff are very attentive and courteous. We only came for apps. I had a dozen little neck clams. So good. Shucked to perfection. Not one piece of shell was found! So delicious! Because I'm getting older, I can't remember what my friend had and it was just last night! LOL I know she enjoyed it immensely. Love the view. Sat on the deck. It was a beautiful evening. Definitely will be back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Our first visit to the restaurant and felt that we were not welcomed at all. We brought our 2yr old at her last minute request as an additional guest to our reservation for 4 and were sitting on the deck. The waiters told us repeatedly that there were no additional chairs because they had reservations. My child sat in my laps, which was fine. However from the beginning until we left, there were multiple tables with at least one spare chair either empty or for a jacket. One of them was even put on the side. The waiter threw in a used lemon wedge from the table into a dish we were still working on and was going to clean it away without asking. When we pointed out she said sorry and left the dish as is, with the waste lemon wedge in it for us. We got both sparkling and tap water but never got a refill of water. The service is just lacking. Will not go back in any occasion or recommend to anyone although I liked the food. We frequently visit tavern on state and have had much better experiences.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 1
Ok, it can be a bit noisy, but the drinks and food are one-of-a-kind: clever and delicious.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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