The Oystermen Seafood Bar & Kitchen

Whenever I travel, I really like to sample the local seafood. When I asked the hotel front desk for a list of seafood restaurants nearby, they recommended the Oystermen. It was also in the Michelin guide so I grabbed reservations for 5:30 pm the week before my trip. I got there promptly and was seated at an impressive counter that showcased the oysters and the crab for the day.

The oysters they had were the Louet, Loch Fyne and Jersey Rocks - I had two of each. These oysters were huge and they were really fresh. The Loch Fyne was my favorite. For my starter, I ordered the jumbo prawn and I was a little shocked at how big it was - it was almost as large as a lobster. It was also super meaty and had a lot of shrimp butter. For my main course, I ordered the lobster risotto. Loved it. I really wanted to have one of the local crab but just had no room for anything other than dessert, which was a tiramisu that wasn't too sweet. For my non-alcoholic pairing, I had one of the spritzes. Service was good and it's always dinner and a show when sitting at the bar counter (they literally shucked the oysters right in front of me). Dinner was about £96. The ambiance was very casual and they had Latin music playing that night.

The next day, I just had to come back to try the crab. They took me as a walk-in around 5:30 pm. I again sat at the counter and they recognized me from the night before. I told them that I came back for one of the Dorset crabs. I got the smallest one, which was 1.5 kilos. The crab was meaty and fat and it was intimidating for me to eat but I methodically worked through that crab in about an hour. Needless to say, I was stuffed. Dinner that night was about £50. This place is highly, highly recommended!!!

Closer to a 3.5 but giving it a 3 using a combination of factors including food taste based on what the food is, the service, and the price (economical quality).

I think overall they had pretty good oysters, ranging from the raw oysters to the dressed oysters to the ones cooked in a half shell. They were the highlights of my experience at Oystermen. The daily menu would display what was popular, and under the waiter's recommendation, we got the Gallagher raw oysters, which turned out to be a good choice. It had a strong flavor which was greatly complemented by the condiment and the lemon juice. I also enjoyed the tempura oysters. The champagn aioli and the caviar both enhanced the oyster flavor.

I also enjoyed the sourdough bread and the seaweed butter, although I couldn't say that I tasted much of the seaweed in there. The spicy crab thermidor wasn't a highlight but wasn't bad, either, and turned out to be quite similar to a normal bread dip. The lobster risotto didn't have a lot of seasoning and as a result tasted underwhelming, even if one can identify some extra ingredients added. There was a good amount of risotto and not much of anything else, unfortunately.

The service was meh. Our waiter seemed very nonchalant and failed to respond to some of our requests with a confirmation. What I meant by that was that he simply heard the information and walked away as if he didn't hear anything. There was also one instance when my friend said "do you mind giving us some recommendations" and he just nodded and walked away. I reckoned that he wasn't really listening and was expecting the end of that sentence to be "time" rather than "recommendation" there. Eventually we got everything we needed, but this would be a minus.

For the oysters and most of the starters, the prices were relatively reasonable, but many of the mains were really overpriced, including the risotto that we had gotten, which turned out to be mediocre. I suggest sticking to the oysters and trying multiple snacks and starters so one can get the full-on experience with Oystermen while maintaining economical frugality.

Had a wonderful dinner with friends at the Oystermen in February. Besides incredible oysters from all over the UK and great seafood and sides, what really stuck out for us was the service... the kind manager Arianna coupled with our sweet server Emily really made for a special evening. You can tell they really care about their guests. It was one of my birthday week celebrations, and they even gave me a hand Written card!!

Oysters were good. The servers were nice.

Other than that, dear god that food was gross. And the front of house woman was quite the bitter bee.

1. Sourdough bread and seaweed butter. Bread was meh. The butter is salty as well at the seaweed. Basically a "butter salt lick". But my favorite was serving the butter in an old oyster shell? Noooooooooo! Why??? A shell?! We kept thinking someone slurped up an oyster with their slimy mouth tongue, and then the kitchen used the shell to slab on the better.

2. Cod roe mousse and crispy polenta. Could hardly taste the "roe" because it's all puréed into a heavy Mayo. So, basically we ate fries and Mayo. Yay? Maybe have some actual roe on top of the mousse. That way you get the pop of roe along with the mousse.

3. Anchovy toast and lemon. Where was the anchovy? Oh yes anther puréed-to-a-pulp fish on bread. This is a fish place; put fish on bread. What's with all the purée paste?

We stopped ordering at that point because why try the Main dishes?

Also, the woman at the front of house. Activewear and messy bun? Are you exercising or greeting guests? It's one thing of all staff are dressed that way, but our servers dressed nice and looked put together. She was also quite surly when we arrived and left. If you're going to have a miserable, surly, attitude greeting people, maybe work at a jailhouse.

Wow...the best fresh raw oysters! Each menu item kept getting better. Make your reservations and come eat!

Hands down the best party of flavor in my mouth EVER!!!! I'll come back to London just to eat here.

The food was fantastic! Better than tourist fare, by far! I'm certainly glad I ignored the odd bad review! Go!! It's wonderful!

Great oyster place in Covent Garden. Make sure you have reservations - it's very easy to book online. Service is on point and the food is fantastic. Our fav was the Malden raw oyster - which we were ready to order another round of. We'll come back to try other oysters (raw, dressed, and cooked).

Fresh oysters! Delicious!Great service by a handsome guy, perfect! Will come next time.

This place is Amazing !! Fresh oysters and seafood . Andrea and his staff are so welcoming and give you family vibes . So good i had to come back a second time .