Public Fish & Oyster

MUST get a reservation here as it is a very small restaurant, otherwise you might find yourself waiting for a spot at the bar. This is probably our favorite restaurant here in cville, and even after many years, it is still consistently amazing! We ordered a dozen raw oysters of different brine levels, and they tasted so fresh. I especially loved the oysters from Breakwaters Newport, RI. My favorite main to order here is always the Moules Frites. Tried the Classic Mariniere, and it was SO DELICIOUS OMG. The sauce was decadent, that I had to make sure to soak up every mussel and the crostinis. And idk how they do it, but their frites are perfectly seasoned and crispy! The portions for this is pretty large, and shared some with my husband too, and is worth every penny. My husband tried the Rockfish with Chimichurri, with was also very good and fresh! Loved the crispy skin with the chimicurri sauce, gave a nice crunch! But I felt the portion size was a bit on the smaller end For dessert, LOVED the Apple Crumble, not too sweet, loved the contrast of the vanilla ice cream with the warmed apples, and loved the layer of oats on top, gives really good contrast in texture

Very nice place! Small and quaint. Food, service and drinks were awesome. The lobster roll was delicious and the oysters were amazing. Great service, our server was very attentive and made excellent suggestions. Definitely will return.

Had a wonderful dinner at Public Fish & Oyster. The food was amazing! We had the lobster bisque, clam chowder, oysters Rockefeller, fried oysters, crab cakes and the shrimp and grits. We also got the key lime pie for dessert and a chocolate….something. Everything was top tier. Wonderful evening and not over priced.

Open Table said there was no availability...but we ventured there anyway and took a chance. Thrilled we did! We were greeted warmly and provided a seat at the 1st come/1st served bar. The attention and service were 1st class, warm, genuine, friendly and welcoming. The seafood was fresh and served immediately..ie 'hot foods hot and cold foods cold'. Delicious clam chowder. Highly recommend! They were the best part of our stay in Charlottesville, VA!

Delicious! Everything tasted great. Service was excellent. Drinks great too.

Public fish does not disappoint. We eat at this restaurant whenever we travel to Charlottesville. Service is usually top notch. Food is fresh and well-prepared. Atmosphere is lively. Drinks are very good. The Dolly & Fun was a very good cocktail. We enjoyed raw oysters, shrimp cocktail, shrimp po-boy, crudo, and classic mussels for dinner. Desserts were delicious...key lime pie and Sugar Bear ice cream (tasted like an almond joy candy bar). We definitely plan on returning and highly recommend this restaurant.

⏰Be sure to get a reservation to be seated ⏰ Great experience here ! Very welcoming. Soon as we entered we were greeted by the owner. Our servers were great ! The oysters were fresh 🤤. Mussels were one of my favorites. Mash potatoes were a little bland , but when mixed with the crab cakes they were good!

One of our favorite spots in town. Never had even close to a bad experience here. The food is phenomenal (best seafood and oysters in town), the service is top tier, and the drinks and atmosphere are spot on. The servers and management are great. A big shout out to the main bartender John, his skill both with people and drinks is out of this world.