Smithereens
American restaurant · East Village ·
New England-inspired seafood featuring lobster rolls and creative desserts
New England-inspired seafood featuring lobster rolls and creative desserts
"The most unassuming dish was my favorite: a beige bowl of creamy rice ($26) hiding tender quahog clams throughout. The chefs coax a deep, sweet‑but‑briny bivalve flavor so it lands somewhere between clam chowder and seafood risotto, with the soothing comfort of congee—an unexpectedly luxurious upgrade to the childhood soup of rice and cream of mushroom I didn’t know I needed." - Nadia Chaudhury
"I sampled the signature seaweed martini, an amber-toned $19 concoction made with a saline-tasting gin crafted from seawater, pu-erh tea brine (a nod to the Boston Tea Party in place of olive brine) and an acid seawater eau de vie made from sugar kelp; it’s been on the menu since Smithereens opened last year and was designed by former head bartender Logan Rodriguez." - Kat Odell
"I respect Nick Tamburo’s stance at Smithereens in New York—he refused to re-engineer a delicate sea bream crudo in melony leche de tigre for easier division and instead encourages diners to embrace the intimacy of eating directly off the serving dish and passing it around, while still offering share plates for guests who prefer not to. It’s a deliberate choice to preserve flavor and nuance even if it asks tables to be bolder about sharing." - ByMaggie Hennessy
"On a quiet stretch of East 9th Street, in a semi-subterranean spot that resembles a sexy submarine lies Smithereens, one of the most exciting places to eat seafood in the neighborhood (and the city). It’s a New England-inspired restaurant, and true to theme, you’ll find a lobster roll, a cocktail called the Ben Affleck, and Narragansett lagers for $5. But it’s also from a Claud alum, which means that the lobster meat is so gently poached it’s almost rare, and the Ben Affleck cocktail might turn you into a pumpkin spice latte devotee. Start with a seawater martini, order the beans, and try the candied seaweed for dessert." - will hartman, bryan kim, willa moore, kenny yang, neha talreja
"Opened in late 2024 and presenting a New England–inspired, goth-y darkwave take on the region, the kitchen is known for two oddball sweets: candied seaweed with black licorice, and a celery ice cream float that employs celery two ways — a celery-root ice cream studded with Luxardo cherries marinated in red wine vinegar and shio koji and drizzled with coffee oil, surrounded by a bright celery soda. Chef and owner Nick Tamburo, who trained at Momofuku and Blanca (where he briefly did only pastry), says, “I’m a fan of desserts being as weird as possible, as long as they taste good,” and views dessert as “not a huge commitment,” an opportunity to do something “creative and a little wacky.” Part of his mission is “to make the food we’re excited about and to not feel beholden to guest expectations,” and he adds a critique that “I think New York specifically, but really the whole country, is a little complacent these days when it comes to food,” noting that he seeks to push past that complacency." - Bettina Makalintal
