Tucked inside the stylish Manner Hotel, The Otter is a restaurant worth walking through a lobby for. On the menu, seafood reigns—the Otter Dirty Martini is made with salted brine and oyster, and even the rolls come with butter that tastes like bouillabaisse. Surf and turf with a New York strip and sea scallops or gulf shrimp can be had for about a hundred bucks, but we'd rather make our way through the raw bar's delights, then order a few fish tacos or a plate of littleneck clams served with lemon, garlic and meltaway-thin fideo.
The vibe: Off the beaten path—but still right in the middle of Soho—it's an easy table to score. The Manner Hotel is upscale, so expect some eyepopping outfits along with the regular downtown denizens cracking open their lobster claws.
The food: Start with the seafood platter of oysters, shrimp, razor clams and halibut ceviche and an order of warm rolls and a trio of butters. By the time you've finished your martini, you'll be hungry for more: for heartier fare, opt for the fish and chips (made with rich, sweet Spanish mackerel), or go light with steamed halibut further refreshed by cucumbers and mint.
The drink: The cocktail menu is adorably on the nose (the aforementioned oyster martini, along with the Seaspray Sour and Citrus Sail are certainly seaworthy). Still, it might be more fun to pair your fish and chips or tacos with a bucket of cold Narragansetts.
Time Out tip: At cocktail hour, score a double cheeseburger with cheddar and pickles for the unheard-of-in-2025 price of $14. (Fries are an extra $6, but let us not get bogged down in details.) You can get it every day from 3-6pm, which gives you plenty of time to pop in for an after-work hang.