ZZ’s Clam Bar

A powerhouse trio—Rich Torrisi, Mario Carbone and Jeff "ZZ" Zalaznick—continues its neo-Italian-American hot streak (including Carbone and Parm) with a raw bar. Scrapping an initial lobster-club concept, the 12-seat spot highlights first-rate cocktails and crudo. At the marble bar, acclaimed barman Thomas Waugh (Death & Company) concocts a beverage program decidedly more eclectic than the classic one a few doors down at Carbone: rum, housemade coconut cream, acacia honey and lime juice served in a frozen coconut; a gin tipple of fresh and freeze-dried strawberry, calamansi puree, rosemary-infused vermouth and Pernod pastis. In bar-friendly small plates, the chefs explore raw fish in all forms, with East Coast oysters on the half-shell and Santa Barbara spot prawns. Composed crudos include cured Japanese sardines alongside Cara Cara oranges; tuna carpaccio with bone marrow and foie gras; and shimaaji (striped horse mackerel) tartare topped with whipped ricotta and Petrossian caviar.