Major Food Group, led by Jeff Zalaznick, Mario Carbone and Richard Torris closed the doors of their acclaimed ZZ’s Clam Bar at 169 Thompson Street in 2023, opting to extend dining for their nearby Italian concept Carbone.
“A decade after ZZ’s Clam Bar opened down the block from Carbone serving exceptional cocktails and seafood, the New York location has moved from a 500 square foot operation to a luxurious 25,000 square space; expanded its menu; and officially become ZZ’s Members Club,” Major Food Group told Eater NY last year. “At 169 Thompson, we are now pleased to meet the overwhelming demand for private dining at the original Carbone in a space that’s uniquely suited to the Carbone experience.”
However, now the team has submitted paperwork for a concept called The Clam Bar at the former ZZ’s Clam Bar address. Similar to ZZ’s Clam Bar, the paperwork indicates that The Clam Bar will be an intimate restaurant that will focus on raw and cooked seafood dishes sourced from the Northeast.
The proposed menu offers items like chilled oysters, marinated bay scallops, salmon carpaccio, blue prawns with gazpacho, blackened halibut with roasted corn, and butter poached lobster. The beverage program will feature cocktails, beer and wine.
It appears that the lease includes a 600-square-foot ground floor and a 900-square-foot basement. Submitted floor plans indicate that the ground floor will offer seating while the basement will largely offer storage space. Paperwork indicates four tables with a total of 11 seats as well as one service bar.
Major Food Group has multiple concepts in the city, including Carbone, Parm and Dirty French. It also has concepts in other cities around the world, including Dallas, Las Vegas, Miami, Hong Kong and Seoul.
As of now, an opening timeline for The Clam Bar is unclear.
