Island Creek Oyster Bar

Very high quality selection of raw oysters, with some knockouts (their namesake «Island Creek» and their sister restaurant’s namesake «Row 34» and the Wellfleets). Can’t testify to all the rest, but even the oysters I didn’t like I could tell were super fresh, high quality, and well cared-​for.
Also very personable and talented bar staff. Especially a fan of Jesse the bartender.

Must do #1: Make a reservation on open table– this place is popular!
Must do #2: You haven’t had oysters if you haven’t experienced this oyster bar. I found myself saying «so THIS is what oysters are supposed to taste like».
Must do #3: If you are with a large party, order a bottle of wine. It will probably be cheaper than getting individual glasses.

Jeez. I really stopped reviewing in 2013, huh? I’m back!
My first reaction before going to this place:
«How does a place have 1,800 reviews and 4.5? What the actual ****?»
My reaction leaving:
[slurring] «Ethan’s the best bartender ever.»
The staff here seem pretty tightly-​knit and I came in on a day when one of them was a patron drinking to her last day. Ethan was incredibly attentive even when I was vague with «I just want cognac and oysters.» He recommended the Duron Calvados as I went through the oysters. He mixed it up a few different times with the Duron and each drink got more complicated and somehow better. Oysters I had:
Island Creek from Duxbury MA — ***** out of 5
Spring Creek from Barnstable MA — *** out of 5
Great Harbor from Nantucket MA — ***** out of 5
Row 34 from Duxbury MA — **** out of 5
Chatham from Chatham MA **** out of 5
John’s River from Permaquid ME ***** out of 5
Go here. You won’t be disappointed. I think the next time I swing here which might even be in the next couple of days, I’ll get the Lobster Roe Noodles since everyone’s raving about that on the community here.

The food here tasted great! From bread to oysters, seafood entrees to pastas, I haven’t gotten anything I didn’t like taste-​wise yet. Drinks were also good. For cocktails, the bartender was willing to make something off the menu.
Minus one star because the «clean» serving plates had food crumbs still stuck to them.

Hands down some of the best food I’ve ever had. It’s pricy but I would gladly pay to go again! I came here with a large group of 7 family members. I called like 15 minutes before to check seating availability, and although they don’t give wait times over the phone, they put me down on the wait list. I was super lucky to get a call very soon after!
First of all, the ambience is stunning! It’s a very trendy place — there’s a whole wall made out of shucked, bleached clam shells that you just have to see to believe. Our server was great, patiently explaining menu options to my whole fam and offering suggestions. The food, however, was unquestionably the real star.
We ordered a variety of oysters from their raw bar to start off, and I’m no oyster expert, but each one was smooth, flavorful, and delicious. The shucking is awesome, as I didn’t feel a single grain of sand in my mouth. For the entrée, I had the seafood bouillabaisse, which is a seafood stew. It was chock-​full of seafood, and for being the healthiest option on the menu, it was still really delicious. My only complaint is that the salmon in it was a bit over cooked. If I were to choose again, however, I would have gotten my dad’s lobster roe noodles. The noodles are orange because I think they incorporate the lobster row in it, and they’re crazy yummy. The dish also comes with slices of beef that are so tender and juicy that you’ll shed a tear in appreciation.
The dessert here deserves a special shoutout too because despite this being a seafood place, it was my favorite part of the meal. The strawberry red velvet cake was superb — I would have never thought to put these two flavors together, but the fresh, tangy strawberry cream really complements the rich, subtlety bitter red velvet cake. The banoffee pie is also incredible, with an addictively tasty and crunchy crust layered with caramel and covered in the most delicious banana pudding/​fluff thing.
The food, service, and ambience here are all a definite ⁵⁄₅ for me. My Asian parents are usually super picky about Western food, but they loved ICOB too!

Easy four stars. Came here for lunch and was not disappointed. We had the delicious oyster sliders, fresh local oysters, and clam strips, which were probably the best clam strips I’ve ever had. Crispy and not too oily, soft on the inside, served on a bed of French fries. Good beer and cider selection, too.
Nice, chill ambience. Felt totally comfortable in jeans and casual attire during the daytime. Very spacious and bright. Not too loud to have a conversation despite being surrounded by other patrons and 80s music in the background. For what it’s worth, it was pretty busy so we made a reservation before coming. Our waiter was friendly and knowledgeable about the menu. I’d definitely come back.

Go for the oysters – great as always.
Spectacularly inattentive service from Jennifer, though: two requests for ice cubes; three requests for bread; three requests for saltines (even though I told her my blood sugar was plummeting); slow taking our order – food arrived 75 minutes after the table’s reservation time; bisque was so cold it had an oil slick on top; oyster slider (also cold) held one oyster instead of the promised two.
I know Sunday at 1:45 is not an ideal time to expect wonders from so popular a place, but I’d rate this more like epic fail. A manager was of course terribly nice when I complained.

I came here on a Saturday night without a reservation and it was packed (I highly recommend a reservation well in advance because they’re almost always packed). They said the wait would be about an hour and took down my phone number, which was great because we ended up going down the street to grab some drinks while we waited.
We started off with some oysters. We got the Wellfleets, Chathams, Aunt Dottie’s, and John’s River. The Wellfleet and Chatham oysters are saltier and brinier while the Aunt Dottie’s and John’s River had a sweeter flavor. My favorite was the Wellfleet. All of the oysters were really fresh and definitely worth the price.
We got the oyster slider and clam chowder as appetizers — both were amazing! The slider was an individual sized portion so keep that in mind while ordering. The clam chowder had bits of bacon and buttery biscuit croutons in it. It is definitely one of the better clam chowders in the Boston area.
I got the lobster roe noodles as my entrée and it was delicious. I love that there is short rib in it because it adds so much flavor to the dish. My only complaint was that I thought the dish was a little too oily but that certainly didn’t stop me from eating it!
The cocktail menu was a little disappointing but their beer/​cider list certainly made up for it (beer goes better with seafood anyways!). There was a pretty decent selection of craft beers from all over the world. I got a cider from Spain (I forget the name) and it was really light and refreshing, the perfect drink for my meal.
We were too full for dessert but they brought out complimentary bite size portions of their red velvet cake which was so good! The cream cheese frosting was really light and had hints of coconut in it. I will have to try one of their desserts next time I come because they all looked pretty good.
If you love seafood, definitely come here. Not only was the food amazing, the service and ambience were great too. This is definitely one of my favorite places to eat in Boston now!

Fun fact: one side of the restaurant’s walls are made up entirely of oyster shells stacked on top of each other!
This hip little place has definitely lived up to the hype of all the reviews. Located right next to the Commonwealth Hotel (they share a bathroom), it’s right near the Fenway/​Kenmore area off the Green line. I suggest making reservations in advance; even on a random Monday the only time I could get was 5:30 PM.
They have a menu that changes daily and plenty of seafood options to choose from. They start you off with some bread and honey butter with paprika. I loved the honey butter but repeatedly heard other tables ask for regular butter instead. We ordered the Rainbow Trout and the Bouillabaise and both were really good. The trout was cooked perfectly with small pieces of bacon added for texture and the Bouillabaise was a cioppino-​type dish with mussels, clams, lobster, halibut, and veggies. Both had a ton of flavor.
I didn’t want to over eat so I only ordered one oyster, their signature one, and I definitely regret not ordering more. They have a large selection of fresh oysters from all over New England and a bunch of different dipping sauces to go with.
The most disappointing part of our meal was dessert. We each ordered the strawberry donut and it was just a sad, cold donut with some strawberry frosting and preserves on the side. It didn’t taste fresh or fluffy and it was nothing spectacular at all. But I guess at $ 4 each (the cheapest option on the dessert menu) our expectations shouldn’t have been high. We did chat with our neighboring table though who ordered the Banoffee Pie and said it was delicious.
Next time, my game plan is to do oysters, a lobster roll, and a banoffee pie. But I don’t think you can go wrong with anything you order here (except donuts).

My only complaint would be that I don’t make enough money to buy the wine I want here :) Awesome wine list… but maybe add some South African whites!
My husband and I dined here on a Monday night. I had made reservations two weeks in advance and booked an 8pm slot. We arrived about 15 minutes early and were seated right away. (Awesome!) The interior here is really nice. The restaurant has a casual upscale vibe which is exactly the feel we were going for. Good service. We ordered most of our meal from the raw bar… 6 oysters, the fluke crudo and ½ lobster. Yum! It was all delicious and fresh. We also ordered two cups of lobster bisque and calamari. Skip the bisque… Maybe go for the chowda?

Came here on a early Friday evening. Despite having a reservation we were 20 mins late due to the absurd commencement traffic yet were still able to get seated right away.
The ambiance of the place was very upscale and refined with décor being superb.
Off the bat id have to say the restaurant was disappointing due to food being subpar to the price being charged for it and the long wait we had to endure before our entrees came.
The lobster noodle roe and monkfish were both okay but not fantastic despite being $ 38 and $ 34 respectively. The lobster noodle roe had a cheesy flavor to the noodles with portions for lobster not that much. The monkfish, on the other hand, seemed kinda like Chinese food to me and was too watery with the risotto served along with the dish submerged in the watery soup of the dish.
The one highlight of the place were its oysters (though you have to get ready to pay around $ 3 – 10 for each) which were tasty and fresh.
Imo, this place is a good place to impress and bring dates but if you’re looking for a place to eat good your money will be better spent somewhere else.

Came here on a second occasion for dinner. It was plenty busy even at an early hour for dinner. I wish I could say the service was as good as our first visit. Still friendly, just a little less attentive given the crowd.
We got the clam chowder and mussels appetizer. Hubs also ordered a bunch of oysters and the lobster roe pasta. This dinner really fell short for me sadly. I don’t recommend the mussels at all, I don’t think I like them without their shells… Clam chowder was okay, the biscuits made it heavy and were dense. The lobster roe pasta is not worth the price tag in my opinion. The short rib is good just isn’t as special as it sounds.
I still have yet to try all the other popular seafood spots in Boston but will have to do so after this visit. I guess the one thing that this restaurant has going for it is the ability to get reservations, especially for bigger groups.

We came here four times and called twice and only get to try the lobster roe noodle twice. It was so worth it. The sauce that coated the noodle is so creamy and savory. The steak is soft and melty. And lobster is just being lobster, in its full glory. But other favorite are the clam chowder, and coleslaw. My husband us a clam chowder freak, he ordered clam chowder every where he goes and determined if the restaurant good or not. It is his favorite so far. He did try CD at Neptune Oyster as well as Atlantic fish but this one has BACON. I got my lobster roll but ended up loving their coleslaw so much. The weird thing is I hate coleslaw normally. The setting is quite nice too. They have clam shells on the wall, which is pretty cool.

Amazing oyster bar in Boston! This place was highly suggested by 2 friends of mine and I had to put it on my to do list while vacationing in Boston. I immediately fell in love with the place as soon as I walked in. It is beautifully decorated, elegant & a little high end but without seeming too pretentious.
Every dish we ordered was literally perfect, including the complimentary bread & butter. It is an oyster bar, so I must rave about their oysters. I’m not a fan of raw oysters so we went for the oyster sliders for starters. I honestly cannot put into words how delicious these were. Actually, they were beyond delicious! Must get! We also had the crab cake and buttermilk biscuit. Both of these items were totally mouth watering. For entrees, I chose the salmon and my bf went for the skirt steak. Both dishes were also top notch.
Overall, we had an amazing first time experience at this restaurant. The service was great and the waitress was more than happy to answer any questions we had about the menu. Totally visiting again when I’m back in town!

WOW what a place! I highly suggest coming here for a special occasion with a foodie friend.
We decided to get 2 dozen oysters and we couldn’t have been happier with our options. The staff was great at explaining the texture of each one, and wether they were salty or not. We had the island creek, rocky nook, ichabod flat (THE BEST!) Peter’s Point, Bay View, Chatham, Wellfleet (classic option– 90% chance you can’t go wrong with these ones) and the pearly white. All in all– fabulous taste! The drinks we had to accompany these were gin-​heavy and the combo provided for a nice Sunday-​buzz-​during-​brunch.
As a rule of thumb, we never get non-​local (New England) oysters, but there were some CA options available. I can’t speak for those!
Crispy Oyster Slider — brioche roll, lime chile aïoli was a mouthwatering option and had scrumptious taste! The lobster role is a classic, and the soup options were great.
Location: right next to the T.
Service: ¹⁰⁄₁₀!

ICOB ended our first day in Boston where we essentially did nothing but eat and drink and walk around the city. But in one day, I can understand why everyone I know who has been to Boston loves it, and ICOB was a fantastic way to end the first day.
Firstly, can I just tell you, my girlfriend is just the world’s best at researching places in new cities. Not everywhere we went was 4 or 5 stars, but she should start a vacation consulting firm where she does all of your research for you and tells you where to go. No one would ever have a bad vacation again. She did all of the research on this one, and there wasn’t a single bad option.
Anyway, this was originally supposed to be for lobster rolls for lunch, but they don’t serve lunch, so we ended up at Neptune’s instead for lunch and came back for dinner. Yes, for more lobster rolls. Listen, when in Boston, do as Bostonians do, which is eat lobster rolls for every meal. It’s like the old slim fast diet, where you have a shake for breakfast and lunch, and a regular meal for dinner, only in this case, its lobster rolls twice a day, and I suppose a regular breakfast… or a third lobster roll.
We were almost screwed, and this almost became a very different review. When we sat down, we were told they ran out of the rolls for the lobster rolls. I almost cried. The disappointment was huge, but then our server came back like superman and saved the day by telling us they made more rolls. Whew — close call.
I gave Neptune’s 4 stars because I liked this one better. This was the 5 star roll to me. And what was the difference? Rosemary. The rolls here are warm rosemary rolls, and I loved the extra touch. Still the same warm delicious lobster with lots of melted buttery goodness, but the addition of the rosemary into the rolls added another flavor that for me, put this one over the top. Melissa actually liked Neptune’s better, and I am sure many Bostonians would like to kill me for this comparison, but I like what I like, and I liked both a lot, but I loved this one more.
I can’t think of a single problem with ICOB. Service was great. Our drinks were wonderful. She got a Montalban made with tequila and mezcal, and I got the Wildwood made with Rye and absinthe. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, but daaaaammmmnnnn, Boston can make a good drink. And the restaurant itself is just cool. Classy, upscale, and comfortable. Just a place you want to stay at once you sit down.
Allow me to end this review with a happy noise. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! Thank you, kind people of Boston, for supporting this restaurant long enough to allow me to come here and have a lobster roll. My life would still have been good, full of the love of a wonderful woman, the support of a wonderful family, good friends and a good job. But somewhere deep inside — and I may have never noticed it — there would have been an empty pit where ICOB should have been. Somewhere in an alternative universe, there is a version of me who, perhaps, after trying to come here for lunch, never made it back for dinner. That version will forever be slightly less happy than this one.

Came here again for Easter brunch and it’s still a pretty great spot for seafood. We changed it up a little this time and ordered some of the following different items:
— Raw oysters: Exquisite and otherworldly. Tasted like it was shucked the second we ordered it. Super chilled, fresh and plenty of oyster liquor. I’ve had many a raw bar in my life but there’s just something different about the oysters here. 5+/5
— Oyster slider: Ordered only one to share. I know, how could we have been so remiss? Hindsight being 20/​20, I really wished I ordered 3 and made this my meal. ⁵⁄₅
— Fluke Crudo: This was recommended to me over the sea bass ceviche. It was very fresh (don’t get me wrong) but nothing distinctive that I’ve not had in a nicer Japanese restaurant. Great raw pieces of fluke with a light coating of sesame. 3.5÷5
— Cinnamon French toast: Not prepared traditionally and wasn’t accompanied with some sort of syrup. It was very sweet on it own topped with pistachio nuts. This was a decent dish but we have had more adventurous and tastier versions. ³⁄₅
— Lobster roll: Generous portion of fresh lobster meat and they were nice enough to let me sub the chips for fries. Pretty good but I still think the one at Pauli’s is better and yes, by that I mean even better than the one at Neptune Oyster. Yes, you may feel like throwing rocks at me for that comment. I’m ready for you: P ⁴⁄₅
— Fried whole belly clams: Decent sized pieces of whole belly clams shared by all on our table. It was just enough to satisfy everyone’s craving for fried clams. ⁴⁄₅
— Rhubarb croissant: I tried a little of this and loved it but it had an unexpected custard type filling that my daughter (who is used to a more plainer croissant) didn’t take to. ⁵⁄₅
If I could have a do over, I’d have triple up on the raw oysters and the oyster slider, nixed the Fluke Crudo and French toast but kept the lobster roll and clam basket. Choose wisely folks. I realized when in Island Creek Oyster, order oysters. In fact, it’s even okay to completely overindulge in oysters (raw and fried) and order nothing else!

This is probably the best oyster bar in town. The raw oysters are fresh and delicious. The first time I went here the server suggested trying three different types and they were all extremely fresh and delicious. Good sizes too. The island creek are probably my favorite but I’d recommend trying them all. The puffers were really good as well. The clam chowder here is one of the best I’ve had. Just the right compromise between not too heavy and not too watery. The bacon adds a great flavor as do the croutons. The bread is wonderful as well. Has a slight sweet and salty mixed taste to it. In my most recent visit I also got the sliders as recommended, and they were filling and tasty. I’m not a big sliders fan, but these oyster sliders were really good.
The service at this place is always top notch. During this last visit, they were delayed with their reservation by a few mins and they were so apologetic and nice about it. No complaints here. After finishing off the oysters, soup, and sliders, I didn’t have room for dessert, but they brought me a small complimentary piece of their chocolate brownie. It was wonderful and a classy touch!
I am looking forward to trying some of their seafood entrees on my next visit!

Overall: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Value: 3
Upscale oyster place. The ambiance here is very different from Neptune. It’s a large, sit down restaurant that is brightly lit. Best part is they take reservations!
Oysters here are delicious, though the different kinds didn’t taste all that distinct to me (at Thames Street in Baltimore, the various types of oysters taste very different). Nevertheless, the oysters here are fantastic and some of the types are huge! I also got the Lobster Roll which was decent but I was disappointed to find that it was cold (I assumed all lobster rolls are warm).
The crispy oyster slider was delicious! The ice cream and sorbet was also super flavorful and well worth trying!

Nothing new is going to be said here, but in an effort to make sure to review the good along with the bad, here I am: P
Came to Island Creek on New Year’s Day with my two sisters as part of a celebratory holiday weekend. We had made a reservation about 10 days in advance for 5:30pm (since that’s what was available). We arrived and were promptly seated.
Since for two of us it was our first visit, we had a lot of questions about cocktails and wine. Our waitress honestly wasn’t able to answer the questions (for example, ‘do you have Belvedere?’ led her on a speech about gin — not vodka). To be fair it seemed like she was trying and she was nice, but the vibe just wasn’t there. Luckily another server was nearby and I think he may have overheard the conversation, so he stepped in and served us for most of the remainder of the evening. He was fun and friendly and able to give us very solid cocktail and wine recommendations. He even gave us each a taste of one of cocktails he recommended after we chose not to order it, because he wanted us to try it that bad. That was a nice touch. Unfortunately I can’t remember his name… possibly Matt… but maybe not lol
We shared a dozen oysters of 4 different types that the girl recommended and we loved them all. They were shucked perfectly. We then had the no shell mussels, prepared with lemongrass, fresno and chorizo and they were dynamite! I’ve never had no shell mussels but they were absolutely incredible. I loved that they were paired with what seemed to be a pearled pasta. It was awesome. We also had the salt cod croquettes, which weren’t quite as memorable but still delicious.
For entrees, I had the lobster roe noodles which was one of the best pasta dishes I’ve ever had. I don’t like roe, but luckily it was completely incorporated into the noodles so you couldn’t really tell it was there. One sister had the bouillabaisse which she said was good, though she wasn’t raving about it. I think the flavors were very subtle, but it was well executed. My other sister had a special which was a fish that I can’t recall and she wasn’t blown away.
We finished with the banoffee pie which was quickly gobbled up. We were disappointed they don’t have an espresso machine, but were able to settle on coffee.
TL;DR — come to ICOB, order oysters and cocktails, get the no shell mussels, lobster roe noodles… banoffee pie and coffee if you have room.

Super buen lugar! Recomiendo el omelet con lobster y el sandwich de pescado frito. Muy rico sabor y calidad. Ambiente relajado y música perfecta para el brunch del domingo.
Acompañarlo con una mimosa queda perfecto!