The Clam Bar
If you’re looking for a great place to eat seafood in Syracuse, head over to the Clam Bar. This has got to be the biggest little place in Syracuse. Many of the customers here are locals, but if you’re in Syracuse visiting or on business, the Clam bar is the place to check out - and many do. This restaurant has been around for over 48 years. That could be why it’s considered a landmark. It’s located in the heart of North Syracuse near Sweetheart Corners and close to the airport. There is plenty of parking in the rear or along the side of the restaurant with entrances in the front and in the back. The outside has a white stucco finish and a large swordfish hanging on the front of the building near the clam bar sign. Outside seating is available if you would like to enjoy your meal and drinks outside on nice day. You are usually greeted by Helga when you enter the restaurant. She and her son, Kenny Bertsch, are the current owners. They have been owners for the past 18 years. Helga was born in Germany. Not only is she an amazing cook, but she was also a butcher while living in Germany before coming to the US. She still prepares the soups and some of the sauces used in the restaurant. She’s also in charge of the festive decorations you’ll notice throughout the restaurant that change with the seasons. Most that know her will tell you she brings a lot of personality to the clam bar. You will also notice that there have been some recent renovations to the inside of the restaurant. Over Labor Day they installed new carpet and flooring surrounding the bar. Over the past few months the booths seats have been recovered for a fresh new appearance. We arrived at 5:30 on a Thursday night, and had to wait for ten minutes for a table. Most of the time if there is a wait it’s not more than 10 or 15 minutes. It’s good to know they will accept reservations for parties of 5 or more. My guest, Derry, is a regular at the Clam Bar, and was excited to join me to do this review. We were seated at a booth near the bar area. I was truly impressed with how friendly the staff and patrons were while we waited for our table. I have a feeling this is what Cheers would be like if it really existed. The bartenders actually know many of their customers by name, and there was nothing but laughter coming from the bar area. Valerie was our very attentive waitress. She brought our drinks over and made a couple of suggestions for our appetizers. Derry ordered the Renate’s German Wings ($6.99) and I ordered the crab cake (6.99). The Clam Bar offers daily specials, a seasonal menu, and of course, the full menu. There are so many wonderful choices. Please don’t feel that you’ll be limited to just seafood. You will find that they offer great steaks, chicken and a wide variety of pastas. There is truly something for everyone. Our appetizers arrived hot and the aroma made our mouths water. My homemade oversized crab cake was served with a warm béarnaise sauce and slice of lemon. This crab cake was full of crab meat with a hint of onion and fried to perfection - no fillers here. The béarnaise sauce was a nice compliment to the crab cake. Derry’s wings came with two round pieces of bread strategically placed under the wings to catch all of the flavorful seasoned oil they were dressed with. The seasoning is a secret mixture of spices that come directly from Germany. Derry said that once you have had the Renate’s German Wings you have to order them every time you go to the Clam Bar. So she did! We ordered our main courses. I ordered the Brazilian Lobster Tail ($18.90) and Derry ordered the Pan-seared Tuna Steak ($14.99). The dinners are all served with a choice of baked potato, French fries, or wild rice, fresh Italian bread with garlic herb butter and salad. I was already impressed with the atmosphere and prices here. At the Clam Bar, they are kid friendly and offer a nice menu selection for the children. While waiting for our salads, I asked Kenny, the owner, about the chefs that were behind all of wonderful meals I saw coming from the kitchen. He told me there are two of the best chefs in Syracuse that help him make this establishment so successful. There is the day chef, Nick Wallon, who has been with the restaurant for 11 years; and Frank Neuber is the head chef and has been with the Clam Bar for 17 years. Both bring so many great qualities to the table. Both are experienced in serving high quality and high volume in a prepare-to-order kitchen. Frank will serve up to 280 dinners and Nick up to 200 lunches in a day. I’m sure this is not an easy job. My hats off to them Our salads came out of the kitchen and they just looked fresh with the carrots, purple cabbage, sliced cucumber and cherry tomato. The dressing was served on the side. I prefer a restaurant to serve the dressing on the side. That insures my salad isn’t over-dressed. The warm Italian bread was served at the same time as our salads. The best part of the warm bread was the yummy herbed garlic butter. And just as we finished our salads our meals were delivered! The portions were huge! There was no way I was going to be able to eat all this, but I was going to give it my best try. My lobster was served on top of the shell, and cooked to perfection with melted butter and a dusting of paprika and side of vegetable confetti that included sautéed carrots, green beans, cauliflower, red peppers and onions. I had the most succulent lobster tail that I have had in years. Derry’s pan-seared tuna steak was cooked a perfect medium rare in Cajun seasoning with a few crispy onion rings and a piping hot baked potato. After our dishes were cleared and our left-overs boxed, we decided to split a piece of chocolate peanut butter pie. Don’t be surprised if the hostess or another member of the wait staff comes over to clear your plates - the entire staff is very attentive to make sure your dining experience is the best. Our dessert was delivered with two forks. The dessert was so pretty you almost didn’t want to eat it. Ok it’s chocolate; it was gone in a matter of minutes! This pie had three layers of chocolate filling and was covered with chopped up peanut butter cups and served with fresh whipped cream and a decadent chocolate sauce drizzled over everything. I notice we were not the only ones that ordered this delectable dish! The waitresses passed our booth several times with the same dessert. Every dining experience should be like this. You get a lot of delicious meal for your money and it felt like I dined with family.
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