Mar’s

Came back for a birthday dinner. I got the moules frites while the wife tried the chicken. We were both unimpressed. Me, more so considering I had remembered the moules frites being very good but this time it was sub-​par. Barely enough broth to dip my bread in, and overloaded with diced peppers. The wife thought the chicken dish was OK, but nothing that was worth $ 20 something dollars. And I have to admit, the dish she was served was tiny! It was a tiny chicken with about five brussel sprouts. We also ordered a dozen cupcake oysters which were pretty bad. The only dish that was good that night was the chocolate ganache which was DIVINE. If I ever come back, it will be perhaps just for drinks and dessert. Service was also pretty horrendous that night. The waitress was very kind, however it took way too long for us to get our menus and meals.

Probably the most romantic place for a meal in Astoria. If you’re into that. Ew.
OK, perhaps it vies for most romantic with the Astor room, but with way better food. The oysters are not the cheapest (and if you want your dollar oyster fix, you may want to look up on 30^th ave), and tend to stick to East Coast varieties only, but they are extremely plump, large, briny, and flavorful.
The cod croquettes are well crisped, slightly runny, and full of flavor. Excellent start.
Octopus was similarly well-​cooked — tender, toothsome, and well paired with some acid and olives.
The moules frites could have had slightly plumper mussels, but that’s kind of a crap-​shoot either way. The frites were crispy and small like good moules accompaniments should be, and there was the right amount of fennel tones from the Pernod, and an appropriately dippy crème fraîche. It’s one of those «framed» dishes that restaurants use because it’s a high overhead moneymaker, but one of the rare framed dishes that’s actually better than average.
The only skip/​avoid I’ve hit on in the menu is the lobster roll, which uses a WAY too large roll to surround a WAY too small amount of lobster. This is a $ 22 lobster roll, max. The toppings (apple, watercress) are completely unnecessary and at odds with what a lobster roll should be, and serve only to hide the lack of lobster. A $ 31 lobster roll that is worth the money can be found at Pearl or Mary’s Fish Camp, where you will get a tiny roll OVERFLOWING with lobster, and a pile of fries the size of your head.
But the 5 star bit is really not for the food, as good as it is. It’s for the well-​made, well-​priced cocktails and beer (especially the cider), which you will sip at the bar or at a small table, making bedroom eyes at your date. Go, have a cocktail, have a dozen or three dozen oysters, have a cider, have another cocktail, and then go home together to make strange grunting noises that will annoy the heck out of your neighbor. Which is me. I’m your neighbor. Quiet it down there, lovebirds.

I went to Mars on a rainy night in the fall on a Friday. We had reservations but didn’t need them as the restaurant was not near busy. The food was incredible, and they were able to serve it to us as «different courses.»
I still think about their smoked eggplant and mozzarella appetizer. Anytime your water glass or drink was empty, the waiter was there to address it! I would definitely go back!
The only comment I have is that there was not many options for dessert –that peaked our interest — but the dinner was so good, Ill still give it 5 stars!

Got the traditional moules frites– delicious. My three friends were all taking my fries and dipping them into the mussel’s crème-​fraîche broth. So good! The bowl of about 15 – 20 mussels ($ 19) come with a bowl of shoestring fries and a little platter of toasted baguette (five slices). My friends got the fish and chips ($ 21), the $ 1.50 happy hour oysters, and the chowder soup ($ 9/​$ 12). All looked (and smelled!) flavorful!
I was there for an independent film screening after party, and the ambiance was just that– cool, casual, and mingle-​y.
The drinks were average. We got the pilsner and cider (dry English). Hm. Though we did get expresso martinis, which were fantastic and just what we needed at that time of night. So I guess the cocktails were above average! And the handle bar mustached bartender was courteous, considerate, and conversational!

happy hour oysters are the best.
foods fresh and delicious

I should’ve known that when a place serves oysters called «Cupcakes» as their happy hour special, it’s not good news. We ordered two dozen and it was a bad idea. I love oysters but this time I was just struggling to finish. It was just so briny and left a weird aftertaste in my mouth that I’m just trying to forget about.
My drink wasn’t impressive either. They had interesting choices, but the quality itself was questionable. I had the «Water Lilly» which had gin, lemon juice, crème de violette and something else I can’t remember. I thought I was tasting lemon flavored cough syrup.
Despite the fails at the oysters and drinks, our waitress was super amicable. And the décor is very New Orleans rustic, which I loved. But crash courses in mixology are needed.

Good drinks and great raw bar– they have over 6 to choose from– I tried all and was very happy!
The kale salad was delicious and the lobster roll was good, but probably not something I would order again as i did think it was slightly over priced (for what you actually ended up with)
Overall a great place for both its décor and cuisine.

J and I were here for the NYE dinner. Why did we choose Mars for this special occasion? Because we were going to watch Star Wars nearby. Why were we watching Star Wars on NYE? Because I had no other romantic ideas. W… no don’t judge me.
Okay seriously — their NYE menu is different from the menu on their website, so you may need to inquire if… fudge it. This is probably a totally useless review. I’m just writing this so I can look back in 5 years when my girlfriend quizzes me on where we were at a certain date. You know how it is.
The staff in Mars transports me back to the 1950s full of dank mustaches and vests. The hostess is so friggin good looking she could be a James Bond villain. The décor of the restaurant is nothing too fancy, but for many of us, the full size bar would suffice.
I had the gnocchi with lobsters (part of the regular menu!). The gnocchi was delicious and absolutely home-​made. I really appreciated that the gnocchi wasn’t overly creamy and didn’t require any savory sides. However, the portion size would not fulfill a hungrier diner.
J’s short ribs was absolutely amazing. It was served on top of a piece of polenta with a side of stir-​fried brussel sprouts. I couldn’t describe the taste, other than that it had a very satisfying fatty portion and a game-​y aroma that I didn’t identify with beef. I couldn’t find this on the regular menu on the internet but I hope it makes its way there, as I would certainly love to hog an entire portion to myself.
Service was good. Everyone was courteous and prompt. James Bond villain always had her head low and looked busier than an accountant in January. She could use some more smiles and customer facing time :)

My fiancé and I came here for drinks one night. My fiancé had the blood moon and I believe I had the charred oak. Both were amazing. Definitely one of the best spots for cocktails in Astoria. From what I hear, the food is excellent. Great spot for a date as well. We’ll be back for sure. Highly recommend!

Pretty good place for brunch in Astoria. The restaurant itself is a little small, but they do offer plenty of outdoor seating when the weather is nice. They also have a bar with seating as well.
I had the polenta and eggs but asked for the eggs to be over easy. Yolks were overcooked, but other than that. no complaints. The polenta was a delicious, crispy triangle. And the brussel sprouts with the parmesan cream sauce really made the dish. I ended up not eating the eggs and getting a side of bacon with it.
The bacon side was a good amount for $ 7. We ordered two sides because we weren’t sure of the size, but one was more than enough for two of us.
Coffee was strong and the service was good. Will have to come in and try the oysters because they are known for their oyster happy hour.

This place had such a Brooklyn feel to it. It’s definitely my kind of place, but from the outside it just looks like any other bar/​restaurant.
Mar’s is definitely not for consuming any kind of food except, oysters. Because my steak tartare almost gave me a heart attack. It was soaked in salt. So much so that, I just felt really sick.
But I really enjoyed the ambiance of Mar’s and I want to come back again. The bartenders were so skilled at making each drink. One of them reminded me of an American, more sexier version of Ricky Gervais. Something about how he stirred the drinks with the flick of da wrist had me like UNF UNF.
Despite feeling sick, I really liked this place. The people working there were cool, too. But the cook… he needs lessons on seasoning food.

I had this bookmarked for over a year and finally tried this place with my sister and cousin to celebrate their birthdays. First I will say the outdoor area was nice and comfortable and service was great.
Food, while great on paper, was not as amazing as I hoped. The lobster roll for $ 27 (as told by my sister who ordered) was sparse and average. I told her reviews for this place said it was amazing and she looked at me incredulously. For the price it better taste amazing or be oozing with lobster meat, none of which this roll had.
We also ordered cod croquettes (salty), almost 3 dozen Rocky points (good), steamed clams (super tiny portion but good flavor with chorizo), fried oysters (favorite item of the night), fish and chips (batter was weak and fell off the fish– my cousin wasn’t impressed) and chocolate ganache (good).
All in all, I thought it was a decent meal but not overall memorable. Everything sounded and looked better than tasted. May come back just for oysters and wine but don’t know if I would order a full dinner again.

It can be easily overlooked from the outside.
The inside is very charming and cozy, but we chose to sit outside.
Came here last Saturday for brunch. It was a beautiful day and ordered the lobster benedict. The presentation was nice. They should serve it with more potatoes tho.
There was a good amount of lobster in it, which I loved.
The service was good and definitely not in your face. We were not rushed at all.
Coffee was good too. Refills were offered for the drip coffee, so that was appreciated.
Glad I stopped by.
Will try coming back to check out their happy hour.

Great hidden gem for fresh seafood and $ 1.50 oysters (happy hour only between 4−7pm daily)
Awesome service as well.
We’ll always come back !

Nice selection of oysters ($ 2 on Sundays and $ 1.50 during happy hour every other day). Great cocktails, I had the Charred Oak and my girlfriend had the French Western.
The Charred Oak was an excellent scotch cocktail that smelled like a single malt but tasted much more palatable. Would have been a better winter time drink but I enjoyed it a lot.
The French Western was a more fun summer-​y fruity bourbon cocktail.
The waiter was helpful and assisted us in choosing a variety of different oysters.
We didn’t stay for entrees because it’s a bit pricey but this was a wonderful place to chat while sitting outside with a cocktail and enjoying a few oysters. The bar/​interior is also beautiful.

I don’t live incredibly far away from Mar’s, but far enough that I don’t get here as frequently as I would if it was much closer. That’s my long way of saying ‘I wish I lived near you.’.
This is a solid neighborhood bar and restaurant. My wife loves the oysters, and I’m a big fan of their drink choices.
This is the kind of place you pop in for happy hour, and you’re still there three hours later. It can get busy, but it seems like I can always find a seat at the bar.
The bar staff is really friendly, which I think is a big selling point. I think this would be a solid date option, without being too fancy. It’s about as no frills as you can get, but it’s pretty nice anyway.

I got over charged here for tip, after like my 5^th time coming here. This place is so temperamental with service, everything depends on who’s serving you, my original review is below. But I called to talk to a manager because I split the check and we tipped the same. My amount on my bank account was almost 20 more than my friends. I told the manager to look at the receipts, he said he will call me like the next day. He left a voicemail saying he looked into the computer and found the same thing that’s in my bank account (well DUH), hence why I asked u to find the hand written receipts. So tired of calling back and forth I let it go. This has happening to me several times in NYC and I live here. Lesson learned, keep your receipts.
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I think I just had the most perfect meal of my life so far.
First off I just Unilocal around the movie theater to see what restaurants where there and I found Mar’s, American new. I love American new and oysters. Done.
So I got on a Saturday around 3pm and walked in, the first person I met was Artem D.(also my server) a young male with brown hair. He greeted and we discussed where I should sit, he said anywhere. Love that. I chose outside corner.
Immediately when he sat me he asked if I wanted water, I order bottle sparkling, it was immediate service which was wonderful.
The menu is so polished and the food is so simply hearty American it’s wonderful. From every liquor, wine, food, dessert, I was wanting to try everything. But I ordered:
–A rittenhouse rye manhattan up (done perfectly)
–15 oysters (great cupcake oysters and cocktail)
–A glass of Albariño (very light, not too fruity sweet)
–Kale salad, (a tad too lemony for me but the dressing without dairy in combination of the toughness of the perfectly julienned Kale, was perfect)
–A beer etionne brut cider. (ABSOLUTELY AMAZING, a easily two person –glass of what I like to think as the champagne of ciders without the deep dryness)
–mussels in white wine sauce (perfect with the sauce, thick without being creamy or salty)
–Chocolate ganache dessert (crystallized Rosemary creating a fresh sweet palate for every bite into the creamy chocolate bar with caramel)
–laphroig scotch-​I was so happy
There is not one corner of my experience I wasnt happy with, between my server being attentive and knowledgable, and the food being so curated and refined right down to the aioli with fries, and the most amazing pepper mignonette sauce with the oysters. I def have a crush on this place.

This is my favorite restaurant in Astoria. I do not think there is a dish you can go wrong with. It can get pricey if you buy a lot of oysters (and I mean over a dozen) and lits of drinks. If you keep your intake reasonable then it is a reasonable price. But food, drinks and service are the best here.
The ambience is warm, classic and intimate. They seasonally change their menu. Its great for both brunch and dinners. My favorite things are Blood Moon drink, lobster Benedict, foie gras french toast (although I haven’t seen this on the menu in a while and it needs to come back) lemon burger, steak tartare, crispy spearlings, mussles fritte. And last but not least all of the oysters!

The services was impeccable.
The cocktail menu is impressive.
We ordered the kale salad. It was good. A tad salty. Coming from a salt lover it’s saying a lot. But they were perfectly cooked, light and fluffy.
The Moules frites were Amazing! Probably the best I’ve had.
The raw selection was fresh and delicious.
We sat at the bar. The bartender was great!

Mar’s is a really cool spot! Incredible drinks and love the 1 $ oysters. They change the special every day so you get the chance to try oysters from different places depending on what they have the special for that day– very cool!
I took my boyfriend for dinner here for his birthday, the food is good, although the menu is small and a bit pricey.
The service is very very attentive.
Update: I still love the oyster special and their cocktails.
Sat for dinner and I have to say, although the food is really good they are really overpriced. $ 19 for mussels, $ 23 for gnocchi, $ 31 for a lobster roll… Yes the food was good, but not good enough to justify these prices. Point being, with their limited menu you can find better food at much better prices and better selections elsewhere.
Still keeping the rating as 4 stars bc this is a really cool spot for drinks/​oysters and the service and ambiance is fantastic.