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Almeida/Eater

Where to Eat Clams Casino Across America

by Erin DeJesus
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by Erin DeJesus
1 comment / new
Almeida/Eater

For many New Englanders, it doesn't get more classic than clams casino. Whether at a classic red-sauce joint or at a oceanside seafood shack, the dish remains assuringly consistent: littleneck clams are propped on their half-shells with a mixture of peppers, bacon, bread crumbs, and butter, then broiled until each stuffed shell browns on top. In many diners' food memories, they arrive to the table on a bed of rock salt, with lemon wedges and parsley for optional garnishing.

Read up on the full history of clams casino here, and if that's making you hungry, here are 14 restaurants around the country serving old-school and modern versions of the New England classic:

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Matunuck Oyster Bar

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Rhode Island's Matunuck Oyster Bar operates its own shellfish farm, and interested guests can arrange for a tour of the seven-acre property before sitting down to dinner. Not surprisingly, oysters and littleneck clams appear all over the menu — including in casino and "stuffie" form. [Photo]

629 Succotash Rd, Wakefield, RI
(401) 783-4202
(401) 783-4202

Mike's Kitchen

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This Cranston, RI institution is open in a somewhat unlikely place — inside a Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) outpost. But according to Eat Drink RI blogger David Dadekian, the 32-year-old restaurant is a local institution that just happens to nail its clams casino. "Mike's is a great, old-school red sauce spot that makes perfect classics," he says. "It's popular with a lot of local chefs and home cooks who come from Italy — so you know they're doing something right." [Photo: Almeida/Eater]

170 Randall St, Cranston, RI
(401) 946-5320
(401) 946-5320

Hemenway's Seafood Grille & Oyster Bar

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For an upscale version of clams casino, Hemenway's Seafood Grille, in the heart of Providence, has offered its white-tablecloth takes on seafood for more than two decades. Clams casino comes on Hemenway's classic seafood platter, as well as on its own, with something the house calls "casino butter." [Photo: Almeida/Eater]

121 S Main St, Providence, RI 02903
(401) 351-8570
(401) 351-8570

Union Oyster House

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Open since 1826, the Union Oyster House claims to be Boston's oldest restaurant, predating the invention of clams casino by (at least) six decades. Nevertheless, the dish is on menus now, and perhaps they were enjoyed by American royalty once upon a time: Eater Boston reports the Kennedy family were once Oyster House regulars. [Photo]

41 Union St, Boston, MA 02108
(617) 227-2750
(617) 227-2750

Also featured in:

Abe & Louie's

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Boston's 50-year-old steakhouse Abe & Louie's — named the city's best according to an Eater Boston poll — offers a clams casino alongside other non-beef, classic seafood dishes like lobster Savannah and lobster casserole. [Photo]

793 Boylston St, Boston, MA 02116
(617) 536-6300
(617) 536-6300

Also featured in:

Chiapparelli's Restaurant

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Eater restaurant critic Bill Addison, a Baltimore native, has fond memories of the city's red sauce joints, and Chiapparelli's is key among them ("locals, including my parents, call it 'Chip's,'" he says). According to Addison, the Chip's version is a "simple but scrumptious clams casino, always on the bed of salt rock — I remember loving that touch as a kid." [Photo]

237 S High St, Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 837-0309
(410) 837-0309

The Prime Rib

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The Prime Rib steakhouse chainlet has since branched out to Philadelphia and Washington, DC, but its original, 50-year-old location brought the "civilized steakhouse" experience to Baltimore. Clams casino sits on the appetizer menu alongside other regional classics like oysters Chesapeake and soft-shell crab. [Photo]

1101 N. Calvert St., Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 539-1804
(410) 539-1804

The Palm Restaurant

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Washington, DC's location of the Palm opened 40 years ago as the sister restuarant to LA's iconic steakhouse of the same name. And as to be expected of a popular "power lunch" spot in the ultimate "power lunch" city, the menu leans towards classics. Both clams casino and clams oreganata (a baked clam dish with bread crumbs, lemon, and oregano) are available. [Photo]

1225 19th St NW, Washington, D.C. 20036
(202) 293-9091
(202) 293-9091

Also featured in:

Lenny's Clam Bar

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In his NYC guide to clams, Eater senior critic Robert Sietsema name-drops the clams casino at Howard Beach's 41-year-old Lenny's Clam Bar, a seafood restaurant with strong Italian roots. Clams casino is just one dish on the sprawling menu, heaving with seafood-and-pasta combinations and surf-and-turfs. [Photo]

16102 Crossbay Blvd, Howard Beach, NY 11414
(718) 845-5100
(718) 845-5100

Carbone

Copy Link

This NYC "new classic" famously offers co-chefs Mario Carbone and Rich Torrisi's take on the "red sauce" experience. And as to be expected, its take on clams casino gets a minor modern upgrade: the clams are finished with lardo instead being baked with bacon. [Photo: Addison/Eater]

181 Thompson St, New York, NY 10012
(212) 254-3000
(212) 254-3000

Also featured in:

All’onda

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Clams casino gets another update at NYC's All'onda, whose chef Chris Jaeckle sneaks a few Japanese touches onto his "modern Venetian" menu. Here, the clams are broiled with pancetta and panko bread crumbs. [Photo]

22 E 13th St, New York, NY 10003
(212) 231-2236
(212) 231-2236

Also featured in:

Golden Steer

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Las Vegas's old-school Golden Steer has been open since 1958, and its menu has been preserved to match what Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. would've eaten (according to Golden Steer's owners, the Rat Pack boys were all regulars). [Photo]

308 W Sahara Ave, Las Vegas, NV 89102
(702) 384-4470
(702) 384-4470

Also featured in:

Dan Tana's

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Dan Tana's is one of LA's most celebrated red sauce joints — when the restaurant marked its 50th anniversary last year, Hollywood's best and brightest came out in tribute. Both casino and oreganata versions of broiled clams are available. [Photo]

9071 Santa Monica Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90069
(310) 275-9444
(310) 275-9444

Also featured in:

L&E Oyster Bar

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This new-school seafood restaurant offers a take on what they call clams casino, but the dish avoids clams altogether. Instead, L&E Oyster Bar sticks to its namesake, with a grilled oysters casino featuring butter, paprika, parsley, shallots, and Nueske's bacon. [Photo]

1637 Silver Lake Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026
(323) 660-2255
(323) 660-2255

Also featured in:

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Matunuck Oyster Bar

629 Succotash Rd, Wakefield, RI

Rhode Island's Matunuck Oyster Bar operates its own shellfish farm, and interested guests can arrange for a tour of the seven-acre property before sitting down to dinner. Not surprisingly, oysters and littleneck clams appear all over the menu — including in casino and "stuffie" form. [Photo]

629 Succotash Rd, Wakefield, RI
(401) 783-4202
(401) 783-4202

Mike's Kitchen

170 Randall St, Cranston, RI

This Cranston, RI institution is open in a somewhat unlikely place — inside a Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) outpost. But according to Eat Drink RI blogger David Dadekian, the 32-year-old restaurant is a local institution that just happens to nail its clams casino. "Mike's is a great, old-school red sauce spot that makes perfect classics," he says. "It's popular with a lot of local chefs and home cooks who come from Italy — so you know they're doing something right." [Photo: Almeida/Eater]

170 Randall St, Cranston, RI
(401) 946-5320
(401) 946-5320

Hemenway's Seafood Grille & Oyster Bar

121 S Main St, Providence, RI 02903

For an upscale version of clams casino, Hemenway's Seafood Grille, in the heart of Providence, has offered its white-tablecloth takes on seafood for more than two decades. Clams casino comes on Hemenway's classic seafood platter, as well as on its own, with something the house calls "casino butter." [Photo: Almeida/Eater]

121 S Main St, Providence, RI 02903
(401) 351-8570
(401) 351-8570

Union Oyster House

41 Union St, Boston, MA 02108

Open since 1826, the Union Oyster House claims to be Boston's oldest restaurant, predating the invention of clams casino by (at least) six decades. Nevertheless, the dish is on menus now, and perhaps they were enjoyed by American royalty once upon a time: Eater Boston reports the Kennedy family were once Oyster House regulars. [Photo]

41 Union St, Boston, MA 02108
(617) 227-2750
(617) 227-2750

Abe & Louie's

793 Boylston St, Boston, MA 02116

Boston's 50-year-old steakhouse Abe & Louie's — named the city's best according to an Eater Boston poll — offers a clams casino alongside other non-beef, classic seafood dishes like lobster Savannah and lobster casserole. [Photo]

793 Boylston St, Boston, MA 02116
(617) 536-6300
(617) 536-6300

Chiapparelli's Restaurant

237 S High St, Baltimore, MD 21202

Eater restaurant critic Bill Addison, a Baltimore native, has fond memories of the city's red sauce joints, and Chiapparelli's is key among them ("locals, including my parents, call it 'Chip's,'" he says). According to Addison, the Chip's version is a "simple but scrumptious clams casino, always on the bed of salt rock — I remember loving that touch as a kid." [Photo]

237 S High St, Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 837-0309
(410) 837-0309

The Prime Rib

1101 N. Calvert St., Baltimore, MD 21202

The Prime Rib steakhouse chainlet has since branched out to Philadelphia and Washington, DC, but its original, 50-year-old location brought the "civilized steakhouse" experience to Baltimore. Clams casino sits on the appetizer menu alongside other regional classics like oysters Chesapeake and soft-shell crab. [Photo]

1101 N. Calvert St., Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 539-1804
(410) 539-1804

The Palm Restaurant

1225 19th St NW, Washington, D.C. 20036

Washington, DC's location of the Palm opened 40 years ago as the sister restuarant to LA's iconic steakhouse of the same name. And as to be expected of a popular "power lunch" spot in the ultimate "power lunch" city, the menu leans towards classics. Both clams casino and clams oreganata (a baked clam dish with bread crumbs, lemon, and oregano) are available. [Photo]

1225 19th St NW, Washington, D.C. 20036
(202) 293-9091
(202) 293-9091

Lenny's Clam Bar

16102 Crossbay Blvd, Howard Beach, NY 11414

In his NYC guide to clams, Eater senior critic Robert Sietsema name-drops the clams casino at Howard Beach's 41-year-old Lenny's Clam Bar, a seafood restaurant with strong Italian roots. Clams casino is just one dish on the sprawling menu, heaving with seafood-and-pasta combinations and surf-and-turfs. [Photo]

16102 Crossbay Blvd, Howard Beach, NY 11414
(718) 845-5100
(718) 845-5100

Carbone

181 Thompson St, New York, NY 10012

This NYC "new classic" famously offers co-chefs Mario Carbone and Rich Torrisi's take on the "red sauce" experience. And as to be expected, its take on clams casino gets a minor modern upgrade: the clams are finished with lardo instead being baked with bacon. [Photo: Addison/Eater]

181 Thompson St, New York, NY 10012
(212) 254-3000
(212) 254-3000

All’onda

22 E 13th St, New York, NY 10003

Clams casino gets another update at NYC's All'onda, whose chef Chris Jaeckle sneaks a few Japanese touches onto his "modern Venetian" menu. Here, the clams are broiled with pancetta and panko bread crumbs. [Photo]

22 E 13th St, New York, NY 10003
(212) 231-2236
(212) 231-2236

Golden Steer

308 W Sahara Ave, Las Vegas, NV 89102

Las Vegas's old-school Golden Steer has been open since 1958, and its menu has been preserved to match what Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. would've eaten (according to Golden Steer's owners, the Rat Pack boys were all regulars). [Photo]

308 W Sahara Ave, Las Vegas, NV 89102
(702) 384-4470
(702) 384-4470

Dan Tana's

9071 Santa Monica Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90069

Dan Tana's is one of LA's most celebrated red sauce joints — when the restaurant marked its 50th anniversary last year, Hollywood's best and brightest came out in tribute. Both casino and oreganata versions of broiled clams are available. [Photo]

9071 Santa Monica Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90069
(310) 275-9444
(310) 275-9444

L&E Oyster Bar

1637 Silver Lake Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026

This new-school seafood restaurant offers a take on what they call clams casino, but the dish avoids clams altogether. Instead, L&E Oyster Bar sticks to its namesake, with a grilled oysters casino featuring butter, paprika, parsley, shallots, and Nueske's bacon. [Photo]

1637 Silver Lake Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026
(323) 660-2255
(323) 660-2255

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