Thalia (or That Time I Ate 5 Oysters!)

I went with a group of friends to Thalia, a Hell's Kitchen restaurant where they specialize in seafood. I heard we'd be indulging in oysters, which had me a bit apprehensive.

Texture-wise, oysters do not normally appeal to me. Fried? Sure! Raw and jiggling in their shell? Shudder! I would never discourage others from indulging, but I just never really "got" the appeal.

However, I do like to push myself to try and do new things now and then. I did mention my hesitation to my fellow diners, and they couldn't have been more encouraging and supportive!

Thalia offers $1 oysters (Chef's choice) from 7p-close, so we got 2 dozen Blue Points from New Jersey. They came with 2 portions of cocktail sauce (deliciously heavy on the horseradish) and a malt vinegar/shallots sauce.

I tried my first one, a small sample with a dollop of the cocktail sauce. Meaty, not slimy at ALL, and refreshingly tasty! THIS is something I could enjoy eating. In fact, I had 4 more! I hadn't eaten that many raw oysters in all my LIFE before then. Gold star for me!

We moved on to main courses- my entrée was the pappardelle with lamb ragu, ricotta cheese, broccoli rabe and mint - dusted with a nice layer of shredded Manchego cheese. Broccoli rabe is almost always a deal-breaker for me, as I'm not a fan of bitterness, but this was perfectly cooked, mild, soft and tasty!

My friend and former news colleague (I've left the biz-she's still in it and just won an Emmy!) ordered the squid ink capellini, which she loved. 

I sampled it- delightfully delicious with the perfect touch of the sea.

Thalia also has sushi, which looked delicious - I was already too full to try this, but everyone else raved about it.

 
We had excellent service, fun conversation, and the whole meal was a lovely time. I'm glad I finally popped in to the restaurant I've been walking by for so many years!

Thalia
828 8th Ave
New York, NY
(212) 399-4444

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