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Penny

New York

Pristine seafood counter with a sprawling bottle list

The story: Chef Joshua Pinsky and wine expert Chase Sinzer, alumni of New York's most influential kitchens including Momofuku Ko and Chef's Table at Brooklyn Fare, opened Claud in 2022 – a cosy, wine-focused restaurant that quickly captured citywide acclaim. Two years later, they took things to new heights – literally – by transforming the bright second-floor space above Claud into Penny.

What's on the plate: The menu is a love letter to the ocean. The Ice Box is lined with items like oysters, countneck clams and live scallops, while specials might feature stuffed squid with swiss chard and tuna in a harissa-like sauce, or dover sole finished with bone marrow. Signature starters – an excellent sesame brioche crowned with Cantabrian anchovies and a paper-thin tuna carpaccio accented with Manzanilla olives and cipollini onions – flip humble ideas into requisite dishes.

The seating situation: Penny is all bar, giving diners a front-row view as each ingredient is shucked, sliced and assembled to order.

To drink: Wine is as integral to Penny as the seafood itself. Sinzer's deep French-focused cellar offers an edited by-the-glass selection alongside a master list of roughly 6,000 bottles, ranging from up-and-coming producers to icons, with a mix of current and older vintages. Pro tip: make sure to ask for the full wine list.

A note on sourcing: While Penny's seafood spans both coasts and beyond, the ethos is rooted in seasonality and responsible sourcing, with many items arriving daily from small-scale purveyors.

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