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For a classic clam dish, Morgans Fish House serves the best linguine with clam sauce. |
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Myong’s top-neck clams are served over house-made pasta. - Advertisement -
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10) Myong Gourmet (487 Main St, Mount Kisco 914-241-6333; plgourmet.com) does everything with global flair in what the restaurant classifies as progressive world cuisine. Company President (and husband of the chef) Rob Feiner loves clams, and so they are always on the menu in some variation, be it steamed clams in white wine, butter, and garlic sauce; New England clam chowder; Manhattan clam chowder; or, in the summer, top necks on the half-shell with a traditional cocktail sauce. The menu changes seasonally, but you usually can find top necks in white wine, shallots, and garlic, topped with micro-cilantro, served over house-made pappardella, or clams casino with white wine and butter topped with applewood smoked bacon. Pure yum!
There’s an interesting story behind the New England clam chowder at 11) The Tavern at Croton Landing (41 N Riverside Ave, Croton-on-Hudson 914-271-8020; thetavernatcroton.com); it’s made by a customer, not the chef. A former banker who’s now retired, Jim Delaney, a local resident, comes in a couple times a week to whip up batches of his famous “Banker’s Chowder.” He’s been doing this for six years to rave reviews, so much so that the restaurant recently had to get a bigger pot to keep up with the orders. It’s rich and hearty and chock full of celery, potatoes, garlic, butter, and other ingredients, including the freshest clams you can find.
The fried clams at 12) Gus’s Franklin Park Restaurant (126 Halstead Ave, Harrison 914-835-9804) include the whole belly, delivering a really moist, really nutty, really crisp dish. Littlenecks, top necks, and cherrystones are also on the menu and though generally served raw, the kitchen is happy to serve them in any variation you prefer. This is, after all, a place that knows seafood, and with its adjacent fish store next door, you can buy whatever you want to go.
Steamed Manila clams in a lightly spiced tomato broth, with linguini, arugula, and olive oil top the favorites at the seafood-centric 13) Goldfish Oyster Bar & Restaurant (6 Rockledge Ave, Ossining 914-762-0051; goldfishdining.com), where clam specials (featuring both raw and cooked clams) are offered throughout the year. Littlenecks are always on the menu, served with flourish in a saffron vinaigrette. Manila clams, known as the sweetest and smallest of the hard-shells, are also served seven days a week and come with a side of linguini in a garlic and oil sauce.
The menu at 14) Toscana (214 Main St, Eastchester 914-361-1119; toscana-ristorante.com) is a whirlwind of Italian seaside cooking where everything is made fresh, including the gorgeously presented vongolette in coccio, littleneck clams sautéed with cannelloni beans and chopped sausage in a spicy tomato broth. Just as divine: the vongole al finocchiello, broiled littlenecks with seasoned breadcrumbs in a wild fennel-lemon sauce. For heartier fare, there’s always the linguine al frutti di mare, the classic Italian dish of linguine with PEI mussels, Manila clams, sea scallops, shrimp, a touch of tomato, and garlic.
Country Classic
You can’t mention clams without a nod to the legendary Greasy Nick’s, real name: 15) Leno’s Clam Bar (755 Pelham Rd, New Rochelle 914-636-5503). Come summer, this roadside stand is big into serving burgers, hot dogs, fries and—you guessed it—clams (both raw and fried).
Interested in a Clambake?
The following bring the clams to you: The Great American BBQ Company (914-686-2277; thegreatamericanbbq.com) Powell Catering (58 Halstead Ave, Harrison 914-381-4843; powellcatering.com); and The Royal Grilling Co. (330 Boston Post Rd, Rye 914-777-2053; royalgrillingco.com).