The Cafeteria-Style Restaurant With Some Of The Best Seafood In New York
By Christy Articola|Published March 08, 2023
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Christy Articola
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Christy Articola has lived in Colorado since 2013 and considers herself a Centennial State enthusiast and expert through and through. She's based in Denver metro, but over the past decade, she has traveled to every corner, river, village, park, town, and city in the state and continues to explore it deeper and further whenever she can. Christy simply can't get enough of Colorado, and loves sharing all her adventures with you through Only In Your State! She graduated with a degree in journalism from Fordham University and is thrilled to be working as a full time travel writer for this and other sites - she finally found her perfect niche - and is so grateful for that.
City Island in the Bronx is a hidden gem itself, but a hidden gem that happens to be located on that hidden gem is Johnny’s Reef Restaurant. This cafeteria-style restaurant in New York has been thrilling and filling customers for more than 70 years with some of the best seafood you can get in the Bronx. People come from miles around to travel to the southern tip of City Island to visit Johnny’s and to enjoy waterfront dining with friends or family. Read on to learn more about this very special place.
City Island is a small, one mile long island in the Bronx that feels a bit more like New England than New York City. At the end of this island, you'll find Johnny's Reef Restaurant.
Johnny's Reef Restaurant is best known for its fried seafood. Want something fried and from the sea? Name it, and it's probably on the menu. Johnny's offers fried shrimp, fried fillet, fried whiting, fried red snapper, fried porgy, fried lobster tail, fried scallops, fried squid, fried clam strips, fried oysters, fried fish sticks, fried smelts, fried frog legs, and fried soft shell crabs!
If you're not feeling like fish or other sea creatures, Johnny's also offers fried chicken fingers, fried chicken wings, and fried chicken livers. Plus, fried onion rings and fried french fries to go with any of the above.
Oh, there's fried tostones, too. And also fried mozzarella sticks!
You can also get seafood that is steamed, if you're trying to be a little healthier. Maybe you'd like steamed shrimp, steamed fillet, steamed whiting, steamed lobster tails, steamed scallops, steamed squid, or steamed red snapper.
If none of that sounds appetizing - which is hard to believe - Johnny's also sells hamburgers and cheeseburgers and hot dogs, too. But more likely, your table is going to end up looking something like this.
You might be happy to hear that Johnny's Reef Restaurant serves alcohol, too. The restaurant sells several brands of common beer, but most people opt for a Johnny's piña colada.
Johnny’s Reef Restaurant is one of those iconic hidden gems that’s worth a road trip. Plus, there’s probably a good chance you’ve never been to City Island before, so it’s worth checking it out for that reason, too. City Island is an island, but you can drive there; there’s a bridge. Plan a visit today, and be sure to bring your appetite when it’s time to go to Johnny’s!
