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    The Merchant

    3.6 (446 reviews)
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    THE MERCHANT ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Good for groups
    Outdoor seating

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    Olga S.

    Excellent for date night! I loved the variety of menu, not to mention the quality of the food and drinks. My favorites were the tuna tartare and octopus appetizers. Service was prompt, and the location is great for a pre or post dinner walk and/or show.

    Holly B.

    A colleague of ours was leaving and we wanted to have a small send off lunch before she left. We made reservations as we figured they may have a lunch crowd and so glad we did because it was very busy. We arrived on time for our 12:15pm reservation and were promptly seated. Once all 6 of us were seated a few minutes later we were given water and then asked if we wanted to order. It was a tad difficult to hear the server due to it being very loud but we got it done. A few appetizers and several lunch entrees. I had the red Thai curry and it doesn't say it has a kick, but be prepared it doesn't, it was a tad salty for my taste and the ratio of sauce to rice was disappointing. I was told the calamari, steak frites and chicken sandwich were all good. Great atmosphere and energy from the staff. I would def return to try out their drinks and maybe later in the day to avoid the busy lunch crowd.

    $1 oysters!
    Geoffrey P.

    M-F 4-7 $1 oyster happy hour. This is why we come here. Don't even need a menu. This is all we're eating. Cocktails are pretty good and reasonably priced (during HH). Service is sweet but a little slow. Cool bar area.

    Pink Moon oyster from Prince Edward Island
    Sharon P.

    We came here on a Monday before 5pm, for one reason and one reason only - $1 oyster happy hour. We never expected to order 3 dozen oysters, but that is exactly what we did! We expected oyster that cheap, it must be blue point. But no, they served Pink Moon from Prince Edward Island. Small, super fresh, sweet, and simply awesome! We sat at the bar, bartender was very attentive. What a great happy hour! Next time we are in Boston, we will make sure we include either a Monday or Friday so that we can come here for $1 oyster!!

    Great spot with excellent service and really tasty food. Everything came out fresh and flavorful, and they also have a great selection of beers on tap. Definitely worth a visit!

    All Natural Burger
    Winni Z.

    Great place to go to on a Friday night without a reservation. I liked that it felt spacious and not too noisy. Our server was also attentive and nice. The food was yummy, and I plan on coming back to try the dollar oysters + the new items on their menu.

    Side fries
    Natalie P.

    No complaints here! This place is great. A dim bar setting with hints of nautical accessories throughout. I came here mostly for the dollar oysters but stayed due to the relaxed setting, cocktails, and good service. The $1 oyster special, at least on Friday, started at 4pm. A thorough search of oyster specials lead me here. A very cool restaurant provided my sister and I respite from a scorching summer day. We enjoyed a couple rounds of oysters and French fries over drinks and couldn't appreciate the relaxed setting any more. The place was very clean and the staff attentive. We came here before a dinner reservation elsewhere and I wish we had just stayed here! The food was really good!

    The Merchant has both indoor and outdoor seating and a solid classic American menu. I ordered the tuna melt -- it was fine overall, though I wasn't a big fan of the flavor in the filling. The sourdough bread was really good, though, and the fries were decent. A nice enough spot for a casual meal.

    Dollar Oysters
    Adina S.

    I came here for the dollar oysters on a weeknight after work. I didn't actually order any food or drinks besides the oysters, so I'm not sure about the rest of their menu, but the oysters were pretty solid. It seemed to be fairly typical for an American spot, so probably not the type of place I would go out of my way to visit, aside from the oysters. It wasn't especially busy, so I wouldn't expect too much of a wait. In terms of the ambiance, this felt like a good after work spot. The decor was fairly upscale and I could imagine a business crowd visiting this place. The staff was attentive and came by a few times to see if we'd like to order anything else. I would happily come back to order some more dollar oysters, so I hope they continue to run that special!

    Jess B.

    For a small mid day menu everything was delicious! It was quite dark inside and we were the only ones in there around 4pm which made the service fast. They had good local beer on the menu.

    Shishito Peppers
    Caroline S.

    Come for the dollar oysters!! They're super fresh and delicious :) Besides that, everything else was just ok. Interior is super dark, service is slow (we were there when it wasn't busy), and food was okay. All of our entree dishes were salty and a bit disappointing after having such delicious oysters to start.

    Christine L.

    The $1 oysters on Mondays and Fridays from 4pm-9pm is where it's at! The oysters are so fresh. Whenever I'm craving a $1 oyster deal, I make the trek to Downtown Boston just for The Merchant. I love the shishito peppers! I don't think I'd get full entrees from here (they're a bit pricey) but I've gotten their gnocchi before and it was pretty good. It was more like baked mac and cheese, which I'm not complaining about because it was delicious, but not what I usually expect to get when I order gnocchi. I've also ordered their fish and chips, but it's two small pieces of fish with some fries. I like their togarashi fries too, but they're kind of just like any other fries you'd get just with some really yummy sauce. I've gotten drinks here too which are also just sort of average. This place definitely draws in an older crowd, but I've seen families with young kids here too. Their bathroom is also worth mentioning, it's very clean and has lots of gorgeous artwork. Parking in Downtown can be a pain, but The Merchant actually validates parking at 33 Arch Street ($6 for up to 10 hours) which is such a deal!

    Shrimp Tacos
    Sara Jieyi T.

    Only restaurant I am aware of serving $1 Oyster on a Friday night from 4-9pm! On the day we went, we got 5 dozens of black magic oysters and they were fresh! However, some of them very extremely small with nearly no meat hence I took a star off. The burger came with fries that were thin and crispy and to my surprise, it was very good. The shrimp tacos were good but it did not stand out as much as the burger. The atmosphere was chill and classy. The restaurant has a great location and it was fairly easy to find street parking in the area. Food: 8.5/10 Service: 8/10 Experience: 8/10 Value: 8/10

    Grilled Arctic Char

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    7 years ago

    Trout with moroccan spices was delicious, both times. Lively atmosphere. Tip- make a reservation or be prepared to wait- gets crowded.

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    Bistro du Midi

    Bistro du Midi

    4.0
    (848 reviews)
    0.6 mi
    $$$

    This place never disappoints! Took my friend for her birthday and we of course did the chefs…read moretasting. Food is always on point and this is the one place I would break my food habit rules for. Every dish was divine from starter to finish. I think we had someone different serving us after a couple of courses, I loved seeing the same servers there year after year which means they treat staff well - huge plus in my book. Definitely will put this on our rotation for girl's night out. In case you've never seen baby seagulls before, here's a selfie with one! I took it right before I walked to the restaurant

    If you're looking for a place to feel welcomed, I'd recommend spending your money somewhere else…read more We came here to celebrate the 4th of July, when people are out enjoying the holiday in casual clothes. Many guests were wearing shorts, just like us. When we asked if there were any tables available, the hostess first asked for our contact information. After seeing how we were dressed, another staff member came back and said, "We're fully committed right now. There are no tables available, you can sit at the bar." The interaction felt dismissive and unwelcoming. Whether intentional or not, it left us feeling like we were judged by our appearance rather than treated as paying customers. This was one of the most disappointing customer service experiences I've had, especially on a holiday meant to be enjoyable.

    Photos
    Interior
    Interior
    East Coast Oysters, Narragansett Bay Clams, Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail
    East Coast Oysters, Narragansett Bay Clams, Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail
    Afternoon tea  & Champagne

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    Petit Robert Bistro

    Petit Robert Bistro

    3.7
    (603 reviews)
    1.4 mi
    $$

    Came in after social media was blasting the bottomless steak frites!…read more Fries are standard fries crispy and i can always eat fries! Steak, not sure what cut maybe sirloin. It was cooked well, you each get a full plate of steak first with a pepper sauce. When you want more the server comes back periodically with a plate of sliced beef to drop on your plate. The steak itself for us wasn't seasoned at all, the sauce helped immensely. We also requested salt and pepper shakers. At $39 per person you can't go wrong, just ask for more sauce and condiments. Service was cool, staff is friendly and sparks conversations with the patrons around, so you'll just need to get their attention when you need something. The bread was good. Escargot was mainly earthy, i would have probably liked a bit more garlic buttery flavor to come thru but I'm no expert.

    Went to Petit Robert Bistro last Sunday to try their unlimited steak frites special! They offer…read morethis deal on Sundays only ($39/pp) and it comes with unlimited steak + unlimited fries. There are a couple of other restaurants around that do this deal on Sundays too, but I believe they only do bottomless fries & not steak haha. Made a reservation on OpenTable same day and had no issues w/ getting a table for 2. We ended up getting an order of steak + frites each to start, as well as a separate order of escargot (I love escargot)! The escargot was okay. I wish it had just a little bit more flavor... tasted kind of grassy and flat, compared to when I last had this dish in France. For the steak, we did medium rare & medium. They come out w/ a plate of steak and the fries first & come around w/ plates of steak upon request, ~2-5 pieces at a time. Came with a black pepper sauce, which was tasty & paired well. We ended up asking for salt + pepper shakers and more sauce mid-meal because the steak lacked some seasoning & it helped immensely. Overall, our experience at Petit Robert Bistro was not bad. Is the $39/pp worth it? Perhaps. I'm not sure if I'd come back for the unlimited steak + frites option again mainly because I definitely can't eat too much steak lol.

    Photos
    Petit Robert Bistro
    Escargot
    Escargot
    Petit Robert Bistro

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    Frenchie Wine Bistro

    Frenchie Wine Bistro

    3.8
    (352 reviews)
    1.1 mi
    $$

    ***4 1/2 stars***…read more Frenchie's was great and SO close to being perfect. I came here for dinner this past Saturday night with my top-tier chum who literally went to the school of hospitality, a huge fan of French cuisine in her own right. This seemed like a logical choice based on its convenient location to our South End Airbnb, and what looked like a pleasant vibe from their website, both of which were true. When we got in around 8pm, it WAS a little loud and too reminiscent of NYC but we either got used to it throughout the meal or the crowd thinned out (I suspect it was a little from Column A and a little from Column B). It does feel though like a lot of the European restaurant/cafes in the West Village, which definitely isn't a bad thing. As responsible adults, we made reservations and were immediately seated and attended to. We got some pretty delicious items at our table. We split the Scallops and Escargot apps to start, along with a charcuterie board. All excellent, particularly the Scallops which were almost literally melt in your mouth tender and were drenched in lobster bisque. Just heavenly and probably the best scallops I've ever had. Escargot to me is pretty dependent on how it's prepared. This was delicious and had garlic a-plenty. My dining companion also insisted on truffle fries after having a mediocre fry experience the night before at a different establishment, and while they weren't historically amazing like the scallops, it's hard to go wrong with that particular side. For our entrees, I went with the filet mignon and my chum had the branzino. She brought up the branzino numerous times after this meal, all VERY complimentary. I had a piece and thought it was really good. My filet mignon was cooked perfectly at medium rare and came with some nicely seasoned fingerling potatoes. I was pretty stuffed and - full disclosure, I know - accidentally had two hamburgers earlier in the day at Burger King that I sort of regretted in hindsight, so I ended up also having a nice hunk of meat for breakfast the next morning. The only real, legit miss for us food-wise was dessert. We got the olive oil cake on the specials menu, which was excellent with a very light cream accompaniment but the macarons were honestly pretty mediocre. They were small and way too crunchy, and I don't know that the presentation value of dousing them in powdered sugar is the way to go - I think a layer of sugar actually takes away from some of the nuance of the macaron flavors. It's not an easy pastry to make but I'd expect a higher-end French restaurant to be able to do it, and they came up short. The only other issue, which was definitely more of a problem for my chum than me, was that they didn't have a still water option - just sparkling or tap. Easy fix (Evian feels like the natural fit there) but she was disappointed about that. The service was predictably excellent though. Our waiter stopped by regularly and also demonstrated a strong knowledge base concerning the menu. He was clearly French (makes sense) and was communicative/responsive, which I feel is a slightly higher hurdle when there's a mild language barrier, but it wasn't an issue at all. Really great meal. Get the macaron experience at a bakery and stick with the rest of the menu. We're likely coming back on a future visit.

    The charcuterie board was a great appetizer, with a good selection of pairings for the meats. I…read moreordered the duck confit hash. It was a bit heavy for me as a brunch because of the amount of protein and carbs, but it was delicious. The duck was perfectly cooked and tender. The poached eggs and hollandaise were great when mixed with the potatoes and spinach.

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    Frenchie Wine Bistro
    Truffle Fries.
    Truffle Fries.
    Espresso Martini and Aperol Spritz

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    The Merchant - newamerican - Updated July 2026

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