Annual herring festival continues at Grand Central Oyster Bar through June 25 (photo by twi-ny/mdr)
Grand Central Oyster Bar, Grand Central Terminal, through June 25
Aquavit, 65 East 55th St., through June 26
www.oysterbarny.com
www.aquavit.org
This is the last week to sample the new Dutch herring from the North Sea, having first been approved by Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands earlier this month. The Silver of the Sea is served in a cozy nook in the fabled Oyster Bar in Grand Central, where they prepare the fabulous Hollandse Nieuwe Haring from Scheveningen with chopped egg, diced raw onion, and seeded flatbread, along with genever (Dutch gin) as desired, selling it from a special cart (marked De Haringkoning — the Herring King) between 11:30 and 3:00 and again from 5:00 to closing through Friday, as long as they don’t sell out. For something a little fancier, Aquavit is continuing its annual herring buffet through Saturday, promising “a wide variety of both traditional and innovative herring preparations.” Although we’ve yet to try Aquavit’s versions, overseen by executive chef Marcus Jernmark, we never miss the herring at the Oyster Bar, always a wonderful seasonal treat.