Surrounded on three sides by windows overlooking Salem Harbor, the Finz Seafood & Grill is an ideal location to lounge on a warm afternoon on their deck. Not only is it right on the harbor, but it offers great views and people watching as the boating tours depart from the docks surrounding the restaurant.
If you visit off season and its too cool to sit on their patio, take advantage of its authentic interior which has an authentically New England style and a unique copper-topped bar, floor to ceiling glass wall, fire-side lounge with sofa seating and the built-in raw bar.
Known for its fabulous and fresh seafood, I’d recommend starting with a plate of oysters from their raw bar. Unlike most menus we had experienced to-date on our Massachusetts North Shore tour, you can choose the kind of oysters you want making it very customizable for either 3, 6, 9, a dozen or more. If I didn’t want to try some of the other delicious offerings on their menu, I likely would have ordered more oysters than I did.
I tried the Wellfleet oysters from Wellfleet Harbor (in the Cape), Goosebury and Conway Cup from P.E.I. and the Washburns from Falmouth MA. Also on the menu were Littleneck clams and Shrimp cocktail. Yum!
Like most New England restaurants in the summer, you can order the classic steamed Lobster, which I never grow tired of eating — they offered it steamed, stuffed with crab, scallop, shrimp, peppers and onions, or served New England style with littleneck clams, mussels and chorizo.
Seafood offerings included Fried Haddock with fries and cole slaw, Oven Roasted Haddock with bread crumbs, mashed potatoes, and veggies in a seafood sherry cream sauce, a Pan Seared Scallop Salad with blueberries, spinach, goat cheese, almonds and tossed in a lemon poppy vinaigrette, a Seafood Paella, served over saffron sweet pea and chorizo rice and crispy calamari with a lemon garlic aioli. Delicious!
Also on the menu was a Shrimp Picatta with garlic, spinach, roasted tomatoes, capers, white wine butter sauce and linguini, a Lobster Mac and Cheese (yes, really — this could be a good way to get your kids to try Lobster if they haven’t done so yet), a Linguine with clams, garlic, red pepper chili flakes, tomatoes, spinach and braised onions, and a Shrimp Tequilla Lima Enchilada dish. This must have been popular with the locals since I saw quite a few of them coming out of the kitchen. It is served with lobster chili sauce, peppers, onions, cheese, black bean corn salsa and cotija cheese.
Their starters were extensive and “fun” — from mussels, hummus plates, buffalo wings, yellowfish tune tartare, crab cakes, baked goat cheese and shrimp to steamed edamame (interesting choice), and crispy calamari. They also had a wide variety of healthy salads to choose from, including an unusual one they the Vanilla Bean, which is a baby kale salad with boursin cheese, raspberries, pine nuts and a vanilla bean vinaigrette! Bring it on I say. They also had a caesar salad made with kale, as well as your classic caesar, a blueberry spinach salad with goat cheese and almonds and an Apple Gorgonzola Salad with sugared walnuts and a cilantro vinaigrette dressing! Be prepared for your mouth to water….
They serve great cocktails, so while I was going to opt for my classic Chardonnay, especially with seafood, I’d suggest trying out one of their creations or simply have a refreshing Margarita. For oyster and other seafood pairings however, they do offer 8 Sauvignon Blancs, 6 Pinot Grigio’s & Pino Gris, 9 Chardonnays, champagne and sparkling wine. They also had a delicious Muscadet from Loire Valley in France, a Chenin Blanc from The Royal in South Africa, and a Riesling (Kreuznacher, Spatlese) from Germany. In other words, plenty of options if you decided to order all seafood.
Please be sure to check out our write ups on our Salem hotels, which include Hawthorne Hotel and the nearby Salem Waterfront Hotel & Suites in our post on Two Salem Hotel Gems. They can be found in our Massachusetts Lodging section / Top Massachusetts Hotels / Top New England Hotels of We Blog the World. Also check out our Massachusetts Food/Wine section for more culinary surprises in the New England, North Shore, Cape Cod areas and Boston. (Top Boston Restaurants / Top Restaurants in Nantucket / Top Restaurants in Cape Cod / Top Restaurants in Salem / Top Restaurants in Rockport).
Details:
Finz Seafood & Grill
76 Wharf Street
Salem, MA 01970
(978) 744-8485
Note: we were hosted by the restaurant however all opinions expressed are entirely our own.
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.
