New York City’s Thai food landscape is unparalleled in America: In that jam-packed scene is Fish Cheeks, a Nolita restaurant focused on excellent Thai seafood since 2016, served in a vibrantly poppy space with no pad Thai in sight. The restaurant became so popular that co-owners, brothers, and chefs Ohm and Chat Suansilphong, along with Jenn Saesue and Pranwalai Kittirattanawiwat, expanded with a Williamsburg location in spring 2025.
What to order
- Fish Cheeks’ happy hour seafood tower (noon to 5 p.m. in Manhattan and until 6 p.m. in Brooklyn every day) is affordable at $45 with a spicy Thai twist. The oysters are plump, and the clams are chewy. Squish the uber-spicy raw crab claws for their pulpy raw meat. A small fork would’ve been handy for getting into the crevices of the shellfish more easily, but they do give you disposable gloves so you can really dig into everything.
- The crab curry ($31) is an evergreen winner — it’s spicy and velvety, with the curry studded with little tender crab chunks that are soft, served with perfectly cooked white rice.
- The ice cream bo lan is a symphony of textures with its clear jelly, crunchy jelly seeds, creamy ice cream, and sticky rice.
What to drink
The Nam Gin martini is a savory cocktail thanks to the garlic-chile brine and gin base. I particularly enjoyed the lychee drink I had that was creamy with black sesame and egg whites.
Best for
The space is vibrant with fish head-shaped faucets in the bathrooms and fish lamps hanging over the bar. It’s great for families and catch-up friend dates.
Insider tip
For those who don’t want to trek out to the physical restaurants, there’s a to-go outpost of Fish Cheeks: Little Cheeks offers DoorDash pickups and deliveries with many of its favorite dishes, including that crab curry.
