Seafood/Mussels, Outdoor Garden
http://themusselpot.com/
174 Bleeker St. – West Village

We’ve read quite a bit of press on the Mussel Pot and were curious about checking it out.  I made a quick Open Table reservation while we were walking through the Village.  It’s so popular I was surprised to get in within 1/2 and hour.  I realize now that the ‘brunch’ menu is not as extensive as dinner which is less of a draw.

We were very fortunate to get a seat in the garden.  Wow, what a garden.  The original restaurant on this site had built a huge stone waterfall and koi pond in the back complete with a stone bridge leading to one little two top.  We got that seat.  It was really charming.

So we ordered a bloody and a Radeberger and basked in the sunshine while enjoying our drinks…

We both decided on a Mussel Pot, but unfortunately the pickings are slim on the brunch menu. There were four options, only one of which seemed calorically compatible with our diet. Certainly buffalo sauce and blue cheese, lobster cheese fondue or pulled pork mussels seemed over the top, so we went with Fra Diavlo.  And they weren’t kidding!  The spice mix in the Fra Diavlo was suspiciously similar to my bloody.  Fortunately, I had switched to a beer with my meal.  By the time we finished, our mouths were burning off.  I am a fan of spicy, but this was not in a good way.

One must admit it looks damn good, especially in the sunlight with the lush backdrop!  I am going to reserve judgement and try The Mussel Pot for dinner.  The menu looks good and it just may have been a poor choice.  We loved our seat!  So I’d recommend asking for garden seating when making a reservation.