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The Guide · Oysters

Best Oysters in Minneapolis (2026)

11rooms ranked
4.6top score
1on the List
August 2026last updated
Hodan Abdi
By Hodan Abdi Staff Writer · Top of Minneapolis · Scores from Issue № 137 · How the score is built
Best Oysters in Minneapolis (2026)

Oysters in Minneapolis mostly mean one address, but the search for a good raw bar turns up a wider seafood map worth naming honestly. This guide sorts the actual oyster rooms from the seafood-adjacent spots that landed on the list by cuisine tag, so nobody drives across town on a bad assumption.

№ 01

Shuang Cheng

1320 4th St SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414 +16123780208

Shuang Cheng Photo via Yelp

Lobster and crab built this room's reputation among Minneapolis diners who come back year after year, and clams round out a menu built for splitting plates across a big table. It runs best with ten or more people and a stack of shared dishes, tofu soup and stir-fry included. Not an oyster bar. The order here is the whole ocean, family style.

What to orderlobster, crab, clams
Scored from the full review record
№ 02

JJ Fish & chicken

904 W Broadway Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55411 +16125210628

JJ Fish & chicken Photo via Yelp

Crack wings carry the menu, coated heavy and served hot, alongside jerk chicken and rice that reads as a genuine surprise to newcomers. The Italian beef pulls in Chicago transplants looking for the real thing. This is a fried and seasoned counter operation, not a seafood or oyster destination, but it holds its own for a fast, well-spiced meal in Minneapolis.

What to ordercrack wings, jerk chicken and rice, Italian beef
Scored from the full review record
№ 03

Smack Shack

603 N Washington Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55401 +16122597288

Smack Shack Photo via Yelp

Seafood Paella is the dish to order: shrimp, clams, mussels and smoky sausage all cooked properly and piled into one pan built for sharing. The patio makes this a strong warm-weather pick for families and groups marking an occasion, and service reads as attentive without hovering. No raw bar to speak of, but the shellfish cookery here is the real draw in Minneapolis.

What to orderSeafood Paella, Shrimp, Clams
Scored from the full review record
№ 04

The Anchor Fish & Chips

302 13th Ave NE, Minneapolis, MN 55413 +16126761300

The Anchor Fish & Chips Photo via Yelp

Fish and chips with a genuinely good housemade tartar sauce is the whole pitch, and the fish comes out crisp enough to justify the neighborhood loyalty. It runs counter service, so the line moves at its own pace rather than a server's. Long a fixture for Friday fish dinners in Minneapolis, it is built for fried fish, not oysters.

What to orderfish and chips, homemade tartar sauce, fries
Scored from the full review record
№ 05

Sea Salt Eatery

4801 Minnehaha Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55417 +16127218990

Sea Salt Eatery Photo via Yelp

Grilled salmon and a shrimp pasta share the menu with a straightforward fish and chips, but the real pull is the setting near Minnehaha Falls, which makes this one of the better warm-day lunch spots in Minneapolis. It skews casual and scenic rather than formal. Good for a relaxed seafood lunch with a view, not for a raw bar crawl.

What to ordergrilled salmon, fish and chips, shrimp pasta
Scored from the full review record
№ 06

The Oceanaire Seafood Room

50 S 6th St, Minneapolis, MN 55402 +16123332277

The Oceanaire Seafood Room Photo via Yelp

This is the actual oyster room on this list: a raw bar alongside grilled fish and lobster tail, run with the kind of attentive, detail-focused service that special-occasion dinners demand. Prices run high and the happy hour in the bar is the value play, though a chunk of the menu sits outside that discount. For upscale oysters in Minneapolis, this is the address.

What to orderoysters, grilled fish, lobster tail
Scored from the full review record
№ 07

Barbette

4.6Notable

1600 W Lake St, Minneapolis, MN, 55408 +16128275710

Barbette Photo via Yelp

The croque vegetarienne and a French onion soup anchor a menu built around relaxed evenings and a strong happy hour, with duck confit for anyone wanting something heavier. Low light and an easy pace make this a drinks-and-comfort-food room more than a seafood destination. Worth knowing about in Minneapolis for French comfort cooking, not for oysters.

What to ordercroque vegetarienne, French onion soup, duck confit
Scored from the full review record
№ 08

Mac's Fish & Chips (Minneapolis)

610 W 54th St, Minneapolis, MN 55419 +16128244804

Mac's Fish & Chips (Minneapolis) Photo via Yelp

Clam strips and cod come out of the fryer hot with a light breading and a thick, flaky center, and the kitchen moves fast even on delivery orders. The room itself reads as no-frills and worn at the edges, which matters less once the food arrives. A straightforward Minneapolis counter for fried fish, not a stop for oysters.

What to orderfish and chips, clams, cod
Scored from the full review record
№ 09

Jasmine 26 | Hot Pot Restaurant & Bar

8 E 26th St, Minneapolis, MN 55401 +16128703800

Jasmine 26 | Hot Pot Restaurant & Bar Photo via Yelp

Individual hot pots let each diner build a beef, shrimp, or vegetable broth to their own taste, and the format scales down easily for a table of two or three despite reading as a group setup. Service gets called out as attentive across visits. A solid customizable option in Minneapolis for hot pot, though it has nothing to do with oysters or a raw bar.

What to orderbeef hot pot, shrimp hot pot, vegetable hot pot
Scored from the full review record
№ 10

Lela

5601 W 78th St, Minneapolis, MN 55439 +19526565980

Lela Photo via Yelp

Eggs Benedict draws the strongest praise here, with a server's recommendation landing as the right call more than once, and pancakes and grilled chicken round out a breakfast-forward menu. It operates as a hotel restaurant, which explains the polish for a category that often disappoints. Good for breakfast in Minneapolis, not a seafood or oyster stop.

What to orderEggs Benedict, pancakes, grilled chicken
Scored from the full review record
№ 11

Mai Thai Restaurant

3839 Lakeland Ave N, Minneapolis, MN 55422 +17635331877

Mai Thai Restaurant Photo via Yelp

Pad Thai ordered spicy gets singled out repeatedly as the dish worth returning for, and Tom Kha holds its own at high spice levels too. Pad See Ew and massaman curry round out a menu that travels well for takeout and DoorDash orders. A reliable weeknight Thai option in Minneapolis, unrelated to the seafood or oyster search that brought some readers here.

What to orderPad Thai, Tom Kha, Pad See Ew
Scored from the full review record

Frequently asked

Where can I find good oysters near me in Minneapolis?
The Oceanaire Seafood Room is the clearest raw bar answer on this list, with oysters alongside grilled fish and lobster tail. Most of the other rooms here are strong seafood or fish and chips picks that landed on the list under a broader seafood search, not dedicated oyster bars, so check the signature dishes before you go.
What does the Insider Score mean on this list?
The Insider Score reflects a restaurant's standing in the review record, not a paid placement. No restaurant on this list or any Top of Minneapolis guide pays to be included or ranked.
Is Smack Shack a good pick for oysters?
Smack Shack is built around its Seafood Paella, packed with shrimp, clams, mussels and sausage, rather than a raw oyster program. It is a strong choice for shellfish and group dining on a patio, particularly at its Bloomington location, but it is not an oyster bar in the way The Oceanaire is.
Are any of these restaurants actually in St. Paul or the suburbs?
Smack Shack has a Bloomington location that readers mention specifically for its patio and Father's Day crowd, so it is worth checking which address you are heading to. Every other restaurant on this list sits within Minneapolis city limits, and none are in St. Paul.
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The data first, then the verdict

We start with the review record, not a press release. Every room here is a real kitchen with a strong rating across a meaningful number of reviews, ranked on our 10-point Insider Score. We weight consistency over time and the rooms locals return to, not the ones tourists pass through once. The list updates as the data does. How we work →

Hodan Abdi
Hodan Abdi
Staff Writer · Top of Minneapolis

Hodan Abdi is a Staff Writer at Top of Minneapolis. Raised in Cedar-Riverside two floors above the Somali mall her aunt worked in, she now lives in Eagan and covers the whole metro ring. She writes the guides, sweeps the suburbs, and covers the Somali and East African tables as the beat she knows best.

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