Seabear Oyster Bar

Oh man. I was so tempted by the happy hour oysters, but had to control myself due to pregnancy. The others in my group said they were delicious.
Instead I had to settle for the BEST shrimp and grits of my life…

THE SERVICE HERE IS SO BAD IT ALMOST MAKES YOU LAUGH. first off… the waitress didn’t write a single thing down. that’s fine if you have a competent staff, but no, not at all. messed up every single thing we ordered. EVERY SINGLE THING. worst part, when we asked for help from the other waiters, they were sooo rude. then our waitress left to get coffee from hindershots and left us for 20 minutes. they do not deserve your money

I have to give this spot a 5. The food, the drinks, the atmosphere. Best oysters around! Go on happy hour!

They offer different types of oysters and you can mix and match. We preferred the Sweet Jesus oysters. We also tried the shrimp & grits and fried clams, and they were very good. The place is pretty small and they don’t take reservations, but overall, it’s really good. I’d definitely go back.

I had 2 of all on the Oyster board and they were awesome some of the best fresh oysters I have had in a long time. The service was great very attentive and quick.

This place is amazing! We tried several different things and each were delicious! We had a few raw oysters, the smoked trout dip, lobster rolls, fried clam strips, Parker house rolls, okra, and clam chowder. All of these were amazing but I preferred the dip and chowder and strips. All of the food was great and the service was wonderful as well. We had the soufflé for dessert and it may be my favorite dessert ever! Amazing, can’t wait to go back!

I’ve only been here once and it was just fine. I had the ramen, which I didn’t realize was always vegan, so when I was on my way to the restaurant and wondering what the ramen would be, I was of course hoping for some meat or an egg at least. Oh well, vegan ramen it is.
The ramen itself was just okay. I didn’t love it, so sue me! The noodles were good and the soup was mushroom themed so it had a few different kinds of mushrooms in it, among other things. The veg in the dish was fantastic and before I knew it, I’d eaten most of the vegetables out of my soup. The broth was really thick and almost creamy; honestly, it wasn’t that great to have alone, so I made sure to always have some kind of veg or noodle in every bite I took. Not a bad sized portion for $ 11, especially considering that the noodles are homemade. It does seem like the price of the dish rises periodically, when they started with ramen, I think it was $ 8.
I loved being at Seabear. Awesome atmosphere and visuals, great use of the small space. The staff if fantastic — so helpful and friendly. The ramen goes quickly and when we were sitting at the bar discussing what we might eat, the bartender overheard the word «ramen» and looked at us — mid cocktail shake — and asked if we wanted him to put our ramen order in right away. He did this completely as a courtesy since we hadn’t even asked for a drink yet and that made an awesome first impression.
I definitely want to go back to Seabear, but probably only for drinks/​happy hour or to impress someone from out of town. They have a great wine and booze selection, awesome beers and absinthe as well.

So happy to finally have a place like this in Athens. Oyster happy hour where all oysters are $ 1.50… WHAT A DEAL! These are not gulf oysters they are the good ones from PEI, Washington, MA, ME, VA! The ramen they only have on Monday is delicious (and vegan).
The crispy scallion pancake with crab is the best dish in any restaurant in Athens right now.
The cocktails were fantastic. Favorites: the smokey tequila one and the one with lemon and honey. (sorry I can’t remember the names and the full cocktail menu is not online).
Go. Check this place out. Go between 3 – 6 or 10 – 12 for Oyster happy hour. You wont regret this.

This place caught our eye as we were walking around trying to find somewhere in Athens to chill. Wow, what a lucky find!
It’s a pretty small place, so it wouldn’t be ideal for big groups, but it’s the perfect sort of place for happy hour with a small group of friends. Their happy hour specials were excellent! $ 1.50/ea for ALL oysters from 3 – 6 pm. I tried Gooseberry Bay (PEI), Spear Point (MA), and Wianno (MA). I really enjoyed all three, but the Wianno were my favorite. The complimentary tiny crackers with dill and other seasonings were tasty.
They have a nicely stocked bar and although I didn’t try their drinks, I was intrigued. Service was great… very helpful and friendly. Bottom line, if I lived anywhere near this place, I’d seriously want to come by for tasty oysters during happy hour every week.

Excellent oyster bar! We love the rotating cocktails and daily specials for oysters. Come 3 – 6 or after 10 for happy hour oysters.
Not to be missed: avocado toast or trout spread. If you like mussels, you will LOVE their curry mussels which are amazing. We usually lick the bowl after.
Another awesome is the grilled cheese. I’m a lover of a great grilled cheese and this one is amazing with locally sourced bread.
Not to be missed!

Amazing food and service! The menu offers several delicious and fresh options. There are several great oyster options and the lobster salad roll is awesome.

Seabear’s oyster happy hour, which starts at 3pm and ends at 6pm every day, is spot-​on. Not only are the oysters affordable at $ 1.50 a piece, but they are also fresh as hell.
The atmosphere is nice-​casual, perfectly conducive to having drinks while stuffing your face with oysters.
When we went, they had six different types of oysters, each of which tasted different from the last one. One was saltier, one was a little sweeter, and one was supposed to taste like melon. On top of that, they were shucked well; I was pretty much able to slurp the oyster meat along with its juices right off the oyster shell.
In the end, we must have downed two dozen each and had no regrets. Although our waitress was a tad awkward, our experience was nonetheless amazing.

Sea bear is one of the most impressive places I’ve been to in Athens. It exemplifies what it is to have great service, great quality food, and amazing prices.
I’ll start with drinks:
In a city where there is plenty of amazing local craft beer I was surprised and impressed to find sculpin on the menu (I’m from California so I couldn’t resist).
I also had their rose flight ($ 9) which was 3 very different rose’s from France. One of the best decisions I made during my meal. 3 very tasty half glasses that were very much worth my money.
I’m going to rank the food from best to worst.
Fried Clams ($ 8) I don’t know what kind of crack the chef sprinkles in the batter but this small plate was absolutely divine. It was so good that I had to order another one despite all the food at my table. Perfect crispy little neck clams.
The Lobster Roll ($ 12) this was a pretty close second to the clams. This tiny roll of goodness had so much claw meat I didn’t know what to do with myself. I believe a testament to a great chef is someone who can create amazing food with the most simple ingredients. This lobster roll has 3 components and they are done just perfectly. Also it’s ALOT of claw meat for $ 12
Shrimp and crab cake. I’m pretty sure mine was just overcooked but it was nasty and tasted like mush. I’m going to try to believe it was a fluke
The oysters aren’t part of the ranking because I’m not an aficionado but they were really damn tasty. I can’t wait to go back and try different varieties.
All in all sea bear was a fabulous casual dining experience and I can’t wait to go back. I want to try the oyster po boy and of course more fried clams!

I’m in the middle of my «Tour de Broth.» I’ve been in 5&10 and will soon go to Pulaski Heights to try their ramen. I’ve just tried Seabear’s now infamous ramen.
Ramen is served Mondays only. They have a guy start working on it at 5am and he sticks around all day to make sure each bowl is served perfectly. I’m a meat eater and had my doubts when I heard that it is absolutely vegan, but the broth is so freak’n flavorful!
It’s the most affordable ramen night in town (compared to 5&10 and Pulaski Heights) at $ 10. Compared to 5&10, it’s a smaller bowl of ramen but 5&10 might be a little too big. I walked out not feeling overstuffed.

I am so happy this place opened in Athens! I am always in and out of Athens and of course, being that it is a college town, I appreciate it when a new place opens that is a little more sophisticated.
Seabear has a great atmosphere, very tasty food, and some of the better cocktails in Athens. The mussels were delicious and I ordered a gin martini with some type of lavender in it. I know that sounds strange, but it was great and so pretty to look at :)
The crowd consists of professors and graduate students. So if you are looking to get away from the undergraduate bars/​restaurants and want some quality food and drinks, this is the place to go in Athens.
One star was taken away because although the servers are so sweet (and cute), they can be slow. I understand I am used to NYC, but…

Classy, delicious, and consistently a great experience over the past year. Recommended for a cocktail, incredibly flavorful oysters and tapas that can meander into an evening of conversation and excellent larger plates. The oyster selection continually changes but they are consistently delicious and there is a board behind the bar with descriptions and the staff are happy to answer questions and pick out larger or smaller ones for you to try. Aside from the oysters we love the lobster roll and the crab cake.

This might be the BEST oyster happy hour (3 – 6 EVERY DAY) I’ve ever had the pleasure of partaking in.
Seriously — go here if you’re in Athens and like oysters.
Six different oysters including two Pacific NW ones for $ 1.50 a piece.
Shucking, I’ll give them maybe a 7 out of 10. There seemed to be two dudes doing the shucking back there — I suspect one of them was slightly more skilled /​experienced than the other? About half the oysters seem shucked perfectly and the other half not so much. Either way — a few errant bits of shell and few less than perfect looking oysters didn’t detract much from my overall enjoyment of the place.
We also had a few different white wines, a smoked trout app with veggies which was fantastic, and the lobster roll.
That plus a cocktail, a beer and 42 oysters came to about $ 125 — Fantastic. I’d have been just as happy at twice the price. Service from Daniel at the bar was on point AND friendly — I will definitely return on my next trip to Athens.

Oyster was awesome. It was fresh even in April season.
Mondays, they have ramen, the noodles are home made. Shrimp and grits awesome too.

What a gem in this college town full of hipsters! Was recommended to this joint from a day of day drinking. Locals said I should check it out. I obliged since it was raining and the college babes were away on spring break. In a way, it was a blessing in disguise! Tried their oyster sampler during happy hour. Wait staff was helpful to guide on which region of the US, to choose for the oysters. I of course had a glass of red. If you aren’t into that, and a bit more adventurous, they do serve absinthe.
Food was a bit on the pricey side, but for quality, good service, and extra hipster-​ness (is that even a word?!), I recommend it, if you are in the mood for seafood.

What a fantastic meal! My wife and I had just enjoyed a show at Town & Gown Players and were looking for a new place to try for dinner at 5:30 on a Saturday night. Having seen other Unilocal reviews we decided to give Seabear a try. I’m very glad we did!
I ordered the negroni slush and my wife ordered lemonade while we looked at the menu. Negroni slush is exactly what it sounds like… only much better. Good gin, campari, vermouth and a strong hit of orange. Semi frozen to slushy consistency and served up in a tall narrow glass that quickly frosted the sides. The first taste was full of campari and the rich juniper of the gin. Happy me! My wife was thrilled to see the bartender squeezing fresh lemons to make her lemonade.
Half dozen PEI deep cove oysters with hirseradish, hot sauce and a gorgeous shallot vinegar started me out while my wife enjoyed a bowl of clam chowder. The oysters were perfect, shucked expertly and sweet in their own briney liquor. The chowder was also top notch, with a rich base, meaty clams, and a sweet spicy bite.
Main was mussels for the wife, grilled cheese for me. Yes, grilled cheese at an oyster bar. The mussels were wonderful, but I need to rave about the crispy bread, peppery tomatoes and sharp pickles that combined with creamy gooey cheese to make a spectacular comfort food classic!
Key lime pie for dessert, and the only disappointment was that they didn’t have coffee to go with it. Our server even offered to go across the street to the coffee shop and get us some if we truly wanted it however!
Attentive but not distracting service, small and comfortable surroundings, a fantastic bar with an incredible array of spirits and top notch food. Five stars for sure! We will return!