All the dish: at the shore in the middle of the city

Like the conditioned response of Pavlov's dog, the combined effect of sunlight, mild temperatures, and days that extend well past 6 P.M. can leave toes stretching for sand, noses sniffing for sea breezes, and ears searching for the sound of crashing waves. And while these impulses may be met with the reality of cement underfoot, air laced with truck exhaust, and an orchestra of blaring car horns echoing in our ears, taste is one surefire way to stay close to the sea regardless of geography. It's undoubtedly one reason why new fish shacks--from the humble to the highbrow--tend to arrive on the New York City scene just as winter coats are being packed away. The following are three of the latest to wash up on Manhattan's shores.

BLT FISH

21 W. 17th Street, 212-691-8888

When star chef Laurent Tourondel found himself adrift following the unexpected closing of Cello in 2002, there were those who assumed he'd grab the next life raft and paddle back to what he knew best: seafood, instead, last year Tourondel opened BLT Steak (the initials stand for Bistro Laurent Tourondel), a restaurant that quickly caught on with carnivorous New Yorkers and established his reputation for being as comfortable on land as he is in the water. But Tourondel has not turned his back on the source of his earlier success, and with the newly opened BLT Fish he takes the plunge once more with an ambitious operation that aims to marry the low-key pleasures of the humblest clam bar with the rigors of the most exacting seafood restaurant. With a more casual, no-reservations establishment on the ground floor called The Fish Shack serving items such as fried oysters and lobster rolls, BLT Fish is both literally and figuratively two restaurants in one. Take the elevator up a flight to the more formal operation, and you'll discover not just a cool, streamlined environment with a gleaming open kitchen but also a menu that aims to bring some of that playful spirit on display downstairs to a type of cuisine that can sometimes take itself too seriously. Meals begin with a complimentary order of terrific cheddar-cheese-and-chive biscuits and end with the arrival of green-apple cotton candy. In between are such appetizer highlights as grilled octopus splashed with bergamot oil and tuna tartare offset with preserved lemon, and entrees ranging from Belgian Dover sole to what is quickly becoming the restaurant's signature, sea salt-crusted New Zealand pink snapper, not to mention sides such as salt-crusted sunchokes and English peas with bacon. And for the high-low mix the restaurant strives for, you won't find a more fitting end than the "rocky road" chocolate-praline cake.

DA GIACOMO

156 E. 64th Street, 212-308-1300

Years ago, at the end of a week's work in Milan, a colleague introduced me to Da Giacomo, a legendary seafood restaurant that's a favorite of the fashion community there. With its celadon-colored walls and sparkling seafood I was immediately smitten, so when I learned that an offshoot of the restaurant had recently opened on the Upper East Side I allowed myself to hope that this old favorite had somehow been transplanted. No such luck. Though the walls of this new bi-level establishment are painted a similar shade of green, there is no mistaking this place for the one I'd fallen in love with years earlier. Part of that can be attributed to the patina that only comes with time, but to truly replicate the experience of the original this new version's owners will need to lower the lights, rethink the music, and double their design budget. Still, where it really counts, Da Giacomo delivers, serving up an array of fresh, lovingly prepared dishes. Some highlights from the antipasti offerings include tender octopus with potatoes and olives and a terrific spinach salad with red pear and pecorino, while entrees include an excellent seared tuna with fennel and orange and a recent special of soft-shell crabs dusted with polenta. End the meal with the "bomba alla Giacomo"--a kind of strawberry shortcake--and you have the perfect ending to a bright summer meal.

THE NEPTUNE ROOM

511 Amsterdam Avenue, 212-496-4100

With the opening of a handful of ambitious new establishments in the last few years, the Upper West Side's long maligned reputation for restaurants has required some rethinking, and it's a tide change that The Neptune Room clearly hopes to be associated with. Under the direction of executive chef Glenn Harris and his partner Jeffrey Lefcourt, The Neptune Room offers a loose interpretation of Mediterranean seafood, an approach that the restaurant's design clearly aims to underscore. Despite a name that might suggest the piano bar on a Celebrity Cruise ship, there is nothing kitsch about The Neptune Room--rather, with its brass lamps, vaulted ceiling, and mother of pearl wall hangings it's a breezy, casual setting that nods toward the sea without sinking into hokeyness. Clearly the fish is meant to be the star here, and it's an intent that mostly hits the mark. To begin the meal there's a terrific charred octopus paired with lemon, basil, and caper berries, and a merely fine "bait bar" sampler of raw tuna, fluke, and yellowtail. Entrees run the gamut from the superior (grilled salmon with sliced chorizo; a recent special of Alaskan halibut with warm tabouli salad) to the merely serviceable (the paella, available Sundays and Mondays). Dessert offerings reside comfortably in the tasty if uninspired middle ground, though if you must end the meal with a sugar shot the butter-pecan cake is a reliable bet to reel you in.