Rizzuto's Oyster Bar and Wine Bar

About Rizzuto's Oyster Bar and Wine Bar

Rizzuto's sits on Riverside Avenue in Westport, overlooking the Saugatuck River in a location that makes its name slightly puzzling — the address is 540 Riverside, but the water is the point. The restaurant combines Italian-American hospitality with a raw bar programme serious enough to anchor the entire operation: daily oyster selections from the Atlantic and Pacific, a crab cake that has won the local vote for Westport's best, and lobster rolls built with the conviction of people who have been doing this for a long time and know that the details matter.

The room has the particular quality of a Westport institution: not flashy, not trying to be anything other than what it has been, capable of handling a corporate group with the same competence it brings to a couple's anniversary. The grand stone fireplace in the main dining room provides a focal point in the colder months. In summer, the terrace opens. The private igloos — glassed-in outdoor dining enclosures — are a winter option that the Westport corporate dining circuit has adopted enthusiastically. Boat-fresh fish, Neapolitan wood-fired pizza, grass-fed steaks, and the raw bar make the menu broad enough for the mixed preferences that a team dinner always produces.

The wine programme is serious — a list weighted toward Italy but not limited to it, with enough depth to satisfy a table where wine matters. The service is professional and practiced. Ranked #11 in Westport, Rizzuto's earns its position through consistent delivery on the promises a Saugatuck River seafood restaurant should make.

Practical Information

Also Great for Team Dinner in Westport

Back to all restaurants in Westport — See the Team Dinner occasion guide — Read our dining blog