The restaurant group behind Cervo’s, Hart’s, Eel Bar, and The Fly has opened Zig Zag Oyster Bar at 406 Prospect Place in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn. The raw bar and seafood restaurant, which launched in late July 2026, occupies the former Bar Meridian space at the corner of Prospect Place and Grand Avenue and marks the fifth restaurant in a portfolio that has quietly become one of the most consistent in New York City dining.
Key Takeaways
- Nick Perkins, Leah Campbell, and Nialls Fallon opened Zig Zag Oyster Bar in late July 2026 at 406 Prospect Place in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, in the former Bar Meridian space
- Zig Zag is the fifth restaurant in the group’s portfolio, joining Hart’s and The Fly in Bed-Stuy and Cervo’s and Eel Bar on the Lower East Side; the team also operates Minnow, its own tinned fish line
- The menu focuses on East Coast oysters, seafood towers, peel-and-eat shrimp, lobster salad, whitefish salad on toast, and cold roast chicken with classic cocktails and a global wine list
- The restaurant seats approximately 100 guests between its indoor dining room and seasonal patio, with walk-ins prioritized at the bar and most tables; reservations are accepted only for parties of 8 to 14
- Zig Zag is currently open Tuesday through Saturday from 5 to 11 p.m., with plans to expand to seven nights a week
A Decade of Neighborhood Restaurants Led to an Oyster Bar the Team Had Wanted From the Start
The trajectory from Hart’s to Zig Zag Oyster Bar traces a pattern that has defined how Perkins, Campbell, and Fallon build restaurants. Hart’s opened in 2016 in Bed-Stuy and became a neighborhood fixture known for its burgers and olive oil-forward cooking, earning a spot on Bon Appetit’s list of the country’s standout new restaurants. Cervo’s followed on the Lower East Side, bringing piri piri shrimp and a standing-room energy to Dimes Square. The Fly, back in Bed-Stuy, built a following around rotisserie chicken and themed cocktails. Eel Bar, also on the Lower East Side, introduced a more refined, Basque-inflected seafood menu.
Each restaurant has taken shape around the space itself rather than a predetermined concept. Perkins has said the group does not seek out locations with a specific restaurant format in mind. Instead, they let the physical dimensions and neighborhood context of a space define what it becomes. The Zig Zag space came to them directly: Sage Geyer, who owned and operated Bar Meridian on the same corner, approached Perkins when he decided to close. Geyer, who retains partial ownership in the new venture, did not want to list the space on the open market. He believed the corner would benefit from a more substantial food program, and the handoff to a group he already knew kept the transition personal rather than transactional.
An oyster bar had been on the group’s list for years. The idea was actually the original plan for the Cervo’s space before the kitchen’s capacity steered the team toward a fuller cooking program. With a compact corner location in Prospect Heights, the format finally fit.
The Menu Stays Tight and Seafood-Forward With Room for Non-Oyster Regulars
Zig Zag’s menu reads like a bar menu with serious kitchen ambitions underneath it. East Coast oysters anchor the program, available individually or stacked into multi-tiered seafood towers that have quickly become the restaurant’s signature order. The towers layer oysters with mussels marinated in salsa verde, lightly pickled littleneck clams, lobster salad, and more, creating a shareable centerpiece that doubles as the visual shorthand for the restaurant’s identity.
Beyond the raw bar, the kitchen turns out peel-and-eat shrimp, whitefish salad on toast with sungold tomatoes, cold roast chicken with housemade hot sauce, and boiled potatoes with horseradish. Seasonal salads round out the menu. Two desserts close the meal and, according to early coverage, are designed to be ordered together.
The cocktail list leans into classicism. A martini with orange bitters, a margarita, and a Bloody Mary that reviewers have described as light enough to pair with dinner sit alongside a succinct wine list that pulls from around the world with a natural lean. Beer is also available. The drinks program fits the room’s intention: a place where a table ordering only oysters and cosmos is treated as a complete evening rather than a partial one.
Walk-In Culture Defines the Experience at Zig Zag
Zig Zag seats roughly 100 guests across its indoor dining room and a seasonal patio that operates from April through October. The patio is strictly walk-in, first-come-first-served, with no reservations available for outdoor seating. Indoors, the bar and most tables are also held for walk-ins. Reservations are accepted exclusively for parties of 8 to 14 guests and can be booked through Resy.
That structure is deliberate. The walk-in model is consistent with how the group operates across its portfolio, prioritizing the kind of spontaneous neighborhood visit that builds regulars over time rather than the reservation-dependent traffic that can make a restaurant feel inaccessible to the people who live closest to it. For a corner location in Prospect Heights, that approach aligns with the residential character of the block.
The restaurant is currently open five nights a week, Tuesday through Saturday, from 5 to 11 p.m. The team has indicated plans to expand to seven-day service as operations scale up.
The Group’s Model Favors Proximity and Portfolio Depth Over Geographic Spread
What makes the Perkins, Campbell, and Fallon group unusual is how tightly concentrated its restaurants are geographically. Hart’s and The Fly sit in Bed-Stuy. Cervo’s and Eel Bar are on the Lower East Side. Zig Zag is a short walk from both Brooklyn locations. The group has not expanded to Manhattan above Houston Street, has not opened in other boroughs, and has not pursued the multi-city model that many restaurant groups at this scale eventually chase.
That proximity creates operational efficiencies and a shared identity across the portfolio. Staff, sourcing relationships, and kitchen philosophy can move between restaurants without the logistical strain of managing locations across distant neighborhoods. The group’s tinned fish brand, Minnow, extends the seafood focus into retail without requiring additional restaurant space.
With five restaurants and a consumer product line, the group has reached a scale where the next move will say something about its long-term direction. For now, Zig Zag Oyster Bar suggests the answer is to keep building in the neighborhoods where the team already has roots, adding formats that fill gaps in the portfolio rather than replicating what already exists.
FAQs
Where is Zig Zag Oyster Bar located?
Zig Zag Oyster Bar is located at 406 Prospect Place in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, at the corner of Prospect Place and Grand Avenue. The restaurant occupies the former Bar Meridian space.
Does Zig Zag Oyster Bar take reservations?
Zig Zag accepts reservations only for parties of 8 to 14 guests, bookable through Resy. The bar, most indoor tables, and all patio seating are held for walk-in guests on a first-come, first-served basis.
What are Zig Zag Oyster Bar’s hours?
The restaurant is currently open Tuesday through Saturday from 5 to 11 p.m. The team plans to expand to seven-night service in the future.
