New York City · Vietnamese
Mắm
Lower East Side Vietnamese room for bún đậu mắm tôm, housemade tofu, and a fiercely seasonal menu.
- Price
- $$
- Opened
- 2022
- Neighborhood
- Lower East Side70 Forsyth St, New York, NY 10002
About
Partners Jerald Head and Nhung Dao began Mắm as a 2020 pop-up and took over the Forsyth Street space in May 2022, expanding next door in December 2023. The name nods to fermented shrimp paste; the signature is bún đậu mắm tôm with housemade tofu, meats, and herbs. Seating is famously low plastic stools and slim benches. Pete Wells and The New York Times placed it on the city’s best-restaurants lists; The Infatuation scores it among NYC’s top rooms. The menu shifts with the seasons (summer platters and wraps; winter hot pots and soups). Sister projects nearby include Phê (bánh mì café) and Lai Rai (wine and ice cream collaboration). Book on Resy; outdoor seats are often walk-in.
Menu highlights
- Bún đậu mắm tôm (tofu, meats, fermented shrimp paste)
- Housemade tofu
- Seasonal specials (stuffed snails, mushroom platters, hot pots, phở when offered)
- Herb-and-dip-driven shared plates
Diners say
Public reviews focus praise on intensity of flavor, housemade tofu, and the low-stool room that feels transported. Complaints include cramped seating, short table time limits, limited hours, reservation scarcity, and funk that can overwhelm diners unused to mắm tôm. Small parties fare better than large groups.
Review synthesis as of 2026-07-28. Synthesis of recurring themes in public Yelp and Google Maps reviews sampled July 2026; not a rating or ranking.