My New York Food: Matthew Rhys

ACTOR, HBO’S PERRY MASON

Grand Central Oyster Bar

Never has the word “grand” been more accurately used than in Grand Central Station. The very ceiling in the main concourse renders first-time visitors starstruck as they gaze skyward at the constellation. I was one such traveler when I discovered the Grand Central Oyster Bar. One of my great delights is to find a place that bestrides a modern and a bygone age, especially if it’s a place of grandeur. The bar, with its sweeping tile vaults … doesn’t disappoint.

Old movies flooded my mind as I faced a career server that you could only hope to see IN a movie. In my mind, the entire experience was as quintessentially New York as one could wish.

The older I get, the saltier my craving, and the Oyster Bar never fails. Washed down with an aggressively cold lager, there is no better stolen lunch. It never fails to remind me that I can only be in one city on earth.

And I thank my stars.

—Matthew Rhys

Photo Illustration by Sera Lione