When Baltimoreans drive to York for their seafood fix, you know it has to be good.
Rockfish Public House delivers innovative takes on new finds and clever twists on comfort-food classics. In the spirit of downtown York’s revival, RPH offers fresh seafood and a true oyster bar, all with an eye on sustainability.
York restaurant veterans Tom Sibol and Jeremiah Anderson recognized the area’s need for high-quality oysters and premium seafood when they converted the former Maewyn’s Irish Pub into a cozy haven for diners in 2016. Pursuing that goal, they forged partnerships with the East Coast’s top suppliers, including many in Maryland and Boston.
Inside, find a tasteful tribute to York’s manufacturing past. The circa-1905 building is warmed by exposed brick, refinished wood flooring, and industrial-themed lighting.
In September 2019, David Albright, longtime former owner and chef of Left Bank, joined the team as partner and culinary director. The New England native arrived to sustain the emphasis on fresh-ness while elevating the RPH dishes, prepared by Executive Chef Abby Shelley.
“Staples like the oysters, shrimp cocktail, and steamed clams certainly are still here,” says Albright. “To my mind, you don’t fix something that’s not broke. They already had a fabulous crab cake. We added things like a grilled octopus and more New England items.”
All seafood arrives fresh from the Atlantic Coast, except for fresh grouper and shrimp from the Gulf of Mexico. If you’re craving oysters, you’re in the right place.
“Having an open oyster bar with a live shucker who shucks to order gives you not only the feel and the experience, but you can’t get any fresher than that,” says Albright.
Oyster choices include the smooth RPH by Madhouse, cultivated exclusively for RPH and “a great oyster for anyone who’s never tried one before,” says Albright. Other selections include the day’s best harvests from New England and Canada, plus mussels and clams.
Extensive appetizer choices include that grilled octopus, tuna poke nachos, and baked Maryland local oysters. Bacon lovers can indulge in the delectable BBQ skewer appetizer, with bacon-wrapped grilled shrimp or chicken topped with smoked gouda, and follow with an entrée of bacon-wrapped U10 scallops.
The RPH twist on that Dutch Country staple, the pot pie, doesn’t bring chicken to your table. The Chesapeake version is loaded with clams, mussels, shrimp, fish, and crab in Old Bay tomato broth over herb-buttered egg noodles.
Of course, every fish house needs a market board. Here, choose your dayboat fish prepared to your liking with remoulade, lemon herb compound butter, or Japanese yuzu soy sauce.
That is, if you can tear yourself away from the cast iron lobster mac n' cheese or the veggie power tower—a stack of quinoa, cremini mushrooms, and kale with parmesan pesto.
The New England-style rolls, including the popular lobster roll, are stuffed in a grilled, buttered split-top brioche.
Non-seafood dishes receive the same attention to quality. Hand-helds include the Old Bay grilled chicken BLT and the wagyu burger. Entrees include the maple cider glazed grilled chicken breast and the USDA prime filet mignon steak.
Finally, end the meal in Chesapeake Bay style with the fudge-frosted Smith Island cake, the official dessert of Maryland, or perhaps the Key Lime tart or gluten-free caramel chocolate cake. All are from specialty baker Sprinkles.
You’re sure to find a beverage pairing for your meal choices. Taps feature most of York’s breweries plus national and Pennsylvania brands. A first-ever collaboration for RPH is yielding a Gift Horse Brewing Company oyster stout in a customized flavor profile. Wine lovers can choose sips from such locales as Spain, France, and California.
In the seafood ecosystem, each oyster filters up to 50 gallons of water a day and provides refuge for the striped bass, also known along Maryland’s shores as the rockfish. At RPH, all seafood is Monterey Bay Eco-Certified, attesting that no threatened species are harvested and that all food is wild-caught and sustainably harvested.
At RPH, the partners apply that same commitment to the sustainability of downtown York. “It’s the community,” says Albright. “One restaurant can’t do it by itself. It’s about how everyone has come together to grow this community.”
Rockfish Public House
110 N. George Street, York PA | 717-893-5928
