Lure Fishbar is the latest attempt by Lever House partners John McDonald and Josh Pickard to reel diners into the storied space formerly occupied by the Guggenheim Museum’s SoHo outpost. Mr. McDonald should be given credit for his tenacity given the odd luck this whopper of a space has had. Back in the 1990s this place was Monzu, a misguided “haute Sicilian” joint run by chef/restaurateur Matthew Kenney. When that failed in 1999, Mr. McDonald got involved and renamed it Canteen, replete with a “That ’70s Show” basement decor. Both restaurants opened with a splash but neither made waves for very long.

In September it opened as Lure Fishbar, and the restaurant space has been transformed into what feels like a gleaming luxury yacht, a reference to the place’s new theme of coastal living. I have to say the new look is clever and not the least bit kitschy, though considering the drastic transformation, I wince at the notion of what I could have done with the millions that keep being spent to reinvent this room. Mr. McDonald reportedly gave Serge Becker and Derek Sanders of the design team Can Resources a check for $2 million to execute his vision, the result of which includes beautiful teak paneling, white leather banquettes, and navy trim. Perhaps by going for luxurious, rather than simply trendy, decor, Messrs. McDonald and Pickard were hoping to keep Lure from getting too hot, too quickly. From the looks of the crowded bar and mobbed dining room, they’ve got another hotspot on their hands that for now is more about the scene than the cuisine. Naturally, the menu is fish-focused. Executive chef Josh Capon worked with consulting chef Greg Brainin – the chef de cuisine at Jean- Georges – to come up with a mostly seafood list that’s nearly half uncooked. Mr. Capon’s raw bar lists a dozen different selections of silky raw fish, including Coho salmon cubes with pickled Japanese cucumbers ($12) and black sea bass carpaccio with plum wine vinegar gelee, ginger, and jicama ($14).While both were excellently fresh on my vis it, the sauces offered in dipping bowls teetered on the edge between brilliantly complementary and bluntly overpowering.

Selections from the shellfish bar, on the other hand, are simple and straightforward, including delicious East and West Coast oysters ($2.50-$2.90 apiece with a three-piece minimum), briny-sweet littlenecks ($1.65 each), and a trio of plump jumbo shrimp served with fresh wasabi cocktail sauce ($12). Those inclined to taste a little bit of everything raw can order the “Shellfish Plateau” for $62.

Cooked starter plates include crab cakes seemingly made entirely of crab and served with a tangy mango puree spiked with yuzu and fennel ($14). Popcorn shrimp fried tempura-style were fantastic paired with a preserved black bean mayonnaise ($13), as were the fried calamari rings served with a smoked chili glaze ($12). It’s worth mentioning that the fried treats, served in New England-style baskets, were disproportionately generous in comparison to most of the other pricey fare. A selection of skewers, conversely, were diminutive and uneven. Grilled shrimp and asparagus brushed with brown butter ($14) was as good as it sounds, but yellowtail tuna, foie gras, and grilled pineapple ($18) tasted muddled, despite the relatively light miso marinade.

The main courses were decidedly bland and uneven the night I dined there. Grilled swordfish marinated in soy and ginger was overcooked ($26); so was the sauteed halibut splashed with a pink peppercorn vinaigrette ($24). A grilled whole dourade, on the other hand, was perfectly moist ($24) and flavored with ground chilies and lime juice. I also liked the steamed black cod with mushrooms and lemon-thyme sauce ($22), a clever riff on surf and turf. Speaking of which, a daily surf-and-turf special is offered daily and “priced accordingly,” a term that always scares me. The most expensive plate on the menu was a grilled 14-ounce dry aged sirloin ($34).

Lure’s wine list includes 250 bottles from around the globe, with a fair number of bottles priced in the mid-$30s to mid-$40s range. While I was happy to see 14 half-bottles on the list, these were priced rather high.

Desserts, all $9, are created by Deb Snyder, the pastry chef at Lever House, who consulted on the menu here. Apparently high-seas dining calls for low-scale, easy standards such as a tooth-achingly rich devil’s food cake with a redundant chocolate glaze and a perfectly fine key lime tart whose buttery crushed graham cracker crust was more memorable than the filling.