Restaurants

places to eat

We have used the following symbols to give an idea of the average price for a three-course meal for one, not including drinks or tip:

$$$$ 50–100 dollars $$ 25–35 dollars

$$$ 35–50 dollars $ below 25 dollars

Downtown

Blue Hill $$$$ 75 Washington Place (at Washington Square West), tel: 212-539-1776; www.bluehillfarm.com. One of New York’s finest and most ecologically sustainable tables. Many of the incredibly fresh, and lovingly prepared, ingredients on the seasonal New American menu come from the restaurant’s farm in the Hudson Valley.

Blue Water Grill $$$$ 31 Union Square West (at 16th), tel: 212-675-9500; www.bluewatergrillnyc.com. Housed in a spacious former bank, this popular Union Square seafood restaurant is consistently crowded. The raw offerings are especially good. The prices are on the high side of moderate, but still quite reasonable. Reservations are necessary unless you want to sit outside.

Cafeteria $$ 119 7th Avenue (at 17th), tel: 212-414-1717; www.cafeteriagroup.com. One of Chelsea’s trendy options, Cafeteria is open 24 hours and offers reconstructed bistro and diner food for hip club-goers. Where else will you be able to get pancakes or grilled salmon at 4.30am? Consistently good, if not overly exciting.

Eataly $$$ 200 5th Avenue (at 23rd), tel: 212-229-2560; www.eataly.com. The brainchild of Mario Batali and the Bastianich family, this market and gourmet food court is always swarmed with folks sampling the imported Italian fare, from pizza, panini, and pasta, to espresso, beer and gelato. There are sit-down restaurants, bars and takeout stands; something for every taste and budget.

Eleven Madison Park $$$$ 11 Madison Avenue (at 24th), tel: 212-889-0905; www.elevenmadisonpark.com. This restaurant keeps getting better and better. One of the most elegant dining rooms in the city, with ceilings that reach into the clouds, this Flatiron business lunch staple is also one of the best places for dinner, garnering three Michelin stars.

Gotham Bar and Grill $$$$ 12 East 12th Street (5th Avenue and University), tel: 212-620-4020; www.gothambarandgrill.com. This large, airy space is usually filled with well-dressed downtowners who appreciate the exquisite (and often very tall) food and well-chosen, but expensive wines. Few other upscale restaurants are as inviting to single diners, who can order and eat at the bar in comfort and style. The fixed-price restaurant week lunch is a great deal.

Gramercy Tavern $$$$ 42 E. 20th Street (between Broadway & Park), tel: 212-477-0777; www.gramercytavern.com. Seasonally inspired fresh and local ingredients are the focus of this popular New American tavern with excellent service. Reservations are often difficult to come by, but you can also eat in the front tavern, which accepts walk-ins. Tasting menus available for lunch and dinner.

Hangawi $$$ 12 East 32nd Street (5th and Madison avenues), tel: 212-213-0077; www.hangawirestaurant.com. Diners at this vegetarian Korean restaurant will quickly become suffused with a Zen-like calm. Discard your cares (and your shoes) at the door, and try mountain-root vegetables, porridges, and other delicacies.

Hill Country $$ 30 West 26th Street (at Broadway), tel: 212-255-4544; www.hillcountryny.com. This Texas barbecue near the Empire State Building is justly celebrated for its brisket, sausage and honky-tonk atmosphere. It is more expensive than a roadside stand, but it’s not everywhere that you get Rock ‘n Twang Live Band Karaoke every Tuesday.

Il Buco $$$$ 47 Bond Street, 212-533-1932; www.ilbuco.com. An intimate place to sample hearty Italian and Mediterranean fare, this former antique shop fills up with couples and small parties who appreciate the rustic preparations of meat and pasta, the excellent wine list, and the cluttered, but cozy setting.

Kanoyama $$$$ 175 2nd Avenue (at 11th), tel: 212-777-5266; www.kanoyama.com. East Village Japanese restaurant with a strong following. The portions are generous and the fish is incredibly fresh. Friendly staff.

L’Ecole $$$ 462 Broadway (at Grand), tel: 212-219-3300; www.lecolenyc.com. L’Ecole is a firm favorite thanks to its moderate prices, carefully composed wine list (among the most reasonable in town), and consistently good French food. Operated as a training center for the French Culinary Institute, its shaky service can be easily forgiven when the check arrives: a four-course dinner comes in at under $60 per person.

Momofuku Ssäm Bar $$$$ 207 2nd Avenue, tel: 212-254-3500; www.momofuku.com. An eccentric masterpiece and part of David Chang’s ever-expanding Momofuku empire. What started as a ‘Korean burrito bar’ has become one of the city’s hippest and most unpredictable tables, serving innovative cuisine inspired by Korea, the American South, and everywhere in between. If you have a hungry bunch, reserve a Bo Ssäm meal, which involves an entire slow-cooked pork shoulder that is served with rice, kim chee, and sauce and wrapped in pieces of bibb lettuce. Other Momofuku restaurants are all worth a visit, including Noodle Bar, Milk Bar, Má Pêche and the tiny, but wondrous Ko.

Nobu $$$$ 105 Hudson Street (at Franklin), tel: 212-219-0500; www.noburestaurants.com. Still wildly popular and trendy (forget Saturday night), Nobu continues to pack in crowds with its innovative nouvelle Japanese menu. Next Door Nobu offers a slightly less expensive menu and a no-reservations policy from 7–9pm (for those who won’t be dining with Robert De Niro), as long as you don’t mind standing in line.

Noodle Village $ 13 Mott Street (near Chatham Square) tel: 212-233-0788; www.noodlevillage.com. This Cantonese restaurant at the southern end of Mott Street in Chinatown boasts that their chef arrived straight from Hong Kong. They also proudly claim that there is no MSG added to their dishes. The congee and noodle soups are popular choices. A great cheap, healthy and fast option.

Nyonya $ 199 Grand Street (at Mulberry), tel: 212-334-3669; www.ilovenyonya.com. This is the place to go for an introduction to the delicious and spicy cuisine of Malaysia. The Hainanese chicken is good, but don’t overlook spicy beef rendang or one of the equally tasty seafood dishes.

Shabu-Tatsu $$ 216 East 10th Street (between 1st and 2nd avenues), tel: 212-477-2972; www.shabutatsu.com. At this small, popular Japanese restaurant, diners choose a selection of thinly sliced meats and vegetables for shabu-shabu (swirled in a hot pot of seasoned water), sukiyaki (a Japanese stew), or yakiniku (cooked on a grill) and cook it themselves in the middle of the table.

Shanghai Cuisine $ 89 Bayard Street (at Mulberry), tel: 212-732-8988. Shanghai cuisine is more than just soup and dumplings, as this Chinatown spot proves. Fresh interpretations of traditional specialties, including smoked fish and mock duck, will reward the adventurous. Cash only.

Spice Market $$$$ 403 West 13th Street (at 9th Avenue), tel: 212-675-2322; www.spicemarketnewyork.com. A Meatpacking District destination from Jean-Georges Vongerichten, celebrating Thai-Malay street food in a sumptuous and opulent setting, with prices to match.

Tamarind $$$$ 99 Hudson Street (at Franklin Street), tel: 212-775-9000; www.tamarindrestaurantsnyc.com. There are plenty of mediocre Indian restaurants in the city, but this is an innovative and elegant take on the cuisine, leaps beyond the typical samosas and chicken tikka masala. The excellent four-course lunch is less than $30.

Union Square Café $$$$ 21 East 16th Street (near Union Square), tel: 212-243-4020; www.unionsquarecafe.com. Gracious service and reliably good food are two reasons why this restaurant remains one of New York’s perennial favorites. Although the Mediterranean-inspired cuisine is no longer cutting-edge, the food still dazzles in unexpected ways. Even the fried calamari, now a restaurant staple, is heads above the chewy appetizer most people have come to expect. The extensive and reasonably priced wine list is an added bonus.

Midtown

Aquavit $$$$ 65 East 55th Street (at Madison and Park avenues), tel: 212-307-7311; www.aquavit.org. Like the Scandinavian fare served here, the décor is modern, precise and minimally adorned. There is fish on the menu, of course, but also meatballs, squab and beef. Try a glass of the eponymous spirits.

Aureole $$$$ One Bryant Park (at Broadway and 6th Avenue), tel: 212-319-1660; www.charliepalmer.com. This is arguably the best restaurant in the Times Square neighbourhood. It is certainly the most expensive, but the lunch, pre-theater, and Sunday prix-fixe menus are great deals.

Becco $$$ 355 West 46th Street (8th and 9th avenues), tel: 212-397-7597; www.becco-nyc.com. Come for the delicious pasta at this rustic Theater District favorite, which combines reasonable prices and high quality. The two-course fixed-price meal is particularly good value, especially since the pasta is an all-you-can-eat special.

Le Bernardin $$$$ 155 West 51st Street, tel: 212-554-1515; www.le-bernardin.com. Eric Ripert has carved out his niche, and no one is complaining. Le Bernardin serves only seafood and only the city’s best. Every item on the fixed-price menu is a winner, from the simplest pan-seared cod to a whole-roasted red snapper for two. Divinely inspired desserts. No lunch Sat. Closed Sun.

La Bonne Soupe $$ 48 West 55st Street, tel: 212-586-7650; www.labonnesoupe.com. The line is always long at this reliable French bistro around the corner from MoMA, where they have been dishing out steak frites, quiche, omelettes, fondues, and excellent onion soup for 40 years.

Carmine’s $$$ 200 West 44th Street (Broadway and 8th Avenue), tel: 212-221-3800; www.carminesnyc.com. The huge portions of hearty Italian food at this Theater District mainstay are served family-style, so the prices aren’t as high as they seem at first glance. Always mobbed and loud, but consistently churning out massive quantities of food at all hours, this is a reliable standby eatery. Be warned, however: The no-reservations policy can lead to long waits.

Churrascaria Plataforma $$$$ 316 West 49th Street (8th and 9th avenues), tel: 212-245-0505; www.churrascariaplataforma.com. All-you-can eat Brazilian rodízios (huge meat-heavy buffet) make this one of the most popular and fun places to go when you are in the mood to eat, and eat a lot. Start at the salad bar, a healthy prelude to the parade of skewered meats, which doesn’t stop until you’re about to explode. A caipirinha cocktail will set your taste buds on the right track.

DB Bistro Moderne $$$$ 55 West 44th Street (between 5th and 6th avenues), tel: 212-391-2400; www.dbbistro.com. Chef Daniel Boulud’s bistro is awash in culinary surprises and Art Deco glitz, with a clientele to match. The burger is a modern classic, made with sirloin, short ribs, foie gras and black truffles.

Four Seasons $$$$ 99 East 52nd St (between Lexington and Park avenues), tel: 212-754-9494; www.fourseasonsrestaurant.com. Since it opened over 50 years ago, the Four Seasons in the landmark Seagram Building has had a clientele that rivals any Who’s Who listing. The decor is priceless and chef Pecko Zantilaveevan (who took over after the passing of the legendary Christian Albin) creates impeccable American seasonal specialties served in the elegant pool room or the grill room.

Fred’s at Barney’s $$$ 660 Madison Avenue, 9th floor (at 60th in Barney’s), tel: 212-833-2200; www.barneys.com. This lunch spot in Barney’s department store is wildly popular, and justifiably so. The antipasto plate is a real charmer, but the Madison Avenue chopped salad with Italian tuna and the more substantial options are also very good. Don’t miss dessert. Dinner is also served, but only until 9pm at the latest.

Smith and Wollensky $$$$ 797 3rd Avenue (at 49th), tel: 212-753-1530; www.smithandwollensky.com. The well-aged steaks served in this male-dominated classic eaterie are consistently and perfectly grilled. The wine list is excellent, although expensive; sometimes shockingly so. The less expensive grill just around the corner on 49th Street is a good alternative for anyone without an expense account.

The Upper East Side

Café Boulud $$$$ 20 East 76th Street (near Madison Avenue, in the Surrey Hotel), tel: 212-772-2600; www.cafeboulud.com. Daniel Boulud has mastered the art of casual elegance. Calling this a tarted-up bistro strikes a note of sacrilege, but the label can’t detract from what a great chef can produce when he takes his gloves off.

Candle Café $$ 1307 3rd Avenue (between 74th and 75th streets), tel: 212-472-0970; www.candlecafe.com. The staff at this small bastion of health serve up clever and tasty vegan fare. Even carnivores might be tempted by the stir-fried tempeh with peanut sauce and casseroles of sweet potatoes and steamed greens, not to mention the desserts.

The Loeb Boathouse $$$$ Central Park, enter on East 72nd Street, tel: 212-517-2233; www.thecentralparkboathouse.com. The lake and surrounding greenery of Central Park are the most memorable part of a meal in this airy, glass-fronted dining room and waterside terrace (the perfect spot for a warm-weather brunch). True to the watery surroundings, the kitchen sends out such nautically inspired flourishes as sea urchin and caviar in a scallop shell and pan-roasted monkfish and seared wild striped sea bass. Meanwhile, brunchtime hits of the French toast and omelette variety satisfy the hungry weekend crowds.

Café Sabarsky $$$ 1048 5th Avenue (at 86th Street), tel: 212-288-0665; www.kg-ny.com. Enter this wood-paneled salon within the Neue Galerie (for more information, click here), and you’ll think you’re on Vienna’s Ringstrasse. Chef Kurt Gutenbrunner lives up to the surroundings, while museum food is taken to new heights by the beef goulash, Viennese sausage, linzer torte, and other fare from the banks of the Danube.

Sarabeth’s $$$ 1295 Madison Avenue (at East 92nd Street), tel: 212-410-7335; www.sarabethseast.com. Cheery and incredibly popular, Sarabeth’s is best for its home-style breakfasts and brunch, from waffles to fluffy eggs, although succulent roasts and other serious and well-prepared dishes come out at dinnertime. Child-friendly environs and homey decor. There are four other locations: at 339 Greenwich Street, corner of Jay Street, tel: 212-966-0421; at 381 Park Avenue South, between 26th and 27th streets, tel: 212-335-0093; at 423 Amsterdam Avenue, between 80th and 81st streets, tel: 212-496-6280; and at 40 Central Park South, tel: 212-826-5959.

Sfoglia $$$$ 1402 Lexington Avenue (at 92nd Street), tel: 212-831-1402; www.sfogliarestaurant.com. This New York branch of the original Nantucket restaurant is just as at home on the Upper East Side. An unobtrusive little trattoria, it offers seasonal Northern Italian country fare in a casual and intimate setting. Diners return for the inventive, frequently changing menu. There are only ten tables, so plan ahead for dinner reservations. The homemade bread is to die for.

The Upper West Side

Barney Greengrass $$ 541 Amsterdam Avenue (between 86th and 87th streets), tel: 212-724-4707; www.barneygreengrass.com. The faded murals and formica tables are deceptively downbeat, but New Yorkers continue to herald this West Side institution as the best place in town for lox, smoked sturgeon, chopped liver, and other Jewish fare. Weekend lines are long, but in them you might spot Bill Murray, Woody Allen, and other celebrity regulars. Closed Monday.

Calle Ocho $$$ 45 West 81st Street, tel: 212-873-5025; www.calleochonyc.com. This fun and festive celebration of Latin flavors has found a home in the Excelsior Hotel. Sip sangria and mojitos, enjoy the music, and be wowed by the Cuban-inspired dishes for dinner, or better yet, for its always-hopping weekend brunch.

Dovetail $$$$ 103 West 77th Street (at Columbus Ave), tel: 212-362-3800. Dovetail is a very welcome addition to the Upper West Side, just a block from the American Museum of Natural History. John Fraser’s skilled execution, using farm-fresh ingredients served in an intimate setting, has garnered critical acclaim. Gordon Ramsay spotted him as an emerging chef to watch. The three-course Sunday Suppa for $52 is superb value. But you can’t go wrong on other nights with the 4-course $88 tasting menu or, if you’re a vegetarian, one of the vegetable tasting menus.

Jean-Georges $$$$ 1 Central Park West (at 60th and 61st streets, in the Trump International Hotel), tel: 212-299-3900; www.jean-georgesrestaurant.com. Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s four-star experiment in ultra-chic surroundings is well worth the price. For the ultimate, try the seasonally focused tasting menu; for the experience of just being here, order the prix-fixe lunch at a fraction of the cost.

Kefi $$$ 505 Columbus Avenue, tel: 212-873-0200; www.kefi­restaurant.com. This Greek restaurant opened quietly, until word of mouth about its affordable and spectacular takes on traditional classics turned it into a huge hit and its chef/owner Michael Psilakis into a star. To accommodate the crowds it moved to a bigger, airier space in 2008. It has not looked back.

Shun Lee West $$$$ 43 West 65th Street (Columbus Avenue and Central Park West), tel: 212-595-8895; www.shunleewest.com. Those used to take-out noodles, fried rice, and General Tso’s chicken will be amazed at how refined Chinese food can be. Attached to the original restaurant is the much less expensive Shun Lee Café, and on the east side is Shun Lee Palace (155 East 55th Street between Lexington and 3rd avenues, tel: 212-371-8844; www.shunleepalace.net).