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Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
Photograph: Shutterstock
Photograph: Shutterstock

Upper East Side guide: The best of the neighborhood

Find the best restaurants, bars, shops, attractions and things to do on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

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Gorgeous prewar apartments owned by blue-blooded socialites, soigné restaurants frequented by Botoxed ladies who lunch, the deluxe boutiques of international designers.… This is the clichéd image of the Upper East Side, and you’ll certainly see a lot of supporting evidence on Fifth, Madison and Park Avenues. Recently, however, pockets of downtown cool have migrated north, notably the growing food-and-drink enclave pioneered by Earl’s Beer and Cheese.

RECOMMENDED: Full guide of Manhattan, NY

Encouraged by the opening of Central Park in the late 1800s, affluent New Yorkers began building mansions along Fifth Avenue. By the start of the 20th century, even the superwealthy had warmed to the idea of giving up their large homes for smaller quarters, provided they were near the park, which resulted in the construction of many new apartment blocks and hotels. Working-class folk later settled around Second and Third Avenues, following construction of the defunct elevated East Side train line, but affluence remained the neighborhood’s dominant characteristic. Philanthropic gestures made by the moneyed classes over the past 130-odd years have helped to create the impressive cluster of art collections on Museum Mile—from 82nd to 105th Streets, Fifth Avenue is lined with more than half a dozen celebrated institutions, including theMetropolitan Museum of Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and The Frick Collection.

To find out more about things to do, see, eat and drink in Manhattan, and discover other neighborhoods in the area, visit our Manhattan borough guide.

Map of the Upper East Side and travel information

The Upper East Side of Manhattan is east of Central Park, running from Fifth Avenue to the East River and extending north from E 59th Street to E 110th Street, where it borders East Harlem. The neighborhood encompasses several sub-nabes: Lenox Hill (E 59th St to E 77th St from Fifth Ave to Lexington Ave), Carnegie Hill (E 86th St to E 96th St between Fifth Ave and Lexington Aves) and Yorkville (E 79th St to E 96th St from Third Ave to the East River).
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Restaurants on the Upper East Side

Le Veau d’Or

  • French
  • Lenox Hill
  • price 2 of 4
Le Veau d’Or
Le Veau d’Or
Photograph: Gentl + Hyers
If this place was good enough for Truman Capote to pass out in, it’s good enough for you. We once worried that New York’s oldest operating French restaurant had finally come to an end after a five-year hiatus. Luckily, the lights are back on at Le Veau d’Or. It's all thanks to chefs Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr of Frenchette, Le Rock and Frenchette Bakery fame. Intending to enhance the current foundation, not to change it, the duo retained the restaurant's wood-paneled walls and red and white checkered tablecloths. To this day, the iconic sleeping calf still rests on the dining room wall. Dishes from yesteryear have also returned with modern refinishes. Remaining a prix fixe menu just like before, the menu includes 10 appetizers, 10 entrées and five desserts to choose from, priced at $125 per person. Appetizers include pâté en croûte and frog legs, while entrées range from the duck margret in a cherry sauce to the fricassé poulet avec vin jaune (chicken fricassé with morels and white wine). The largest change is the addition of a wine list—previously, the only question was red or white—with over 100 bottles on offer.  

Café Boulud

  • Lenox Hill
  • 3 out of 5 stars
  • Recommended
Café Boulud
Café Boulud
Photograph: Courtesy of Bill Milne
A hundred dollars is a lot of money, until it isn’t. When the regulars at the idyllic West Village restaurant where I once worked used to spend about that much most days, I thought they must have been Condé Nast millionaires. But when I’d finish a day-bar shift with about the same amount, my nightside pals would look on with a little pity.   In the fine(r) dining segment of today’s local hospitality pie, a special occasion and/or otherwise fancy dinner, usually a tasting or prix fixe for under $100 per person is still noteworthy. One of the best in this class, Tribeca’s Bâtard, closed for good in 2023 after its own two, three and four-course menus crept up from $59, $79 and $89 to $79, $95 and $105 in its last five years in operation. But, when market forces close a door, they open a window, this one to the new Café Boulud, where two courses clock in under that critical hundred buck mark. The original Café Boulud first opened in the neighborhood in 1998; that go-go, pre-smartphone time when you might have seen Martha Stewart among tables topped with foie gras, deconstructed foie gras (duck), sweetbreads and martinis with nary a surreptitious snapshot to show for it. All these years later, the revival, which follows the first’s 2021 finale, offers . . . also all of those things, but still no surreptitious photos, please, it’s just too rude.  All of those menu items are rather nice, once you’re seated. In a creeping recurrence that I hope does not become a trend, a recent...
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Orsay

  • French
  • Lenox Hill
  • price 4 of 4
Orsay
Orsay
If you were trust-fund rich, Orsay would be the kind of place you’d eat three times a week. The food is good enough to please those with refined tastes, but the laid-back brasserie atmosphere is far less stuffy than that of other eateries at these prices. The menu changes with the seasons, but expect perfectly cooked steak frites served with a choice of sauces, a top-quality raw bar, and more inventive dishes, including a flavorful stew of cod, seasoned with rosemary, bay leaves and vegetables. Desserts are surprisingly impressive, especially the classic tarte Tatin or the rich chocolate tart.

Sushi Noz

  • Japanese
  • Upper East Side
  • price 4 of 4
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • Recommended
Sushi Noz
Sushi Noz
Photograph: Morgan Carter
On a recent visit to Sushi Noz, I discovered that most conversations at the counter were about other omakases in the city. It felt a bit gauche, almost like speaking about an upcoming date in front of another lover, as my seatmates gleefully rattled through their counter conquests right in front of the chef we came to see. But perhaps I suppose this line of talk is par for the course here: No one happens upon a seat at chef Noz's counter by accident—you're booking reservations far in advance and dropping $550 per head. Yes, Sushi Noz is one of the more expensive counters in the city and has certainly attracted the rich and those who amass omakase experiences like infinity stones. But the flurry around it is founded in a certain kind of truth. You see, every step at Sushi Noz curated by chef Nozomu Abe is careful and deliberate, one that aims to transport you out of New York—even if just for a few hours—and gently guide you through Edo-era Japan. Kimono-clad waitstaff usher you past the blue curtain outside and into an inner sanctuary designed in the spirit of a Kyoto temple, with wooden sliding doors, bamboo slats and pale blond counters carved from 200-year-old hinoki wood sourced from Hokkaido, Noz’s hometown.Chef Noz’s affection for seafood is displayed like theater, with opening players of otsumami, or seasonal small plates, consisting of steamed rock fish paired with a wonderfully gelatinous monk liver that jiggles like silken tofu, and a clam chowder–like take with a...
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Museums on the Upper East Side

The Frick Collection

  • Museums
  • Art and design
  • Lenox Hill
  • price 2 of 4
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • Recommended
The Frick Collection
The Frick Collection
Photograph: By Nicholas Venezia
The opulent residence that houses a private collection of great masters (from the 14th through the 19th centuries) was originally built for industrialist Henry Clay Frick. The firm of Carrère & Hastings designed the 1914 structure in an 18th-century European style, with a beautiful interior court and reflecting pool. The permanent collections include world-class paintings, sculpture and furniture by the likes of Rembrandt, Vermeer, Renoir and French cabinetmaker Jean-Henri Riesener.  Following its 2020 closure for renovations, the Frick Collection reopened on April 17, 2025 inside its historic Gilded Age mansion. Now, visitors can see the museum's permanent collection inside restored spaces on the first floor while also walking around a new roster of galleries on the mansion's second floor—once the Frick family's private quarters—now open to the public for the very first time. That means you can walk into the original bedroom of Henry Clay Frick! Read more on The Frick's incredible new offerings, including a new 218-seat auditorium, an airy class room, an expanded reception hall, new state-of-the-art conservation studios and the museum’s first-ever cafe.
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Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

  • Museums
  • Art and design
  • Upper East Side
  • price 3 of 4
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • Recommended
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
Photograph: Courtesy Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
While the Guggenheim’s collection of modern art works is certainly impressive, it is impossible to separate the museum’s contents from its form with architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s brilliant and controversial design. Opened in 1959 on Fifth Ave across from Central Park, just months after Wright’s death, the concrete inverted ziggernaut (a Babylonian step pyramid), stomped on the expectations and tradition of clean square galleries exemplified and cherished by the neighboring Upper East Side museums, like the nearby Metropolitan Museum. Instead Wright combined his use of geometric shapes and nature, to create a gallery space that presented art along a flowing, winding spiral, much like a nautilus shell, with little in the way of walls to separate artists, ideas or time periods. Best experienced as Wright intended by taking the elevator to the top of the museum and following the gentle slope down, the art is revealed at different angles along the descent and across the open circular rotunda in a way that even the most well known Monet landscape might seem like a revelation. Make sure to take a break from the captivating main exhibit of the season and visit the small rooms off the rotunda to see the permanent collection, which includes works by Picasso, Cezanne, Manet and the largest selection of Kandinsky paintings to be permanently shown in America.
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Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

  • Things to do
  • Schools and universities
  • Upper East Side
  • price 2 of 4
  • Recommended
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
Photograph: Courtesy CC/Flickr/ Yisris  
Founded in 1897 by the Hewitt sisters, granddaughters of industrialist Peter Cooper, the only museum in the U.S. solely dedicated to design (both historic and modern) has been part of the Smithsonian since the 1960s. The museum hosts periodic interactive family programs that allow children to experiment with design.
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Neue Galerie New York

  • Museums
  • Art and design
  • Upper East Side
  • price 2 of 4
  • Recommended
Neue Galerie New York
Neue Galerie New York
Photograph: Annie Schlechter
This elegant addition to the city’s museum scene is devoted entirely to late-19th- and early-20th-century German and Austrian fine and decorative arts. Located in a renovated brick-and-limestone mansion that was built by the architects of the New York Public Library, this brainchild of the late art dealer Serge Sabarsky and cosmetics mogul Ronald S. Lauder has the largest concentration of works by Gustav Klimt (including his iconic Adele Bloch-Bauer I) and Egon Schiele outside Vienna. You’ll also find a bookstore, a chic (and expensive) design shop and the Old World–inspired Café Sabarsky, serving updated Austrian cuisine and ravishing Viennese pastries.
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Bars on the Upper East Side

The Penrose

  • Gastropubs
  • Upper East Side
  • price 1 of 4
The Penrose
The Penrose
Photograph: Paul Wagtouicz

What is it? A well-realized gastropub–The Penrose is a crowd-pleaser.

Why we like it: Comfy, stylish–a bit of hip downtown, uptown.

Time Out tip: The Penrose does have a ton of seating but it still gets crowded on Saturday nights. 

Address: 1590 2nd Avenue

Opening Hours: Monday - Friday, 11:30am-4am; Saturday & Sunday, 9:30am-4am 

Expect to Pay: Cocktails are $15, Beers are about $8; Wine glasses are $13-ish, bottles are around $55, there’s also bottles of sparkling that reach up to $210. Small plates of food are about $12-$15 while a main can go for between $17-$34

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The Jeffrey

  • CafĂ© bars
  • Lenox Hill
  • price 1 of 4
The Jeffrey
The Jeffrey
Photograph: Paul Wagtouicz

What is it: One of NYC’s premier beer bars

Why we like it: Home to a 65-seat outdoor biergarten, a coffee shop, a mixology lab, The Jeffrey wants to be your go-to for whatever you’re into.

Time Out tip: This is a destination for beer nerds, yes. But it’s also the kind of place that, on a sunny weekend afternoon, you can bring the whole team and have a great time. It’s right under the Queensboro Bridge, so if you’re going at night and wanna sit outside, bring a jacket.

Address: 311 East 60th Street

Opening Hours: Monday - Wednesday, 4pm-midnight; Thursday - Saturday, noon-1am; Sunday, noon-midnight

Expect to pay: Beers range, depending but most are around $8. Cocktails average $15. Wine glasses are $15, bottles are $65. Small plates are mostly about $8, tacos are $7-ish per with a minimum of two to an order; big plates are from about $15 to $20.

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Caledonia Scottish Pub UES

  • Pubs
  • Upper East Side
  • price 1 of 4
Caledonia Scottish Pub UES
Caledonia Scottish Pub UES
Photograph: Courtesy Caledonia Scottish Pub

What is it: A low-key Scottish pub with a huge scotch whiskey selection.

Why we like it: It’s not all about the price-tag on single-malt here; the collection is more thoughtfully curated than that.

Time Out tip: There are house rules you’d do well to observe: There’s no such thing as the best whiskey. There's a 5% discount for Tinder dates (with proof). Do NOT close your tab after each drink, you Gen Zers. Don’t ask for free drinks—it’s gauche and annoys bartenders. Fellas: respect women or get the boot.

Address: 1609 2nd Avenue

Opening Hours: Monday - Thursday, 5pm-2am; Friday & Saturday, 4pm-4am; Sunday, 4pm-midnight

Expect to pay: Cocktails are around $16, food is around $8, beer around $9, wine is at around $13/glass and $50/bottle. Whiskeys have a vast range, some hitting $150 for a pour.

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The Auction House

  • Lounges
  • Upper East Side
  • price 1 of 4
  • Recommended
The Auction House
The Auction House
Photograph: Courtesy The Auction House

What is it: An atmospheric, long-running lounge on a residential strip with no street-facing signage. 

Why we like it: This place was a trailblazer in NYC and has maintained its intrinsic integrity through the years.

Time Out tip: There’s no storefront, so it may take you a minute to locate the entrance but trust us: it’s there. There’s no dress code, but keep it classy. Cash only.

Address: 300 East 89th Street

Opening Hours: Sunday - Thursday, 6pm-2am; Friday, 6pm-1am, Saturday, 6pm-4am

Expect to pay: House cocktails are $14, Beers are around $7, wine about $10/glass and bottles range wide from $30 to $100+. Food doesn’t break the bank, averaging $15.

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Shops on the Upper East Side

Monograms Off Madison

  • Shopping
  • Gifts and stationery
  • Upper East Side
  • price 3 of 4
  • Recommended
Monograms Off Madison
Monograms Off Madison
This charming boutique is filled with preppy accessories, nearly all of which can be personalized. There are more than 50 monogram styles—from single letters to full names—and the work is complimentary with any purchase. Make your mark on seersucker duffles ($38), dopp kits ($58) and portable bar buckets ($45), or bring in your own towels, totes or apparel (the shop can embroider any item within a week, starting at $10 per piece).

Michael’s, The Consignment Shop for Women

  • Shopping
  • Consignment store
  • Upper East Side
  • price 3 of 4
Michael’s, The Consignment Shop for Women
Michael’s, The Consignment Shop for Women
Photograph: Courtesy Michaels Consignment
This UES family-owned shop has been in the haute couture–recycling business since 1954 and is the place to go if you want to score Dior, Prada and Dolce & Gabbana dresses for 70 to 90 percent off retail price. While you shouldn’t schlep your bags of less-than-luxe stuff here expecting a trade (they only buy first-tier designer labels that are less than two years old and in great condition), come here if you want to treat yourself to something luxurious without breaking the bank.
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Marie-Hélène de Taillac

  • Shopping
  • Jewelry
  • Lenox Hill
  • price 4 of 4
Marie-Hélène de Taillac
Marie-Hélène de Taillac
Photograph: Jeremy Liebman
French jewelry designer Marie-Hélène de Taillac opens her first NYC store for her high-end baubles, usually found in luxe retailers such as Barneys New York. The decor was inspired by Marie Antoinette’s small theater in Versailles and is a reflection of De Taillac’s color-driven aesthetic, with label-encrusted powder-blue walls, crystal lamps, velvet chairs and a silver-coated ceiling. All of the earrings ($550–$20,000), rings ($1,200–$60,000), pendants ($70–$4,000) and necklaces ($3,500–$100,000) are one of a kind and made by hand. De Taillac uses a unique briolette cut inspired by ancient Indian artisans and typically reserved for diamonds, which makes the stones sparkle brightly in 22-karat gold. Try on playful charm bracelets ($70–$375), reversible rings with rubellite and fire opals ($7,665) and stunning collar necklaces with apatite and 22-karat gold feathers ($44,845). For gem-loving men, there are even rose quartz cuff links ($5,385–$7,315).

Bloomingdale's

  • Shopping
  • Department stores
  • Upper East Side
  • price 3 of 4
Bloomingdale's
Bloomingdale's
Ranking among the city’s top tourist attractions, Bloomie’s is stocked with everything from bags to beauty products, homewares to designer duds. The cosmetics hall, complete with an outpost of globe-spanning apothecary Space NK and a Bumble and bumble dry-styling bar, recently got a glam makeover. The compact Soho outpost concentrates on young fashion and cosmetics.  
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