The 21 best diners in NYC

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Standing in the same space as the much-beloved local diner Happy Days, Montague Diner’s new owners have retained much of its old-school charm (house accounts, a pile of newspapers to peruse), while adding their own dreamy, 1940s-fantasy touches inspired by their work in the movie biz. Grab a coffee, a pile of pancakes and some corned beef hash in the morning, or stop by at night to split an order of mozzarella sticks and a bottle of orange wine. The food’s not too fussy, and neither is the wine list, making it a favorite new spot for Brooklyn families. 

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This funky little spot might be too cute, with its mismatched china and 1950s green walls. And yet…those sandwiches! The menu is small and ever-changing, but you’re likely to find the Dill Party, a pile of roasted turkey, avocado and—the titular party—dill Havarti, dill mayo and dill pickles. Vegetarians get solid choices, too, like the Squash Me made with roasted honey nut squash, kale pesto, goat-cheese ricotta and smoked olive oil. Save room for a slice of cake, with layers of flavors including citrus curd on a sweet-and-salty saltine crust or chocolate coconut piled with chocolate cake, chocolate frosting, toasted coconut and coconut custard.

Samuel Yoo, a Momofuku veteran, brings Korean and Japanese flavors to the classic diner menu. Sure, there’s matzo ball soup and tuna melts, but there’s also a chicken katsu club sandwich, Korean fried chicken wings and a wedge salad spiced up with a generous dose of chili crisp. They don’t open until 10am, so you won’t necessarily see a diner’s coffee-drinking regulars, but they’re open until 10pm so you can grab a post-work cocktail. 

This family-run spot has been holding it down for what's left of the East Village's Ukrainian past since 1954. Serving the neighborhood with the most bars in NYC, Veselka (Ukrainian for "rainbow") offers both solid American diner standards like eggs and pancakes as well as Eastern European fare like pierogi, cheese blintzes, borscht and potato pancakes.

First opened in 1938, this kosher dairy lunch counter is now owned by married couple Ola and Fawzy Abdelwahed (a Polish Catholic and an Egyptian Muslim, respectively.) They’re still serving up some original menu items, including blintzes, matzo balls and challah, for the locals that crowd the counter for a taste of old New York. 

In the old home of the late, beloved Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop, S&P Lunch stays true to luncheonette tradition. S&P—which was the name of the lunch counter before it became Eisenberg’s—mixes the old (cracked stools, cherry lime rickeys) and the new (an updated menu, $19 sandwiches) to satisfying effect. With old-school specialties including matzo brei, kreplach and chopped liver on rye, you’d never know this spot has seen seven owners since 1928. 

This all-hours establishment is a stubborn holdout if the old-school Village—after all, the West Village now ranks among NYC’s priciest ’hoods. Whether you’re up early before work or coming in after a night spent clubbing, the highlight of the menu remains the tried-and-true eggs, cooked to your liking and served right on the skillet.

After seventy years on the UWS, Old John’s was forced to shutter its doors during the pandemic. Louis Skibar, a former employee with a penchant for reviving diners, has reopened its doors with an updated menu and most of the Old John’s team. They’re serving up the classics (burgers, meatloaf, chicken soup) and pairing them with a decidedly un-diner-like cocktail menu. Order a chicken club and an aquafaba gimlet for that high-low diner experience. 

A Brooklyn institution since the 1930s, Tom’s staying power can be attributed to several factors, one of which is the free coffee and bites passed out to the long line of folks waiting to be seated. Flapjacks are served here in a sweet-corn-studded, whole-wheat variety as well as a lemon-ricotta version, which you can wash down with some of the best egg creams in town.

The king of Queens diners is this stainless-steel Art Deco beauty. Owned by the Dellaportas family—the patriarch, Archie, first acquired the diner after immigrating to New York in 1972—the restaurant is now a legend in the borough.

This burger-centric Jersey City icon and its sister Hackensack outpost, White Manna, were both opened by Louis Bridges, who bought the original diner at the 1939 New York World’s Fair.  Mana’s distinctive octagonal building—with the cook in the middle of the room—was even named a local landmark. Now, seven decades later, the around-the-clock restaurants are still known for their griddle-seared patties cloaked in molten cheese and crowned with steamed onions.

Established in 1972, this diner touts its titular offering of burgers with the slogan: “36 Ways to Serve Burgers.” A hop-skip from NYU’s sprawling Greenwich Village campus, find undergrads and village locals scarfing down those patties—including innovative takes like the Santorini Burger (sauteed spinach, feta cheese) and the Pizza Burger (pizza sauce, melted mozzarella)—washed down with endless refills of coffee.

Billing itself as “The Largest Diner in New York City,” this 280-seat colossus caters to the Midtown commuter crowd at Penn Station across the street. Opened in 1997, the restaurant stays true to traditional, gut-sticking diner fare that’s complemented by items from the Italian, Greek and Tex-Mex canons. In true diner fashion, breakfast is an all-day offering and includes omelets, farm eggs any style and Belgian waffles.

This over half-century-old diner’s neon sign is a shining beacon amidst the towering gray facades of the Financial District, beckoning weary suits to its temple of all-day comfort food. Breakfast is the forte here, along with 40-something varieties of burgers served to the worker bees perched on its original metal stools. It’s one of the few remaining classic stand-alone diners in town, and it’s not letting go of tradition anytime soon.

It doesn’t get more old-school than Square Diner, a 1000-square-foot, train-car style joint that’s been feeding the increasingly moneyed TriBeCa neighborhood for over a century. Opened in the 20s, the diner was constructed by the famed Pullman Dining Car Company, and is now a legitimate historical artifact complete with stainless-steel trimmings, red-vinyl cushions, and glass-block windows. (It is not, however, a square.) On the food front, popular orders include the hamburger, milkshake and mile-high apple pie.

A time-honored staple of the Clinton Hill neighborhood, this cash-only spot churns out affordable, generously-sized plates for students from nearby Pratt Institute and longtime residents alike. Chicken and waffles and ultra-fluffy pancakes are two of the main draws, but don’t miss the Reuben sandwich—corned beef with sauerkraut and melted Swiss on rye—and old-school milkshakes.

Owned and operated by the Platis family since 1975, this neon-accented Staten Island spot pairs all the accouterments of a typical NYC diner with an extremely Instagrammable interior. 

Craving something late at night, but don't want the usual eggs and burger fare? Chef Julian Medina of Toloache and Yerba Buena brings Latin American comfort food to 14th Street 24 hours a day. Made to look like a classic Havana diner, the restaurant serves Caribbean and South American classics with unobtrusive twists, including arroz con pollo, lomo saltado and ropa vieja. 

This six-seat–counter and three-table spot run by a mother and son serves real-deal, traditional Cuban, Dominican and Puerto Rican grub, including roast chicken, Cuban sandwiches and platanos maduros (sweet plantains). If you’re looking for the homey, Mom’s-cooking feeling of a diner, this family luncheonette hits the spot.

Given its fancy Carnegie Hill location, Lexington could be a too-precious, overpriced diner. Lucky for us, Lexington is still a working man's luncheonette that sells lottery tickets at the cash register. In addition to the usual diner fare—burgers, tuna melts—it has old-fashioned items like lime rickeys and egg creams. 

Not even renaming it Monk’s (ever seen a little show called Seinfeld?) could conceal the identity of this staple, which has been in the Zoulis family for 60 years. It was also the inspiration for Suzanne Vega’s “Tom’s Diner,” so be prepared to eat your big salad with a side of folk music superfans taking selfies in front of the sign.