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Siblings Gilbert and Maguy Le Coze brought their Parisian eatery to Gotham back in 1986, and Le Bernardin—the city’s original temple of haute French seafood— has maintained its reputation ever since. With white tablecloths, decorous service and a jackets-required policy in the main dining room, the scene remains formal but with a slightly modern twist thanks to sleek leather banquettes and a 24-foot mural of a tempestuous sea by Brooklyn artist Ran Ortner. Guests who find the haute tasting menu or pricey four-course dinner out of reach can still experience the kitchen’s finesse in the lounge area via stunning bar snacks: smoked Scottish salmon rillete, tender Asian tuna tartare with endive, or gorgeous Peruvian-style ceviche. The creative cocktails, meanwhile, are alone worthy of a special trip: The baroque creations include a Pisco Gaudi, a lush drink made with the Peruvian brandy, a smoked paprika and saffron tincture, and egg whites.

The Seaport District was once the hub for all things seafood at the Fulton Fish Market in business. With the opening of Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s The Fulton on Pier 17, seafood once again takes center stage. Much of the oysters, fish and other seafood featured on the modern menu comes from the East Coast. This is also one of the best waterfront dining destinations to open this year.

Beyond the iconic, show-stopping displays—the grizzly bear in the Hall of North American Mammals, the 94-feet long blue whale, the prehistoric Barosaurus skeleton rearing up as if to scare the adjacent Allosaurus skeleton—is an expertly curated, 150-year-old museum that fills visitors of all ages with a curiosity about the universe. Whether you’re interested in the world below our feet or the cultures of faraway lands or the stars light-years beyond our reach, your visit is bound to teach you a few things you never knew. With four floors filled to the brim with artifacts, you could spend a whole day just looking at the taxidermied animals that hail from North America, Asia, Africa, rain forests and the ocean. Or, conversely, spend a day like an anthropologist and study indigenous Americans, Asian cultures, African peoples, Pacific tribes, and, before these rich cultures existed, the evolutionary origins of humans and our near (now extinct) cousins, like neanderthals. Also don't miss the new wing called the Gilder Center, which houses a butterfly vivarium, an insectarium and a 360-degree immersive experience, in an architectural masterpiece.

  Located on the 18th floor of the hotel, the "jewel box" space by Med Abrous and Marc Rose, who are food and beverage partners of the hotel and co-founders of the hospitality group Call Mom, opens up to incredible views of the boroughs, the bridges and the East River, which shine like stars at night. Designed by James Beard Award-winning design firm Parts and Labor Design, Panorama Room is visually dramatic. Its palatial vibes are set by luxurious velvet vintage-inspired tubular lounge sofas, chrome and marble touches, mosaic tile columns and its giant, tubular acrylic chandeliers that hover above the massively long bar. It's not only luxe but it's somehow simultaneously futuristic and retro. The space is filled with art from artists like Julia Chiang, Spencer Lewis, Alake Shilling, JPW3, Chris Martin, Brian Belott and Ida Eklbad, selected by Venus Over Manhattan partner Anna Furney and designer/creative director Darren Romanelli (aka Dr. Romanelli or DRx). Artist Sophie Parker and her botanical studio, Wife NYC, will also make custom arrangements and sculptural artwork for the lounge. There's even a custom-designed DJ booth made in Normandy by Hervet Manufacturier and Cédric Hervet, the long-time creative director for Daft Punk. The vibe: This is a swank place with a lot of cultivated ambiance, so there’s a cocktail attire dress code for entry i.e. no sweatpants, cargo shorts, or slides. The food: Mostly raw preparations of seafood, so it’s not the kind of place you...

Chef Stefano Secchi came up at triple-Michelin starred Osteria Francescana in Modena, Italy, prior to opening his own sensational spot in Manhattan in 2019. Rezdôra is now the best Italian restaurant in New York City, leading a list of venerable institutions. Its terrific regional pasta tasting is still $98, and favorites like anolini di parma, tagliolini al ragu and the famed grandma walking through forest in Emilia (Cappelletti verdi with roasted, sautéed leeks and black mushroom purée) are available à la carte, as well. 

In 2018, chef Nico Russell closed his Michelin-starred tasting revue, Oxalis, after a five-year run. However, Russell retained the space, opening the all-day cafe Cafe Mado in its place to make it more accessible to the community. Yet Russell's commitment to farm-to-table is still just as evident no matter the format.  The long entryway runs in line next to the open kitchen, in which the chefs of the day (or night, it all depends on when you visit) will greet you as you walk in. During the AM hours, Cafe Mado operates with coffee, pastries from Laurel Bakery and breakfast sandwiches. Lunch brings fresh produce by way of crisp salads alongside tartines and mains like smoked steelhead trout wrapped in a buckwheat crepe. Dinner keeps things exciting with five-spiced rubbed ribs, lion's mane mushrooms breaded and made into schnitzel and sandwiches that rotate, be it cured trout, brisket and tongue or mortadella. 

Mercer Labs, Museum of Art and Technology is a unique new immersive museum created by Roy Nachum, the artist behind Rihanna’s famous 2016 “Anti” album cover, and his business partner Michael Cayre, a real estate developer.  The 36,000-square-foot space opened in early 2024 at 21 Dey Street, inside the bank building that used to be part of the now-nextdoor Century 21. There are a total of 15 different rooms to explore, each one attacking all the senses upon entrance. Some outstanding installations include the one that the staff refers to as "The Dragon," where a total of 500,000 individual LED lights hung on strings adorn a room and are lit up to created 3D videos, including one of a galloping horse, that will catch your attention. Towards the end of the walkthrough is what can only be described as a cave of beautiful pink flowers (plastic ones), where there will soon be a bar as well. This is perhaps the most Instagrammable space within the museum as a whole, one that will likely come to represent the destination on social media once it officially opens. An installation of a robot will also delight. Dubbed Kuka Robot, the machine is found behind a glass in the middle of a bed of sand. The robot makes sand castles, sketches and more while visitors look on wondering how it's all possible. Taking a tour of the new Mercer Labs is something you might want to consider doing with kids. Not only are the visual elements striking and entertaining but certain rooms are specifically...

If you and your significant other enjoy knocking boots with a writhing mass of sexy strangers, look no further than this club in Queens. And if you want more information on boots, here’s a fun fact: The actual first name of the Roman emperor commonly called Caligula was Gaius—caligula means "little boots" in Latin, and Caligula picked up this nickname (which he hated) when he accompanied his dad, Germanicus, during his military campaigns in Germany.

Omakase counters can often spell exclusive, hidden away affairs, where it is just you, the chef and the quiet theater of it all. Not the case at Saishin. Meaning “something new," the restaurant located inside the Gansevoort Hotel shakes things up as this omakase counter is paired with rooftop views that look out onto the city beyond. But there is no competition when it comes to the sights as executive chef Isaac Kek keeps things plenty entertaining during his 14- or 19-course menu, slicing fish and handing freshly made nigri over the threshold. But if you'd rather something a bit more casual, that is okay too as the floor-to-ceiling windows open when the weather is pleasant. Just nab an outdoor booth and peruse through the á la carte otsumami, hot entrees and sushi in style. 

The New York Botanical Garden is revered as one of Gotham’s greatest cultural institutions, and for good reason: Where else can you find 250 spectacularly verdant acres filled with over one million tropical, temperate and desert flora within mere walking distance of a major metropolitan subway stop? Founded in 1891, the NYBG was born from a civic movement with a mission to cement New York City as a cosmopolitan world capital through the creation of public libraries, museums, zoos, gardens and various other now-iconic cultural organizations. More than a century later, the NYBG operates one of the world’s largest plant research and conservation programs, state-of-the-art molecular labs, hands-on curriculum-based educational programming and incredible outdoor and indoor botanically focused art exhibitions that attract more than one million visitors annually.