Amber Sutherland-Namako

Dining out in New York City can be a labor of love. There are thousands of new and old restaurants to choose from, making reservations can seem like a sport or a game of chance and most of us want and need to spend our eating and drinking money wisely. That’s why Time Out New York spends days and nights haunting the city to highlight the very best in hospitality right now, and gently divert from the less-best. Peruse on through to choose your next favorite destination, and play along to see which newcomers become 2024’s top options.  RECOMMENDED: Full guide to the best restaurants in NYC

Few dining daydreams capture a corner New York City’s culinary appeal as keenly as the notion of the classic steakhouse. Bustling dining rooms lined with big, plush booths. Moody lights. Tables topped with frigid martinis martinis, perfectly paired sides and cuts you just can’t quite recreate at home.  The New York City steakhouse can turn any occasion special, significant, or quietly distinguished. And while we have plenty to choose from, some are simply better than the rest. So sharpen those knives for a slice of Gotham at its prime.  RECOMMENDED: Full guide to the best restaurants in NYC  

Every drink seems ideal when you're at the perfect bar. Your dive’s beer is frosty, rooftops send you soaring toward the clouds and cocktail destinations shake and stir myriad ingredients into ideally calibrated glassware, leaps abounds above what you try to craft at home. The options are unending, the ice is nicer and you aren’t just drinking, you’re at the spot.  Whether you're dabbling in low-ABV libations, making your way through dedicated martini menus or collecting passwords for pseudo speakeasies, there is an ideal location for every taste, tolerance and occasion. Find them among the 50 best bars in NYC right now. Updated September 2024: We removed 67 Orange this month because it is temporarily closed but added in Cubbyhole and Pete’s Tavern.

A seafood tower is a culinary expression of celebration. It is the ingestible equivalent of flinging confetti into the air, but instead of bits of glitter, shredded paper or varied plastics, oysters, clams, shrimp and lobster land elegantly arranged on darling tiered trays. The tiers are key; anything else and it is but a platter, a plate or sometimes a basket, though plateau is also acceptable parlance and a fishbowl concept could be interesting. But a seafood tower, per se, promises abundance and signals joy. You’ll seldom be offered a seafood tower while waiting for the subway or at the reading of a will, but you can find them at a smattering of waterside restaurants, nautically inclined bars and even landlocked spots that simply embrace and promote splendor.   They’re also a delight to behold, a soothing glimpse of form and function at their most agreeable. Even just an image is an aesthetic break from the chaos of the day, a window to a daydream. You are sipping Sancerre at a sidewalk cafe. You’ve acquired comfortable wealth. We are on a boat right now. Of course they’d be even better to eat, and these are the top tier of seafood towers for a peek and a treat in NYC. 

New York City has an abundance of excellent Italian restaurants, and we still can’t get enough. Our red sauce staples, fancy white tablecloth throwbacks, buzzy newcomers and slick high-concept ventures make it so that we can sample myriad regions’ cuisine almost every night of the week and never run out of options. You can but don’t need to go to Little Italy for the best!  These are only the best to get you started, and keep you coming back. (Psst…if you want a taste of Itaian pies, check out our list of pizza parlors and slice shops.) RECOMMENDED: Full guide to the best restaurants in NYC

Is there a better meal than a burger between two buns? Whether it’s fast food chuck that smashed flat and griddled hot or a high-end take that costs nearly as much as a steak, New York has some of the best cheeseburgers and hamburgers on the planet. In a city known for its sandwiches—like the chopped cheese, bacon egg and cheese, bagels piled high with cream cheese and lox and even (controversially) hot dogs—the hamburger sandwich remains one of the greatest. Order yours smothered with special sauce, gooey with cheddar or American cheese, piled with crispy lettuce or smashed with quick-fried onions. Add a pile of crispy, salty french fries, pair it with an ice-cold martini or a bubbly bottle of champagne and enjoy one of the very best meals in NYC. RECOMMENDED: The best veggie burgers in NYC 

Much like pizza, New York City bagels are the subject of yearslong debate, competition and consideration. Is it something in our water that makes them so special? Is it the accoutrements? And the age old question: yes or no to ketchup on a BEC? We’re gonna go with "maybe" and "whatever you wish, as long as you’re ordering from the very best bagel destinations in NYC." Here are our favorite spots in the city. RECOMMENDED: Full guide to the best restaurants in NYC

Choosing a favorite restaurant in New York City is a joyful task with myriad possibilities depending on the occasion, mood and even the time of year. Your favorite dive, fine dining destination and neighborhood favorite might all occupy top spots on your personal best list in spite of their disparate qualities.  Our list of NYC’s 50 best restaurants is the same, spanning each of those categories and more to comprise a catalogue of all the places we wish we were at right now. They don’t have to be the newest or the most recently reviewed, just places that we’ve been to and want to return to again and again, and that we think that you will, too.  RECOMMENDED: NYC’s best bars right now Note: Many of the city’s best chefs, restaurants and concepts have been welcomed into the Time Out Market. Because that is the highest honor we can award, establishments related to the market have not been ranked here, but you can see them below.  Stay in the Loop: Sign up for our free weekly newsletter to get the latest in New York City news, culture and dining.

Since March of 2020, New York City's restaurants and bars have demonstrated their resilience by the previously everyday act of maintaining operations. Many opened or expanded outdoor dining and new takeout and delivery options, for example. And happily, the list of New York's best restaurants continues to grow thanks to new and anticipated openings.  Still, the number of businesses that have had to close their doors for good is staggering. This summer's edition of notable NYC closures includes Mary’s Fish Camp in the West Village, storied Chelsea dive Billymark’s West and Filipino institution Purple Yam in Ditmas Park, among others. Many New Yorkers didn’t have a chance to say goodbye to the following establishments, but we think of them fondly. 

Trends come and go, whether they illustrate a seemingly organic zeitgeist like 2022's influx of speakeasy-style bars or they’re the product of a carefully orchestrated marketing campaign like the Aperol spritz blitz of 2018. Summer is particularly conducive to the form: A season that somehow feels more ephemeral than the others, making abstract promises of love and holidays, all hazy with the patina of heat.  But while some food-and-drink fads have exited as swiftly as they arrived, the frozen cocktail remains an enduring favorite. It's the ideal icy canvas to spin anything into, with unending possibilities limited only by the imagination (and occasional supply chain issues). “I think that frozen drinks are outstanding,” PDT owner Jeff Bell told us in an interview. “I don’t think frozen drinks were received well ten years ago. I think everybody was still in this moral high ground, high horse of like, ‘Oh, that’s a trashy cocktail because it’s frozen.”  But, deliciously, attitudes changed and soon new frozens were joining our old favorites all over town. And, while the occasional zag to something shiny and new can be cute, frozens are the drink of forever summer in NYC—and here are our favorites. RECOMMENDED: The 50 best bars in NYC right now

NYC’s Soho (not to be confused with London’s!) has floated from its artistic reputation and crystallized into a shopping district over the years. But even when they pave paradise, people still gotta eat and drink. In spite of its present bourgeois trappings, there are still a few genuine places to do so south of Houston Street. Here's everywhere to grab a beer, glass or bottle of wine, or few shots in and around Soho right now.    RECOMMENDED: See the full list of best bars in New York

Many of the best views in NYC are free. The best Statue of Liberty lookout is from a grocery store parking lot in Red Hook, the vantage point from the Staten Island Ferry is breathtaking and Astoria Park’s outlooks are unprecedented. But looking at stuff can also work up an appetite, so having some food and drinks to accompany the landscape is a must—that's where NYC's best restaurants with a view come in.  Luckily, these viewstaurants don’t just dine out on their looks. Like all of the best bars and eateries, they also carefully consider their cocktails, curate their wine lists and create plates to rival their spectacular backdrops. Whether they're a sky-high rooftop bar or chill by the water or beachside, these excellent venues give you plenty to peep besides your phone–but don't forget to snap a pic, too!

A family business that first began in South Brooklyn 42 years ago opened its first brick-and-mortar outpost in New York City at Time Out Market in 2024. Morris Salomon and Abie Bitton’s grandparents’ wholesale bakery has supplied all manner of baked goods to top hotels, restaurants and caterers for special events like weddings in NYC and beyond since 1981. As travel plans, the hospitality industry and formal fêtes all stalled at the onset of the pandemic, the cousins began exploring opportunities to deliver those family recipes for treats like baklava directly to consumers, and Baklava Bakery was born. This first local locale for the biz will offer more than its perfected phyllo dough and pistachio signature sweets. The Middle Eastern bites, handheld crêpes, and cute “candy sushi” that’s just what you’d imagine will all appear on the menu.  Baklava Bakery is located on Time Out Market New York’s first floor at 55 Water Street in Brooklyn.

Pastrami Queen, née King, first got its start in Queens in 1956.  Pastrami Queen’s outpost at 55 Water Street is not kosher, but its Upper East and West Side locations are. There is also a Pastrami Queen in the somewhat still newly renovated Moynihan Food Hall. Coming up on four locations and nearly three-quarters of a century in operation is an objective achievement in the hospitality industry, where major players close to public shock not infrequently.  In-store, the pastrami is heated and steamed for 24 hours to achieve peak moisture and tenderness—a third of the three-day process from raw deckle cut acquisition to finish.  Pastrami Queen opens in Brooklyn’s Time Out Market New York at 55 Water Street this February.

The Rogue Panda’s premiere menu includes mapo tofu, noodles and crispy kung pao brussels sprouts. Its Sichuan street noodles with bok choy, crispy shallots and chili oil in a “tingly ragu” are the signature dish, says owner Michael Laverty. In addition to its meat-free ethos, The Rogue Panda also aims to source local ingredients and use eco-friendlier packaging to further its mission of sustainability.  The Rogue Panda is located on the fifth-floor rooftop of Time Out Market New York at 55 Water Street in Brooklyn. 

The Rogue Boba, from the same team behind Chinese-influenced, plant-based The Rogue Panda on Time Out Market’s fifth-floor rooftop.  The Rogue Boba, down on the market’s ground level, expounds on its predecessor’s beverages with a new, dedicated, bubble tea menu.  The Rogue Boba sources its loose-leaf tea and boba from Taiwan, and gets its fresh fruit and seasonal ingredients from local purveyors to create flavors like taro coconut, strawberry and cream, peach oolong and mango passionfruit. Bubble waffles are also made à la minute, and available with fun toppings. 

The Settepani name has been attached to Italian cuisine in New York City since 1992, and in 2024, the family-owned and operated business expanded for the third time in as many decades. Settepani opened an outpost at Time Out Market New York on the first floor of 55 Water Street in Brooklyn. This stop follows its bakery in Williamsburg and restaurant in Harlem, with one famous item only available here—panettone, available by the slice (versus whole loaf). The proprietors elected to make it available in smaller increments to allow visitors to this address a chance to sample their proprietary panettone in advance of committing to a whole party-sized portion.  In addition to the exclusively sized sweet treat, Settepani at the market will offer a full complement of sweet and savory items, including bombolone, sfogliatella, biscotti, baked eggs and frittata—and the viral rainbow cookie croissant. 

 The Maiz Project, which began as a pop-up operation, now has a brick-and-mortar outpost at Time Out Market New York. Arepa varieties at the Dumbo food hall include steak with white cheese and chimichurri, chicken with avocado and muenster, shrimp with avocado and garlic butter and chorizo with Irish cheddar and salsa verde. Tequeños and ceviche are also on the permanent menu. The Maiz Project is located at 55 Water Street in Brooklyn. 

A short menu that I have a hard time choosing from is a rare thing. There are usually a few obvious standouts, but at Gator, which opened last December in Greenpoint, the beets, mixed mushrooms, mac and cheese, hake and pork chop all sound great. And they are.  Gator’s look fits squarely in the style category I invented, “restaurant in a movie that isn’t about a restaurant.” Even that novel genre can land a few different ways. At this 42-seat space, it works beautifully as a shot from a scene set in a lovely neighborhood place where everything’s baseline 30% better than in real life. Wood or marble tables in the daintily-reptile accented, elegantly understated dining room are topped with candles that create a diffused, pale amber glow. The chairs are a little more comfortable than most. And the hospitality is inviting with an easy warmth.  Chef Allyx Seemann, an interior designer before she started cooking professionally in restaurants like Jean-Georges, is owner and namesake, having been called Allie-gator as a kid. She’s authored the most comprehensive menu in the shortest number of items the city has seen in a while. And, unlike other similarly truncated efforts around town lately, it all actually coalesces.  Like a lot of those other recent ventures, Gator’s menu eschews section titles, but it more or less starts with what might conventionally be considered appetizers and ascends to larger plates. I think something was said about sharing on my visit last week, but somethi

Planning dinner for a group is a double-edged sword. On one shiny side: You’ve got friends! On the other razor’s end: Where are you going to put them all? And, oh, the rest of the things to consider! What does everybody want to eat? What’s the most convenient geographical region? Are there tacos? You’d be lucky to solve two of these three. Granted, cravings can change, and I can’t spy your whole party’s preferred subway lines, but Miatzil, which opened in Park Slope in January, has room for a crowd under industrial-chic chandeliers at a long row of tables in the brick-lined back beyond the gleaming black bar. Plus tacos.  Nine options presently populate the menu, with three per order for $14-$17. Get the satisfying birria variety ($17.) It’s crisp outside, and inside, the silken shredded beef melds marvelously with cheese, cilantro and onion to decadent effect, all bolstered, as expected, by its comforting accompanying cup of consommé. The carnitas tacos ($15) are also terrific, rich but absent any of the unpleasant fattier bits that might sneak in elsewhere, and topped with more of those herbs and alliums, plus a dash of avocado sauce.  Plenty of mains like huge plates of fajitas ($19-$21) and a camarones diablo ($20) with a pleasant little bit of heat in its sauce appear on the lengthy menu as well, but I’d top those larger tables with tons of tacos. Add a few starters like the irresistible queso fundido ($12) the pulpo al guajillo ($20)—its tentacles as tender as is achiev

Union Square Park seems quieter than I can ever recall seeing it in the evening, even pre-pandemic. On a recent walk along its eastern and northern edges a couple of hours after dark on a recent weeknight, I tried to imagine telling a tourist what it was like as recently as the twenty-teens. Not that I even noticed any apparent out-of-towners—an infrequent paucity in most of Manhattan’s geometrically-named geographical landmarks.  Lively Kanyakumari, from restaurateur Salil Mehta (Laut, Wau, Kebab aur Sharab) and chef Dipesh Shinde (who opened the latter with Mehta in 2022) about a half-block west on 17th Street betrays that quiet. Only about a month after opening, the pretty space that seats 56 awash in honeyed light, inviting you to “journey from Mumbai to Kanyakumari,” is comfortably packed, even on weeknights. That means that, while you should still probably make a reservation, you won’t wait an inordinately long time to actually get seated after booking.  Drinks come up swiftly, too, including pleasant efforts like the Curry Leaf ($18) with vodka, coconut, lime and the obvious botanical or spot-on classic martinis (about $21). The dinner menu spans a single page. Listed under “from Tamil Nadu,” the golf ball-sized bonda ($15/4) is wonderfully crisp and fried to golden outside, its interior curd rice creamy and just a tick tart. The bite-sized pieces of fried chicken from Kanyakumari ($18) have a good crunch, too, and a much milder finish than their crimson coating might

The hospitality group Unapologetic Foods has been a local industry leader for several years, and about as many restaurants. Its original Masalawala ran for a decade—that’s a New York City restaurant decade—in the East Village until 2021. Adda in Long Island City, Dhamaka on the Lower East Side, Semma in the West Village and the kind-of loop-closing Masalawala & Sons in Park Slope have gathered fans and honors, including from Time Out New York and Michelin, before and since. Those spots, and others in the UF canon, have long aimed to “redefine Indian food” to tremendously popular effect. Its latest turns a focus to Filipino cuisine.  Naks opened on First Avenue in the narrow space previously occupied by Jeepney, another Filipino restaurant that operated there from 2012 to 2021, in December. Dhamaka chef Eric Valdez, who helped catapult that hotspot to tremendous success, is chef de cuisine. Valdez taps preparations from his upbringing in Makati, Philippines for the menus. Naks serves an à la carte offering at tight tables around the bar up front, and its kamayan dinner for $135 per person in the larger back dining room. The bill of fare for the latter, multi-item feast can vary, and some of Naks’ buzziest items are available on the former.  The soup no. 5, for example ($19; easily serves two), said to be a suitable hangover remedy, had a brief turn as the talk of the town earlier this winter. The pleasantly viscous broth is buoyant with beef testicle and pizzle, with a low-si

New York City is just rich with restaurant openings. Big, splashy openings with TV-repeat celebrity chefs, intimate neighborhood affairs with quickly-accrued followings that sprawl beyond their geographical boundaries, local hospitality group spots that spin into mini-chains, revivals, out of town arrivals and some that overlap. And, even within that first category, you never know what to expect.  Breeze opened, seemingly quietly, in Greenpoint early last fall. It gained some early local coverage and capsule round-up treatment, but remained more-or-less absent the shattering social media smash some destinations seem to break through right away. That’s the Sichuan restaurant’s first perk: It’s poised just under the radar enough that you can tell your friends, “you might not have heard of this place, but . . .”  You might not have heard of this place, but its hospitality is excellent. Recently arriving on time to a cozy, packed house, parties meeting with glee, and at least one group gathered outside (so somebody’s heard of it) while my date was late (then later and later), I was seated and served a fantastic drink, the Juno ($18), made with a whiskey duo, plum vinegar and lime. It’s a terrific mix of smoky and sweet with half a degree of a welcome medicinal quality like a penicillin. The booze took the edge off of waiting for the rest of my table to arrive, sure, but the unbothered, unrushed nature of the staff sure helped, too.  You might not have heard of this place, but it

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 wait

Ras Plant Based is a true NYC pandemic-era hospitality success story. The Ethiopian-influenced vegan restaurant opened in March of 2020, took the briefest pause due to citywide shutdowns and was back up and running with takeout and delivery by May. The popular spot is a Crown Heights staple, and now, married proprietors Romeo and Milka Regalli are set to open a second Ras Plant Based, this time in Manhattan.  "This second location is a milestone for us,” Milka Regalli is quoted as saying in a press release. “We are thrilled to bring the Ras experience to the West Village to make a positive impact on everyone we serve and change our communities one plate at a time. Our mission is to redefine plant-based dining by offering creative, delicious, and sustainable dishes that inspire people to embrace a more conscious way of eating." An early look at the meat-free menu details a wide array of bowls, each with a base of turmeric brown rice, injera crumble and cilantro, starters like cucumber salad and injera nachos, and tibs, kitfo and dulet among the mains. The Regallis also plan to host events and workshops in the new space, which will feature modern Ethiopian-inspired art among its design details.   "We believe that food is more than just sustenance—it's a source of joy, connection, and nourishment for both body and soul," Romeo Regalli is quoted as saying in the release. "Ras reflects our commitment to providing our guests with not only delicious plant-based dishes but also memor

An auspiciously titled wheel cake spot rolled into New York City this week, with the opening of Money Cake at Tangram food hall in Flushing. It is the first United States location for the Taiwanese brand, which also has a presence in Hong Kong, the Philippines, Malaysia and Montreal.  Money Cake's round treats come in sweet or savory selections. They’re made à la minute with waffle batter and fillings like red bean, taro, and custard-chocolate varieties that also incorporate Ferrero Rocher candies and Oreo cookies. Special, only in New York options will include pepperoni pizza and chicken pesto, with new, rotating flavors each month. Offerings will be limited until April 6, when the full menu becomes available. In a belated opening celebration, on April 6 and 7, customers will also be invited to spin a prize wheel for chances to win Money Cake discounts, gift cards and merchandise.  “As a Taiwanese-American entrepreneur, I am drawn to opportunities that weave together my heritage with the innovation and excitement that comes with entering a new market,” Money Cake partner Michael Hsueh is quoted as saying in a statement. “We are excited to bring traditional Taiwanese wheel cakes to New York City’s most diverse borough—but expect some local New York flavor, too!” Money Cake joins a movie theater, beer hall, and plenty of other food and drink vendors on the sprawling Tangram property.  Money Cake is located on the second floor of the Tangram food hall at 133-33 39th Avenue in Q

A Thai-Indonesian pop-up is coming to terrific Zaab Zaab Talay in Brooklyn next month—by way of Queens. Chef Nigel Sielegar of Queens Night Market favorite Moon Man will join Zaab Zaab executive chef Kannika "Moi" Kittipinyovath for a culinary interlude on April 3 that they’re calling Curries and Skewers.  “The idea behind the special dinner is to celebrate satay–the street food skewers that originated in Indonesia, and have journeyed across Southeast Asia and to become firmly entrenched in Thai street food culture–as well as curries,” a press release reads.  The Brooklyn-Queens collaboration’s menu will include a veritable feast of Ponorogo-style chicken satay, Balinese pork satay and Madura-style coconut beef satay, Isan-style pork intestine skewers, jaew-glazed Southern-style beef tongue skewers with red curry and Bangkok-style pork liver skewers with peanut sauce. An Indonesian Padang-style chicken curry and a Northern-style Thai braised beef shank curry noodle will top tables, too.  “There will also be a surprise dessert that draws on Indonesian and Thai culinary culture,” per the release.  Tickets are $136.10 for two people, after tax but before tip. Each guest will also receive one included cocktail, and additional beverages will be available for purchase. Zaab Zaab Talay is located at 208 Grand Street in Brooklyn. 

Kid-approved Pasta Louise has been delighting folks in famously family-friendly Park Slope since it first opened in 2020. Its success led to a cafe expansion not too far away in 2022, and on Wednesday, March 20, a decidedly grown-up destination will follow with the debut of Bar Louise.  Appealing to wee ones and their minders just makes sense in the area, but owner Allison Arevalo also operates her spots with an ethos of excellence, something her youngest guests might not even notice. That standard will extend to Bar Louise, where the older folks sure will. “We put tremendous effort into hospitality, at both our locations,” Arevalo says via email. “We spend many hours training our staff on the difference between service and hospitality, and what it means to give truly great service. We plan on doing the same at Bar Louise. “Yes, Pasta Louise is a family restaurant, but we excel at giving fine dining service. We also often surprise people with just how fantastic our cocktails and wine list are, and of course, our incredible food,” she adds. “In terms of hospitality, Bar Louise is not a big jump for us. Our guests will still receive the warm, welcoming service they expect from us. The biggest difference, aside from the lack of pasta, will be the lack of kids! I can't tell you how many neighbors have said to me that they were waiting for me to open a grown-up Pasta Louise!” Photograph: Courtesy of Max Flatow This grown-up Louise is cocktail forward, with wine as well, in elega

Chef James Kent is on a culinary marathon at Michelin-starred Crown Shy. One of NYC’s 50 Best restaurants, the lovely, sprawling spot first opened in 2019—the best premiere of that year. For the last few months, Kent, who rose to renown in his earlier role as chef de cuisine at Eleven Madison Park, has been hosting guest chefs some nights at Crown Shy.  Dubbed “Carbo-Load at Crown Shy,” industry pros bring their own menus to Kent’s acclaimed kitchen, followed by a morning sprint with the “Crown High Run Club,” with the visiting chef, the Crown Shy team, and any of the previous evening’s guests who are up for a trot. The title’s cheeky: carbs may or may not be in abundance. And, although Kent’s a marathoner, the run’s just meant to be fun.  “Over the last 20 years, I've had the pleasure to travel the world, cooking in kitchens in Mexico City and Bangkok and Mumbai,” Kent says via email. “I’m grateful to be able to host a handful of my friends for this series. And even more grateful that I've convinced them to run with us. Some required more convincing than others.” On Monday, March 25, Kent will reunite with EMP’s own acclaimed chef-owner Daniel Humm. Kent and Humm, who made waves when he made that fine dining destination plant-based in 2021, will author Crown Shy’s very first fully vegan menu for the occasion. “We’ve slowly but surely introduced more plant-based items to the menu at Crown Shy, but . . . as supportive as I am of Daniel's plant evangelism, I had not planned to

For the last few months, Bessou owner Maiko Kyogoku and chef Elena Yamamoto have been hosting a series of events called The Counter, an intimate pop-up that “honors the homestyle cooking found in obanzaiya, and the women who run these small counter restaurants,” per its booking page. Previous editions have included a feast of the seven fishes and a Japanese American holiday brunch.  The next iteration is in anticipation of the coming spring: A pair of cherry blossom dinner parties taking place at 7pm this Friday, March 15, and Saturday, March 16, at Brooklyn Kura’s sake brewery taproom, with room for just six guests per seating.   View this post on Instagram A post shared by Bessou 別荘 (@bessounyc) Tickets are $88. Menu items will include a rainbow crudo with shrimp, scallop, salmon and ikura, paired with shiso rice, nori and lettuce wraps, duck tsukune, bamboo shoot salad, pickle varieties and black sesame choco tacos. A few “homestyle Japanese small bites” will also be available à la carte, per a press release. Brooklyn Kura’s brews, sake and shochu cocktails, will also be sold separately.  Brooklyn Kura is located at 34 34th Street in Brooklyn. 

If you’ve got just one hour to spare you can still sit down for an omakase experience at this Soho spot.  Kintsugi Omakase on Grand Street started serving its new “lunch rush” special last month after ongoing interest due to Restaurant Week deals, reps say. While its most expensive dinner lineup typically spans two hours across 16 courses for $195, this truncated version includes 12 courses for $60, and takes only an hour. The petite, 10–seat restaurant also offers a boozy, seasonal beverage pairing (three drinks) for an additional $35 throughout the condensed time slots.  Lunch rush menu items will change seasonally, but they might include Arctic char, toro and uni. This spring’s latest updates also feature hotaru ika and buri. Executive chef Victor Chen is somewhat uniquely situated in his focus on local fish, reps say.  “Chef Victor prepares his sushi in the traditional Edomae style, but unlike many other sushi chefs, he does not solely use Japanese ingredients,” a press release reads. “A longstanding relationship with fishmongers allows Kintsugi Omakase to offer locally sourced fish, enabling for a broader selection.” Kintsugi’s lunch rush is available Friday, Saturday and Sunday from noon to 3pm. Kintsugi is located at 28 Grand Street. Reservations are available here.

Last week, a colorful new creation started catching eyes and camera lenses at Settepani Bakery’s location at Time Out Market New York: A croissant topped with surprising, delighting additional confections, and even more sweet secrets hidden inside.  “The Settepani rainbow cookie croissant is the perfect combo of an Italian rainbow cookie and a delicious flakey and buttery croissant,” says pastry chef Bilena Settepani via email.  It’s made similarly to Settepani’s almond croissants, she says, but with additional rainbow cookie batter, even more almond almond paste and raspberry jam at its center. The top of the treat is then dunked in chocolate and crowned with a rainbow cookie.  “It is a sweet and tart explosion,” Settepani says. “It has layers of flavor.” “I stumbled upon videos of the viral le crookie croissant during my commute to work and was inspired to try my hand at creating something similar,” she adds. Given the popularity of our rainbow cookies, especially during March when we feature our special rainbottone [a rainbow panettone], I thought, why not incorporate them into a croissant, like the crookie trend.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Time Out Market New York (@timeoutmarketnewyork) The creation follows a pattern of innovation for Settepani.  “Our bakery has a tradition of bringing a fresh twist to traditional treats,” she says. “In 2020 during the pandemic we did a series called Flavor Friday, where we experimented with unique flav

Four years after Sauced opened in Williamsburg, the low-key, menu-free wine bar will open a second location across the river in the East Village tomorrow.  Like the original, Sauced East Village will also operate without a formal wine list but will serve “a personal lineup based on guests’ preferences for a less intimidating, less conventional, and more exploratory wine experience,” per a press release. A frequently updated reserve roster only available at this location will feature rare vintages.    Photograph: Courtesy of Sabrina Palko Visitors can expect to sip red, white and orange varieties, bubbles and “super-natural” selections. There is a more formal bill of fare by executive chef Quentin Peron, crafted to to accompany those bespoke bottles and pours, with opening items like lobster toast bao, American Wagyu tartare and pomme duchesse with labneh.    Up front, guests can gather around the L-shaped bar where glasses are suspended overhead like practical chandeliers. Like at Sauced 1.0, the area farther back is fitted with a disco ball and all that the iconic indicator of a good time implies: late nights, DJ sets and maybe the opportunity to kick back and get a little . . . you know.  Sauced East Village will open at 47 2nd Street on Tuesday, March 12. It will be open on Fridays from 4pm and Saturdays and Sundays from 3pm.

The ever-growing Eataly empire, which now boasts 50 outposts all over the globe including three in Manhattan, opened its 20,000-square-foot Soho superstore this past November. And on Saturday, March 16, it will serve Eataly's its first-ever NYC brunch.  What will the first brunch menu at any NYC Eataly include? The menu lists an uova benedettine, which stacks a housemade croissant with Italian ham, spinach, poached eggs and hollandaise sauce, a steak and egg dish and tiramisu pancakes. Mimosas, espresso martinis and bloody Marys will number among the drinks.  Eataly Soho’s on-site restaurant (there is also a cafeteria, and of course, a marketplace) is “the anchor experience at Eataly Soho and will be a place of conviviality, with a focus on the icons of Italian gastronomy,” according to a press release issued ahead of the Soho address’s opening last fall. The world’s first Eataly debuted in Italy in 2007. It landed in NYC’s Flatiron District three years later with tons of media attention and public interest in the sprawling space. In addition to the original and its Soho Latest, Eataly also opened a Financial District spot in 2016. Those other dozens of Eatalys operate in 15 countries. Further expansion is planned for the coming years, per the press release.  Eataly Soho is located at 200 Lafayette Street. Brunch service begins on Saturday, March 16. 

New York City restaurant-goers love a little exclusivity. Is a place a pseudo-speakeasy under the S train track bed at Beach 90th Street? Packed. Unspeakably expensive? Overbooked. In any other way enough of a challenge to deliver the one-two punch of a dopamine rush and and a happy hour anecdote once it's achieved? Long may it do business.  Newly opened MARC179’s riff is limiting its operations. Previously Landmarc restaurant for 13 years, chef Marc Murphy spun the location into MM Kitchen Studio, a private event space in 2022. And now Murphy, who also appears as a judge on the Food Network cooking competition show Chopped, has slotted in the limited-time restaurant at the same location, too.  Photograph: Courtesy of MARC179 “It's not necessarily an advantage,” Murphy says via email about the truncated hours, “but a model that I can operate alongside. I'm currently filming the latest season of Chopped, as well as continuing my philanthropy efforts, so being able to open as a restaurant for three days a month allows me to be fully present in the space and kitchen, as well as being able to mingle with guests. Most importantly, it allows me and my team to be really creative and bring new experiences to our guests each month.”  Billed as “a lively neighborhood bistro with a vibrant bar,” MARC179’s menu is Italian and French-influenced. The opening, four-course, $75 prix fixe includes an arugula salad, bucatini cacio e pepe, roasted chicken breast and chocolate mousse. A burnt

After edging toward trend in 2019, listening bars seem to be gaining popularity in New York City once more, and the latest is scheduled to open in Chelsea this weekend. Music For a While unfurls beneath the Selina Chelsea Hotel in Manhattan on Saturday, March 9.  “The concept is a listening experience for those seeking a night out for their senses, something that will provide unparalleled sounds, sights, tastes, and more, with premiere music programming and a carefully crafted cocktail program,” a press release reads.  That experience is bisected into two conceits. The Vinyl Room is Music For a While’s “acoustically optimized” listening area proper, fixed with audio equipment befitting such a conceit, like a custom Hi-Fi sound system.  Photograph: Courtesy of Molly Tavoletti “A wide variety of records, from original 80’s Chicago house vibes to the cutting-edge sounds of Ibiza” are all poised for rotation, a representative said via email. Visitors can also expect “Afrobeats, house, techno, and nostalgic 80s/disco tunes.” The separate Lounge space is Music For a While’s live performance-oriented area, with room for DJs to spin and guests to dance. The whole footprint spans 1,750 square-feet, and each area can accommodate 125 people.  The opening drink menu includes wine, beer, hard seltzer, non-alcoholic options and cocktails like the One Hit Wonder, made with a rum duo, apricot liqueur and cream of coconut. Pop-ins will be accepted in these early days, and the venue plans to