Rachel Pelz

A milkshake is one of life’s simple pleasures. Many shops serve the treat as traditional as it comes, but the very best spots prove just how much magic can be spun from the classic, crowd-pleasing combo of ice cream and milk. All across the city, you’ll find versions at old-school diners, over-the-top creations blended with slices of cake from the city’s best bakeries and ice cream shops that know their way around swirls of soft serve and other cream, dreamy desserts.  At counters all over the city, expect playful milkshakes that highlight house-made flavors, showcase small-batch production and tell the stories of the families who first created them. Whether you’re team chocolate, vanilla, licorice or durian, there’s a shake somewhere in New York City that will hit the spot. September 29, 2025: Colder weather has never kept New Yorkers from chasing down a good milkshake. This fall, lean into local scoop shops’ autumnal flavors like Ample Hills’ Falling for Pumpkin, made with Libby’s pumpkin puree, marshmallow swirl and cinnamon cone pieces. It’s a cozy seasonal shake made for those of us still clinging to the dog days of summer. Whether you’re warming up inside a diner booth or strolling brisk city blocks with a shake in hand, the humble milkshake is a treat worth sipping all year long.

The West Village is one of the busiest, buzziest dining neighborhoods in New York City. Along with the latest wave of impossible-to-get-into openings, it’s home to some of the city’s most storied restaurants. Cafés with decades of Manhattan history, Michelin-starred fine dining restaurants and some of the best bakeries in NYC are joined by a constant stream of exciting newcomers, each trying to impress the seen-it-all neighborhood with inventive menus and in-demand tables.  This fall, stop by for a casual brunch on a sunny sidewalk, a big bowl of pasta at one of the best Italian restaurants in NYC, or late-night cocktails while you watch the sun rise. It’s a neighborhood where some of the city’s best cheap eats and high-end tasting menus happily coexist. While we might have to wait until reservations drop at midnight to taste the newest West Village restaurants, the ever-changing nature of the neighborhood will always keep us coming back.  RECOMMENDED: The best restaurants in NYC right now September 25, 2025: Is there a better place for Leather Weather than the West Village? Slip on your sweater, sip a spritz and eat your way through the seasonal menus that are shaking up the scene. We’re highlighting a few new spots, including a romantic Spanish restaurant and a Georgian restaurant serving ​​up khachapuri and khinkalis, alongside the neighborhood legends that still define dinner in the Village.   

Find your new favorite spot for a morning iced coffee or an afternoon matcha at these coffee shops, cafes and bakeries. They don’t just serve classic lattes and cappuccinos (although they do make some of the best in the city), they also serve incredible cocktails, breakfast sandwiches that rival the best bodega BEC, and coffee drinks made with inventive ingredients like sweet durian and boba. Carve a few minutes out on your morning commute or make a special trip to try the latest colorful drink that’s blowing up on the ‘gram—these are the 16 best coffee shops in NYC right now. RECOMMENDED: The best restaurants in NYC to book right now September 2025: For us, coffee shops are so much more than just a place to get bean water in a cup. Coffee spells community, especially in our concrete jungle, where third spaces are far and few between. In that vein, we added a new number one spot to the list that effortlessly blends lifestyle, coffee and community into one: Harlem's The Oma Shop II Coffee+ Lifestyle. Following suit with the motto "We don’t serve coffee, we serve community," Flatbush's Lips Cafe also made the list. The Danish coffee import with those cardamom buns, La Cabra, also made the list, as did the newly christened coffee shop located inside the Chrysler Building, WatchHouse. And, for fine coffee that still stays within our budget, we found one of the cheapest cups in the city at Casasalvo. We removed East One Coffee Roasters as it closed. We also removed Alita Cafe, Bl

In Chinatown, you’ll find beloved institutions serving up dim sum as they’ve always made it. On the next block, you might find a new café serving Ovaltine French toast with a teddy bear bobbing in your milk tea. That’s the beauty of the neighborhood: it’s equal parts tradition and reinvention. Along Pell and Mott Streets, you’ll find some of the best new restaurants in NYC alongside the dumpling houses and dim sum palaces that have been around for generations. Check out a brand-new spot serving the traditional noodles traditions of northwestern China; a cafe where you can order supersized wontons; and a wine bar that nods to the city’s best French food as well as your favorite Chinese restaurant.  Whether you’re looking for a quick steamed snack, a multi-hour dim sum session full of bustling carts or a late-night noodle fix, our 10 favorite restaurants in New York’s Chinatown have got you covered.  September 2025: As cooler weather starts to set in, we’re heading back to our favorite hot pot shops and noodle spots again. (Of course, it’s still warm enough for shaved ice and a cold glass of white wine at a Chinatown wine bar…)  Learn more about how we curate and review at Time Out.

Soho might be one of the most photographed neighborhoods in NYC, but don’t let the vibes fool you—it’s so much more than just cobblestone streets and celeb sightings. These blocks are home to some of the best restaurants in NYC, where beloved French brasseries and cafes that existed before electricity can still manage to surprise you. Find your new favorite cocktail bar serving up artsy drinks, stand in line at one of the most iconic, innovative bakeries in NYC or just put on your cutest microskort and have brunch on the patio with your fellow TikTokers. Start your morning in Soho with a hot bagel, grab some destination pasta for lunch and then take your pick from the freshest seafood for dinner. If you know where to look, Soho isn’t just a playground for nepo babies—it rewards the hungry and the curious, too.  August 2025: As summer starts to wind down, Soho’s dining scene is still spilling onto the streets with post-gallery Aperol spritzes, late-night (or early morning) meals and a few fresh openings that already feel like they might have legs. Our latest picks range from a gallery-slash-restaurant to a seafood spot offering what’s shaping up to be one of the best new happy hours in the city.  Time Out has also instituted a sitewide change in review policies. All food and drink venues included in guides now have star ratings, with five stars corresponding to “amazing,” four to “great” and three to “good,” and we’ve also standardized how most listings are structured. For mo

New York’s Upper East Side may be known for its quiet luxury and hushed museums, but don’t let its calm exterior fool you. Filled with both fine dining restaurants and surprisingly affordable eats, it’s one of NYC’s most exciting food destinations. Take a stroll through the tree-lined blocks and you’ll find some of the world’s best cocktail bars, laidback burger joints where everybody knows your name and what’s probably the highest concentration of excellent omakase anywhere in the five boroughs.  So wander through a world-class museum or two, then grab a laidback lunch before moving on to your next destination. Whether you’re in the mood for a twist on classic French food, sushi from a beloved neighborhood institution or just a place to toast to the city with a cocktail or two, you'll find it all within a few blocks. July 2025: Summer always slows down uptown, and that’s good news for anyone trying to score a reservation. With the city’s record-breaking heat driving locals to their summer houses (or just into the A/C), tables at buzzy spots are suddenly a little more in reach. You might still have to wait in line at Bemelmans or fight for a reservation at Chez Fifi, but you’re sure to find a new warm-weather fave or score at a table at a well-loved spot that—much like a classic six on Lex—never goes out of style.   How we curate and review at Time Out

Little Italy technically occupies just three blocks of Mulberry Street. Still, its best-in-the-world pizzerias, Italian restaurants and charming bakeries filled with some of New York’s best cookies, cannoli and cheesecake still inspire all of New York City’s culinary imagination. The spirit of the neighborhood’s immigrant roots spills into nearby Nolita, Soho and Chinatown, where you can still get a taste of New York City as it used to be—and the New York of the future.  Little Italy institutions like Ferrara, where the lines stretch around the block to try a cannoli; Parisi, whose fresh bread and big-as-your-head sandwiches are the thing lunch dreams are made of; and Lombardi’si pizzeria, where the first pizza ever made in the United States was pulled out of the oven, have been around for over a hundred years. Now, they’re joined by newcomers dishing up pizza as reimagined by Eleven Madison Park alums and even a Thai diner slinging fries dripping with coconut milk and massaman curry. Whether you’re looking for a place to sip a strong espresso or smash a late-night pie with clams and parsley, we’ve scoured Mott Street to bring you the best of the best of the beloved neighborhood.  July 2025: It’s peak tourist season in NYC, which means the lines are long, the sidewalks are crowded, and the double-decker buses just keep coming. Just remember your mantra: it’s a pizza “crawl,” not a pizza race. This year brought Ceres to the scene, which reimagines all the classic ingredients (

The hot dog is right up there with a slice of pizza as one of NYC’s most iconic street foods. Traditionally served along the beach in Coney Island and from late-night street vendors to seekers of cheap eats, the humble frankfurter has increasingly been found on high-end menus across the city. It’s also been reimagined by chefs at Mexican restaurants and cocktail bars, where they add exciting ingredients to the traditional snack. Here in New York, you can find chili cheese dogs, Chicago dogs with spicy sport peppers and, of course, the classic New York dog you’re craving. Whether you’re looking to try the newest fad or want a taste of tradition, we’ve rounded up the 15 very best hot dogs in NYC.  RECOMMENDED: Full guide to the best restaurants in NYC July 2025: We removed Feltman's and Huerta's as they have closed. We also removed Dickson's Farmstand Meats, Frankel's, Kings of Kobe Jongro Rice Hot Dog, Mile End Deli, Lilistar and Portrait Bar. We added Mortiz. 

Whether you’re after amazing views of the New York skyline, an ocean breeze off the beach or a happy hour with your favorite co-workers that feels like a mini vacation, head to one of the best waterfront restaurants in NYC. You can go super nautical and have a drink on a boat bar or take a dinner cruise, or DIY it and grab some cheap eats to have a romantic picnic on a park bench along the shoreline. Our favorite way to celebrate summer in the city is to make a reservation at one of the city’s very best restaurants along the waterfront—whether it’s on the Hudson River, the East River or overlooking the Atlantic Ocean—and remind ourselves that New York is, believe it or not, surrounded by water. We’ve rounded up the best waterfront restaurants in NYC right now to eat, drink and enjoy the New York shoreline and skyline. RECOMMENDED: The best restaurants in New York

Looking for a dinner reservation with a view? While NYC has some of the best rooftop bars and restaurants and plenty of amazing waterfront dining options, nothing can beat a NYC dinner cruise for an up-close glimpse of the Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, Brooklyn Bridge and more of the Big Apple's skyline icons. A summer sunset in New York is made for toasting to friends and families on boat bars, and we’ve rounded up the very best ways to set sail this season. Choose from casual buffet meals, a five-course plated dinner with dancing and formal wear on a luxury yacht, or even a DIY dinner on the (totally free!) Staten Island Ferry—the best dinner cruises in NYC are the ideal way to enjoy the Hudson River, East River and New York Harbor. With tickets at every price point, you can celebrate happy hour with your co-workers, book a special family adventure with a meal that rivals NYC’s best restaurants or even pop the question against the breathtaking backdrop of Gotham at night.  This article includes affiliate links. These links have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, click here.

Mother’s Day is this Sunday, May 11—have you booked a table to celebrate Mom yet? In addition to treating her to a massage and a facial during a relaxing spa day, a night spent in absolute peace and quiet at one of the best hotels in NYC or a beautiful bouquet of delivered flowers to her doorstep, make sure to take her out for mimosas and a mile-high stack of pancakes at one of the best brunch spots in NYC.  Whether your mom likes to keep it casual with cheap eats or go all out with a fine dining experience to remember, she’ll appreciate being celebrated by you and the rest of the fam. From cutting-edge sushi counters to elegant, mom-approved French restaurants, these are some of the best prix fixe and a la carte brunches in NYC for Mother’s Day 2025. All you have to do is make a reservation and pick up a box of chocolates on your way to keep the title of “Best Kid Ever” for another year. RECOMMENDED: Full guide to Mother’s Day in NYC.

Every cuisine has its own take on the delicious dumpling: there's plump Chinese jiaozi, Polish pierogi, Korean mandu, Uyghur manty, the Italian ravioli. Stuffed with meat, seafood or veggies inside a layer of tender dough and then dipped into sauce, they’re one of the most transcendently satisfying foods to eat at any meal. We love them served via carts at lunchtime at NYC’s best dim sum restaurants, served on a turntable at a family-style dinner at a Chinatown restaurant or even dipped in butter along the boardwalks of Brighton Beach.  Whether you’re planning a weekend-long dumpling crawl or just want to pinpoint the exact location of New York’s biggest xiao long bao, these are the very best NYC has to offer. Clear your calendar and get ready to eat your way through translucent tapioca bánh bột lọc and crispy fried dollar dumplings. Don’t forget to bring your straw—you’re gonna need it for those soup dumplings!

Spudz Slope comes from the team behind SYKO, the Syrian-Korean mashup spot known for its Fatboy bulgogi sandwiches and falafel pizza, a scallion pancake loaded with labneh, falafel, cucumber kimchi and herbs. This hole-in-the-wall just off Prospect Park West is entirely dedicated to two things you never knew belonged together: loaded baked potatoes and milkshakes. It’s a mini restaurant with big energy, pulling influences from across the globe and putting them squarely in sleepy Park Slope. The vibe: Just like SYKO, the space is teeny and made for takeout. Think grab-and-go lunches, park picnics and snack runs.  The food: A chopped cheese potato loaded with beef and onions nods to Spudz’s New York heritage, while the bulgogi spud topped with thinly sliced beef, kimchi and bibimbap carries the flavors of Korea.  The drinks: Why wouldn’t you pair a baked potato with a milkshake? Classic chocolate and strawberry banana are on the menu, but the standout is the baklava shake, a riff on the Middle Eastern dessert made with honey and pistachios. Time Out tip: Not many neighborhood spots stay open late, so if you’ve spent a couple of hours at the bar around the corner, go ahead and grab yourself a spud—they’re open until two o’clock in the morning on Friday and Saturday.

The menu at Aokō Matcha knows that matcha is way more than just a latte. The café, from first-time owner Isabella Pang, is an ode to Japanese specialty shops, serving up five levels of matcha gelato, from lightly sweet to a verdant ceremonial-grade treat, plus soft serve, parfaits and frappes. The vibe: Bright, sleek, and designed for discovery, Aokō is part tasting room and part café. The West Village storefront has a clean aesthetic that puts the focus on the striking shades of green inside. It’s a spot built for both casual walk-ins and TikTok-fueled destination seekers. The food: The star is the “five-shade” gelato tasting, which lets you work your way through all levels of matcha intensity. Beyond that, there are soft serves, hojicha, warabimochi-topped parfaits and other treats made to highlight the nuances of matcha.  The drinks: Start with a straightforward matcha latte to see what they can do with your favorite morning pick-me-up, or sweeten it up with mixed-in strawberries or drizzled-on chocolate.  Time Out tip: Tasting all five levels of matcha with a “flight” is the fastest way to figure out your perfect matcha. (Plus, now you’ll know exactly what “ceremonial grade” should taste like.) 

This new scoop shop, which opened on Clinton Street in the summer of 2025, uses milk and cream from upstate New York and makes every one of its flavors in small batches in Manhattan. The menu skews mostly classic, with favorites like Rocky Road and Cookies and Cream, but you can also expect over-the-top treats made for modern mouths (and eyes), like the Otis, stacked on a big chocolate chip cookie base, drenched with salted caramel sauce and then topped off with whipped cream and a cherry.  The vibe: The slim, unfussy shop is hung with family photos, and the cozy counter has just enough room to sit elbow-to-elbow with your neighbors.  The food: All of the flavors are made with cream and milk from upstate New York, and every small batch is made right here in Manhattan. The drinks: You can sip on a milkshake spun from any flavor of ice cream and syrup, or go for the MB, which blends orange sherbet and creamy vanilla into a Creamsicle-like treat.  Time Out tip: The scoop shop is named for the owner’s mother, and many of her faves have made it onto the menu—go for the classic banana split in her honor.

The team behind Ernesto’s has gone underground with Bartolo, a subterranean Madrid-style taverna built for long nights lingering over tapas and Spanish wine. Chef Ryan Bartlow leans on his years spent cooking in Spain, turning out a menu with hits including anchovies on pan de cristal, oxtail braised in red wine and whole roasted suckling lamb. The room is richly layered with dark wood and marble, making it feel like you’ve stepped back into the old world. It’s a family project, run alongside his wife and sister-in-law, and the warmth shows. If the Lower East Side Ernesto’s is Bartlow’s Basque love letter, Bartolo is his ode to Madrid: soulful and built for sharing. The vibe: Low ceilings, stone and wood give the place a lived-in feel. The snug six-seat bar is the most romantic spot, but the two distinct dining rooms also offer an intimate place to share small plates.  The food: Start with tapas—anchovies, fried shrimp and Iberico ham are hits here—then share salads, a chilled salmorejo soup and bacalao with peppers and tomato.  The drinks: The wine list is nearly entirely Spanish, including some rare finds you won’t see elsewhere in New York. Look for the Vino de Pasto, unfortified “pasture wines” from the traditional land of sherry.  Time Out tip: If you really want to do Bartolo right, preorder the suckling pig or lamb. They’ll need two weeks’ notice, but nothing else captures the tavern spirit better than an entire pig delivered to your table. 

Restaurateur Gurami Oniani has brought his Georgian restaurant empire from Tbilisi and Moscow to NYC. At the heart of the menu are khachapuri and khinkali—Georgia’s most famous dishes, a cheesy, crispy bread and hand-pinched dumplings—prepared by chefs who have made them their specialty. The open kitchen keeps the craft front and center, while the Georgian wines (try one aged in qvevri, an ancient Georgian wine-making technique) and chacha-based cocktails round out the experience. The vibe: Between the glow of the open kitchen and the hum around the big communal table, the room nods to Georgia’s winemaking heritage and culture of toasts and feasting.  The food: Try a khachapuri, the satisfying cheese brightened with mint, and khinkali, which arrive steaming through their signature twisted tops. The Mother Khinkali—a giant dumpling opened tableside to reveal six smaller dumplings inside—steals the show every time.  The drinks: The wine list dives deep into Georgia’s 8,000-year-old tradition of winemaking, so ask your servers to steer you towards a bottle you’ll love. Cocktails lean on chacha, the country’s fiery brandy, which might just be your new favorite spirit.  Time Out tip: Be polite—skip the fork. The Georgian way to eat khinkali is to grab the dumpling by its twisted top, bite a hole in the side and sip the hot broth before finishing it off. Leave the small doughy knob on your plate, as that’s how locals keep score of how many they’ve taken down. 

At 86 Bedford, the former home of Chumley’s pub—once a storied haunt of the Beat poets and downtown’s bohemian set—has been fussed and glossed into a buzzy room designed to see and be seen in. The Eighty Six is serving straightforward, easy-to-love steakhouse fare with an unmistakable Catch Hospitality Group twist. (They’re folks who brought you Catch and the always-packed Corner Store, so expect caviar, a raw bar and American fare like a New York strip steak.) If you’re not that hungry, stop by for a bar snack and to see what’s new in the storied Chumley’s spot—we like the potato croquettes with caviar and sardine toast on olive sourdough. A short wine-by-the-glass menu keeps it super simple if you’d like to pair your house-aged steak with a solid Chianti or Cabernet Sauvignon.  The vibe: Rumor has it that the restaurant phrase “86” originated at Chumley’s when a patron had to be shown the door. 86d, then, is your chance of walking and getting a table without a reservation, as E.E. Cummings did so many times before you.  The food: Approachable, indulgent food like a “colossal” shrimp cocktail, a porterhouse for two served with marrow bones and a whole roasted lobster dripping with pink peppercorn lemon butter. The drinks: Go classic-ish with an olive oil old fashioned and an espresso martini made with salted vanilla, or go full tilt into 2025 with a tomato water negroni and a marg made with melon and “fluffy” pineapple.  Time Out tip: The fourteen-day dry-aged deckle, an out

Maxi’s, the Flushing-born favorite once crowned the top Chinese restaurant in the U.S., has set up shop on Mott Street—and the buzz (and the line) hasn’t let up since. The new Chinatown outpost delivers everything Maxi’s Noodle 1 and 2 superfans love: broths simmered for hours, noodles with the perfect boing and gigantic dumplings just begging to get put on your feed. The space runs casual and communal—don’t be surprised if you end up shoulder-to-shoulder with a stranger—but the payoff is quick, comforting and deeply satisfying. The vibe: Bustling in the best way. Come ready for fast-moving lines, elbow-to-elbow tables and steaming bowls flying out of the kitchen. Maybe your new friend at the table beside you will offer to share some of their dumplings… The food: Hong Kong–style noodle soup made to order, with giant wontons, rich dace fish balls, melt-in-your-mouth beef stew and extras like eggs or crispy fish skin that melts magically into the broth. The drink: Go for a Hong Kong-style milk tea and coffee or a cold glass of purple-pink lemon ribena.  Time Out tip: Frozen dumplings and wontons are sold by the dozen (plus their signature red chili oil), so you can stock your freezer and flex at your next dinner party. 

These hand-pulled noodles bring a little theater to Chinatown’s dining scene. At 1915 Lanzhou Hand Pulled Noodles and Dumplings, the chefs pull the noodles into thin, regular, thick, thicker, wide, extra wide and prism shapes right before your eyes. Once they’re done, they’re dropped into a broth that’s been simmering for hours, then finished with daikon and a generous portion of dark chili oil.  The vibe: Come for the spectacle, stay for the meal. Watching noodles pulled in the open kitchen seems like the main event—but only until you take the first bite of your bouncy noodles.  The food: Noodles come in a huge variety of widths (from hair-thin to wide ribbons to triangular “prism” cuts), each resulting in a different mouthfeel. Dumplings, served in red chili oil or pan-fried to crisp on the outside, soft on the inside perfection, are not to be missed.  The drink: No-frills teas and soft drinks keep the focus squarely on the noodles. Time Out tip: Skip the “regular” noodles and go for broke. Triangular Lanzhou prism noodles—with their three springy ridges built to grip sauce—are a marvel of both gluten and geometry.

Lei brings a rare intimacy to bustling Doyers Street. The made-for-date-night space, from Annie Shi (beverage director at Soho’s beloved King) and Patty Lee (formerly of Mission Chinese), feels both new and totally timeless—like a neighborhood fave that’s been there all along. The wine list is deep and wide (it’s over 25 pages), but the short, tight menu is made to match it. Soy-braised short ribs, sticky with strawberry jam; crispy fried whiting; and flaky shao bing cut with cold butter make it the sort of place where a “quick glass” can easily turn into an entire evening. The vibe: A cozy hideaway where things can quickly turn romantic, Lei has just 24 seats (if it’s crowded, you can always stand while you munch on your siu mai), a staggering wine list and flickering candles. The food: The small plates here punch well above their weight, but you’ll also be satisfied if grabbing drinks turns into grabbing dinner. Go for the cat’s ear noodles, which are hand-rolled and served covered in herbs.  The drink: A twenty-plus-page wine list featuring Chinese producers and tons of easy-drinkers. Time Out tip: Forget scrolling the wine list like it’s homework—just tell the sommelier what you’re in the mood for, then let them take the wheel. Odds are you’ll end up with a bottle you’ll still be thinking about tomorrow.

Tucked inside the stylish Manner Hotel, The Otter is a restaurant worth walking through a lobby for. On the menu, seafood reigns—the Otter Dirty Martini is made with salted brine and oyster, and even the rolls come with butter that tastes like bouillabaisse. Surf and turf with a New York strip and sea scallops or gulf shrimp can be had for about a hundred bucks, but we'd rather make our way through the raw bar's delights, then order a few fish tacos or a plate of littleneck clams served with lemon, garlic and meltaway-thin fideo.  The vibe: Off the beaten path—but still right in the middle of Soho—it's an easy table to score. The Manner Hotel is upscale, so expect some eyepopping outfits along with the regular downtown denizens cracking open their lobster claws.  The food: Start with the seafood platter of oysters, shrimp, razor clams and halibut ceviche and an order of warm rolls and a trio of butters. By the time you've finished your martini, you'll be hungry for more: for heartier fare, opt for the fish and chips (made with rich, sweet Spanish mackerel), or go light with steamed halibut further refreshed by cucumbers and mint.  The drink: The cocktail menu is adorably on the nose (the aforementioned oyster martini, along with the Seaspray Sour and Citrus Sail are certainly seaworthy). Still, it might be more fun to pair your fish and chips or tacos with a bucket of cold Narragansetts.  Time Out tip: At cocktail hour, score a double cheeseburger with cheddar and pickles for

This art gallery-slash-restaurant is peak Soho: a space where serious art meets the artists who love to eat. Bronze spiders by Louise Bourgeois crawl the walls, an enchanting site-specific chandelier by Mika Rottenberg glitters overhead and a long communal table is literally a sculpture. The space was imagined by the art dealers behind the Hauser & Wirth galleries (feel free to stop by before or after dinner, as it’s just around the corner), while the menu is helmed by Sean Froedtert, who brings a seasonal American sensibility that fits right in with Soho’s existing dining scene.  The vibe: Manuela feels like the dinner party your nepo baby friend would throw: simple, satisfying food with stunning art that you’re a little afraid to be so close to. The crowd leans towards the art world, so dress to impress. You’ll be rubbing shoulders with collectors, editors, artists and every who’s-who in the downtown NYC art scene.  The food: Simple, modern and seasonal, with a menu that doesn’t offer many ways to go wrong. The half chicken, from the local Snowdance Farm upstate, is excellent, as are the truly satisfying biscuits with salty country ham and sweet, savory Steen’s butter.  The drink: If you’d guess there was an “Art Basil” cocktail on the menu, well, you’d be right. Don’t be afraid to order it—it’s punchy, herbaceous and as fun to drink as the rest of the pun-light menu.  Time Out tip: In a temple of high art, it’s important to stay grounded. During happy hour, which runs from

With the reopening of the Frick Collection comes its first-ever restaurant, the Westmoreland. Named for museum founder Henry Clay Frick’s private railway car, the cafe is as luxurious and opulent as the gilded mansion that houses it. With just 50 seats and a menu featuring well-worn museum cafe hits like a tuna nicoise salad with potatoes and haricots verts, poached trout and a crustless club sandwich, this is precisely the elevated, straightforward spot you need to rest after a day spent among the art.  Sip a cocktail inspired by Frick’s Cocktails with a Curator series, a pandemic-era hit where pieces from the closed museum were paired with a drink by the museum’s curator. You’ll find classics on the bar menu, too, like a bubbly French 75 and a no-frills daiquiri.  In a neighborhood where new influencer faves join old-school classics like Bemelmans and J.G. Melon, Westmoreland fuses the two elegantly, with avocado toast with pistachio butter happily joining chicken milanese on the menu—what more would you expect from the new home of some of the city’s most spectacular Old Master paintings and Renaissance sculptures?    The vibe: Old (like, Renaissance old) money meets new school vibes with custom murals and viral cocktails.  The food: Straightforward classics for the ladies, gentlemen and everyone else who lunch: club sandwiches, Caesar salad and chocolate mousse.  The drink: Familiar cocktails (made YouTube famous) done right.  Time Out tip: A museum admission to the Frick