The sleek eatery at the Museum of Modern Art is just as much a masterpiece as the works inside the museum (recently re-imagined and expanded by Japanese architect Yoshio Taniguchi).
The daily rotating tasting menu offers nine courses, including “oysters and pearls,” a dish of oysters, tapioca, and caviar, foie gras with white peaches, and duck with sweet plums. Read more.
Follow the line of taxi drivers parked outside and you'll discover flavorful veggie dishes like chana (chickpeas), fat samosas (stuffed savory pastries) topped with lentils - both for a whopping $2 Read more.
Jing Fong’s at its busiest around 11:30am, and it’s best to go a bit earlier to avoid the lines. Keep in mind that this is a lunch-oriented restaurant – it gets a bit desolate later in the day. Read more.
This English-style gastropub feels as authentic as any you'd find in the Old Blighty, except for the Manolo-heeled crowd at the bar. Read more.
The design scheme recalls a Roman trattoria (glass cases enclose meats and cheeses), all set by a park that’s a visual treat any season.
Try the Blackberry Press (house-made belvedere limoncello, crème de mure, and fresh lemon, topped with Moët champagne and garnished with sage leaf); Read more.
This La Guardia-era market is one of the few remnants of the rapidly gentrifying Lower East Side.
Try their Bloody Marys and buttery, steak-like burgers, while more sophisticated dishes (think whole dorade with mushrooms in a white wine sauce and goat cheese tarts) Read more.
Appetizers and pies (served uncut with a crispy, wood-fired crust) are created with homemade, locally-sourced ingredients: the delicious pancetta, from a small farm in Iowa, is cured in-house. Read more.
Try the Honey Dip glazed yeast donut or the moist, indulgent Bavarian Crème and you’ll never set foot in the commercial likes of a Krispy Kreme or Dunkin’ Donuts again. Read more.
Breakfast menu features sweet and fluffy homemade biscuits, stone-ground South Carolina grits, country ham, and scrapple from an organic New Jersey farm Read more.
Each host practices a different specialty – from professional bartending to pastry making, and all enjoy serving eclectic, unusual ingredients (think bear and python).
The menu changes daily, but retains a focus on high-end, contemporary Italian cuisine like cod and tortellini served in a prosciutto broth, and lasagna made with a veal, beef, and pork ragu. Read more.
Reservations are hard to come by – making the more casual Next Door Nobu a good standby option with a like-minded menu and first-come, first-serve seating.
For less than $5, you’ll get a pita-full of schwarma, deliciously creamy baba ghannouj, and falafel that’s cooked just right (crunchy on the outside, fluffy and moist on the inside).
Down shots of homemade infused vodka (there are over a dozen varieties, like cranberry, tarragon, and garlic) and authentic borsht at this personality-packed joint. Read more.
The menu, featuries comforting new American fare. Reservations aren’t accepted, so come prepared to knock elbows with a hungry crowd. Read more.
The daily selection of up to 16 kinds of fresh oysters goes for around $2.50 each – though there’s a “happy hour and a half” each day from 5:30 to 7pm when East Coast oysters go for just $1 a pop.
