Visiting NYC soon, any recommended restaurants?

Question

We will be staying near Central Park, and wanted to visit some restaurants that are fun. There are no children going (yippee), so theme is not necessarily important. Trendy and fun would be great. And thank you soooo much.

Answer 1

1. Patsy's- Italian- fantastic
2. One if by Land, Two if by Sea- contemporary- great- very romantic
3. Spark's- steak and seafood
4. Daniel- French- romantic
5. Le Bernadin- French- romantic
6. Gramercy Tavern- contemporary
7. The River Cafe- contemporary- very romantic
8. Savoy- contemporary- romantic
9. Rosa Mexicana- Mexican
10. The Ocean Club- fish and seafood
11. The Sea Grill- fish and seafood- overlooks the skating rink in Rockefeller Plaza- romantic
12. The Palm- steak and seafood
13. Angelo's in Little Italy- Italian
14. SPQR- Italian located in Little Italy
15. Smith and Wollensky- steak and seafood
16. Giambelli's- Italian
17. Becco- Italian
18. The Four Seasons- contemporary- very good
19. Bouley- French
20. Katz Deli- a must!
21. Sarge's Deli
22. P.J. Clark's on 3rs Avenue- casual- celebrities and sports figures dine here at night but sometimes late!
23. J.G. Melon's- contemporary
24. Elaine's- contemprorary- celebrities dine here after the plays let out.
25. Joe Allen's- contemporary- celebrities dine here at night after the plays let out. make a reservation for a table in the bar area. the entrance and exit door is located here.
26. The Rainbow Room- contemporary- orchestra music- dancing- great view
27. IL Malino- Italian- John Gotti and many celebrities eat here- very hard to get a reservation- ask your hotel concierge to help if you are interested
28. Tavern on the Green- MAKE A RESERVATION FOR THE CRYSTAL ROOM ONLY- contemporary
29. Home- located in the village- contemporary
30.Orso- contemporary/Italian- television celebrities frequent this restaurant!
make reservations well in advance
check dress code and menu prices
enjoy!!!!!!!!!!!!!
all of the above are great!

Answer 2

I can tell you some restaurants I miss...
Miyagi--Great little known Japanese restaurant on 13th street btwn 7th and 8th Ave. Their sukiyaki is soooo yummy.
Galaxy--on Irving Place between 15th and 16th. I miss the Turkey bacon blt on great bread.
Blue Moon Cafe--Great different Mexican food down the street from where I lived :( -- on 8th Ave. between 18th and 17th st. Great thai chicken burrito.
Also, there's an Indian restaurant on the corner of 8th Ave and 18th st. that had really good Nan bread and Mango latti ( I think that's the word) drinks.

And I worked at a couple of trendy places I miss some of the food.

Penang in SoHo. Order the calamari appetizer and the Roti canni and the Peanut dessert YUMMY. Fun atmosphere. Pretty popular.

The Coffee Shop in union square -- I do miss the sesame chicken salad and the french fries. Also makes the best Caipirinha ever. Very trendy. People get mad because they leave the front tables empty (by the windows) so they can fill them with very attractive people. But if the outside patio is open (which is unlikely in winter) it's a great place to people watch.

Have fun and eat LOTS. I'm jealous.

Answer 3

There are tons of great restaurants in the city - which can make it a daunting task when making choices. Here are some tried and true favorites you may find helpful.
New York magazine also just listed a new site with menus- someone else also listed the menupages which is very helpful. I also listed websites.
Orsay at 75th and Lexington is as close to a Parisian restaurant as one gets.
If you like meat and are adventurous- try Churrascaria Plataforma is a great fun place and a real experience if you have never eaten at a rodizio.
Angus McIndoe neat the theater district is solid can't miss food at reasonable prices for NYC.
the Turkish Kitchen has great food and also reasonably priced - with great atmosphere and service
Iguana on 54th near Broadway has great Mexican food, table side made guacamole and mojitos and margaritas that will help make a great party.
Noho Star is fun place with great brunch.
Pellgrinos in Little Italy is a consistently on the mark and has great lunch specials- check out the reviews in Yahoo!travel

Answer 4

Well the fun & exciting restaurants are generally downtown. You should try the Meat Packing District. There are Buddakan (asian fusion-ish), Spice Market (Jean Georges Street Thai food), Fatty Crab (malaysian), Del Posto (mario batali italian) and STK (so- trendy-it-hurts-steakhouse). Make sure you call ahead to get reservations or else it is impossible to get in or try www.opentable.com. I've been to those above and they are mega-restaurants, think huge spaces, some stunning and some overdone. Check out the Spotted Pig while you are here, awesome gourmet pub food. If you're in the East Village, check out The Elephant (really nice thai-fusion food) & Lucien (old new york favorite bistro). Most restaurants in the downtown area except Meat Packing are generally small-ish and cramp but I guess that's the charm of eating in new york. Do not go to lucky chengs like someone suggested because it is a horrible tourist trap (has some of the ugliest & meanest trannies I've come upon) that has absolutely no merit whatsoever & for some strange reason a group of really drunk girls are always outside when I walk past it (I doubt they make for fun neighbors). I think the best thing they serve there is a soggy chicken chop, trust me I know I have the bad fortune of working there for one night years ago. Check out www.menupages.com for user reviews, menus, and etc. Have fun!!!

Answer 5

Since you will be near Central Park, you HAVE to go to Jean Georges, for lunch would be great. The food is wonderful. Also, on the UES, Cafe Boulud is very good as well as romantic. If you want to go to a lounge, go to the Husdon Hotel on 59th. There is no sign outside, just a really cool green light. (Located next to the Time Warner Building.)

The best Italian by far is Mario Batali's numerous locations. Babbo is my favorite, but when we can't get a reservation we head over to Lupa on Thompson St. in the village.

Also for lucnh, go to the Meatpacking District. Trendy place to walk around and have dinner or lunch at Pastis.

If you want to drop some cash and have the most amazing meal in Manhattan, go to La Grenouille. Jackie Kennedy was a frequnet diner here when she was alive. The room, flowers, service, and the food will leave you speechless.

Pylos and Thalassa are pretty terrific for Greek food. Mid-range priced. High end Greek would be Milos.

Delfrisco's is a great steakhouse on 49th. The steak will melt in your mouth.

Jacque's is fairly resaonable for lunch and the food is very good. We usually frquent the uptown location.

Esca is very good for seafood. Also, Mary's Fish Camp in the West Village had the BEST lobster rolls in the city.


You can google these places and find the menus to see if you would like them. I believe "LOU" above posted a long list of really pathetic and TOURISTY places. Yuck..save your $$$ and time, unless you like being ripped off for horrible food!


Enjoy your stay!

Answer 6

If you like Mexican you must try Rosa Mexicana...They make the guacamole fresh tableside and they are famous for their wonderful margaritas...the food is outstanding:)

If you have a sweet tooth you wont want to miss Serendipity 3...it's been in a lot of movies and is fun for all ages...they are famous for their frozen hot chocolate but they have many more yummy desserts.

The Best Breakfast Hands down is Sarabeths and there are 3 locations around the ity...there is one on Amsterdam which isn't far from Central Park.

Enjoy!!!!

Answer 7

You can definitely search menupages for reviews and menus by location. I'm not sure if you'll be on the east or west side, but here's some on the west side that are affordable:

Deluxe is casual, american, really good for brunch/lunch as well.
http://menupages.com/restaurantdetails.asp?areaid=0&restaurantid=788&neighborhoodid=0&cuisineid=0


If you like live music, Dizzy's coca cola at Lincoln Center serves dinner and a show. The jazz music always really good, fabulous view of the city, and the food really good and affordable. The food is southern, and has awesome presentation. I love bringing out of town friends here.
http://www.jalc.org/dccc/index.asp

Answer 8

go to:

http://www.menupages.com

you can browse all sorts of restaurants in the city by cuisine variety, neighborhood or both. You can see prices, menus, as well as read reviews that menupages users wrote. When I try to decide where to eat, I look at menu pages first, and try to select a place that has been rated at least 5 times. Then I go in and see if the ratings are consistent, and if the menu and prices appeal to me. Many of the restaurants also include a link to their website, so you can even visit the site and see if the restaurant decor appeals to you.

Answer 9

If you want to try something unique, there is Queen of Sheba, an Ethiopian restaurant at W 46th and 10th Ave. It's kind of similar to indian food in the spicing, and is definitely not something you will find anywhere.

Answer 10

go to the village theres alot of resturants to chose from in walking distance of anywhere in the village. oh "lucky chens" its a gay chinese resturant with drag queens haha