"Choose it: "grabbin' a slice" on your way to the Garden (Madison Square, that is), sipping a latte and savoring a cannoli in the Village, cruising the New and Old World treats on the shelves at Balducci's or scarfing down a fresh, hot bagel on the way to the train at Penn Station. You're savoring the City.
Need atmosphere? Head down to Delancey Street and find Ratners, just three blocks away from the tenement where George and Ira Gershwin sharpened their musical skills. Fortify yourself with Ratners mushroom and barley soup and to-die-for pastries. Don't worry, the waiters'll let you know if you ordered the right thing. Feeling "up-town?" Head towards Carnegie Hall, make a right and indulge in buckwheat blini and caviar at the newly-reopened Russian Tea Room. Feeling adventurous? Grab your passport and the D Train and get off at the first stop after the Brooklyn Bridge. Walk down DeKalb until you see Junior's, a landmark restaurant with something for everyone. You got your cheesecake, you got your steaks, you got your shrimp stuffed with crab, you got your hot fudge sundae. Need to walk it off? Take the train to the ocean and visit the aquarium at Coney Island. And while you're there, have a nosh at Nathan's Famous, the best hot dogs anywhere. Hungry after a night of cruising the clubs in the Village or listening to jazz up on West End Avenue (near Columbia University)? Remember Chinatown's open until the wee hours. Grab a plate of aromatic shrimp or a bowl of Buddha's delight just in time to see the sun rise over the East River.
The restaurants chosen for this review are for the working people. New York is a city with a big appetite and we thought you should experience it. You can hit the Four Seasons or "21" anytime. Come, enjoy, eat!
BALTHAZAR 80 Spring Street, New York, NY 10012 212-965-1414 Considered one of the superb French Bistro’s in America, Balthazar is an unforgettable eatery that every New Yorker secretly wants to dine at, if they haven’t already. Reservations should be made well in advance for this hot Spring Street eatery, with its just as popular bakery just next door. It’s almost like eating in Paris, and although crammed with tables to accommodate the demand for its French delicacies, Balthazar is still the most sought after, and one of the best, French restaurants of NYC.
Holiday Schedule: New Years Day-Open, Easter-Open, Thanksgiving-Open, Christmas Eve-Open, Christmas-Closed, New Years Eve-Open
Estimated price per person $12-$31
ELAINE'S 1703 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10128 (212) 534-8103 If you like Italian and/ or Woody Allen, you'll like Elaine's (and there really is an Elaine). Restaurant to the witty, eating at Elaine's is like sharing a bowl of pasta with the staff of the New Yorker magazine. This is traditional Italian cuisine with some light touches added, depending on the season. Everything's good, including the soups, veal dishes and the pasta. And you couldn't pay for the great over-heard conversations.
Holiday Schedule: New Years Day-Closed, Easter-Open, Thanksgiving-Open, Christmas Eve-Open, Christmas-Closed, New Years Eve-Open
“If I were a rich man”, I could eat at this Temple nightly. Two prerequisites: you must know how to move your feet and be a carnivore. Each table is dressed in the white crisp linen, soon to be loaded with the finest delicacies. Just like back home, I remember my grandmother making lengthy lip-smacking skirt steaks, always using one quintessential ingredient - love. The second, just as important, was garlic. Sammy’s cook must have come from the same Eastern block as my grandma. Their skirt steaks are simply an assault on the taste buds. It does not cost as much as Kobi beef, but is just as tender. As a prelude to the steak, order frozen vodka, rich chopped liver and crispy potato pancakes. It is hard to say if you get tipsy on the hearty liquid or the ambiance has a hypnotic effect. To find out, put your fork down and dance to a tune of a traditional Jewish song, Hava Nagilah. Sunday might be the best evening to visit Sammy’s. The whole ganza mishpuchah (family) celebrates a Bar Mitzvah, and then you are guaranteed to learn any dance. An unforgettable experience! Call for reservations.
Estimated cost per person: $35-$65 Holiday Schedule: closed on major Jewish Holidays.
OYSTER BAR AT THE PLAZA 768 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10019 (212) 546-5340 Just got off the train? Not far from Grand Central (or Carnegie Hall, for that matter) is the Oyster Bar. Belly up to the bar and select the oysters of your dreams. Oysters and the liquid libation of your choice are the order of the day. It gets crowded around rush hour, so plan accordingly. Now you know where the suits go to unwind.
Holiday Schedule: Set by discretion of management
GREAT AMERICAN HEALTH BAR 35 West 57th Street, New York, NY 10019 (212) 355-5177 Even health in New York has an attitude. The vegetarian and vegan offerings are real farm food (there was a dairy restaurant by the name of Farm Food near by, and it was wonderful). The ingredients are fresh, the portions are big and the smoothies are good for you, damn it!
Holiday Schedule: New Years Day-Closed, Easter-Closed, Thanksgiving-Closed, Christmas Eve-Open, Christmas-Closed, New Years Eve-Open
ANGELICA KITCHEN 300 East 12th Street, New York, NY 10003 (212) 228-2909 Angelica's is the City's vegetarian mecca. Vegan and vegetarian menu items are available. Expect to wait, but the passing scene provides entertainment. We like to order lots of side dishes, such as the braised bok choy, collards, summer squash and steamed kelp. Tofu rules, especially in a spelt-crusted pie or in a pesto and roasted veggie layered sandwich. Miss Mom's chopped liver? Try the lentil-walnut pate.
Holiday Schedule: New Years Day-Closed, Easter-Closed, Thanksgiving-Closed, Christmas Eve-Open, Christmas-Closed, New Years Eve-Open
BROADWAY DINER 1726 Broadway, New York, NY 10019 (212) 765-0909 590 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022 (212) 486-8838 What's New York without a visit to a diner? Walk over from Rockefeller Center and have a cup of coffee and a piece of pie (they're baked fresh). Order heavy or light, just a bowl of homemade soup (try the split pea) or a three course meal. Desserts span the spectrum, as do the entrees. A very safe and enjoyable bet if you just don't know what you're in the mood for.
Holiday Schedule: Set by discretion of management
CARNEGIE DELI 854 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10019 (212) 757-2245 You need to stop in the Carnegie, if only to inhale. Take in the perfume of caraway, onion and garlic from some of the best rye bread, garlic and dill pickles, corned beef and pastrami, salami, smoked white fish, lox and knishes (potato and kasha - kasha is stewed buckwheat) you'll find anywhere. After you're done, go hang out at Rockefeller Plaza or catch a show at Radio City.
Holiday Schedule: Set by discretion of management
VICTOR'S CAFE 236 West 52nd Street, New York, NY 10019 (212) 586-7714 Missed the Buena Vista Social Club's latest tour? You can at least eat like they do. Victor's has been NYC's ode to Cuban cuisine since the revolution. You'll forget you're not in Havana between the customers, the staff, the music and the menu. Feast on black beans, fragrant rice, yucca, chicken and rice, piccadillo, and lechon (Cuban-style pork, slowly marinated and roasted). Drink malta (a rich, carbonated beverage that is a side product of the beer industry) and sample desserts flavored with guava.
Holiday Schedule: New Years Day-Closed, Easter-Closed, Thanksgiving-Closed, Christmas Eve-Open, Christmas-Closed, New Years Eve-Open
LUSH 110 Duane Street, New York, NY 10007 (212) 766-1275 Lush is fast becoming the most popular bar in Tribeca. There is good reason for this. The bar is magnificently designed, there is a cool lounge room and they have some of the best bartenders (re: quick and heavy pours) in all of New York. Dress here is casual (but they ask that it be neat and trendy, of course), and they feature Trip-Hop D.J.s as well as a Drum and Bass combo.
Holiday Schedule: New Years Day-Open, Easter-Closed, Thanksgiving-Closed, Christmas Eve-Open, Christmas-Closed, New Years Eve-Open
The Top List of Great Restaurants - New York, NY