The Best Places in New York

1. AAA Three Diamonds

The pressed-tin ceilings and Art Deco mirrors have been pulling SoHo together since the nineties, and Balthazar still runs the same play: a classic French brasserie where the onion soup gratinée and steak frites are the point, not a consolation prize. The room is cavernous and warm, the crowd ranges from fashion people to tourists who did their homework, and the whole thing hums along like it has nothing left to prove.

1. AAA Three Diamonds
2. Eater The Best Classic Restaurants in NYC
3. Eater The 38 Best Restaurants in New York City

Pandan honeycomb cake in a shade of green that has no business being that vivid sets the tone at this Vietnamese-French bakery in Chinatown. Lauren Tran, formerly of Gramercy Tavern, started as a pop-up during the pandemic and landed in a brick-and-mortar that draws a line before most people have had coffee. Chiffon cakes, macarons, and savory scones packed with Chinese sausage and cheddar fill the case. A James Beard Outstanding Bakery semifinalist in 2026.

1. James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Bakery
2. The New York Times 22 of the Best Bakeries Across the U.S. Right Now

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. The New York Times 2025 · 2 stars · Restaurant Review
2. James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Restaurateur · Jennifer Vitagliano and Nicole Vitagliano - Elizabeth Street Hospitality

1. AAA Three Diamonds

Red and cream lanterns glow over a warren of nooks on St. Marks Place, where a line almost always trails out the front door. Che Li is a Shanghainese seafood-leaning restaurant with an ambitious menu, so asking the server about regional highlights beats scrolling to the familiar end. The Michelin Guide awarded it a Bib Gourmand, and the fish stew with Sichuan peppercorns tends to be the last thing standing on the table.

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
2. The New York Times 2021 · Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
3. Grub Street The 40 Best Restaurants for Kids (and Parents!)

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. US Coffee Championships #1 · U.S. Latte Art Championship · Piyapat "Flook" Lapteerawut
2. US Coffee Championships #7 · U.S. Coffee in Good Spirits Championship · John Chau Ly
3. US Coffee Championships #7 · U.S. Brewers Cup · Peace Sakulclanuwat

1. US Coffee Championships #1 · U.S. Latte Art Championship · Piyapat "Flook" Lapteerawut
2. US Coffee Championships #7 · U.S. Coffee in Good Spirits Championship · Peace Sakulclanuwat
3. US Coffee Championships #7 · U.S. Brewers Cup · John Chau Ly

1. US Coffee Championships #1 · U.S. Latte Art Championship · Piyapat "Flook" Lapteerawut
2. US Coffee Championships #7 · U.S. Coffee in Good Spirits Championship · John Chau Ly
3. US Coffee Championships #7 · U.S. Brewers Cup · Peace Sakulclanuwat

1. US Coffee Championships #1 · U.S. Latte Art Championship · Piyapat "Flook" Lapteerawut
2. US Coffee Championships #7 · U.S. Coffee in Good Spirits Championship · John Chau Ly
3. US Coffee Championships #7 · U.S. Brewers Cup · Peace Sakulclanuwat

1. US Coffee Championships #1 · U.S. Latte Art Championship · Piyapat "Flook" Lapteerawut
2. US Coffee Championships #7 · U.S. Coffee in Good Spirits Championship · Peace Sakulclanuwat
3. US Coffee Championships #7 · U.S. Brewers Cup · John Chau Ly

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

The fireplace in the entry has been warming Wall Street deal-makers since before anyone can remember, and the wood-paneled dining room at this old-school steakhouse still reads like a set for exactly that. The boneless rib-eye that carries the house name is the move, though the lobster Newburg keeps loyalists from ever opening another section of the menu. Business casual is the unspoken dress code, and nobody seems to mind.

1. AAA Three Diamonds
2. Time Out The 45 best restaurants in NYC right now
3. Eater The Best Steakhouses in New York City

1. The New York Times 2026 · 2 stars, Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
2. Wine Enthusiast Top 50 New Restaurants
3. Esquire The Best New Restaurants in America

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

The hot ham with melted Swiss on a bun costs $7, which tells you almost everything about this retro burger shop. George Motz has spent his career obsessing over regional American hamburger joints, and the menu reflects that slightly unhinged dedication, with monthly tributes to obscure local styles and an off-menu grilled cheese that hides a burger inside. The New York Times named it one of New York's best new restaurants of 2024.

1. The New York Times 2024 · 2 stars, Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
2. The New York Times 2024 · New York’s 14 Best New Restaurants of 2024
3. Eater The 38 Best Restaurants in New York City

1. Eater The Best Coffee Shops in New York City
2. Time Out #12 · The 21 very best coffee shops in NYC
3. The Infatuation The Best Coffee Shops In NYC

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

A few tables and counter seats in the Theater District, which means you're eating Hyderabadi food elbow-to-elbow with strangers who are also very happy about it. The New York Times called out the gongura chicken biryani, and the Michelin Guide took note too. The menu pulls from Hyderabad with nods to the wider subcontinent, and the kitchen moves fast without feeling rushed.

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
2. Eater The 38 Best Restaurants in New York City
3. Time Out The 45 best restaurants in NYC right now

Nick Curtola's trattoria across from sibling bar The Four Horsemen handles regional Italian with the kind of restraint that makes everything taste more intentional. Braised beef tendon shaved thin over acidic onions is the opening move, and it tells you exactly what kind of kitchen this is. Handmade pasta and rustic mains follow that same logic. The tiramisu is feather-light and enormous. Reservations go fast, but the bar at opening is a fine consolation.

1. The New York Times 2025 · 2 stars · Restaurant Review
2. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
3. The Infatuation #11 · NYC’s Best New Restaurants

1. AAA Four Diamonds
2. NJ.com #36 · New Jersey’s 99 greatest restaurants, ranked

1. AAA Three Diamonds

The booths at this coal-oven pizza parlor are so carved up with initials and signatures that the wood itself is basically a guestbook for the last several decades of Greenwich Village. Whole pies only, thin-crusted and charred just right, no slices and no exceptions. The room is loud, cheerful, and not trying to impress anyone, which is precisely why it has been full since before most of its customers were born.

1. 50 Top Pizza 50 Top Pizza USA Excellent Pizzerias
2. Eater The Best Classic Restaurants in NYC
3. The New York Times The 22 Best Pizza Places in New York Right Now

1. AAA Three Diamonds

The mashup that writes itself on paper sometimes falls apart on the plate, but Korean and Cajun cooking share enough soul food DNA that at KJUN it holds together. The chef trained under the legendary Leah Chase in New Orleans, and the Murray Hill dining room reflects both that Southern lineage and her Korean roots, with fried dishes, rice, banchan, and Louisiana classics sharing the menu without any of them feeling like they wandered in from somewhere else.

1. The New York Times 2023 · 2 stars, Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
2. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
3. The Infatuation The 21 Best New Restaurants In NYC

The dining room pulls from Vienna's Secession movement, all gilded geometry and serious intent, which feels right for a fine dining restaurant inside the Ace Hotel where the food runs Austrian and French with a modern hand. The New York Times gave it three stars, and a James Beard semifinalist nod followed. The chef behind the now-closed Bâtard is back, and the room draws people who dressed up on purpose.

1. The New York Times 2022 · 3 stars, Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
2. Esquire #21 · The Best New Restaurants in America
3. Roadbook The Best Restaurants in New York City

1. Roadbook The Best Restaurants in New York City
2. Time Out The 45 best restaurants in NYC right now
3. The New York Times The 22 Best Pizza Places in New York Right Now

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

Kothu roti, the Sri Lankan street staple of shredded roti, meat, and egg, landed on the New York Times list of top dishes in the city, which tells you something about what the kitchen is doing here. This Upper East Side restaurant draws on the chef's upbringing in Kanyakumari, where southern India and Sri Lanka blur together, and the cooking tastes like it. The Michelin Guide gave it a Bib Gourmand, and the Times ranked it among the city's top 100 restaurants.

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
2. Grub Street The 43 Best Restaurants in New York
3. The New York Times #59 · The 100 Best Restaurants in New York City

1. AAA Three Diamonds

South-facing rooms in this 20-story Midtown hotel stare straight at the Empire State Building, which is the kind of view that makes unpacking feel ceremonial. The rooms themselves are quietly comfortable rather than flashy, and the rooftop lounge with live entertainment gives the place more personality than the address on West 37th might suggest. A street-level cafe handles coffees and cocktails for anyone not ready to brave the Garment District yet.

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

Three cauldrons of rice and soup stay warm at the bar up front, which tells you a lot about how Odre thinks about hospitality. This East Village prix-fixe leans into Korean comfort at a pace that feels considered rather than rushed, with a set menu that moves through banchan, a main like grilled duck with black garlic, and snow crab mandoo that the New York Times singled out. Michelin gave it a Bib Gourmand, and the room is narrow, minimalist, and usually full.

1. The New York Times 2026 · 2 stars, Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
2. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
3. The New York Times 2024 · Snow Crab Mandoo · Hungry for the Best? Here Are Our Top New York Dishes of 2024.

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. The New York Times 2022 · Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
2. Roadbook The Best Restaurants in New York City
3. Grub Street The 43 Best Restaurants in New York

1. Wine Enthusiast The Wine Restaurant Hall of Fame

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

The clock tower that once held the city's tallest point now holds Ian Schrager's boutique hotel in the Flatiron District, a collaboration with Marriott that somehow kept its cool. Rooms sit above Madison Square Park, which means the 360-degree views range from good to unreasonable depending on the floor. Chelsea, NoMad, and Greenwich Village are all within easy reach, though the hotel itself gives you decent reasons to stay put.

1. Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Recommended

A 21-story boutique hotel on Cooper Square where no two rooms share the same layout, so a skyline view is a conversation you have at booking, not a guarantee. The interiors lean into East Village energy, all Bluetooth speakers, stocked minibars, and oversized towels, but the social spaces and rotating cultural programming are the real draw for guests who treat the lobby as part of the itinerary.

1. Michelin Guide Selected Hotels
2. The 50 The 50 Discovery

1. AAA Four Diamonds
2. Time Out The 35 best hotels in New York City

The potato pierogi has been on The Infatuation's list of dishes that define New York, which tells you something about Veselka's place in the city's food mythology. This East Village Ukrainian diner has been around forever, serving borscht and pierogi to the neighborhood at all hours, 24-hour service now restored. It draws tourists, yes, but also the people who grew up eating here and aren't stopping. A James Beard Outstanding Restaurant semifinalist, and cheap enough that you'll go back.

1. James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Restaurant
2. Eater The Best Breakfasts in New York
3. Eater The Best Classic Restaurants in NYC

Floor-to-ceiling windows face the Manhattan skyline across the Hudson, which is about as pointed a statement as a hotel can make without saying a word. The W Hoboken is a full-service hotel with the brand's signature bold graphics, loud color, and buzzy public spaces, plus a spa and fitness center for the morning after. Halifax handles the seafood side, and the Living Room bar runs craft cocktails with live music.

1. AAA Four Diamonds
2. Michelin Guide Selected Hotels

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

Magnums of natural wine lean toward empty glasses and conversations bounce off metallic high-tops in a low-ceilinged room that feels more like someone's dinner party than a restaurant. This Lower East Side wine bar runs on eclectic small plates and a list that skews biodynamic and organic, with a vibe that's deliberately, unapologetically Parisian. The New York Times gave it two stars, and Wine Enthusiast put it on its Forward 50 list.

1. Wine Enthusiast Forward 50 Restaurants
2. The New York Times 2015 · 2 stars · Restaurant Review
3. Eater The Best New Restaurants in America

1. The New York Times 2021 · Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
2. Time Out #9 · The 21 very best coffee shops in NYC
3. Eater The Best Croissants in NYC

Wonton soup, congee, and lacquered duck are the foundation, but the menu at this Cantonese restaurant keeps going through whole fish, stir-fries, and enough elaborate dishes to keep a large table busy for hours. The BYOB policy makes group birthdays feel practically festive on a budget. It sits at a corner where the Lower East Side runs into Chinatown, and the room fills accordingly with the full diversity of both neighborhoods.

1. Roadbook The Best Restaurants in New York City
2. Grub Street The 40 Best Restaurants for Kids (and Parents!)
3. Eater The Best Lower East Side Restaurants

1. AAA Three Diamonds

The word "post-authentic" painted on the window tells you something about the ambition here before you sit down. This Yemeni restaurant in Bay Ridge fills a brick-and-dark-wood room with families, neighborhood lifers, and northward refugees all tearing into great rounds of rashoosh and heaping plates of lamb. The New York Times put it at number 31 on its 100 best list, and Michelin gave it a Bib Gourmand. Portions are sized for sharing whether you planned to or not.

1. The New York Times 2024 · 2 stars, Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
2. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
3. The New York Times #31 · The 100 Best Restaurants in New York City

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. The Infatuation #4 · The 19 Best Bagels In NYC, Ranked
2. BagelUp #14 · The Definitive 30 Best Bagel Shops in New York City
3. Eater The Best Bagels in New York City

1. AAA Three Diamonds

A disco ball spins over the dining room at this Graham Avenue pizzeria, where the thin-crust pies share the bill with house pasta and focaccia made in the open kitchen. The Italian wine list runs to two pages of sparkling alone, which tells you something about the ambitions here. The Calabrian soppressata and hot honey on the Diavola have a following. Michelin has it in the guide.

1. Eater The Best New Restaurants in Brooklyn Right Now
2. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

Low ceilings with thick wood beams, amber light, and banquettes that make every table feel like a booth in the back of someone's private club. Bartolo is a Spanish restaurant in the West Village, the kind where you order oxtail braised in red wine and suckling pig and let the table fill up. The martini list has its own following, and the servers are sharp enough to keep a long night moving without making it feel rushed.

1. Esquire Martini de Bartolo · The Best Martinis in America
2. The New York Times 2025 · 1 star, Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
3. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. The Infatuation #5 · The 19 Best Bagels In NYC, Ranked
2. Time Out The 18 best bagels in NYC
3. Eater The Best Bagels in New York City

Czech beer hall on the first floor of the landmark National Bohemian Hall building, with wood paneling, simple tables, and the kind of vintage knick-knacks that suggest nobody has redecorated since the Cold War, which is a compliment. Pilsners are the obvious move, though a European-leaning wine list covers the grape contingent. The food runs hearty and honest, dumplings appearing at every stage including dessert. A Michelin Bib Gourmand.

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
2. AAA Approved

1. The New York Times 2025 · 1 star, Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
2. Eater Where to Eat Brunch in New York City

A wood-paneled room on the Upper East Side, white tablecloths, a dozen tables if you're lucky, and a menu that treats classic French cooking as a non-negotiable. This is fine dining with a strong point of view: escargot, lamb, and a baba au rhum finished tableside with a generous pour. The kind of place where getting the reservation feels like the first course.

1. The New York Times 2025 · 1 star · Restaurant Review
2. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. The New York Times 2026 · 1 star, Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
2. The Infatuation The 21 Best New Restaurants In NYC

Wood tables, hand-painted tile, and just enough greenery to feel like a room that's been lived in: this contemporary Mexican small-plates spot on the Lower East Side earns a long, slow evening. The chef's menu is tight and seasonal, with careful attention to char and smoke, and the smoked half-chicken alone justifies a second visit. The Michelin Guide has taken notice, which tracks.

1. The New York Times 2026 · 1 star, Critic's Pick · Restaurant Review
2. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

Exposed brick, dim lighting, and vintage New York photography set a mood that a taxidermied dog in a birthday hat quietly undermines. Confidant is a sharing-plates restaurant in Brooklyn Heights with a menu that runs from scallop crudo and trout mousse to dry-aged meats and a prawn pot pie worth leaning across the table for. The Michelin Guide has it selected, and the food takes the whole thing more seriously than the decor lets on.

1. Eater The Best New Restaurants in Brooklyn Right Now
2. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds

1. AAA Three Diamonds