Whether it’s your first trip to New York City or you’ve been a local for many years, the restaurant scene always has something new and fabulous waiting for you to try. There are many, many resources out there that proclaim to be the ultimate guide to the best restaurants in New York City (trust me, I’ve spent a lot of time perusing them). However, what I’ve noticed about these great restaurant recommendation lists is that it’s impossible to actually get a table at one of the spots without a month’s worth of advance planning. So, if you’re looking for a more accessible spot that won’t sacrifice anything in terms of menu or atmosphere, you’ve come to the right place.
Keep reading for a list of 12 not-basic restaurants in NYC that I always recommend to visitors and locals alike!
1. 12 Chairs Café
Location & Cuisine: SoHo / Israeli
Menu highlights: Lots of shared plates. Pita bread with dips and spreads (hummus, babba ganoush) as well as shish kabobs (chicken, lamb)
Best for: Taking people out to dinner for their first time in NYC…and fun group dinners generally
Points to note: At a certain point in the evening, the waitstaff is going to start bringing tambourines around…don’t be shy, grab a tambourine and play along!
2. Aunt Jake’s
Location & Cuisine: Upper East Side / Italian
Menu highlights: For appetizers, I love the meatballs. They make all their pasta from scratch so any pasta dish is a safe bet. Also, the breadsticks that come with the pasta are delicious.
Best for: Pleasing even the pickiest of eaters. Aunt Jake’s menu is essentially customizable, allowing you to mix-and-match any type of pasta noodle with any type of pasta sauce (I went for gnocchi + vodka sauce below!)
Points to note: Other than eating here, they also offer a make-your-own-homemade-pasta class! I haven’t tried this, but it would be a great date or group activity.
3. Baar Baar
Location & Cuisine: NoHo / Indian
Menu highlights: They serve all the classic Indian staple dishes you know and love (but better!) as well as a few innovative ones. They also have a fantastic cocktail menu.
Best for: Your typical Indian take-out order, elevated and with a twist, in an upscale setting.
Points to note: One of the cocktails on the menu (I forget which one) is served with a gigantic bubble on top. You’ll definitely see people ordering this drink when you’re there!
4. Gelso & Grand
Location & Cuisine: Little Italy / Italian
Menu highlights: The pistachio pesto pasta is phenomenal (I wish more places did a pesto sauce with pistachio!). I also love the cheese and charcuterie board (no surprise) and the tiramisu.
Best for: Pleasing a crowd. Everyone will find something they like on the comprehensive menu and the atmosphere is both trendy and relaxed at the same time.
Points to note: Although the location says “Little Italy,” in my opinion this place feels more like a cool SoHo spot than one of the ubiquitous trattorias crowded into Little Italy.
5. Sushi by Bao
Location & Cuisine: Multiple (including Chelsea, Flatiron, Midtown) / Omakase
Menu highlights: This restaurant only has one menu option: a 12-piece omakase course. However, my sushi chef was very happy to accommodate any specific requests and gave us several extra pieces of sushi outside of the stated menu!
Best for: Smaller groups (you sit at the sushi bar and there aren’t very many seats) and trying new varieties of sushi (I tried roe and eel when I was there – two items I had never had before!)
Points to note: Omakase is notoriously expensive, but Sushi by Bao is quite affordable by omakase standards (when I went, a 12-piece course was $60). In addition, Sushi by Bao has multiple locations, and they are all speakeasies!
6. Supper
Location & Cuisine: East Village / Italian
Menu highlights: All the classic Italian dishes are fair game here. I got the kale gnocchi (because I can’t not get gnocchi), but my friends loved the spaghetti al limone.
Best for: Old school vibes, all the way. The interior, the waitstaff, and the establishment all look like they have been there forever, and for good reason! This is a great place to reconnect with old friends – you feel like you are part of something bigger than yourself.
Points to note: Supper accepts cash only! Also, they won’t seat groups until the whole party has arrived (if you have a friend who is perpetually running late, tell them a time 30 minutes early!)
7. PLANTA Queen
Location & Cuisine: NoMad / Vegan Asian
Menu highlights: Everything on the menu is vegan, but you’d never know it. I loved the dan dan noodles, truffled fried rice, the spicy “tuna” roll, and the crispy rice. Every cocktail was also delicious
Best for: Anyone with a little bit of dietary restrictions – everything served here is fair game for any vegetarian, vegan, or pescatarian friend you may have!
Points to note: This restaurant only has one location in NYC’s NoMad neighborhood, but they have other locations throughout the U.S. and Canada (including in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Bethesda, Chicago, and even Toronto)
8. Fiaschetteria Pistoia
Location & Cuisine: East Village (there is also a West Village Location) / Italian
Menu highlights: All of their pasta is homemade right in front of you – the truffled pasta is amazing!
Best for: Cozy and intimate, this place feels like you’ve stepped off the streets on New York and into a homey trattoria in the heart of Italy. Pistoia definitely gets points for atmosphere.
Points to note: There are two NYC locations for this restaurant – one in East Village, and one in West Village. If you want to actually get a table, I’d recommend the East Village location – it is much larger than the WV one. Also, the only way to make a reservation is by calling the restaurant directly.
9. Her Name Is Han
Location & Cuisine: Koreatown / Korean
Menu highlights: The grilled bulgogi beef was probably the best bulgogi I’ve ever had. The sweet and sour chicken fried rice was also excellent.
Best for: Date night. This is an easy spot, with fast service, delicious food, and a fun vibe.
Points to note: They don’t serve traditional cocktails here; instead, the drink list is mostly soju-based, with a few other Asian liquors. Personally I had the Lychee cocktail and loved it.
10. La Esquina Brasserie
Location & Cuisine: Soho / Mexican
Menu highlights: Any of the margaritas! The queso fundido is an absolute must, as well as the elote (street corn) and the chicken and steak taquitos.
Best for: If you’re looking for a fun dinner spot that easily evolves into a night out. The food at La Esquina is delicious, but the bar is also a lot of fun, so you don’t have to search around for where the night will go next.
Points to note: La Equina Brasserie is a speakeasy – the entrance upstairs is a casual taco bar (La Esquina) and then the restaurant is downstairs! Also, although I absolutely love this place, so does everyone else – it’s a little harder to get a reservation here than at the other places on this list.
11. Pil Pil
Location & Cuisine: Upper East Side / Spanish Tapas
Menu highlights: Pil Pil is tapas-style, so you should try a little bit of everything! Any of the tostas, the octopus, croquettes, and the skirt steak are some of my favorites. You can also create your own cheese/charcuterie board from a list of options, which I love.
Best for: If you need an easy and delicious dinner, plus an extensive wine list, in the UES
Points to note: I usually walk-in here and have never had a problem getting a table for two, but they do take reservations. It’s great to come here in the summer and eat outside.
12. A Pasta Bar (previously known as Sola Pasta Bar)
Location & Cuisine: SoHo / Italian
Menu highlights: The tagliatelle al tartufo, end of story. I’m sure their other pastas are good but I just can’t get past how delicious this dish is! They serve their pasta in this unique twirled conical shape. For appetizers, you can’t go wrong with the prosciutto and burrata.
Best for: Taking someone to a trendy SoHo spot, but not at the expense of sizeable portions or delicious food.
Points to note: If you sit at the bar, you can watch them make the pasta in front of you which is cool. They also have very pretty outdoor seating in the summer.
Honorable Mentions: My Favorite Dessert Spots
My list of not-basic restaurants in NYC wouldn’t be complete without dessert! These two spots only have dessert items on the menu, so probably not where you want to head for dinner (but hey, you do you!).
1. Spot Dessert Bar
Location & Cuisine: NoHo / Asian-inspired desserts
Menu highlights: I get the matcha lava cake every single time I come here. My boyfriend has proven much more adventurous than me and has tried the Cookie Camp and the Harvest. They also have delicious cookies (nutella, matcha, et cetera) and bubble teas.
Best for: Satisfying your sweet tooth with something creative and fun. You can dine in, but the space is pretty small and sometimes it’s hard to get a table – I often order to go.
Points to note: Spot Dessert Bar is located on St. Marks Place – this street definitely has a distinct and strong personality, even for NYC!
2. Caffè Panna
Location & Cuisine: Gramercy / Ice Cream
Menu highlights: Every ice cream here is amazing, but they are known for their Daily Sundae Specials, their soft serve (new flavor daily!) and adding a dollop of panna (thick Italian sweet cream) to top off ice cream orders.
Best for: Telling someone you know the best ice cream place in NYC…and then actually delivering on it. Everyone I bring here is always impressed by this spot.
Points to note: The line is long (no matter what time of day you go) but moves quickly. There is no indoor seating available. They are open from 1:30-9:30, Wednesday to Sunday – if you arrive closer to closing time, there’s a good chance they will be out of some ice cream flavors (but all the flavors are amazing!)
