A Running List of New Restaurants That Opened in New York City, January 2021

More than ten months into the coronavirus pandemic, restaurants across the city continue to move forward with openings, sometimes because their concepts could be adapted for delivery and outdoor dining service, but more often because their owners saw no other choice but to forge ahead. Since mid-March, when the state first temporarily closed indoor dining, hundreds of new restaurants have opened their doors. This list of pandemic-born businesses includes those serving double-decker breakfast tacos, barbecue sambal stingray, decadent Korean corndogs, and meatless Mexican fare.

Here’s a round-up of the restaurants and bars that opened in January. This list will be updated weekly. If there’s an opening in your neighborhood that we’ve missed, let us know at tips@eater.com.

January 28

Long Island City: A second restaurant from chef Dan Kluger is the latest addition to the flashy, Jacx mega-development in Long Island City. The new spot, called Penny Bridge, serves seasonal riffs on the foods Kluger grew up eating in American diners and at his kitchen table. 28-03 Jackson Avenue, near Queens Boulevard

Nomad: The team behind well-reviewed new American restaurant Ferris has opened a Spanish-style restaurant in the same space. Located on the ground floor of Nomad’s Made Hotel, Debajo serves more than a dozen tapas including patatas bravas, chicharrones, and chicken cutlet sandwiches. Open for takeout, delivery, and heated outdoor dining. 44 W 29th Street, between Broadway and Sixth Avenue

Williamsburg: Roaming coffee and pastry cart Blank Street Coffee has found a permanent home in Williamsburg, where it serves beans from local roaster Parlor Coffee, pastries from King Street Baking Co. and Pain D’Avignon, and breakfast tacos from King David Tacos. The cafe started as a pop-up coffee cart that opened in the former location of the iconic Wythe Diner in summer 2020. 186 Bedford, near North 7th Street

Williamsburg: Fandi Mata, a sprawling, two-story Mediterranean restaurant, has opened across from the southern entrance to McCarren Park. The restaurant’s menu of croquetas and flatbreads is the work of Javier Vázquez Mariño, a chef who most recently worked at the famed but now-closed cocktail bars the Aviary and the Office. Open for takeout, delivery, and outdoor dining on its patio. Closed Monday. 74 Bayard Street, between Leonard and Lorimer Streets

January 21

Midtown: Regional Chinese fare is among the latest cuisines to appear in a fast-casual format. One of its newest sources is Noodle Edition, a Chinese noodle restaurant from owners Yishu He, a partner at popular dry pot restaurant MáLà Project, and Yuchun Cheung, a former chef at the recently closed China Blue. Noodles made with tingly pork and beef offal are available from the new restaurant, as are stir-fried udon and other dishes from Shanghai, a nod to the duo’s first restaurant, acclaimed Shanghainese restaurant Little Alley in Murray Hill. Takeout and delivery only. 18 West 45th Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues

Midtown: Turin, Italy-based chocolate manufacturer Venchi has opened a second New York City location near Columbus Circle. Like its Union Square outpost, which also has a 10-foot-tall chocolate waterfall, the new store will sell gelato, crepes, and coffee. 1796 Broadway, near West 58th Street

Midtown: Wagyu Social, a restaurant whose takeout and delivery menu includes an $85 wagyu beef burger topped with foie gras, opens its doors this week. The wagyu beef-centered menu comes from one of the co-owners of Midtown’s acclaimed Unagi-Ya Hachibei, which is on hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic. Order online or by calling (212) 888-8003. 238 East 53rd Street, 2nd Floor, between Second and Third Avenues

Upper West Side: Nhu Ton and John Nguyen, the co-owners behind well-regarded Vietnamese restaurant Cơm Tấm Ninh Kiều, have opened a second restaurant in Manhattan. Their sophomore project, called Bánh Vietnamese Shop, started serving homestyle Vietnamese fare as a pop-up over Halloween weekend and has been packed ever since. 942 Amsterdam Avenue, between 106th and 107th streets

Upper West Side: Vegetarian Italian restaurant Noi Due Cafe has moved from its former home on West 69th Street to this new space on Columbus Avenue. The restaurant appears to have plans to open a new concept in its former space, according to neighborhood blog the West Side Rag. Open for takeout, local delivery, and heated outdoor dining from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. 491 Columbus Avenue, near 84th Street

West Village: French cafe and bakery Maman opened its ninth location in New York City this week. The airy West Village space is outfitted with indoor trees, hanging plants, and an enclosed greenhouse. 375 Hudson Street, near West Houston Street

January 14

Bushwick: It should come as no surprise that Bushwick, one of the city’s largest sources of taco trucks, tamale carts, and taquerias, has also become one of its best places for restaurants serving birria. The neighborhood’s newest arrival is Peter’s Crunchy Red Tacos, a flamboyant taco truck slinging birria tacos, tortas, and mulitas until 3 a.m. nightly. 348-416 Jefferson Street, at Wyckoff Avenue

Chelsea: Chef Guy Vaknin and his wife Tali Vaknin, the duo behind the successful vegan sushi mini-chain Beyond Sushi, have opened a new restaurant in Chelsea. Willow, a vegan American comfort food spot features dishes like steak frites, tuna melt and cacio e pepe, along with desserts like vanilla bean cashew cheesecake. For now, the restaurant is focussed on takeout and delivery from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, but it will have outdoor seating in the spring. 199 Eighth Avenue, near West 20th Street — by Beth Landman

East Village: Kelly Cho, the acclaimed chef behind East Village curry restaurant Suki, opened her sophomore project in November. A sushi restaurant that also serves bowls of udon noodles and donburi, Min Sushi is available for takeout and delivery from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. daily. Closed Sundays. 32 Saint Mark’s Place, between Second and Third Avenues

East Village: The family behind well-liked Vietnamese spot Sao Mai, has opened a second restaurant in the neighborhood. Restaurateur Ronny Nguyen runs Nón Lá with his son Tommy, who is cooking a sprawling menu that includes bun bo Hue, bowls of pho, banh mi, and several clay pot options. Takeout and delivery are available from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. 128 East Fourth Street, between First Avenue and Second Avenues

Forest Hills: There’s a new neighborhood pizzeria on the corner of Austin Street and 72nd Avenue in Forest Hills. Dubbed Austin Street Pizza, the just-opened spot is serving slices and whole pies to a neighborhood that’s apparently hungry for change. “There are no good slice pizzarias [sic] in neighborhood! Please don’t suck,” according to one user on the restaurant’s Instagram. 71-63 Austin Street, at 72nd Avenue

Hell’s Kitchen: The newest addition to Restaurant Row comes from co-founders Jasmine Gerald and Linda Salamon, who are serving pan-Caribbean fare at their newly opened Jasmine’s Caribbean Cuisine. The restaurant’s menu nods to the Caribbean islands of Dominica, Antigua, Saint Thomas, Trinidad, and Jamaica with orders of oxtail, ackee, jerk chicken, and saltfish available for takeout and delivery. Closed Mondays. 371 W 46th Street, near 9th Avenue

Park Slope: Connecticut- and New York-based fish wholesaler Fjord Fish Market opened its second New York City location in Park Slope this week. 249 5th Avenue, between Carroll Street and Garfield Place.

Park Slope: Following success of its restaurants in Prospect Lefferts Gardens and Ridgewood, Taqueria El Patron is bringing its smothered burritos, al pastor tacos, and combination plates to Park Slope with a new location that opened its doors this week. Takeout and delivery are available from 12 to 10 p.m. daily. 191 5th Avenue, between Berkeley and Union Streets

Prospect Heights: A whole animal butcher shop joined Vanderbilt Avenue’s busy corridor of restaurants and bars earlier this month. Corey Hammond and Greg Brockman started Prospect Butcher Co. in May as a pop-up at neighboring restaurant Faun. The business now has its own kitchen, a red and gold storefront whose painted menu advertises cuts of beef, lamb, chicken, and pork. A selection of sandwiches, condiments, and seasonings will join the menu in the coming weeks. 665 Vanderbilt Avenue, near Park Place

Ridgewood: From four Gramercy Tavern alums comes Rolo’s, a newly opened neighborhood restaurant with family-style meals and a robust selection of sauces, condiments, and fresh pasta made in-house. 853 Onderdonk Avenue, at Cornelia Street

Upper West Side: Chef Tom Wang, an alum of Michelin-starred Danji, teamed up with Kevin Shin in November to open King Wang’s in Bushwick. The original location of the pan-Asian sandwich shop has since been closed and replaced with this takeout and delivery operation on the Upper West Side. 522 Columbus Avenue, at 85th Street

January 5

Astoria: Andrew Bellucci — a former executive chef at Rubirosa and one of the restaurateurs who reopened Lombardi’s Pizza at its current Spring Street location in 1994 — has branched out with a new pizzeria in Queens. The 12- and 18-inch pies at Bellucci Pizza have received a good deal of love from users on Reddit, where Belucci has been consistently posting about the restaurant’s opening in recent months. 2904 30th Avenue, near 29th Street

Crown Heights: A new slice shop and pizzeria opened for business in Crown Heights ahead of the new year. Located a few steps from the neighborhood’s bustling Franklin Avenue, Crown Heights Pizza sells sourdough pizzas that range in price from $19 to $27. 563 Lincoln Place, near Franklin Avenue, Crown Heights

East Village: A new source for laksa noodle soup, crispy prawn fritters, and barbecue stingray has arrived in town with the debut of Medan Pasar. The new restaurant opened its doors on East Seventh Street in December and is currently offering its menu of Malaysian dishes for takeout and delivery. 102 East Seventh Street, between Avenue A and First Avenue

Greenpoint: Nearly four years after making its New York debut as a grilled cheese pop-up, the Blue Light Speak Cheesy has returned and is now serving breakfast burritos, sandwiches, and double-decker tacos three days each week at Getaway Coffee. The new breakfast menu is loosely Los Angeles inspired and “not authentic at all,” jokes chef and owner Andrea Chetakian, who lived in the West Coast city before moving back to Greenpoint in January of 2020. 158 Green Street, at Manhattan Avenue, Greenpoint

Greenpoint: Justin Bazdarich, the hit restaurateur behind Speedy Romeo and Greenpoint’s Michelin-starred Oxomoco, opened a new regional Mexican restaurant in December. Xilonen is the first of Bazdarich’s restaurants, and perhaps the only Mexican restaurant in the city, to open with an entirely meat-free menu. 905 Lorimer Street in Greenpoint, at Nassau Avenue

Hamilton Heights: From the team behind Manhattan Italian restaurants Fumo, which has two uptown locations, comes the Chick Inn, where chicken comes served in just about every form imaginable. Though chicken wings, tenders, sandwiches, and even cheese balls are all available, the centerpiece of the menu is its Peruvian-style rotisserie chicken — available by the whole, half, and quarter bird — served with cilantro sauce. 3508 Broadway, between West 143rd and West 144th Streets

Jersey City: British-style Indian restaurant chain Brick Lane Curry House opened a third location in Jersey City in December. 136 Newark Avenue, between Grove and Erie Streets

Lower East Side: The decadent, sometimes cheese-filled corn dogs of Korean street markets have found a new home at Oh K-Dog, which opened its doors this week. The new Ludlow Street restaurant offers the skewered street food in several varieties, including those that are topped with cubes of fried potato or filled with mozzarella or cheddar cheeses. Open daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. 159 Ludlow Street, near Stanton Street

Sunnyside: Six months after Alewife Brewing shuttered its operations in Long Island City, the popular Queens brewer has relocated to Sunnyside. At the brewery’s new 10,000-square-foot home, there’s a heated outdoor seating area and — when New York City reopens for indoor dining — plans for an indoor taproom. Alewife had originally planned to maintain locations in both Long Island City and Sunnyside, but after nearly a year since the pandemic hit New York, the brewery decided to consolidate its operations at the new outpost. 41-11 39th Street, near Skillman Avenue