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Green stuffed cabbage rolls sit atop a pool of coconut milk on a patterned white plate next to a striped orange and white napkin — Stuffed cabbage tom khaa at Thai Diner.

The 38 Essential Restaurants in New York City

From an international hot pot chain in Queens to Brooklyn’s spiciest Thai restaurant, here’s where to eat in the city right now

by Eater Staff Updated Apr 11, 2023, 12:57pm EDT

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Stuffed cabbage tom khaa at Thai Diner.

| Gary He/Eater NY

by Eater Staff Updated Apr 11, 2023, 12:57pm EDT

It’s the most simple and difficult question to answer, whether it’s coming from a lifelong New Yorker or a first-time visitor: “Where should I eat in New York City?” The type of food, price point, neighborhood, and occasion are just a few factors to consider, but that only gets you so far in a city of more than 25,000 restaurants. Enter the Eater 38.

This guide is our shortlist of the city’s must-hit restaurants, updated quarterly to reflect changing tastes and trends. Newly overhauled for the spring, the list includes an international hot pot chain in Queens, a dosa truck in a Manhattan park, a slice shop shaking up Brooklyn’s pizza scene, and the city’s only Michelin-starred Indian restaurant.

We’ve visited the restaurants on this list again and again — they have to be open for at least six months before they merit inclusion. For guides to the hottest new openings in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens, see our heatmaps for those boroughs.

Health experts consider dining out to be a high-risk activity for the unvaccinated; it may pose a risk for the vaccinated, especially in areas with substantial COVID transmission.

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If you buy something or book a reservation from an Eater link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics policy.

Roberto's

When Roberto Paciullo established his eponymous restaurant in Belmont, it was a surprise. There among the red-sauced joints of Arthur Avenue was a different kind of Italian restaurant, closely approximating the food you might find in a roadside rural trattoria, with the farmhouse furniture to match. As always, check the chalkboard specials, which might include radiatori in cartoccio or fricasseed rabbit.

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603 Crescent Ave, Bronx, NY 10458

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A seafood and white bean starter at Roberto’s. — A seafood and white bean starter at Roberto’s in the Bronx.

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Papaye

Located right on the Bronx’s Grand Concourse, Papaye (“doing good”) is a long-running Ghanaian diner with the dishes posted prominently over the steam-table counter. Joloff rice with stewed chicken or fried fish is a good bet. The dish is relatively mild but a hot sauce called shito can be requested to make it spicier.

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196 McClellan St, Bronx, NY 10456

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A chart makes ordering simple. — A chart makes ordering simple at Papaye.

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Sylvia's

Dubbed “the Queen of Soul Food,” Sylvia Woods opened the doors on Sylvia’s Restaurant in 1962, bringing generous servings of Southern comfort food to Harlem. The neighborhood restaurant is world-famous for its timeless cooking and Southern charm, which still endures decades after opening. While Woods died in 2012, her family continues to run the restaurant.

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328 Malcolm X Blvd, New York, NY 10027

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A large breaded fish filet with two side dishes. — Catfish at Sylvia’s.

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Bánh Vietnamese Shop House

New York’s Vietnamese food scene has drastically changed over the last half decade, welcoming a new wave of restaurants with lesser-seen dishes. Bánh, an offshoot of an acclaimed Vietnamese restaurant in the Bronx, brought the fried, crispy rice cakes known as banh chung chien and brothy bun rieu (tomato, crab, and pork soup) to the Upper West Side in 2021. There are plenty of classic Vietnamese sandwiches and noodle soups, but the rotating selection of smaller plates steal the show.

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942 Amsterdam Ave, New York, NY 10024

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A rice cake on top of a sesame cracker laid on a plate with colorful toppings piled on top of the rice cake. A dipping bowl with sauce is set nearby. Both dishes are set on a light wooden table. — Banh dap, a central Vietnamese street food.

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Le Bernardin

Eric Ripert’s temple to fine dining has still got it, holding onto a rare four-star status from the New York Times. Open since 1986, the classic French restaurant is a celebration of seafood, with a tasting menu that ranges from tuna tartare and sea urchin to Dover sole and halibut. And yes, there is a vegetarian tasting menu that rivals the pescatarian one, with courses centered around hearts of palm, artichokes, and white asparagus.

155 W 51st St, New York, NY 10019

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Speckled maine lobster tail sits next to leek cannelloni and dark brown red wine rosemary sauce — Lobster tail next to leek cannelloni with a wine rosemary sauce at Le Bernardin.

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Haidilao Hot Pot

Haidilao is one of the world’s largest hot pot chains, with some 1,300 locations spread across China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. New York’s only outpost is in Flushing, and even in a neighborhood as dense with Chinese hot pot options as this one, the restaurant has held its own. The selection of meats is affordable and varied, with fun touches on the menu like a “dancing noodle” prepared tableside for about $4 and bottles of soju submerged in watermelons. Soft serve is free, as are disposable razors, cologne, toothbrushes, and other household supplies from the bathrooms.

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138-23 39th Ave, Queens, NY 11354

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Raw meats, seafood, and vegetables are arranged on a table beside two bubbling vats of broth. — Haidilao, the largest hot pot chain in China, has an outpost in Flushing.

Szechuan Mountain House

Szechuan Mountain House shocked Flushing when it opened in a new real estate development on Prince Street in 2016: a restaurant designed like a Chinese village with dining in nooks and hut-like enclosures, a waterfall, and a menu that for once didn’t stint on Sichuan peppercorns. It also imported many stylish presentation methods currently popular in China.

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3916 Prince St g03, Queens, NY 11354

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Sliced pork belly and cucumber hanging over a device to look like drying laundry, with chile garlic sauce underneath — Szechuan Mountain House has another location in the East Village.

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Grand Central Oyster Bar

Grand Central Oyster Bar has occupied the subterranean space in Grand Central Station since 1913. The award-winning room, with its vaulted, tiled ceilings is one of the main attractions here, and one of the best seats for sampling among 25 varieties of seafood, from a menu of raw oysters, stews, pan roasts, sandwiches, and more. Note new hours mean it’s closed Saturday and Sunday.

89 E 42nd St, New York, NY 10017

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Grand Central Oyster Bar’s dining room with high ceiling arches — The dining room at Grand Central Oyster Bar.

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Keens Steakhouse

Keens is packed with history, and not just because it opened back in 1885. This Midtown steakhouse used to be home to a famous theater and literary group, and after that, it housed a pipe club. Dozens of pipes still line the restaurant, giving it a warm, unique vibe unlike any other in the city. The signature order here is the mutton chop. Ask to pick from the bar menu, where a smaller portion of the mutton chop is available, as well as a formidable prime rib hash.

72 W 36th St., New York, NY 10018

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The dining room at Keens Steakhouse.

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Baekjeong

In a sea of Korean barbecue options, Baekjeong remains our top pick for grilled meats in Manhattan. The two-story restaurant opened here in 2014, becoming the first New York branch of a chain restaurant with a handful of locations in California. Meals begin with a generous spread of banchan, plus scrambled eggs and a well of gooey corn cheese on the grill. Plates of raw short rib, pork belly, and jowl are sold individually at premium prices ($40 to $80 each), but dinner combos portioned for small and large groups are more affordable. Expect a packed dining room, where lights occasionally strobe on and off for birthdays.

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1 E 32nd St, New York, NY 10016

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A table at a Korean barbecue restaurant is busy with cheese corn, meats, and banchan. — A table at Baekjeong is busy with cheese corn, meats, and banchan.

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Sushi On Me

In a city with $400 omakase parlors crawling with sushi bros, Sushi On Me is in a league of its own. This subterranean restaurant located in Jackson Heights is an all-you-can-drink, raucous affair with cussing aplenty. The meal here will run you less than $100, and you’ll leave feeling like you went to a house party; though if you don’t drink this place might be a skip, since there’s less bang for your buck without it. There’s now a sibling spot in Williamsburg, but we think the Queens version is still the one to hit.

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71-26 Roosevelt Ave, Queens, NY 11372

Black caviar sits above a pink slab of fatty tuna sushi. — Black caviar on a slab of fatty tuna at Sushi On Me.

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Koloman

Koloman is an overhaul of what had been the Breslin at the Ace Hotel, now in a room with restored tin ceilings, a clock-themed bar, and a modern Austrian menu by head chef and co-owner Markus Glocker. Choose among dishes like celery root tartare, gougeres, souffle, and veal schnitzel. Pair them with a compelling selection from an Austrian wine list, or consider an after-dinner hard-to-find collection of schnapps. Save room for desserts like the Lübeck marzipan, apple strudel, or caramelized milk bread that live up to superlatives.

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16 W 29th St, New York, NY 10001

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A collection of dishes arranged on a black background. — Find Kolomon in the old Breslin space in the Ace Hotel.

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Noz 17

Starting at $435 per person, Noz 17 is a sibling to Sushi Noz and serves as a Toyota Corolla-sized restaurant with room for just seven diners at a time. Chef Junichi Matsuzaki offers one of New York’s most epic and unconventional tasting menus. Dinner might begin with a lotus root dumpling with tofu skin, followed by gizzard shad sushi: a tiny silver fish as tart as a spoonful of vinegar. Two courses later, sushi arrives again, this time in the form of yuzu-dusted sea bream.

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458 W 17th St, New York, NY 10011

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A fish filet sits curled upon itself on a decorative plate; a lime wedge sits on the side. — A fish filet sits curled upon itself on a decorative plate.

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Los Tacos No.1

New York City’s taco scene has gotten stronger since Los Tacos No. 1 arrived in the Chelsea Market, but the restaurant, now with several locations throughout the city, still remains a top contender. The adobada is what’s kept lines forming through the years, but the restaurant also has a mariscos spot in the food hall, as well as breakfast tacos in the mornings.

75 9th Ave, New York, NY 10011

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An overhead photograph of tacos, chips, guacamole, and plastic sides of salsa. — Adobada is the move at Los Tacos No. 1.

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Chama Mama

For the last decade, the food of the former Soviet republic of Georgia has been taking off in New York City, launched by our love of the bread with a handle that surrounds a lake of cheese called khachapuri. Well, the bread freshly made is available in several variations at Chama Mama, along with charcoal kebabs, stews in which herbs function as vegetables, and a distinguished wine list with some varietals you probably haven’t tasted before.

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149 W 14th St, New York, NY 10011

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A teal bowl filled with red bean stew next to a white plate with an assortment of fermented vegetables arranged on it. — Lobio red beans at Chama Mama.

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Semma

Arguably one of the most unique Indian restaurants in New York City, this spot comes from the same team behind hot spots like Dhamaka on the Lower East Side and Masalawala & Sons in Park Slope. The restaurant specializes in South Indian dishes, and similar to Dhamaka, has a dish — in this case, a giant crab — on limited-reserve each night that comes complete with bibs. But even if you can’t snag it, there’s so much to expand your palette with here, from the snails to its take on the gunpowder dosa.

60 Greenwich Ave, New York, NY 10011

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A lobster tail sits in a thick gravy on top of its own removed shell. — Lobster tail in coconut gravy.

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Via Carota

Rita Sodi and Jody Williams have several top restaurants in a couple-block stretch of the West Village (including Buvette, I Sodi, and Bar Pisellino). Via Carota remains the crowd favorite for good reason, with its simple Italian dishes dressed up to perfection. Long known for being walk-in only, these days the restaurant thankfully has some tables open for reservations.

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51 Grove St, New York, NY 10014

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A storefront with Via Carota’s name with is displayed with the address 50 Grove Street. — Via Carota is one of the harder tables to nab in town, but its Italian cooking makes it worth it.

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NY Dosas

For almost two decades, Thiru Kumar has been serving up some of the best dosas New York has to offer from this Washington Square Park food cart. His dosas — crepe-like creations made of fermented rice and lentils — are particularly fluffy, compared to some of the crisper options in the city, and it’s nearly impossible to go wrong on the tiny menu. The Pondicherry special, stuffed with spicy potatoes and fresh vegetables, is a surefire hit, but equally good are the pancake-style uttapams and empanada-like samosas.

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50 Washington Square S, New York, NY 10012

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A white paper plate placed on a wooden bench with a dosa on it, a green cilantro sauce, a samosa, and a red sauce in a plastic cup. — A dosa and samosa from NY Dosas.

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B&H Dairy

Open since 1938, this kosher lunch counter is essential New York eating. B&H Dairy serves up tuna melts, pierogies, borscht, and carrot cake that are remarkably affordable for the changing neighborhood (look out for the daily combo platter deals). The restaurant is narrow and patrons, many of whom have been coming for decades, often smush next to each other to get a taste of New York history and listen to stories from the cast of characters that make up the staff.

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127 2nd Ave, New York, NY 10003

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A tuna melt served on a white plate with pickles on the side. — B&H Dairy makes a lifechanging tuna melt.

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Taqueria Ramirez

Blowtorched tripe or cactus with chicharron? Longaniza on its own or mixed with suadero? These aren’t the type of questions New Yorkers are used to asking in north Brooklyn, but standing at the counter of Taqueria Ramírez, their answers are obvious: We’ll take it all. This small taqueria with an even smaller menu — six tacos most days — opened in 2021, becoming an immediate hit for its stewed meats plucked from a bubbling choricera. There are a handful of seats indoors, but most people spill out onto the sidewalk out front.

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94 Franklin St, Brooklyn, NY 11222

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A gloved hands hold a sieve of crumbly red meat over a vat of orange fat and oil, also filled with other meats — Suadero (left) and crumbly longaniza stew in a choricera.

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Raku

Order a perfect bowl of udon and tea for under $40 including tax and tip at this neighborhood Japanese noodle restaurant with a second location in Soho, part of Cloud Nine Hospitality Group. Here since 2016, chef Norihiro Ishizuka’s restaurant has assembled a menu of vegetables and gyoza, donburi, hot and cold udon in a soothingly minimalist space that’s on track to expand next door.

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342 E 6th St, New York, NY 10003

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A bowl of udon at Raku.

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Ho Foods

Richard Ho’s diminutive Taiwanese restaurant offers one of the best beef noodle soups in town, along with a satisfying lu rou fan, radish cakes, and garlic cucumbers on the side. Don’t miss the weekend breakfast, either, with housemade soy milk, fan tuan (sticky rice wrapped around a cruller with pork and pickles), and scallion pancake with egg. Space is tight here, but the food packs plenty of flavor.

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110 E 7th St, New York, NY 10009

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Beef noodles soup, with noodles artfully wrapped around chopsticks, from Ho Foods — Beef noodle soup from Ho Foods.

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Balthazar

Balthazar, restaurateur Keith McNally’s French brasserie opened in 1997, representing a changing tide in what had been an industrial, art-filled downtown Manhattan, and a shift in how and what New Yorkers wanted to eat. Today, the menu still includes mainstays like raw bar seafood towers, French onion soup, steak frites, and profiteroles. It remains relevant as ever, with McNally’s running Instagram commentary, his insistence on treating solo diners as VIPs with a glass of Champagne, and people watching like few places in New York.

80 Spring St, New York, NY 10012

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Balthazar’s red awning. — The iconic Balthazar awning.

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Katz's Delicatessen

Katz’s has stood on the corner of East Houston and Ludlow streets since 1888, and the pastrami alone is a New York icon. The expansive, cafeteria-style dining room is almost always bustling, and diners have to know how to navigate the system. Get in line, remember to tip the slicer (they might give you an extra piece to snack on), and no matter what, don’t lose that ticket.

205 E Houston St, New York, NY 10002

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The front of a sprawling corner store at night, with red neon letters that read “Katz’s Delicatessen” in capital letters. — Outside of Katz’s Delicatessen.

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Una Pizza Napoletana

Expect lines at this destination that inspires many a pizza pilgrimage. Anthony Mangieri is known for his almost militant approach to Neapolitan pizza making, and a simple menu featuring classics done well. Last summer, Mangieri’s Una was tied for the first-place title of the best pizzeria in the world, by the organization 50 Top Pizza.

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175 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002

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An overhead shot of a pizza pie with mozzarella, basil, and red sauce, and a charred outer crust. — Una Pizza comes with a knife.

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Thai Diner

This Thai American diner from the team behind the former Uncle Boons serves up creative fare in an equally funkily-designed dining room. Dishes like the cabbage roll tom khaa, the khao soi, and the breakfast sandwich made with roti have kept the lines coming since it first opened in early 2020. Plenty of dishes have vegetarian substitutes. And ice cream sundaes here come with cute little sentient faces.

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186 Mott St, New York, NY 10012

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A spread of dishes shot from overhead, including verdant cabbage rolls, phat Thai noodles with pink head-on shrimp, fried chicken larb, and Thai tea pain perdu made from marbled babka — A collection of dishes from Thai Diner.

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Russ & Daughters Cafe

This Lower East Side icon — the full-service sibling to the appetizing store — reopened last year after being closed through the pandemic. The modern luncheonette feeling is where you’ll find platters of smoked fish, egg creams, and matzo ball soup.

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127 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002

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A man stands behind the counter at Russ and Daughters Cafe. — Russ and Daughters Cafe

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Great NY Noodletown

For a taste of old-school Manhattan Chinatown, pull up a seat at this Chinese restaurant named for its noodles but known for its wonton soup. Located off of Bowery, N.Y. Noodletown opened in 1981, and the addition of the word “great” came later on. At one point, the restaurant served plates of salt-baked squid and sauteed water spinach until 4 a.m. Like much of Chinatown after the pandemic, it now closes between 10 and 11 p.m., but its plates of salt-baked squid and sauteed water spinach are every bit as good. For a proper study in barbecued meats, many of which glisten in the restaurant’s window looking out on Bayard Street, order a combination plate with several cuts over a bed of rice.

28 Bowery, New York, NY 10013

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Three meats with green sauce on top heaped on rice. — Barbecue meats over rice with ginger-scallion relish.

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The Original Buddha Bodai Kosher Vegetarian Restaurant

While veganism is often framed as a trend, mock meat has been around in China for centuries. Open since 2004, Buddha Bodai serves the dim sum Chinatown is known for, out of a kitchen that’s flexible to customers with all types of dietary restrictions (in addition to being meat-free, it’s also kosher).

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5 Mott St, New York, NY 10013

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A bamboo steamer teaming with white-and-pink dumplings. — Vegetarian-friendly dim sum.

Kopitiam

This casual Malaysian all-day cafe is helmed by James Beard semifinalist Kyo Pang, who serves nasi lemak, the national dish, with crunchy anchovies, kaya butter toast, and fish ball soup. There are also set platters to try a little of everything — and don’t sleep on the kuih, a glutinous rice layered dessert.

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151 E Broadway, New York, NY 10002

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Several dishes take up a tabletop at Kopitiam in New York City. — A selection of dishes at Kopitiam.

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Misi

Misi is chef Missy Robbins follow-up to Lilia. But just because the restaurant is easier to get into than its sibling, doesn’t mean it's any less of a pasta palace. In fact, we prefer the more lowkey energy at this restaurant located just steps from Domino Park. The calling card here is the decadent ricotta toast and there’s no way to go wrong with your pasta selection. Don’t sleep on the creamy gelato desserts.

329 Kent Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11249

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A spread of dishes at Misi — The ricotta toast is a must at Misi.

The Four Horsemen

The wave of natural wine bar openings was just around the corner when LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy opened the Four Horsemen in 2015. Almost a decade later, the always-packed bar and dining room remains a gathering place for wine lovers, scenesters, Francophiles, and restaurant enthusiasts. It’s rare for a wine bar to hit a home run with both its drink and food menus, but this Williamsburg favorite strikes the right balance with its knowledgeable servers and Michelin-worthy small plates. Plates are small and prices are in line with a celebratory night out.

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295 Grand St, Brooklyn, NY 11211

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A spread of food and wine from the Four Horsemen.

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L'Industrie Pizzeria

Opened in 2017, L’Industrie was once one of Brooklyn’s best-kept secrets: a top-tier slice shop where it was possible to pop in for a pie or a cup of gelato with olive oil and salt without lines. Massimo Laveglia’s naturally leavened slice shop has since undergone a major expansion that included adding an indoor counter space, and a sizable outdoor setup. Customers now snake out the door most hours of the day, but it’s still worth grabbing a place in line. Slices come out on greasy paper plates with crisp, naturally leavened crusts and ample toppings like burrata and pepperoni, whose quality is apparent.

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254 S 2nd St, Brooklyn, NY 11211

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