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24 Prince St
It's not dishing up anything all that unusual, but 24 Prince has found a recipe for success: serve delectable mac-n-cheese, burnished chicken, creamed spinach, cornbread and other American favorites in a convivial and casually elegant atmosphere, and everybody leaves happy.
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Alias
The sole survivor of a trio of restaurants that opened up when Clinton St was considered culinary Siberia, Alias continues to deliver delicious, fresh food, heavy on seasonal ingredients with dishes like Wild Alaskan black cod, maple syrup drenched pears with ricotta and tomato braised brisket.
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Amuse
You'll love grazing on the small plates of Amuse Fries (served with chipotle and aioli), olive poached tuna, braised beets or roasted shiitake mushrooms (to name but a few). To try it all, get the prix-fixe sampler.
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Applewood
Applewood fills nightly with chatty locals who like the working fireplace and back bar with cocktails and a long wine list. The upstate venison - sliced and grilled - comes with leeks and shallots (around US$26 ). There's always a lone veggie option - like the spinach and basil risotto with mascarpone cheese - and several fish dishes.
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Blt Steak
Any steakhouse that sets aside part of its menu just for mushrooms has a lot more going for it than meat - BLT's pays as much attention to its sides as it does the main attraction. The bar is a buzzy, playful place, and the warmly-hued restaurant very relaxing; perfect to digest your slab of porterhouse or big Kobe burger.
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Blue Hill
They're not kidding with the 'This Morning's Farm Egg' appetizer. Everything on the menu is from upstate, organic growers, so the 'grass-fed lamb' entree is made from precisely that. Linked to the Stone Barn estate, an experiment in growing local, Chef Dan Barber makes the most of every ingredient's seasonal freshness.
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Blue Smoke
Purists may eschew northern-style BBQ, but Blue Smoke's got a few recipes that rival those of the deep South. Beer ribs, salt-and-pepper ribs, baby-back ribs, pulled pork sandwiches and killer mac 'n' cheese are the menu standouts.
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Boathouse
After a recent makeover and refinancing, Central Park Boathouse shed its reputation as a restaurant that only cared about communing with nature and became a culinary delight. The roasted duck and delicate salmon tartare on par with some of the city's best, and it still has that gorgeous waterfront spot.
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Bridge Café
It's been around for more than two centuries and is still one of New York's best insider eateries. If you don't mind a possible ghost sighting, Bridge Cafe's slow, ambling brunches and happy, hearty dinners are perfect for you. The dishes are far more modern than the decor - fresh ingredients and locally produced cuts of beefsteak, fish and poultry.
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Bubby's
Bubby's is a family-friendly haven when you're foot-sore and hungry. Its juicy burgers, mac 'n' cheese and heaping plates of BBQ chicken are impossible to resist.
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Bubby's Pie Company
Though it started in 1990 as a pie company, Bubby's is now one of the most popular eateries in Tribeca. The buzz about it being a magnet for local celebs has died down, but it's still a great draw for families with kids - who are welcome and easily sated here with a special kids' menu, brimming with classics.
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Burger Joint
Like the name says, this joint serves one thing, and one thing only. Well, you can get fries and a shake with your order, but burgers are the specialty of the house. They're juicy, tender and just the right size. It's hard to find Burger Joint - you have to enter the Parker Meridien hotel and ask around. Moving from the stylized lobby to this greasy spoonish place adds another dimension to its charm.
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Chestnut
Chef Daniel Eardley seeks out the best upstate and local farm organic goods for his delectable meals. Good bets are the Sunday brunch, nightly tasting menus (wine pairings optional), or the prix-fixe chef's specials with charred octopus, stuffed pork chop or halibut with wild mushrooms.
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David Burke & Donatella
It might look like a member of the Versace family decorated this lush red space, but the Donatella in question has no ties to any fashion empire - she and partner David Burke are strictly about food, like salmon with warm potato knish, pretzel-crusted crabcake, yellowfin tuna on saltrock and 'crispy and angry' lobster cocktail.
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Dumont
Eating beet salads, big burgers, crab cakes, 'Dumac 'n' cheese,' and more serious entrees like skate and roasted olives, grilled half-chicken, and steak bordelaise in the garden bar or treehouse is great summer fun.
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Eatery
Come and hang at the bar even if you don't feel like eating - you'll have a hard time not ordering something once the plates of edamame, ginger calamari, black mussels in curry broth and big juicy burgers start going by. Maybe if you fix your attention on the DJ spinning cool tunes in the corner, you can resist - but why try?
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Elmo
An epicenter for Chelsea boys, Elmo is a sexy scene with high ceilings, low lighting, cushy banquettes and a garage door-like facade that's opened to the street come spring and summer. The simple, comfort-food favorites - meatloaf, fried chicken, baked mac 'n' cheese (with added fontina and Gruyère), mussels (steamed in tequila) and big fresh salads - are consistently delicious. And so are the lovely looking waitstaff and clientele.
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Empire Diner
Housed in a restored silver Pullman car, Empire Diner has a lot of wacky charm, mostly thanks to the occasional odd character who sits at the counter eating pie. Can't really blame 'em - the pie, burgers, salads and heaping, fat omelettes are delicious, and all types swing by for a bite.
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Fraunces Tavern
Can you really pass up a chance to eat where George Washington (it's been documented) supped in 1762? Expect heaping portions of tavern stew, clam chowder, beef Wellington and your choice of cobbler, butterscotch bread pudding, spiked fig and apple tart or strawberry shortcake for dessert. The bar, filled with friendly locals, is great for a snack and a drink.
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Freeman's
Tucked off the beaten path at the end of a small alley, Freeman's no-reservation policy can translate into long waits, but only because it's become so popular. The delicious, meat-centric dishes (mostly wild game like deer, pheasant and once even ostrich) are matched with an expensive wine list and airy desserts.
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Katz's Deli
With sandwiches the size of your arm, it's best to come to Katz's teeming deli when you're ready to seriously eat. There's a lightning quick takeout line if you don't want to stay, but the slower table service means more time for people-watching as you tackle that pastrami and rye.
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Little Giant
Fresh ingredients from organic farmers in upstate New York pepper Little Giant's revolving menu, which can carry dishes like chicken liver mousse, maple-roasted brussels sprouts, sticky toffee pudding and a 'swine of the week' dish featuring pork. The eighty-bottle wine list proudly offers only local vintners.
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Market Café
An oldie but a goodie, Market Café is still a favorite local choice for the far west side. Its plain Formica tables and plastic booths don't exactly scream high-end, but stick around for the warm service, cool music and grilled gravlax, Atlantic cod, steak frites and pizzas and you'll see why it's a hipster hangout.
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Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs
If you eat 'em, this is the place for an all-beef dog with sauerkraut and mustard. A frightening time to visit is July 4, when Nathan's holds a hot dog-eating contest (the record stands at Takeru Kobayashi's 50.5).
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Ouest
The addition of a smooth jazz combo has enhanced the sophisticated energy at Tom Valenti's red-boothed wonder, which still rates high with New Yorkers thanks to delicately stacked combo dishes like house-smoked sturgeon with frisée and poached egg, oyster pan roast with yukon gold potatoes and grilled free-range chicken. The bar food is just as nice, and less damaging to the pocketbook.
