I'm in NYC for the week and my best friends from high school are in town as well. We wanted to go to a good restaurant since we havent seen each other in forever. Doesn't have to be super fancy, we just want it to be memorable and a good time. We'd happily spend around $200-$300 a person too if it seemed worth it. Thanks for any recommendations!
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Jean Georges
1 Central Park West, New York, NY 10023
https://www.jean-georgesrestaurant.com/content/pdfs/jean-georges-dinner…
I took a date here a few years ago and it was good. You have to wear a jacket though.
https://www.cnn.com/2016/11/29/politics/donald-trump-mitt-romney-jean-g…
You must have been there more than a "few" years ago, and/or be teetotal, if you paid under $300 a head for it.
Last time I went there it was >$500 per, all told.
Yeah it is expensive. I was there a long time ago in 2011 with a date, it was $800. I think we got wine pairings or something in addition to the prix fixe menu. If it is a special occasion, it might be nice - even just to spend a little more. I thought it was a memorable culinary experience. It was 3 Michelin stars at the time.
Anything in paticular you want to get out of it? Amazing culinary experience? Skyline views? Be seen? etc.
Which restaurant do you think has the coolest view in NYC?
Depends on what view you want. If you want park views there are a bunch on the south end of the park. If you want midtown views there are legit dozens of resturants. If you want quaint street views then things in greenwich village and SOHO. If wall street views are your thing the resturant in 28 liberty is open again, it has east river/bay/hudson views as well as the Statue of Liberty. I was just there a few weeks ago for a meeting. The thing is you need a more specific understanding of what you want as "view".
Best view is the Rainbow Room, which is unfortunately closed to the general public indefinitely. Next best would be Peak at 30 Hudson Yards which had great views from the East, followed by One Dine (whose food isn't nearly as good as the other two).
Most important thing would be the atmosphere
Need more specifics.
Aquavit, Le Grand Boucherie, Lobster Club, and Nobu are all great. Some more on the fancier side than others. Don’t want anything too high key I’d imagine though.
Yeah I've heard good things about Nobu.
There's one in DC but I haven't been there yet.
gramercy tavern. if all dudes i love old homestead in meatpacking for good steak
Some of these spots I had to wake up at midnight 30 days in advance for reservations, but that was for prime date night days/hours - might be able to get lucky and snag a cancellation or do a day that's not as popular (e.g. midweek). Otherwise, there's a couple on this list that's less "extravagant" but still solid choices for food/ambience:
All of those are in Manhattan, mainly West Village area. If you want to venture out to Williamsburg, there are two additional Italian spots that are solid - Misi and Lilia - run under the same chef, both quality, each do hand crafted pasta very well. Man do I miss living in the city haha, enjoy your guys' night and hope you find the right spot!
Going to dissent. Went to L'Artusi last week and was incredibly underwhelmed. More style, less substance. Great if you're an influencer that likes to be seen, but not worth the hype imo.
If you want to do something special, my recommendation goes out to Daniel (although it's probably going to run you more than $300/head). Expensive, but it's unilaterally one of the most loved restaurants amongst friends that appreciate fine dining.
Was literally just going to say the same thing about L’artusi. Gone so downhill since covid. Went there twice last year and pasta was rubbery and bland af.
Le Coucou
River Cafe under the Brooklyn Bridge.
balthazar and minetta tavern (altho v tough to get into)
I've never been to New York, but I've heard very good things about The Grill, a high-class steakhouse that took over the spot of the Four Seasons (the restaurant with the power lunch crowd, not the hotel) in the Seagram Building a few years ago. I will say that it's extremely expensive, but reviews from Robb Report, which listed as No. 2 in its list of the "10 Best New Restaurants in America" (June 2018) and others have suggested it's worth it. I don't have the time to look up reservation information, but I'm sure you or someone else can find it by looking on the Internet. I hope this helps your searches.
https://thegrillnewyork.com/
https://robbreport.com/food-drink/dining/robb-report-selects-10-best-ne…
Been there for work. It's good but overpriced. Tacky atmosphere. Overall 6.5/10 when adjusted for value.
I suggest Dorsia
hahaha I was waiting for this
You’ve been on this site for a decade and this joke has been told the entire time. How is it still funny to you
I called to make a res and the guy on the phone just started laughing :(
4 Charles Prime Rib will always be my favorite restaurant in NYC. But as with a lot of these, good luck with a reservation...
Y'all crazy telling this guy to go places that need reservations weeks or months in advance.
OP, bring your buddies to Via Carota. They don't take reservations. Not really, anyway.
I'd personally recommend Le Bernardin if you're into seafood or Rezdôra if you're looking for top notch (and well-priced for quality) Italian. Crown Shy is nice too– I've heard great things about their short rib.
Been to all, I don't think Crown Shy is to the level of the other two yet. I'd recommend estela in lieu of it.
Go to Atera
Manhatta (amazing view)
Nobu
Sushi on me (omakase) - highly recommend. 5 seatings per day, ~12 patrons per sit, 1 hr each. was more than 10 courses (maybe more than 14?) of omakase with a new dram of sake between each. Patrons and cookstaff get drunk and eat pristine fish together, it was very unique. Go for last sitting, that's when they polish off what remains of the sake with the heavy pours
Le Bernadin
Jean Georges
Frenchette - duck frites is great
COTE (Upscale KBBQ)
Keens (Massive, massive pieces of dry aged beef)
11MP (they went vegan recently though, right?)
Minetta Tavern
Buddakan
Fogo de Chao (All you can eat brazilian steakhouse)
Hawksmoor (cool english steakhouse. Pricey but a cool experience and good beef)
Wolfgang's (Steakhouse, great for porterhouse)
Mr. Chow - Upscale white tablecloth Chinese
Shukette - Moroccan
La Boucherie
Avra (Greek/Mediterranean)
Estiatorio Milos (Greek/Mediterranean with seafood bent)
Rosa Mexicano
Peak (view is incredible)
I'm going to give my go-to special occasion spot. Nica Trattoria - a cozy spot on the UES that seats maybe no more than 40 people. The owner chef is there every night and the menu is expansive including the specials. Place has 5 star food, ambiance and the owner interacts just the right amount to make you feel special. It is not cheap, but one of the best kept secrets in NYC.
Their truffle gnocchi is tremendous..
Lots of good options in this thread, many of which are very well-known (nothing wrong with that). If you're looking for a place a little under the radar but still a culinary experience, I highly recommend Shabushabu Mayumon. Very cool, intimate restaurant (seats 6) with a tasting menu that is ~20 courses, most of which are washugyu or wagyu beef. Everything is absolutely delicious. Expect it to run $150-200 per head without drinks - well worth it if you're a fan of high quality meat.
Location is down in LES/Chinatown, FYI.
Keep us updated about where you go and how good it was! Really there are a lot of good places on this thread - should be a memorable experience.
If you can get in, Saga is on the 63rd floor of 70 Pine. Unreal views of pretty much all of downtown Brooklyn and Manhattan
Sushi Nakazawa
For that amount of money these days in NYC, I recommend a happy meal at McDonald’s or a slice of cheese pizza
I heard there isn't any more $1 Pizza at 2 Bros
$1 pizza is basically gone now. The prices here post-covid have been shocking - even groceries are expensive now.
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