Downtown restaurants with pre-loaded menus, ready to rate.
Bowery1 places
Chinatown24 places
Nom Wah Tea Parlor
Dim sum on Doyers since 1920.
Joe's Shanghai
The soup dumplings that started the obsession.
Shanghai 21
Worth the line, and there will be a line.
Wo Hop
Basement Cantonese since 1938. Open absurdly late.
Hwa Yuan Szechuan
Introduced NYC to cold sesame noodles. Back and excellent.
Great NY Noodletown
Roast meats and salt-baked everything until 4am.
Wah Fung No. 1
The char siu rice line moves fast and costs almost nothing.
Super Taste
Fuzhou hand-pulled noodles, elite price-to-satisfaction ratio.
Shu Jiao Fu Zhou
Peanut butter noodles and dumplings, cult-level value.
Nha Trang One
Baxter Street's best phở.
Dim Sum Go Go
All-day dim sum, no carts, no compromise.
Jing Fong
The cart dim sum experience, rebooted.
Noodle Village
The neighborhood's best wonton soup.
Tasty Hand-Pulled Noodles
Noodles pulled to order behind the counter. Cash-friendly, no frills.
Deluxe Green Bo
Cash-only Shanghainese standby.
Peking Duck House
One thing, carved tableside, since forever.
Hop Kee
Cantonese basement classic since 1968.
Potluck Club
Cantonese-American nostalgia with a marquee inside.
Phoenix Palace
Potluck Club's ambitious sequel. Book the booth.
Tolo
Wine-bar-coded modern Chinese, Michelin-noticed.
Pecking House Chinatown
The chili fried chicken that had a 10,000-person waitlist.
Chinatown Ice Cream Factory
Black sesame over vanilla since the '70s.
Mei Lai Wah
The baked pork bun benchmark.
Wu's Wonton King
East Broadway banquet energy, BYOB.
East Village21 places
7th Street Burger
The original. Smash patties, foil wrap, done.
Ariari
Busan-inspired seafood with '72 Buick seats.
Bánh Anh Em
Bánh mì on house-baked bread, raising the bar.
Bar Snack
Time Out's current #1 bar in NYC. Chips served properly.
Crif Dogs
Deep-fried dogs, open late, zero pretense.
Death & Co
The cocktail renaissance started behind this door.
Emmy Squared East Village
Detroit-style squares and a stealth great burger.
Ippudo East Village
The ramen line that started NYC's ramen lines.
Lil' Frankie's
Wood-fired pies and pasta, always packed, always right.
Madame Vo
Vietnamese comfort food. Everyone gets their own phở.
Motorino
Neapolitan standby. The brussels sprout pie converted the skeptics.
Prosciutto
Eight tables, walk-in only, the most exciting Italian right now.
Royale
Avenue C watering hole with an excellent bar burger.
Soothr
Thai with a following. Book ahead or suffer.
Supper
Frank Prisinzano's candlelit corner. Cash only.
Taqueria Ramirez East Village
Greenpoint's CDMX taco kings, Manhattan edition.
Tompkins Square Bagels
Neighborhood bagel heavyweight, generous with the schmear.
Veniero's
Pasticceria since 1894. The case does the talking.
Veselka
Ukrainian diner since 1954. Somehow still a neighborhood joint.
Superiority Burger
Vegetarian counter turned proper sit-down. Cult burger.
Please Don't Tell
Phone-booth speakeasy behind Crif Dogs. Serious cocktails.
Financial District3 places
Greenwich Village22 places
7th Street Burger Greenwich Village
The smash chain's MacDougal outpost.
Arturo's
Coal-oven pies and live jazz on Houston. Unchanged, thankfully.
Bar Moga
Japanese cocktails and a serious katsu sando.
Bar Pitti
Sixth Ave sidewalk classic since 1992. Cash only, scene included.
Butter Smashburgers
Fluorescent-lit counter, everything under $10, open late.
Carbone
Red sauce Italian theater. One of the city's hardest reservations.
Dame
Seafood counter energy, fish and chips with a cult.
Dante
The MacDougal original. Negroni destination since 1915.
Genki Omakase
Sub-$100 omakase, one-hour seating, strip-mall vibes.
Il Cantinori
White-tablecloth Tuscan. Ask for the off-menu specials.
Joe's Pizza
The Carmine Street slice standard since 1975.
Lord's
British restaurant on LaGuardia Place from the Dame team.
Mamoun's Falafel
Cash-only falafel institution. Late-night MacDougal fuel.
Mermaid Oyster Bar
Neighborhood seafood on MacDougal. Happy hour oysters.
Minetta Tavern
1937 tavern turned Keith McNally clubhouse.
Old Tbilisi Garden
Georgian with a rock-filled back garden.
OMG Shawarma
Lazy-day shawarma rotation material.
Song'E Napule
Some of NYC's best Neapolitan crust, always a table.
Strip House
Red-walled downtown steakhouse, the anti-midtown option.
Tacombi Bleecker
Taqueria in a converted garage vibe. Group-friendly.
Tomo21
Low-key sushi with a longer line than Carbone across the street.
Top Thai Vintage
Halal Thai with a crispy tamarind duck worth knowing.
Little Italy1 places
Lower East Side20 places
Casino
Italian restaurant and bar on East Broadway.
Clinton St. Baking Company
The pancake line, still worth it.
Datz Deli
Jamaican-Guyanese mac patties, best late at night.
Dhamaka
Unapologetic regional Indian inside Essex Market.
Double Chicken Please
World's-50-Best cocktail machine. Drinks that taste like food.
Freemans
Hidden down an alley since before that was a thing.
Katz's Delicatessen
The pastrami. You know the movie. Since 1888.
Kisa
Korean driver's-diner sets. Rice, soup and banchan on one tray.
Kopitiam
Malaysian all-day cafe. Get the nasi lemak.
La Contenta
The neighborhood's best Mexican, mezcal included.
Le French Diner
Tiny Orchard St. French. Elbow room not included.
Mắm
Uncompromising Vietnamese. The bún đậu platter is the move.
Russ & Daughters Cafe
Appetizing royalty, sit-down edition.
Scarr's Pizza
Retro slice shop, naturally leavened, scene included.
The Ten Bells
Natural wine and $1 happy hour oysters.
Una Pizza Napoletana
Five pies a night, possibly the best Neapolitan anywhere.
Cervo's
Portuguese-ish seafood on Canal. Small, sharp menu.
Kiki's
Greek taverna on Division. No reservations.
The Corner Bar
Ignacio Mattos revival inside Nine Orchard. Late-night burger.
Cheeky Sandwiches
New Orleans po'boys through a Chinatown doorway.
Meatpacking1 places
Noho5 places
BONDST
Japanese-inspired sushi and small plates at 6 Bond Street.
Fish Cheeks
Thai seafood with a cult. The crab curry is non-negotiable.
Il Buco Alimentari e Vineria
Great Jones pantry-restaurant. The porchetta made it famous.
Lafayette
Grand café whose circular croissant broke the internet.
Raf's
French and Italian bakery and restaurant on Elizabeth Street.
Nolita14 places
Cafe Habana
The grilled corn made this corner famous.
Deux Luxe
A slightly nicer-than-average burger, on purpose.
Emilio's Ballato
Celebrity red-sauce clubhouse on Houston. No sign needed.
Estela
Small plates that changed how downtown eats.
Jack's Wife Freda
Mediterranean-ish brunch magnet.
Lombardi's
America's first pizzeria, coal oven still going.
Lovely Day
Red booths, Thai food, nothing over $25.
Oriana
Live-fire cooking from the Noortwyck team.
Pasquale Jones
Wood-fired clam pizza and serious wine.
Prince Street Pizza
The Spicy Spring square. The line is part of it.
Rubirosa
The vodka pie that launched a thousand waits.
Ruby's Cafe
Australian cafe energy, cult burger.
Thai Diner
Thai comfort food in diner form. Works for everything.
Torrisi
Italian-American dining room on Mulberry Street from Major Food Group.
SoHo18 places
12 Chairs
All-day Israeli breakfast plus schnitzel.
Alidoro
Italian sandwich perfectionists, gruff service included.
Altro Paradiso
Italian restaurant and café on Sixth Avenue.
Blue Ribbon Brasserie
Where chefs eat after service. Open very late.
Blue Ribbon Sushi
Late-night nigiri, traditional and correct.
Champion Pizza
Twenty square varieties, but the round plain wins.
Charlie Bird
Italian-leaning dining room on King Street with a deep wine list.
Ciccio
Basement Italian charmer on 6th Ave.
Dominique Ansel Bakery
Birthplace of the Cronut. The DKA is the sleeper hit.
Epistrophy
Cute, reasonable, pastas under $20.
Fanelli Cafe
Pouring since 1847, sceney renaissance included.
La Mercerie
All-day cafe inside a furniture showroom. Fancy lunch HQ.
Lucia Pizza SoHo
Serious slices for a quick lower Manhattan lunch.
Noury
Hard-to-find sake and a mackerel sando on milk bread.
Sadelle's
Bagel towers and salads for the SoHo shopping crowd.
Shuka
Shareable Middle Eastern, everything under $30.
Raoul's
SoHo bistro classic since 1975. Steak au poivre and secret burger.
Balthazar
The Keith McNally brasserie. Croissants, oysters, steak frites.
Tribeca13 places
Au Cheval
Chicago's famous cheeseburger, NYC edition.
Bubby's
Pancakes and pie, the Tribeca family clubhouse.
Farra
Wine bar from the Atera team. Get the scallop fried rice.
Frenchette
The brasserie that made downtown French cool again.
Frenchette Bakery
The neighborhood's best croissant, worth the detour.
L'Abeille à Côté
French bistro offshoot with a stealth-great burger.
Locanda Verde
Carmellini's crowd-pleaser. The greatest hits still hit.
Marc Forgione
Iron Chef comfort-luxury. The chili lobster is the point.
Mudville
Sports bar with some of the city's best buffalo wings.
Shion 69 Leonard Street
Hushed, serious omakase.
Terroir
Wine bar that doesn't take itself seriously. Food does the talking.
The Odeon
The 1980 original downtown scene, still delivering.
Walker's
Old tavern, checkered floors, reliable pub burger.
West Village32 places
American Bar
Clubby American bar and grill on Greenwich Avenue.
Cecchi's
Classic New York bar and grill on West 13th Street.
Emmett's on Grove
Chicago tavern-style thin crust, downtown address.
Faicco's
Italian deli since 1900. The chicken cutlet sandwich is the size of a forearm.
Little Owl
Corner restaurant on Bedford and Grove, home of the gravy meatball sliders.
Morandi
Keith McNally's Italian trattoria on Charles Street.
Palma
Italian restaurant with a garden on Cornelia Street.
Rosemary's West Village
Italian trattoria on Greenwich Avenue with a rooftop garden.
San Sabino
Italian-American seafood restaurant on Greenwich Avenue from the Don Angie chefs.
The Commerce Inn
Early American tavern on Commerce Street from the Via Carota chefs.
Via Carota
Rustic Italian on Grove. Walk-in only, waits worth it.
L'Artusi
Modern Italian on 10th. Loud, bright, always packed.
I Sodi
Tuscan food so simple it seems effortless. Bar seats for walk-ins.
Don Angie
Italian-American, remixed. The lasagna arrives as pinwheels.
4 Charles Prime Rib
Dim, clubby prime rib den. One of the hardest books downtown.
Jeffrey's Grocery
Seafood and strong drinks on a leafy Waverly corner.
Buvette
Tiny all-day gastrothèque. Elbows in, café crème out.
Pearl Oyster Bar
The lobster roll that launched a thousand imitators.
Corner Bistro
Old-school tavern. Paper plates, cash register, one burger to order.
John's of Bleecker Street
Coal-fired pies since 1929. No slices.
L'Industrie Pizzeria West Village
Brooklyn's slice king, Manhattan outpost.
Semma
Michelin-starred South Indian. Unapologetic heat.
Employees Only
OG craft-cocktail den. Bartenders in lab coats.
Dante West Village
Drinks-first Italian with an unfathomably deep cocktail list.
Le Dive West Village
Parisian-style tabac. Premier outdoor martini territory.
Donna
Tropical-ish, conversation-friendly. Frozen drinks done seriously.
Katana Kitten
Japanese-American cocktail bar, world-rankings regular.
Malatesta Trattoria
Cash-only trattoria on the far west edge. Gnocchi people swear by.
Laliko
Georgian charmer. Dumplings and cheese bread built for sharing.
Wild Cherry
Burger-and-martini spot, if you can get in.
Capitaine
Seafood tavern of sorts. Plateaux, martinis, no pressure.
Smashed
Simple, crispy smashburgers done exceptionally well.