When looking for lunch in NYC, there are numerous places you can choose from – among the best are a new hotel restaurant in Williamsburg and an independent Brooklyn spot known for delicious smash burgers.
As this popular brunch spot often experiences waits of up to two hours, lunch is an ideal time to visit. That way, you’ll avoid crowds while still taking time to enjoy its tasty cuisine!
Gramercy Tavern
Gramercy Tavern is one of the signature New York and American restaurants. It is known for its combination of Danny Meyer’s legendary sense of hospitality with chef Michael Anthony’s seasonally driven cuisine and welcoming atmosphere. It is loved by locals and visitors alike for its warmth, inviting atmosphere, and superior service.
The restaurant offers two distinct dining areas; the front tavern area provides an a la carte menu, while the back dining room offers fixed price-only tasting menus. Both spaces boast lively atmospheres perfect for lunchtime dining, while both offer more formal settings for formal meetings and celebrations. Both rooms are trendy, so reservations should be secured early to secure a seat!
Although the food at a tavern may be more casual than that served in its dining room counterpart, its taste remains equally delectable. Choose from vegetarian starters like grilled cauliflower with sweet potato puree and smoked almond vinaigrette, as well as salads featuring toasted walnuts, crisp apples, blue cheese, and tangy yogurt dressing, as well as tortellini featuring mushrooms and butternut squash or strozzapreti featuring tomatoes and eggplant as options on its menu.
For something heartier, the Tavern menu offers various main courses like cubed and cured hamachi with pears and thyme or grilled monkfish with lobster bisque. Furthermore, there’s a fantastic selection of wines and cocktails; they even provide a prix-fixe menu with starter and main dish options!
Though the restaurant may be expensive, it is well worth visiting. The Tavern makes for a beautiful lunch date or social night out; grab a seat at the bar for standout service without making reservations. The food here is excellent, while prices remain reasonable for a Michelin-star establishment; they even provide a gluten-free menu!
Sugarfish
Sugarfish, the New York outpost of an affordable Los Angeles sushi chain known for omakase dining, opened this week in Williamsburg – its inaugural location in Brooklyn as well as their fourth Manhattan outpost within Sushi Nozawa Group, which includes Kazunori and Nozawa Bar.
Williamsburg restaurant, located at 157 Wythe Avenue and North Sixth Street near North Sixth Street, offers authentic Japanese food daily from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday to Thursday and from noon until midnight Friday and Saturday. Offering a menu consisting of sashimi, nigiri, hand rolls, and four traditional omakase courses priced from $29 for seven courses, “Trust Me Lite” up to $65 for 10-course “Don’t Think,” it also provides an extensive list of a la carte items as well.
Since its opening in early November, this restaurant has proven immensely popular. This success can be attributed to its low-cost omakase menu and non-reservation policy – both factors contributed to long lines forming outside during its first week of operations; one line wrapped around the block! Wait times could last up to two hours, so plan accordingly.
Since opening, Sugarfish has quickly become one of the city’s premier sushi restaurants. It features an elegant interior designed by longtime architect Marmol Radziner with minimalist decor and efficient service that complements its affordable menu – unlike most NYC sushi establishments, which only provide set menu options.
Los Angeles-based sushi chef Kazunori Nozawa established Sugarfish, famed for its fresh fish offerings and reasonable omakase menu prices. Since opening, Sugarfish has amassed a following among residents and celebrity patrons like Kristin Cavallari of reality TV fame. She told Harper’s Bazaar she frequently visits Sugarfish whenever she is in LA.
This restaurant has also earned high marks for its efficient and friendly service, affordable menu options, and low prices – making it the go-to spot for New Yorkers seeking quick sushi fixes at low cost. Some reviewers have commented that the food doesn’t live up to that offered in its sister locations in Los Angeles.
Kiki’s
Kiki’s is an inviting rustic spot on the lower end of the LES, featuring Chinese characters on its awning as an homage to its Chinese American community. Inside, this Greek tavern offers no-frills food in a cozy wooden space, with options including grilled octopus, saganaki, and spanakopita available as entrees. Kiki’s has long been considered an area favorite.
Food at this establishment is fresh and authentic, with reasonable prices for such quality dishes. The service here is welcoming and helpful – an ideal option for budget dining in the city.
The decor and lighting at this restaurant create an excellent ambiance, which makes it the ideal place for friends or families, date night, and fantastic food such as octopus saganaki lamb and Greek salad dishes! I would highly recommend it!
My favorite place in NYC for delicious and flavorful octopus and saganaki dishes! Prices are very fair for the quality of food offered here, including amazing grilled octopus, horiatiki salad, and lamb dishes that won’t break the bank! Service is a top-notch notch, too – my only gripe would be overcrowding and waiting too long before my table can be ready for service.
Kiki’s is the place for great wines at reasonable prices, plus an impressive selection of appetizers like zucchini chips, octopus and kalamata olives – incredibly delicious is their octopus; moussaka with its layers of eggplant and ground beef can also fill you up quickly – however their saganaki is impressively good, even if it doesn’t melt in your mouth; for less than $40 you’d be amazed how much food can fit on one plate alone!
Davelle
Davelle Cafe is an all-day cafe from the team behind Izakaya in East Village – already recognized by The New York Times’ Hungry City column as an establishment that stands out. It occupies the former Soy space on Suffolk Street between Delancey and Rivington streets and pays homage to Japan’s kissaten, or tea and coffee shops, that have long been found throughout Tokyo since its founding. Unlike most NYC cafes that cater to Instagrammers, this all-day cafe in Queens puts comfort over excellence. At breakfast and lunch sets, guests will be offered dishes such as thick slices of Japanese milk bread decorated with an artistic checkerboard of cream cheese and berry jam, swirls of fermented soybeans (natto) mixed with butter, as well as sandwiches with soup and salad sets for lunch service.
At this restaurant, there’s also a bar serving custom roast from 95 RPM, Japanese whiskies, and cocktails and beer. Its cozy environment features dried flowers, vintage yellow leather coat hangers, exposed brick walls, and vintage yellow leather coat hangers that give off an air of nostalgia – it makes you want to stay for hours sipping coffee or reading books!
At night, the restaurant transforms into an izakaya and switches its focus towards Oden. Oden is a Japanese hot pot in which different ingredients such as mushrooms, okra, and eggs soak in light broth for hours – served either warm or cold as part of its weak broth base. A machine dedicated solely to this Japanese hotpot sits conveniently beside the bar area, allowing patrons to create the ultimate dining experience!
Kanayama’s menu is all about comfort, as evidenced by his serving a bowl of uni spaghetti that would fit comfortably in any home kitchen rather than at a restaurant. His goal was to treat uni as something to be shared among family and friends rather than something needing Instagramming, and with this dish, he achieved his aim admirably. Noodles tossed with tomato sauce, butter, soy sauce, and two dozen sea urchin lobes make up this simple yet stunning combination of flavors.
