If you’re the way we are here at Resy, you’ve been spending the past weeks thinking every day about your favorite restaurants. What do we miss most about them? What are we most looking forward to returning to, as they begin to fully reopen for dining? Yes, there’s plenty of takeout and delivery to enjoy, groceries and wine to buy, and lots of other ways to support the restaurants we love. But nothing beats the experience of being in a restaurant, enjoying the dishes you adore.
We’ve compiled a list of favorite things about dining in New York City we’re hoping to get back so soon.
-
- The lotus root with soft tofu — a perfect way to start a meal at Atoboy — and then the fried chicken with gochujang and spicy peanut-butter sauce as the perfect way to end it.
- Depending on the meal period, the dreamy fennel salad at Altro Paradiso — so boisterous and bright. And definitely ordering two cacio e pepes.
- Espresso martinis on draft at August Laura.
- The best oyster happy hour in the city, at Fish Cheeks.
- A sake negroni and a seat on the patio at Maison Yaki.
- Having a cocktail and a snack in the garden at Olmsted.
- The Paul’s Boutique pizza at Speedy Romeo: succulent Katz’s deli pastrami, and a béchamel drizzle that Jackson Pollock would be proud of, completes this holy New York sacrament. And then finishing with wood-fired s’mores, with that cast iron mark in the marshmallow.
- The salsa verde burrata at Estela. It’s like tasting in HD while every other burrata is in grainy black and white.
- The brittle carta di musica flatbread at King, as the start to a long, leisurely, wine-filled lunch.
- Getting the suckling pig and roast duck combo over rice at Great NY Noodletown, and basking in the no-nonsense attitude of the staff, as New York as it gets.
- The rice cake fundido at Haenyeo, which manages to capture not just Jenny Kwak’s brilliance but also all of New York in one cast-iron dish.
- Sitting for hours at the bar alone at Paulie Gee’s Slice Shop, eating hot Hellboys and drinking Zero Gravity beer while watching both “Bridget Jones’ Diary” and college football.
- Starting a visit to Hillstone with a Hendrick’s dirty martini, always chilled to perfection. And then basking in the perfectly attentive and predictive service, which makes you feel like you’re a little kid going out to a big-deal dinner.
- Going deep on the xiao long bao and perfectly crimped, truffly mushroom dumplings during happy hour at Pinch Chinese, a glass of Beaujolais alongside.
- The high tables, the potato darphin topped with uni, and Fabien von Hauske’s chocolate-hazelnut tart, at Wildair.
- Fancy hand soap and lotion at so many restaurants, like Le Labo at Misi. Because washing your hands 20 times a day doesn’t warrant the good stuff.
- Olive-oil martinis and that cavatelli with sausage at Frankie’s Spuntino.
- Discovering a new mezcal at Claro alongside the tacos de camarones, made with that homemade masa.
- The scallop ceviche at Llama San, made texturally lush thanks to cherimoya.
- Feeling like the luckiest person in the city for scoring a table at I Sodi.
- Eating fried chicken and drinking Jacques Lassaigne Champagne in between karaoke rounds at Insa. (Hall & Oates FTW.)
- The banh can at Di An Di — perfect grilled rice muffins with pork meatballs, and quail eggs cooked inside.
- Dan Kluger’s calzone-on-overdrive at the bar at Loring Place — the only thing that could have topped his personal grandma pizza.
-
- The proper progression at Chez Ma Tante: Ordering one round of fries — chips — and then another, while sipping the all-too-strong (but still tasty) oat-milk coffee cocktail. Then considering a third round of fries until you finally see the pancakes arrive.
- Lamb-filled xiao long bao that you can’t find anywhere else, at Dumpling Galaxy.
- Tucked into a booth in the corner, enjoying a dirty martini, burger, and fries, at Polo Bar.
- The fisherman’s breakfast plate with sardines or trout, served with spectacular sourdough bread, at Cervo’s.
- Trying to flag down the waiter at Win Son to put in yet another order of pan-griddled pork buns.
- Having your server set down a humongous Tie Die pizza at Rubirosa, and thinking to yourself, “How will we ever get through this?” And then you do.
- The unbeatable $5 Taiwanese chicken leg at May Wah Fast Food on Hester Street, over rice in a pool of gravy.
- Grabbing a window seat to people watch at Hunky Dory, while you enjoy a stack of apple-cider pancakes.
- The whole experience of shuttling between Nami Nori and Air’s Champagne Parlor: Needing to wait hours to get into the first, going to Air’s for a drink while you wait, then returning to eat as many things on the menu as you possibly can.
- Tipping the pastrami guy at Katz’s, and of course getting a hot dog as well as your sandwich, because there’s always room for a hot dog.
- That all-pink bathroom, down to the rotary phone, at Motel Morris
- Getting arguably the best burger in Brooklyn with a Leather Man cocktail at Alameda, as the ideal way to start a weekend.
- The deep pét-nat list, and banquettes so big you can lose yourself, at Le Crocodile.
- Having a drink in the Tavern, and checking out the latest version of the gorgeous floral display, at Gramercy Tavern.
- Thursday date night over kale salad and carbonara, at Barbuto.
- The salty-crispy-chewy pile of potato chips and Iberico ham at Ernesto’s.
- Sitting at the bar at Manhatta, slowly enjoying a glass of whiskey while soaking in the panoramic view of the city lights.
- Digging deep into the wine list while enjoying the epic cauliflower-with-capers appetizer, at Fausto.
- Sitting at the bar at Minca and inhaling a big bowl of shio ramen.
- Never having to make a wine decision at Compagnie des Vins Surnaturels, because the recommendations are always on point.
- Both the deep flavor and the drama of the chicken biryani at Adda, its pastry crust cut and lifted off being perhaps the ultimate tableside service.
- The perfect Chumley’s combo of its signature burger and a rye Manhattan.
- Having the Cincinnati spaghetti with a mai tai in that transparent skull mug, at The HiHi Room.
- Getting the dry pot with tofu skins, lotus root and chicken hearts at Mala Project.
- The jhol momo — with the dumplings soaking in chicken broth — at Nepali Bhanchha Ghar in Jackson Heights.
- The textural balance of the yum naem kao tod — crispy rice salad with sausage — at Chicks Isan.
- Getting a Negroni bianco and a seat on the sidewalk patio at Dante.
