New York City’s Nominees for the 2022 James Beard Awards

For the last five years at Atoboy, Junghyun Park has proven that a Korean banchan concept centered around small plates can be a big deal. After a constant stream of rave reviews (and a Michelin Bib Gourmand), present-day Atoboy boasts a five-course prix fixe (but choose-your-own-adventure) menu, at a price that makes you feel like you’re getting away with something. Pro tip: The optional (arguably non-optional) fried chicken add-on is a modern classic — do not miss it.

Balaboosta means “perfect housewife” in Yiddish, and though the Israeli menu is homey, chef Einat Admony’s sun-drenched plates will leave you nothing short of breathless. Hers is a vivacious, imaginative take on Middle Eastern cuisine (read: za’atar fettuccine and halva French toast), which at its heart pulls from her family’s Persian and Yemeni backgrounds.

At Bonnie’s, chef Calvin Eng pays tribute to his mother (the namesake Bonnie), whose Guangdong and Hong Kong roots shaped much of Eng’s childhood in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. Taking cues from his past experiences (Nom Wah and Win Son), upbringing, and the childhood meals his mother cooked for him, Eng pushes the envelope of what Cantonese food can look and taste like today in New York City to stellar effect.

Executive chef Shenarri “Greens” Freeman has accomplished the seemingly impossible: a next-level Southern and soul food vegan concept. As part of the Overthrow Hospitality empire from restaurateur Ravi DeRossi, who turns everything he touches into meat-free gold (Avant Garden, Etérea, Ladybird, Soda Club), Cadence is the culmination of Freeman’s love affair with plant-based cuisine, and her plates — smoked grits, Southern lasagna, and the usual suspects — are something else.

Lightning strikes again with Danny Meyer’s latest — a stylish new Italian place on the second floor of Manhattan West, just opposite Hudson Yards. And it’s in no small part due to chef Hillary Sterling, whose Italian fare drew raves at Vic’s. This time around, the accomplished chef is going personal and veering for delicious simplicity, making pastas in-house and cooking meat and fish on a custom-built wood-fired grill.

There’s a reason why Dhamaka has topped the best-of lists from multiple publications: It’s really just that good. After Adda and Rahi (now Semma), chef Chintan Pandya and restaurateur Roni Mazumdar have delivered on their promise of deliciously unapologetic Indian food, hopping from region to region to offer a taste of the everyday street food locals love. Simply put, New York hasn’t seen this particular facet of Indian cuisine just yet.

Leave it to Amanda Cohen to still be blowing to smithereens every preconceived notion about vegetarian dining. The chef-owner of Dirt Candy is a pioneer of the vegetable-forward culinary movement, and a leader intent on building a better industry: Thanks to a no-tipping system, the entire team shares equally in the restaurant’s profits. Her layered plates elate, but they’re also a lot of fun — start with the Korean fried broccoli; there’s a reason it rarely leaves the menu.

What does a red sauce renaissance look like? It looks like lasagna rolled up into roses; a chrysanthemum salad hiding under a snowy mound of Parmesan; stuffed pasta that looks like striped candies; and an ode to the garlic knot in the shape of a cheesy garlic-stuffed flatbread. Angie Rito and Scott Tacinelli are deliciously playful in their creations, and Don Angie is a welcome beacon to the Italian American genre.

The Four Horsemen has found just the right formula for its part of the city: dazzling small plates from chef Nick Curtola to match its exceptional selection of natural wines (courtesy of wine director Justin Chearno). Patrons can feast on bright and seasonal dishes like a celery salad dotted with walnuts and dates, or succulent grilled shrimp basted in butter spiked with Calabrian chiles.

What’s not to love about Riad Nasr and Lee Hanson’s highly lauded bistro in the heart of Tribeca? With Frenchette, Nasr and Hanson, two Balthazar alums no less, take all your favorite French classics and add fun, playful, and creative surprises. The cherry on top of it all? The duo brought along established natural wine guru Jorge Riera, meaning Frenchette has one impressive cellar.

This storied Brooklyn landmark went through hell and back to get to where it is now. And it was well worth the effort, and the wait. Gage & Tollner shines just as bright as it did more than 100 years ago, thanks to a revamped menu that pulls from its chophouse and oyster bar past and a complete restoration of its glitzy Victorian fixtures. Throw in a trio of respected industry vets as owners, and pastry chef Caroline Schiff who takes baked Alaska to the next level, and know this: You’re in very good hands.

Who knew that the Wayla team’s sequel restaurant would be the Italian-Japanese mashup Nolita needed? Informed by a genuinely warm service, the menu is as playful as they come, with dishes like uni-topped fried pizzette, rice cake lasagna, and mochi bombolini making perfect bicultural sense. And the cocktails, rich in Japanese ingredients, deserve a special mention of their own.

When something as simple as anchovies and butter is a revelation, you know it’s special. And such is the case at La Vara, where tapas extraordinaires Alex Raij and Eder Montero explore Spain’s Moorish and Jewish heritage to craft some of Cobble Hill’s most riveting small plates. Bonus: The Spanish-minded wine list is a treasure trove worth investigating, and do check out Saint Julivert Fisherie, their seafood-focused bistro next door.

Llama Inn is what happens when an ex-Eleven Madison Park sous chef turns his attention to his Peruvian homeland. And Erik Ramirez electrifies with his menu, which highlights the fluidity and cross-cultural bend of Peruvian cuisine. We’re talking fluke ceviche that brims with Japanese dashi, and aji verde and fermented soy bean battling it out on chicken thighs.

This latest addition to chef Erik Ramirez’s Llama-minded restaurant group doles out a distinct brand of Nikkei cuisine, putting duck breast nigiri and chicken thigh maki under mustard-yellow ají amarillo on the menu. And with award-winning bar director Lynnette Marrero in tow, know that something off the cocktail menu is simply non-negotiable.

At Ignacio Mattos’ latest debut, grains milled in-house run the gamut from einkorn to Kokuho Rose rice, and are highlighted in immaculately crafted Italian pastries and a stacked lineup of breads, all from head pastry chef Louis Volle. Ricotta is made fresh, gelato is churned to order. There are anchovies with peppers and butter, and vitello tonnato. Think of Lodi as Milan meets Midtown — a place to stop in solo for a cappuccino and cornetto as much as it is a destination for a power lunch, especially given its location at Rockefeller Center, where it’s paving the way for a full-fledged revival of the cultural center.

Michelin-starred The Musket Room, a Soho mainstay since 2013, is still one of the city’s best restaurants for incredible, thoughtful cooking. And now, under executive chef Mary Attea and pastry chef Camari Mick, it’s become an exemplary testament to what a fine dining restaurant can, and should be. Attea’s seven-course tasting menus, one for omnivores and another that’s vegan, take you on a culinary journey, while Mick’s desserts are truly sublime. If the weather’s nice, a table in the serene backyard patio lined with flowers can’t be beat.

Everything on the menu at Romeo and Milka Regalli’s Ras Plant Based is vegan, and all of it delicious. It represents Milka and Romeo’s vision for a vegan Ethiopian restaurant that celebrates traditions, but also isn’t afraid to make new ones. Pro tip: One dish not to be missed is the Mama’s Tofu. It was inspired by a photograph that Romeo’s mother sent to him, of a dinner she’d prepared for his father, made with tofu cubes slowly simmered with tomatoes, jalapeños, and a mix of spices.

Chef Ayesha Nurdjaja has bottled lightning twice. First, at Shuka, her thrilling ode to the flavors and cuisines of the Eastern Mediterranean in Soho, and most recently with Shukette, which brings forth a bold Levantine menu that’s bent on charcoal-grilled meats and housemade breads in Chelsea. Both restaurants exude the electric vibes and exceptional cooking you can expect from the Bowery Group’s Marc Meyer, Vicki Freeman, and Chris Paraskevaides, the trio also behind Cookshop, Rosie’s, and Vic’s.

Cozy and comforting: those two words best describe the scene and the cooking at Bryce Shuman’s (Betony, Eleven Madison Park) new Sweetbriar, occupying the ground floor of the Park South Hotel. You’ll definitely want to linger in the front lounge, where the in-house band plays during weekend brunches and on Saturday nights. And further inside, you’ll relish sipping on French 75s at the bar, and feasting on sticky, sweet, and smoky black pepper maple duroc ribs paired with buttery, fluffy cornbread.

No matter what your opinions may be on monarchy, ears are going to perk up when anyone claims to be the “Queen of Soul Food.” But here the royalty in question refers to Sylvia Woods, late matriarch of the Harlem icon Sylvia’s Restaurant. And Woods has more than earned this endearing coronation. After 50 years of homestyle cooking that has delighted everyone from Harlemites to presidents, Sylvia’s is now canon — and as good as ever.