The March Hit List: El Quijote, Mel’s, Una Pizza Napoletana, and More

If you were lucky enough to have dined at this quirky Chelsea classic — a neighborhood mainstay since 1930 — before it closed in 2018, you’ll understand just how wonderful it is to have El Quijote back up and running. If you know, you just know. (And for those who haven’t yet been to El Quijote, now’s your chance.) The newly renovated El Quijote, now managed by the same team behind Sunday in Brooklyn, is smaller in size than it was before, but still so grand in its hospitality and warmth, and in two menu mainstays: paella and sangria.

Del Posto might be gone, but in its place a new trio of restaurants from former Del Posto chef Melissa Rodriguez and her business partners, James Kent and Jeff Katz (Crown Shy and Saga), is emerging, and Mel’s is the very first to open. At Mel’s, it’s all about live-fire cooking (grilled whole fish, juicy steaks), cocktails, and pizza. Here, the pizza’s not quite Neapolitan and not entirely New York — it’s the best of both — and it’s sold by the pie.

Mel’s opens on March 9 but is currently taking reservations.

If you want Neapolitan-style pizza, look no further than Anthony Mangieri’s Una Pizza Napoletana which, after a nearly two-year closure, is finally reopening on the Lower East Side. Mangieri is one of America’s most celebrated pizzaioli for a reason, and if you love pizza, and if you appreciate the traditions behind it, you owe it to yourself to go to there. This Una Pizza will be familiar, but a few things have changed: namely the interior and the menu, which now includes pizza, olives, and housemade sorbetto that changes daily.

Una Pizza Napoletana opens on March 3.

For a taste of old-school fried chicken from a true master of the craft, you need to head uptown to the newest location of Charles Gabriel’s Charles Pan-Fried Chicken. As the name suggests, Gabriel cooks his fried chicken in a cast-iron skillet for the crispiest of textures and juiciest of bites, and he’s been doing it this way for nearly 30 years, ever since he first started his business in Harlem on the sidewalk of Amsterdam Avenue.

Walk-ins only.

When the industry vets behind Grand Army, Celestine, and The Jane Hotel Ballroom & Rooftop come together to take over an historic drinking den at Rockefeller Center, you can set your expectations high— and Pebble Bar certainly meets or exceeds them. For more than 100 years, this four-story townhouse space known as Hurley’s from 1892 to 2000, was a watering hole for celebs like Johnny Carson, Jack Kerouac, David Letterman, and SNL crew members (so much so that it was dubbed “Studio 1-H”). Now reopened after a more than 20-year closure, it’s got a menu of classic cocktails and a swanky set of dishes, including an extensive raw bar.

Restaurateur John McDonald (Lure Fishbar, Hancock Street) and chef Justin Bazdarich (Oxomoco, Speedy Romeo) have teamed up for this vibrant SoHo spot where the flavors of Baja California and coastal Mexico shine. Think crab tostadas with vanilla-orange mayonnaise and habañero salsa, a whole lobster lacquered with a mezcal-smoked chile butter, and a deep-fried whole fish battered in masa. Whatever you do, don’t miss out on ordering the seafood plateau.

If you’ve ever been lucky enough to taste kuih, bite-sized snacks from Malaysia, Indonesia, or Singapore, you know how challenging it can be to find these colorful desserts in New York City, but with the opening of Lady Wong in the East Village, it’s gotten a bit easier. Through pop-ups for the past year, Seleste Tan and her husband, Mogan Anthony, have built a following for their sweet creations, like the multilayered lapis legit, corn milk pudding, and crepe-like kuih dadar filled with gula melaka, but now they’ve got a brick-and-mortar spot on East 9th Street to call home.

Walk-ins only.

“OG Cantonese” food is the big draw at this restaurant from first-time restaurateur and longtime Chinatown resident Louis Wong, aka Uncle Lou. The menu celebrates Cantonese American classics like sweet and sour chicken and “lo wah kiu” dishes with their roots in the Cantonese countryside, where the earliest Chinese immigrants to America first came from — villages like Toisan, Sunwui, Enping, and Hoiping.

Call 212-966-5538 to make a reservation.

A favorite among Wall Street traders and New Yorkers since 1972, Harry’s is your quintessential New York steakhouse, made famous in books (later turned into films) like “The Bonfire of the Vanities” and “American Psycho.” It’s the kind of place you’ll want to go to grab a seat at the bar and order yourself a martini and a dry-aged burger and, if you really want to splurge, spring for the dry-aged bone-in rib eye and a decadent shellfish platter that’s fit for up to four.

In Brazil, the Fasano name is synonymous with luxury. The family owns and operates a number of hotels and restaurants throughout Brazil and Uruguay, and now they’re making their American restaurant debut with the eponymous Fasano, located in the former Four Seasons 2.0 space. At this sleek, elegant Midtown spot, Northern Italian classics are top of mind. Think risotto with porcini mushrooms and thyme, or ofelle pasta, filled with potatoes and ossobucco.

It’s difficult to forget your very first bite of fried chicken — and hard to beat how exceptional it was — but if anyone can deepen your love for this beloved dish, it’s chef Chintan Pandya and restaurateur Roni Mazumdar of Adda and Dhamaka. At this counter-service shop in the East Village, they’re serving up nostalgia in the form of chile-glazed Indian fried chicken, crispy pakoras, as well as a vegetarian vada pao.

Walk-ins only.