The Resy Guide to Monday Night Dining in New York

In addition to being one of the best days to dine out, period, Mondays are also a favorite of ours for dining solo. This can be done extremely successfully at Krupa Grocery, which looks like a regular bar but has a menu that far surpasses regular. Try to score a seat at the window and get the mussels with lamb pancetta.

One of our favorite raw bars in Astoria, Mar’s, happens to be open on Mondays for dinner from 4:30 p.m. until midnight. Order accordingly, with as many oysters on the half shell as they’ll give you, shrimp cocktail, and scallop crudo. Wash it down with their house dirty martini with stuffed olives.

If you want a real taste of Greek food, look no further than this beloved family-run restaurant. Known for their exceptional Greek seafood and their extensive wine list, focused specifically on Greek varietals, Molyvos is sure to be a crowdpleaser for any Monday night gathering. Our picks? Anything from the whole fish section, the taramasalata, the hamachi crudo, and the rich, creamy moussaka.

You have to spend Monday somewhere, so that somewhere may as well be in Italy — or the closest thing to it. Can’t make it back before work on Tuesday? Cucina Alba is a pretty good second best. Order the house focaccia, the charred octopus with escarole, and as many housemade pastas as you think you can eat.

Monday deserves a classic, swanky dinner from a former “Top Chef” contestant at Jack & Charlie’s. They serve dinner daily from 5 until 10 p.m., with options like bone-in duck meatloaf, a BLT wedge salad, and warm cheddar cheese popovers. Sink into one of their shiny green banquettes and let yourself forget that the work week only just started.

Since the summer of 2021, the original Manhattan location of Blue Hill has been serving up Family Meal, inspired by the communal, pre-shift meals enjoyed by restaurant workers and simply put, this is family-style, share-plate dining you won’t want to miss. Because it’s Blue Hill, expect to see the finest, freshest ingredients straight from the farm, but always presented in clever, unique, and innovative ways in a fun four-course meal ($145 per person) with an optional wine pairing ($95 per guest); it’s the Blue Hill way.

Find out everything you need to know about Family Meal at Blue Hill here.

The much-anticipated sequel to Cafe Spaghetti does not disappoint when it comes to living up to the hype. It’s perfect for a solo Monday night with their (underrated, excellent) burger at the bar, or for a special night out with shrimp cocktail and short rib au poivre. Either way, order the not-oft-seen French toast for dessert.

Spend your next Monday dining on a West Village corner, leisurely sipping your Electric Lady cocktail with tequila, cachaca, cucumber, habanero, and lime. Our ideal dinner order starts with the buttered and seeded Parker House rolls, moves onto the heirloom tomatoes, and finishes with the Duroc pork chop. Maybe we’ll throw in the agnolotti for good measure. And we certainly won’t forgo an order of dessert, either. The Noortwyck takes Monday reservations from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. in their sun-drenched dining room.

From chef Hoyoung Kim who brought you Michelin-starred Jua, comes Moono, an equally excellent and exciting spot for Korean food and drink. Go on Mondays from 5 until 10 p.m. to try their hot pot with beef brisket, beef tongue, and mushroom, or the cuttlefish stir fry with vegetables. Wash it down with one of their many Korean spirits.

Find out everything you need to know about Moono here.

We dream about the roast duck from Michelin-starred Francie. It’s perfectly crisped to a golden perfection, served alongside swiss chard, parsnip, and soppressata jam, and absolutely worth the price for two. Yes, Francie is fine dining, but it’s fine dining for the Brooklyn set — less stuffy and uptight than what you may be used to over in Manhattan. Pro tip: Don’t skip the cheese cart. And do know that wine bottles are discounted 20% on Mondays, too. Enjoy dinner here on Mondays from 5:30 until 9:30 p.m.

Enjoy a late dinner at Farra, one of our favorite wine bars in Tribeca. They’re open until 11 p.m. every day they’re open. While you may be here for the extensive wine list (Farra has plenty of by-the-glass options), the food is not to be missed. You’ve probably seen the miles-long ravioli on your Instagram feed, but the bread basket with lavash, sourdough, an everything-seasoned profiterole, and garlic bread has a special place in our hearts. Finish your Monday meal with an order of the miso chocolate bonbons.

One of the Lower East Side’s most-loved Italian spots is now open seven days a week for dinner service inside their cozy brick-walled dining room or inside their nearby Pasta Room. You can enjoy their à la carte menu or the four- or six-course tasting every night, with a constantly rotating selection of pastas that have previously included cavatelli with sungold pomodoro and chitarra with clams.

Unless you’re the type of diner to diligently set an alarm for noon three weeks before you hope to eat at Dame — when the team opens their reservations — Monday night is your safest bet. Once you make it to the meal, look out for Ed Szymanski’s British-leaning seafood options like kedgeree rice with curried monkfish and the fish and chips that got Dame off the ground when it was still a pandemic-era pop-up. All of it goes with a wine list that’s divided into two main categories: “What Austin Powers Is Drinking” and “What James Bond Is Drinking.”

Read on for tips on getting into Dame here.

Andrew Tarlow’s Fort Greene Italian spot is that rare breed of restaurant that never disappoints. The small menu changes daily but always includes at least a couple of pastas that will remind you why it’s worth having a chef make you spaghetti instead of boiling the water yourself. And don’t skip whatever salad is on offer that evening. Pro tip: When you sit down, ask the server to reserve a loaf of bread to take home from Tarlow’s She Wolf Bakery.

Mondays are an ideal day to stop by this classic Meatpacking steakhouse where you can feast on everything from expertly grilled steaks and the freshest of oysters to refreshing tuna crudo and a million dollar chicken that’s not to be missed. If you, like some of us, prefer to dine out on the earlier side, you’re in luck: You’ve got $9 wine and beer specials to choose from on Mondays.

Six years ago, many New Yorkers would have balked at the idea of a serious restaurant opening so close to Penn Station, but Danny Meyer and chef Hillary Sterling have changed that. In a space constructed above the tracks where trains shuttle out of the city to New Jersey, Sterling and her team cook dishes like whole trout with mustard greens and pine nuts over live fire. There are also pastas like the simple tagliatelle with tomato sauce and buffalo butter and cavatelli with crab and chile. Desserts here, which are under the direction of celebrated pastry chef Claudia Fleming, are simple and classic like lemon torta and a seasonal Basque cheesecake.

Read on for tips on getting into Ci Siamo here.

If you find yourself in want of a burger and a beer on a Monday, might we suggest this always dependable and stylish Greenpoint spot? Tørst is best known for its extensive beer selection, with 21 draft lines and more than 200 different bottles on the menu, but it’s also a standout for some truly excellent food, too. We’re partial to the fried chicken sandwich and the crab dip. And should you prefer dining earlier or even later, they’ve got weekday happy hour specials that run until 6 p.m. or after 9 p.m., including half-price wings, $12 Danish dogs and fries, a 50% discount on wines by the bottle, and select cans for $5. For those who prefer to dine on the later side, last call for the kitchen is at 10:30 p.m. but the bar stays open until midnight.

Chef Charles Gabriel has returned to his rightful place at the fryer, something he’s been doing since the mid-1980s when he started selling fried chicken from a folding table outside of the brownstone where he lived. At this spot, you can watch his team fry behind the counter while you wait for your three-piece order with sides like baked mac and cheese and collard greens. Pro tip: There’s no seating in the restaurant, but Jackie Robinson Park is just across the street, so grab a bench for your meal.

Walk-ins only.

Named for a plaza located in the 19th arrondissement of Paris, this wine bar from the Oxalis (now, Cafe Mado) team became a hit overnight. Co-owner and chef Nico Russell’s menu here is considerably more casual than the tasting offerings he first became known for, but still thoughtful. There are plates of mortadella, sardine toast with smoked butter, and a few larger options, which might include smoked bone-in skate wing when the team can source it. All of it is designed to pair with a wine list that highlights bottles from Catalonia and France.

Read on for everything you need to know about Place des Fêtes before you go.

Located inside the swank Nine Orchard hotel, Corner Bar is one of the many restaurants that anchor the ever-growing Dimes Square on the Lower East Side. There’s sea trout carpaccio, hanger steak with au poivre, and Iberico ham. Plus, a wine list with a strong showing from U.S. vintners. If you arrive early or have time to linger after dinner, grab a drink at the rather grand Lobby Bar.

Despite opening in February 2020, Ann Redding and Matt Danzer’s playful and eccentric Thai Diner pushed through the pandemic to become a favorite much like their former project Uncle Boon’s (RIP). Dishes like Thai disco fries with massaman curry, som tum or papaya salad topped with fried chicken, and khao pat puu or crab fried rice from Uncle Boons, are best shared, so be sure to arrive with friends in tow. Pro tip: Before the table has a chance to contemplate it, order the stuffed cabbage tom khaa — a sleeper hit of the menu.

In a city filled with French bistros and brasseries, Bar Bête is a rarity: a cool French-Canadian boîte that captures the essence of what it feels like to dine in Paris or Montreal right now, and brings it straight to Brooklyn. Whatever you order, from the crispy duck fat potatoes served with a generous dollop of garlic aioli on the side, to the leek vinaigrette with hazelnuts and golden raisins, you can’t go wrong. Natty pours dominate the excellent wine list, too.

If you find yourself taking in the views on the Roosevelt Island tram on a Monday evening, stop by the Graduate hotel on the Cornell Tech campus for dinner. The restaurant looks like a library with 5,000 linear feet of textbooks lining the walls, cozy seating areas, and wooden tables with plenty of space for plates like marinated olives and charcuterie to start. There’s also a cheeseburger topped with crispy bacon and a long list of spritzes to sip on.  

.

Aromi is a cozy, relatively affordable option for Italian food in a neighborhood that excels in this particular cuisine. Order the carbonara and the braised meatballs, plus a panna cotta for dessert, and sit in the back garden if you can.

It’s the restaurant equivalent of a warm hug — truly. Vic’s is that faithful neighborhood go-to that always delivers, whether it’s via bowls of comforting pasta, excellent wood-fired pizzas, glasses of wine, or ice-cold Negronis. You can’t go wrong with whatever you order, but you should know we’re particularly fond of the vodka pizza, marinated eggplant, and the spaghetti (honestly, one of the city’s sleeper cacio e pepe renditions).