The Resy Hit List: Where In New York You’ll Want to Eat Right Now

With the exception of the excellent Dame and Lord’s, British fare isn’t relatively easy to come by in New York, and Dean’s, the newest collaboration between King and Jupiter’s Jess Shadbolt and Annie Shi, aims to change that — and that they do. The food hews toward tradition but it’s not a carbon copy of what you’d find from your local pub in the U.K. Crisp pork scratchings dusted with five spice and cumin crackle and shatter. A curried coronation salad omits the requisite chicken, but maintains the dish’ essence. An off-menu stargazy pie comes with a pair of fish eyes and a fish tail popping up above the buttery pastry that gives way to a cozy, creamy blend of mackerel, cod, hake, and potatoes underneath. Do not sleep on the cold roast beef, a take on a proper ploughman’s lunch, paired with horseradish cream, pickled walnuts, and an earthy Montgomery cheddar. Nor should you overlook crab with housemade crumpets. There’s plenty of Guinness to go around, but of course the wine list, overseen by Shi (who also owns Lei) is an ideal move, too.

From the moment your first dish is served — a complimentary amuse-bouche of podi idly, with warming coconut chutney — you know instantly your meal at Kidilum is going to be fantastic. Indeed, what chef and partner Vinu Raveendran has created at Kidilum lives up to its name (Malayalam for “beyond awesome”), with every dish in ideal balance when it comes to the rich textures and flavors delivered. Take, for example, the showstopping iracchi pathiri, which is presented to you using a sculpture of tree branches; the fried rice cakes complement the satisfying beef pepper fry while a thin layer of glittering aspic adds yet another layer of depth. Or there’s the kaljani, a seemingly simple preparation of expertly cooked barramundi with an alleppey fish curry and raw mango that’ll have you wanting to lick the bowl clean. Cocktails are equally impressive, whether you opt for the Kaapi, a hybrid of an espresso martini and an Irish coffee with a touch of banana, or the spice of the zero-proof Chakotra, made with grapefruit, jalapeño brine, and chile. And don’t forget an order of the ilaneer payasam, which combines light-as-air coconut meringue with toasted coconut ice cream.

Given chef Kevin Finch’s culinary pedigree — in Michelin-starred kitchens like Atelier Crenn and Maaemo — you might assume the food at Arthur, his new Greenpoint bistro in the former Fulgurances Laundromat, would have the same tweezer-friendly aesthetic. We’re happy to say it does not. What Arthur does possess is the finesse, elegance, and attention to detail that you’d come to expect from those restaurants, in a warm and inviting place fit for locals and destination diners alike. It’s easy enough to drop in for their signature brioche martini, plus a bowl of spicy peanuts laced with chile, lime, and Sichuan spices, paired with a lemony grilled leek skewer and an order of the housemade brioche with a side of creamy blue cheese. But you could also opt for something more substantial and, if you do, don’t overlook the chicken, which could be one of the best of its kind in recent memory: juicy cuts of Sasso chicken breast and wings paired with crisped dirty rice. Finch wastes no part of the bird — the thighs are fashioned into a mousse that he layers under the skin of each breast. In short, it’s worth the price, and then some.

Next to the city’s oldest Chinese restaurant, Nom Wah Tea Parlor on Doyers Street, is one of the most exemplary, and the most recent recipient of a Beard honor for best new restaurant. At a time when so many excellent wine bars with unique perspectives and exciting menus call New York home, Lei stands out. What King and Dean’s co-owner Annie Shi has created is something truly special: a jewel box where the food is distinctly Chinese American, while the wines span the globe. Chef Patty Lee’s menu is not composed of “traditional” Chinese American classics, instead offering new favorites, like Lady Edison Jinhua ham with thinly sliced seasonal fruit; chilled celtuce with kombu jelly in a pool of bright red vinegar; and warm sesame shao bing with a cold pat of butter tucked inside. Lei is the kind of place where you could easily linger for a full meal. But it’s also one where you can stop in for a quick bite of salted mustard greens with green chickpeas and fresh rice cakes, paired with a glass of dry Jurançon, and an order of the mango shaved ice to finish. In short, it is the kind of place you can find yourself going to again and again.

The old Minca Ramen space in Alphabet City is now home to chef Hiroki Odo’s latest endeavor, bringing the best of kaiseki cuisine — precision and creativity — together with the best of izakayas — bold flavors and a lack of pretense. All said and done, it’s a delight. You can tell the level of craft and care that Odo and his team put into every small dish on the menu, which is categorized by the various cooking styles and preparations that define kaiseki. Simmered tofu in a katsuo broth is topped with generous portions of creamy uni from Hokkaido. Tender pieces of fried chicken crackle with a crust made from rice crackers, paired with a refreshing dill-infused mayonnaise. An unassuming starter of, of all things, cream cheese, takes on another dimension thanks to white miso and wasabi. Fusing these Japanese dining styles together so seamlessly is no easy feat, but Odo manages to do it, and does it so well, we can’t wait to go back to try more.

If there’s anything that our fair city’s championship basketball team showed us recently, it’s the joy of gathering together to watch our favorite teams — and that’s made even better when you add excellent food and drink. Soccería is what happens when you add sporting events and some of the city’s most outstanding Mexican fare, courtesy of the dynamic duo behind Taqueira Ramírez and Carnitas Ramírez, and it’s a must-visit in the space formerly occupied by Nura in Greenpoint. The tacos are indeed superb, but better yet, the menu is even more expansive than what you’ll find at Taqueria Ramírez and Carnitas Ramírez: Brunch features huevos ahogados en chile pasillas and chilaquiles, plus quesadillas, and a hearty pozole rojo. Happy hour (4 to 6 p.m.) has a burger with a beef and longaniza blended patty, and a bacon-wrapped hot dog. Dinner has everything from tostadas and chicharrón to chile poblano and carne asada, too. Whether you find yourself at Soccería to watch a game or just to dine, you won’t leave disappointed.

Given New Yorkers’ enduring obsession with baked goods and hype bakeries, we’d be remiss not to remind you about one of the city’s loveliest patisseries — from pastry chef Eunji Lee. French technique melds beautifully with Korean ingredients and New York tastes and, best of all, you can make a reservation, whether for weekend brunch, a weekly Thursday-night tasting menu, or more. Greatest hits include the trompe l’oeil corn dessert and the exquisitely layered kouign amann. You can’t go wrong with whatever you order, but the shortbread cookies, signature lysée mousse cake, and the V.I.C. (that’s very important chocolate cake, to you) are particularly special, and important. Pro tip: Purchase a box (or two) of the K.A. Rusk to take home with you — you won’t regret it.

Should you find yourself in Chinatown near Two Bridges and in search of some ice-cold cocktails and satisfying fare, Bar Chucho, from nearby Michelin-starred Corima, fits the bill. It’s far more casual than its older sibling, but still fires on all cylinders when it comes to the creativity involved. Think gin sours accented with uni (yes, sea urchin), whisky highballs with avocado leaf soda, and micheladas with fermented tomatillos, jalapeño, and kombu, served with a tart and sweet chile chamoy straw. The relatively short food menu also boasts plenty of hits, including a standout chilindrina — a wheat cracker that’s topped with potato salad and slices of bluefin tuna — a savory mushroom gringa, and a rich burger made with dry-aged beef and Chihuahua cheese.

No reservations. More info here.

Chefs and owners Jerald and Nhung Dao Head continue to serve some of the most heartfelt Vietnamese cooking in the city, and we can’t think of a better way to spend a spring day (or night) than gathered with friends, sharing everything on the menu. Their bún dau mam tôm is one of the city’s essential dishes: a bountiful platter of grilled pork intestines, housemade blood sausage, sticky rice sausage, and tofu, along with fresh herbs and rice vermicelli, all to be dipped in a pungent fermented shrimp paste. (They also have an entirely vegan version.) Whatever you do, don’t skip the housemade tofu. You also don’t want to miss out on their newest endeavor, Phê, located on the same block, with Vietnamese coffee service and bánh mì, both classic and deconstructed. And for the full Mắm experience, finish things off with a glass of wine and some kem ngô ice cream from Lai Rai.

Here’s a willful departure from most of the city’s other Malaysian restaurants: a deeply personal effort from the same family behind Sunset Park’s critically acclaimed Hainan Chicken House. While you will find a stellar Hainanese poached chicken on the menu, the rest of the bill of fare isn’t afraid to play fast and loose with Malaysian standards. Rendang made with oxtails displays Caribbean influences. Flaky roti paratha sits atop a bed of red lentil dahl. Ravioli gets stuffed with lime leaf ricotta, nestled in a plate of brodo. You get the picture. All of it is the result of chef and owner Chris Low, who dreamt up these dishes while slowly assuming more of a prominent role in his father’s chicken restaurant. Kelang itself is a true family affair, with the entire Low family pitching in to make it a reality, and it’s a difference you can taste.

For more than a decade, Superiority Burger has been an integral part of the East Village, and specifically Alphabet City, for so many reasons, chief among them being time-honored classics like the burnt broccoli salad, eponymous Superiority burger, and the TFT — a pioneering precursor to the Filet O’Tofu from Mommy Pai’s. But we can’t not talk about the collard green sandwich, made with fluffy focaccia and slow-braised collard greens, studded with Cooper Sharp, or the daily specials, which chef-owner Brooks Headley changes up on a regular basis. And then there are the desserts from Darcy Spence: griddled malt cake, vegan tahini with Concord grape gelato (the flavors change up all the time), and so much more. In other words, you can always count on Superiority Burger to be original, creative, and deeply flavorful.

Now that Confidant has made the move north from Industry City to Brooklyn Heights, it’s a bit easier to enjoy the charms of this ideal neighborhood restaurant — the kind of spot that lends itself to every and any occasion with ease and aplomb. The menu is chock full of crowd pleasers and showstoppers, including that delectable, towering prawn pot pie, and comforting pastas like spicy mezze rigatoni or buttery spaghetti al funghi. Our favorite dish on the menu? That would be the whipped trout mousse, artfully placed atop triangles of sourdough, dotted with pearls of smoked trout roe. The wine list is worth perusing, too, but you should know they also have a great variety of zero-proof cocktails, including an exceptional Casal Highball. Pro tip: If you can grab a seat at the chef’s counter, go for it; it’s the perfect perch to take in the sight of all those steamy pot pies.

In a city with so much incredible Italian fare, Ammazzacaffè has always stood out as a bit of a sleeper, but it’s about time more New Yorkers discover this neighborhood restaurant’s many charms, including its consistently pitch-perfect housemade pastas from veteran chef Gary Tackett, and its lovely outdoor backyard, ideal for the warmer weather. It’s the kind of place you can drop into anytime, whether it’s for one of the city’s best lunch deals ($25 for a two-course prix fixe); a cacio e pepe smash burger at the bar, with fries, of course; or an evening of live jazz and an epic chicken parm on Sunday nights. You can’t go wrong with whatever you order, but do know that the sunchoke salad, the reginette with pork shoulder ragù, and the cacio e pepe fusilli are particularly excellent.

Like many restaurants around town, Balera’s cuisine is “coastal Italian” but here it’s executed with both precision and well, fun, that somehow — magically — gives more of a homestyle feel. Take, for example, the fritto misto, with its exceptionally light, airy batter, from requisite shrimp and calamari to thin slices of red onion and sage leaves, as well as juicy chunks of pineapple. The montanarina, a fried disc of pizza dough, is a perfect canvas for bright tomato sauce, basil, and cheese. The cappelletti alle 3P is expertly crafted, with a creamy Parmigiano Reggiano sauce that complements the rich meat filling inside. Then, of course, there’s the pizza. Balera’s Roman-style pizzas, rolled out by using a mattarello as opposed to being stretched out by hand, are a standout, thanks to their thin, almost croissant-like texture — making it that much easier to indulge in more than a few slices.

The city’s first food truck specializing in Ethiopian and Eritrean cuisine now has a permanent home, after serving their delicious injera, tibs, shiro, misir, and gomen across the boroughs, from a commissary in Long Island City to an outpost on Governors Island for nearly a decade. Now, in a cozy, elegant space on Skillman Avenue, you’ll find all your favorite dishes, plus even more: creative cocktails made with hibiscus, cardamom, and cucumber; smoky berbere spiced prawns; and a standout version of doro wot, Ethiopia’s beloved chicken stew that gets slow braised for hours on end. Whatever you do, come hungry, and do order yourself plenty of injera — deeply fermented and bouncy — to pair with nearly everything on the menu.

The cuisine of Hangzhou shines at this first U.S. outpost of a popular contemporary chain of restaurants from China: Think hearty hong shao rou (braised pork belly), comforting green tea claypot chicken, savory ju ju bao (sizzling golden snapper cooked in a claypot), and silky scallion noodles. Everything is executed exceptionally well, and there’s so much variety on the menu that there’s truly something for everyone. While dinner with a crew is always a good idea here, it’s also a great spot for a solo weekday lunch, with set menus and rice bowls ranging in price from $17 to $23, and a weekday happy hour that includes orders of freshly steamed xiaolong bao.