New York Restaurants

New York City is known as a leading gastronomic capital of the world which is known for its vibrant dining-out culture that fosters diners and food critics who are extremely knowledgeable and opinionated about their food offerings. Moreover the city is home to more than 20,000 diverse restaurants which cater to every budget. Keeping in line with its character of a ‘melting pot’ of myriad peoples and cultures, New York City is home to a wide array of restaurants that offer nearly every imaginable cuisine; in fact it is often said you can tour the world by sampling the various ethnic foods that are on offer in the various neighborhoods of New York City. So what are the characteristics that make New York City restaurants so coveted and world renowned?

Home to Uber-Chefs and numerous James Beard Award winners
The dynamic dining culture in New York city gives rise to several celebrity chefs who often go on to be famous the world over. Mario Batali (Del Posto, Babbo Ristorante e Enoteca, Lupa, Otto Enoteca Pizzeria, The Spotted Pig, Eately), Bobby Flay( Bar Americain, Mesa Grill), David Chang( Momofuku noodle bar, Milk Bar, SSam bar) Tom Colicchio( Gramercy Tavern, Craft restaurant group and judge on Barvo TV’s Top Chef program) Jean-Georges Vongerichten( Jean Georges, Perry Street, Mercer Kitchen, Spice Market) Daniel Boulud ( Daniel, Bar Boulud, Boulud Bakery) Morimoto of the Nobu restaurants are some of these celebrated uber-chefs who currently reign on New York City’s dining scene and attract an almost slavish following amongst enthusiastic diners. Of course the city also hosts the distinctly up market outlets of other world renowned chefs like Thomas Keller ( Per Se) Alain Ducasse ( Adour) amongst others.

Innovative Restaurateurs
Aside from the above mentioned celebrity chefs, New York City is also home energetic restaurateurs like Keith McNally of Balthazar, Lucky Strike, Minetta Tavern, Morandi, Pastis, Pravda, and Schiller’s Liquor Bar fame, Sirio Maccioni ( Le Circque), Danny Mayer (Union Square Cafe, Gramercy Tavern, Eleven Madison Park, Tabla, Shake Shack, Blue Smoke, the Jazz Standard music club) who are constantly changing and transforming the New York City dining scene with new and exciting offerings.

Experimental and influential chefs
The New York City restaurant culture also creates an invigorating environment for several experimental and influential chefs to thrive along with the bigger, established stars. Chefs like April Bloomfield ( the Spotted Pig, the Breslin Bar & Dining Room) Missy Robbins( A Voce restaurant) Jehangir Mehta (Graffiti) are rising stars who currently dot the New York city dining landscape.

As for the restaurants themselves they offer almost every cuisine known to man. Listed below are some of the New York City restaurants which are considered a ‘must-visit’ on any trip to New York City.

Pizza and more Pizza Restaurants
Pizza is integral to New York City dining and it is believed that New York City is home to some of the best pizza restaurants in the world. So whether you want a whole pie or just want to dine cheaply on a slice do make sure you dine at one or all of the best Pizzerias in New York City like Grimaldi’s , Lombardi’s, Totonno’s Pizzeria, Patsy’s Pizzeria, DiFara’s Pizzeria, John’s Pizzeria, Roberta’s, Artichoke Basille’s and Motorino Pizza.

Bagel Restaurants
Most New Yorkers believe the best bagels are to be found in New York City. These round breads which were introduced to New York City by its Jewish immigrant populations contain salt and malt and are boiled in water prior to being baking in a standard oven. As a result of which the New York bagel is puffy and chewy inside with a noticeable crust on the outside.

Bagels are popular as a breakfast food in New York City and the city’s many Bagel outlets offer a wide variety of bagels like poppy seed, onion, pumpernickel and even an ‘everything’ bagel which sports all the possible toppings. Some New Yorkers like to have their bagels toasted with a spot of butter while others like their bagels in sandwich form with fillings of cream cheese, lox, and slices of tomato and onion.

No matter how you like to ear your bagels, it’s definitely recommended that you try an authentic New York city bagel at one of the many famous bagel restaurants in the city like H&H bagels, Russ and Daughters, Ess a Bagel, Tal Bagels and H&H Midtown Bagels.

New York Deli Sandwich Restaurants
New York City’s mammoth deli sandwiches are legendary. Every corner deli in New York City offers classic deli sandwiches that feature pastrami or corned beef on rye bread which are then customized to include various condiments like mustard and pickles.

Katz’s Delicatessen, Zabar’s Café and Carnegie Deli are some New York City restaurants which are especially well known for their substantial but classical New York deli sandwiches.

Steak Houses
New York City offers several excellent steak restaurants that offer all cuts of meat. New York strip, rib-eye or porterhouse steaks no matter what your preference is they are all to be found at the city’s many excellent steak restaurants like the world famous Peter Luger’s, Quality Meats, STK steak house, Gallagher’s , Keens Steak House and BLT Steak.

Brunch Restaurants
‘Doing brunch’ is a favorite New York City past time, especially during the sizzling New York summers when most restaurants offer outside seating. New Yorkers relish sitting outdoors while indulging in a lazy weekend brunch and the city accordingly is full of restaurants that specialize in fantastic brunch meals that offer a seemingly unending flow of good foods and wine.

Balthazar, Norma’s at the Parker Meridien, Bistro Bagatelle in the Meatpacking district, the Sunburnt Cow in Alphabet City, Artisanal Bistro in midtown and Prune are some of the popular spots for in New York City.

Ethnic Eats
New York City is home to numerous different nationalities and consequently the city of offers a smorgasbord of global cuisines like Chinese, South East Asian, Peruvian, Indian and other South Asian, Argentinean, Ethiopian, Cajun, , Polish, Senegalese, Spanish, Lebanese, Caribbean, Moroccan and many more. If you wish to discover and sample these various ethnic foods of New York City you could venture out on your own or book one of the many food walking tours of New York City.

Child–Friendly Restaurants
It’s not all about adults only at New York City restaurants and many New York City restaurants welcome young diners. Tony’s di Napoli, Brasserie Julien, Lansky’s, S’Mac, the Moxie Spot, Nick’s Pizza are just some of the many New York City restaurants that welcome kids to dine at their establishments.