Best of Manhattan 2025 - Food & Drink

Best New Restaurant

UWS

Nai Brother Sauerkraut Fish

2817 Broadway

www.naibrothersauerkrautfish.com/

646-895-1015

Food trends, and food combinations, are a funny thing. While the former, driven by publicists or “viral” social media, are best taken with large grains of salt, the latter are what makes exploring diverse world cuisines such an adventure and joy. How the German word “sauerkraut” gets onto a 21st-century Chinese menu is a mystery, but this amalgamation has appeared in the name of more than one Manhattan restaurant—what does it mean? Turns out that, while pickling is pickling, this “sauerkraut” isn’t really hot dog ready but rather the pickled mustard greens one is already familiar with from Sichuan and other cuisines. Nai Brother, meanwhile, is their signature soup, which includes noodles, cabbage, green onions, hot peppers, and bean sprouts and, of course, fish, which they call “sole” or “snakehead.” On the restaurant’s spiciness scale—0) Don’t Worry; 1) I’m OK; 2) Hot; 3) Oh No—this dish rates a 2. For the fire-averse, the Sun Dried Tomato soup stands out, while fire chasers must try the rich and fiery Mao Xue Wang, with beef tripe, ham, and a variety of vegetables. Ample portions in a clean, bright, utilitarian setting add to the excitement.

UES

Cafe Commerce

964 Lexington Ave.

www.cafecommerce.com

212-390-8106

Helmed by chef Harold Moore, who ran a well-regarded West Village restaurant named Commerce from 2008 to 2015 before returning to kitchen duties elsewhere, Cafe Commerce opened in January 2025. The 55-seat bistro dishes up modern American fare with myriad French, Italian and other twists. Some highlights from the daily menu include Chicken Noodle Soup (“grandma’s vegetables & chives”), Marinated Hamachi (“avocado, ginger, jalapeño & yuzu”), and Sweet Potato Tortelloni (“hazelnuts, pomegranate & beurre noisette”. Among the entrees the Braised Rabbit Pappardelle (with bacon, olives & sage) hops quickly to the front, with the Commerce Cheeseburger and Charred Salmon also appealing. Daily specials include BBQ Pork Rib, fried chicken and Beef Stroganoff and as for the desserts, they don’t call it Harold’s Famous Coconut Cake for nothing.

DT

Tradicioanale

156 Ninth Ave.

www.tradicionalenyc.com

917-300-8875

Speaking of fantastic food combinations, that’s nearly the very definition of Filipino cuisine, which has a new home in Chelsea called Tradicionale. Billing itself as a “modern Filipino-Spanish bistro and bar,” Tradicionale opened this past September and some of the fare will be familiar from same restaurateurs’ Tradisyon, their still extant “Filipino comfort food” joint in Hell’s Kitchen. Tradicionale is a bit fancier but for foodies—and parade lovers who know the glories of the annual Filipino Independence Day Parade along Madison Avenue–this is no problem. To the contrary, it’s an honor and an excitement to try dishes like Kare-Kare (braised short ribs, peanut sauce, bokchoy, green beans, eggplant, crispy garlic shrimp paste); Pork Humba (pork belly, soy, vinegar, bayleaf, black pepper, boiled egg, crispy garlic, shallows, scallions) or Lobster Palabok (vermicelli noodles shellfish bisque, squid, shrimp, crispy garlic scallions, crispy pork rinds.) Run, don’t walk—and don’t miss that Filipino Independence Day parade, the first Sunday in June either.

Best Salads

UWS

Essen

519 Eighth Ave.

[No Website]

212-290-11515

Located in the hard-beating heart of Midtown, where grit meets glamour near Eighth Avenue and the corner of West 36th Street, Essen is a miracle of convenience, quality, and pleasantry. That it’s just a short skip from Penn Station, Madison Square Garden, and the NYPD Midtown South Precinct adds to its ambience and intrigue. Exactly how they hire and maintain such a pleasant and professional staff across their various stations, from the cash-register women to the sandwich-making men and everyone in between is unclear, but it’s very noticeable—and very welcome at any time of day. Also noted is the music the store plays, which is always high-quality jazz piano or small group jazz guitar in a swing to bop style: blow, daddy-o! While Essen is more than just salads, few persons wanting a salad bar (priced by the pound) will be disappointed: greens, fruit, pasta, soups abound. Breakfast at Essen is a delight at well—bagels and whatever made to order, smoothies, yogurts, coffee and more—while seating in the upstairs mezzanine makes the whole visit feel like a show. Ten stars, and a must-visit when in the area.

UES

Isle of Us

1481 Third Ave.

www.isleof.us

917-694-6401

Opened in November 2022, the evocatively if somewhat enigmatically named Isle of Us describes itself as a marketplace and cafe founded to “make healthful living easy and empower the community through food.” Sounds good, but how does it taste? The answer, happily, is it tastes dee-lish! Chef Matt Aita, a veteran of Jean-Georges and the vegetarian restaurant Little Beet has a strong hand in this, including the Isle’s three superb salad offerings: Citrus and Fennel; Marinated Kale and Chicken; and Vegan Cauliflower Ceasar. Bowls like Salmon Rice (slow baked salmon, sushi rice, pickled red cabbage, bok choy, avocado, marinated cucumbers, sesame seeds, nori) and Lemongrass Chicken (roasted Green Circle chicken , herbed super grains, green papaya, carrot, cucumber, roasted sweet potato, coconut-cashew chili crisp, scallion, mint, basil, lemongrass dressing) also up the ante of what one expects from “salad.” Add in coffees, teas, excellent sandwiches and this breakfast reporter’s choice, Eggs and Hash Burrito (Sullivan County Farm eggs, hash brown potatoes, pickled jalapeño, roasted garlic & cheddar, charred tomatillo salsa on the side) and you’re likely to exclaim “the Isle of Us is the Isle for me!”

DT

Blue Park Kitchen

70 Pine St.

www.blueparkkitchen.com/

646-921-9909

Following food trends can be a funny thing, not funny hah hah, but funny curious. On the one hand, it sometimes seems there are infinite cookie and cupcake stores—these can be fun but oof, are they sugar bombs. On the other hand, there’s the rise of salad chains like Chop’t, Just Salad, and the expansion of Whole Foods with their ample bar that proffer healthier fare. While all these have chains have their merits, not lot least proximity and consistency, for something a little different and more personal, a salad that will put the proverbial “meat on your bones,” in the Financial District there’s no greater destination than the independently owned Blue Park Kitchen. Two pick hits from a menu that suggests one could indeed live on salad alone: Turkey Meatballs & Lemon Ricotta (with couscous, arugula, balsamic vinaigrette, charred broccoli, toasted chickpeas, radish) and the gluten free Baked Falafel & White Bean Hummus (Herbed Brown Rice, Mixed Greens, Lemon Vinaigrette, Falafel, Roasted Cauliflower, Feta, Pickled Onions). You can of course build your salads too. Blue Park has a midtown location at 666 3rd Avenue, next to the Chrysler Building.

Best Bagels

UWS

Kossar’s

35 West End Ave.

www.kossars.com

212-767-0285

Shout it loud and proud, West Siders, the bialys are back in Our Town! Much as we adore the oldest Grand Street Kossar’s, which holds down the appetizing tradition in the once overwhelmingly Jewish Lower East Side, the specific delights of Kossar’s has always deserved wider distribution than that one location allows. Thus their happy expansion and, in some ways, improvements, for where Grand Street is essentially, if not unpleasantly, utilitarian (and its proximity to Seward Park is fantastic), their Upper East and now two Upper West Side stores—this one, opened in April 2025, and the other at 270 W. 72nd St., opened in May 2024—offer a little more room to stretch out. While the range of expected sandwiches, bagels, lox, cream cheese, cookies, rugelach and whatnot are all fine or better, it’s the bialy—the mighty bialy—that reigns supreme. Where other bagel joints offer only the onion variety, Kossar’s digs deep into our collective Bialystok roots to offer three kinds: onion, garlic, and everything; buy a dozen and freeze the rest. If you’re traveling with kids, don’t miss the challah French toast.

UES

Tompkins Square Bagels

1159 Third Ave.

www.tompkinssquarebagels.com

212-203-4862

While Tompkins doesn’t supplant the traditional Jewish bagels and appetizing store like the holy Russ & Daughters, it doesn’t try to. Rather, Gravesend, Brooklyn, native Christopher Pugliese offers an expansive Italian-American-influenced vision of what a full-service, modern bagelry can be. Not that its Jewish roots are ignored—there’s lox and cream cheeses (some quite non-traditional) in abundance. As for the bagels themselves, they are big, a smidgen crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside. Unlike some other bagel emporiums where the staff is largely anonymous with no apparent investment in their wares, the workers here are engaged and enthused, so if you see a line don’t worry: It moves like a conga line used to in the old Latin jazz clubs of Pugliese’s collective Brooklyn youth. Among the named sandwiches, standouts include the Odd Couple-loving Murray the Cop (pesto, eggs, roasted peppers, and fresh mozzarella), The Rocco Sac (ham, mozzarella, roasted red peppers, lettuce, tomato, onion, oil, vinegar, salt & pepper), and The Brooklyn Gino (pepper-crusted sirloin, cheddar, onion, roasted peppers).

DT

Russ & Daughters

179 E. Houston St.

www.russandaughters.com

212-475-4880

You can never say, sing, or write enough great things about Russ & Daughters. Established in 1914, when it seemed the whole Lower East Side spoke Yiddish, this specific location stands as both one of the city’s great bagel shops and a testament to the ongoing vitality of the Eastern European Jewish “appetizing” store. What is appetizing? The genius graphic designer Milton Glaser, of “I Love New York” logo fame, among much other brilliance, once co-wrote—and designed—the New York magazine cover story, “A Gentile’s Guide to Jewish Food,” a framed copy of which hangs on the wall here. The cover shows a whole salmon poking out of a toothsome brown bagel. It’s brilliant, which is to say appetizing is basically a fish and dairy version of meat-oriented delicatessen, with a variety of sweets and snacks like black-and-white cookies, babka, and dried fruits added. While all Russ & Daughters bagels are excellent, the pumpernickel is a standout, likewise that most holy of Jewish bread, the onion bialy. (Their challah is very good too.) Order nova lox also and you’ll see true artists of the knife at work, getting your slices of glistening pink fish just right, down to the ounce. Although takeout only, Russ & Daughters have a breakfast and lunch cafe around the corner at 127 Orchard St. There’s also a second appetizing store at 502 W. 34th St. at Hudson Yards.

Best Brunch

UES

Penrose

1590 Second Ave.

www.penrosebar.com

212-203-2751

Already beloved as a bar and a gastropub, the inspiration and consistency of Penrose’s owner, Irish-émigré Ruairí Curtin, reaches into the morning-after hours with superb brunch offerings too. How does he do it? “Ever since I was a kid, I always wanted to be in hospitality,” Curtin told Our Town. “I was drawn to it. In a way, my lack of experience was a blessing. . . . My two business partners and I took a completely fresh approach to the bar business. We’ve built bars that felt good to us, where warm hospitality, a beautiful environment, and good conversation were the cornerstones of our establishments.” Available Saturday and Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Penrose’s brunch menu includes such highlights as Bacon, Egg & Cheese Deluxe sandwich (Smoky Sauce, American Cheese, Frizzled Potatoes, Banana Peppers, Poppy Kaiser Roll); Eggs Benedict (Smoked Salmon, Avocado or Country Ham on English Muffin with Hollandaise), Steak & Eggs (Hanger Steak, Sunny-Side Eggs, Chimichurri, Arugula, Home Fries). For greens and fish lovers, the Kale Caesar salad (Croutons, Radish, Cantabrian Anchovy, Parmigiano Reggiano with roast or fried chicken) will likewise fortify you for the day or night to come.

UWS

Café Luxembourg

200 W. 70th St.

www.cafeluxembourg.com

212-873-7411

It can be difficult sometimes to hear in the Big Apple that Luxembourg really is a country—no offense meant or implied to Luxembourgers! Edward Steichen was among our favorite photographers, Charley Gaul will always be among the true legends of bike racing, and the Schleck brothers, Frank and Andy, were no slouches either. In the café that, since 1983, has proudly represented their nation on the Upper West Side, brunch is available Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The menu is wide ranging. On the breakfast-y side there’s Eggs Benedict (English muffin, two poached eggs, and hollandaise sauce, with Canadian bacon, or smoked salmon, or spinach, choice of mixed greens, frites, or breakfast potatoes), Buttermilk Pancakes and Three Egg Omelette (Choose four between fines herbes, tomato, spinach, onion, mushrooms, asparagus, ham, bacon, cheddar, chèvre, Gruyère, Roquefort, mixed greens or frites). Also alluring: the Country Frisée Salad (Fourme d’Ambert cheese, croutons, bacon lardon, bacon vinaigrette, poached egg); the Luxumberger (Brioche bun, lettuce, tomato, onion, chipotle mayonnaise); and the Purple Sticky Rice Bowl (Avocado, kale, shiitake mushrooms, broccoli rabe, Sriracha broth)—with, the menu notes, $1 from each bowl sold will be donated to Edible Schoolyard NYC.

Downtown

Miriam’s

140 Seventh Ave. South

www.miriamsrestaurant.com

516-760-3972

Born in Brooklyn, where it quickly became a Park Slope institution, this inspired Israeli café lost nothing in its leap across the East River, while it gained it a figurative Maccabean Army of new friends. Remarkably, all of Miriam’s locations are superb: Upper West Side, Upper East Side and their most recent Manhattan opening way down south in Greenwich Village. What to get? If the real answer is everything, a Miriam’s starter kit would have to include Challah French Toast; Traditional Shakshuka (Poached eggs, hummus, tahini, shug, pita); Jerusalem Breakfast (Herbed scrambled eggs, zaatar-labneh, avocado, tomato salad, Syrian olives, sesame bread); Lamb Shawarma Terracotta); Lamb schwarma terracotta (Majadra rice, slow-roasted tomato, harissa, yogurt sauce, almond; and the Falafel Platter (hummus, green tahini, chopped salad, chopped salad, mango chutney, pickles, pita). Recommended Israel-themed reading if dining alone. even if Miriam post-dates the novel’s publication 1993: Philip Roth Operation Shylock.

Best Cocktails / Sake

UWS

The Wolfe

425 Amsterdam Ave.

www.thewolfenyc.com

646-876-1004

Not to be confused with Laser Wolfe, the acclaimed Israeli restaurant in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, whose name pays homage to a Fiddler on the Roof character (really)—The Wolfe took its name from New Journalism pioneer and novelist Thomas Wolfe—really! This slightly worn but still spry “Best of” journalist who, by complete coincidence, had recently returned to Wolfe’s early two early collections—The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby (1965) and The Pump House Gang (1968), and his first book-length masterpiece, Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test (1968)—was at first skeptical, then astounded, that this was true. What’s next, a Thomas Pynchon-themed brasserie called The Bodine Pig with a drink menu including house cocktails like Old Bloody Chicklitz, Maxine Tarnow and Wicks Cherrycoke? For now, West Side moonshiners, surfers, outlaw bikers and hippies alike will celebrate a broad bar food menu touting “The Right Stuff,” which they can wash down with Wolfe-ian concoctions like the Bronx Inferno (jalapeño-infused tequila, génépy, lemon, agave), the RYE-TAI (Rittenhouse rye, bacardi black, amaretto, pineapple liqueur, lime, pineapple, tiki bittersthe) and the Garden Party (neversink, montenegro, cucumber, ginger, lime, celery shrub) which sounds like a Ricky Nelson reference but who knows?

UES

Sakagura

211 E. 43rd St.

www.sakagura.com

212-953-7253

Heralded by Japanese New York insiders like Jacob Margolies for its exceptional balance between high quality and affordability, this Midtown jewel is the near-ideal place to enter the highly specialized but highly rewarding world of sake. Call it an “izakaya” if you want to impress your friends, but first you have to find it: Fear not, however, this is the right address, so walk right in and you’ll find that Sakagura in the basement of a 26-story office building—which is also home to number of well-reviewed Thai massage therapists, so as far as one-stop rejuvenation goes, few Midtown buildings can beat it. What might at first seem intimidating to Americans raised on Manischewitz wine and Pearl beer, is a revelation at Sakagura, which has been wowing sake innocents and satyrs alike since 1996. Among its more than 260 sakes, highlights include, on the proletarian side, unpasteurized Dassai Blue “Nama” sake (“Super fresh, directly from the brewery!”) and UBOTA (“A Sake Brewery in the Heart of Niigata, One of Japan’s Premium Rice-Growing Regions”). There are also heavy hitters like Naohiko Noguchi (Limited Edition 01, 2018, Moruka Nama Genshu, Ishikawa) at $1455 a bottle. For ballast, Sakagura has an impressive Japanese lunch and small plate dinner menus also, including sashimi and soba.

DT

Warren Peace

77 Warren St.

www.warrenpeace.com

845-592-5334

With a name like Warren Peace, it’s got to be something, right? Great? High spirited? Ridiculous? Turns out, the only ridicule here is for the skeptical cocktail reporter, for nearly all local Tolstoy enthusiasts and thirsty Tribecans agree that Warren Peace is a rarity: a great restaurant / bar that also makes great cocktails, all with a quality and style that fully embody its owner, a well-tattooed Albanian named Briken Fezjullai .Among the signature cocktails are Luchador (Tequila, Ancho, Cherry, Cacao, Lemon, Mole, Walnut, Chamoy & Tajín rim) and the prideful Balkan Breakfast (Rakı, Black Sesame, Borghetti, Licor 43, Banana, Cold Brew). As for American breakfast, they don’t serve that but Warren Peace’s food menu is no joke either: from sides like Qofte Pazari (Beef and Pork Kebab, Aioli, Pickled Onions, Pita, Traditional Blend of Albanian Herbs) and Lamb Comlek Sliders (Pulled Lamb Shoulder, Vidalia Onions, Scallions, Garlic Confit, Goat Cheese, Arugula) to Penne All’arrabiata (Tomatoes, Calabrian chili peppers, garlic, parsley) and Albanian Fërgesë (Albanian Ricotta Cheese, Red Pepper, Tomatoes, Onions, Beef Cheeks, Ciabatta). Hail, Albania!

Best Bakery

UES

Orwasher’s

www.orwashers.com

308 E. 78th St.

212-288-6569

Some think of Orwashers as a bagelry, and that’s not wrong: Their bagels are excellent, likewise their take on the holy bialy (with caramelized onion and a sprinkling of poppy seeds) and challah. If you don’t mind self-referentiality, don’t miss the New York Breakfast (a bagel schmeared with dill cream cheese, lox, onion, chives, and lemon zest). But Orwasher’s is more than this too: hand-filled donuts, cakes, pastries, cupcakes, coffee, juice. As for their glorious other breads: Russian Pumpernickel is a must, likewise the Challah Pan Loaf, with the fluffy Whole Wheat Pan Bread not far behind. (Braided Challah is available Friday only, just as Orwasher’s Cinnamon Raisin and Righteous Rye Breads are only available Saturday and Sunday.) Surprise a friend with a gift of Tomato Focaccia and don’t forget black-and-white cookies for the kids!

UWS

Hungarian Pastry Shop

1030 Amsterdam Ave.

www.hungarianpastryshop.com

212-866-4230

Although its storefront is covered by dreaded scaffolding at present, such are its qualities, the Hungarian Pastry Shop is as much a must visit destination as the Cathedral of St. John the Divine across the street. Opened in 1961 by Hungarian immigrants whose eyes would likely have lit up if you mentioned such nationalist composers like Bela Bartok or Zoltan Kodaly, the business was bought a trio of Greeks in 1976 (ask them about Nikos Skalkottas) from which a third generation emerged including a Jewish mother—mazel tov! If, item for item, one might have some other favorite iteration, the culture-mixing range, excellent setting and coffees here all compel. Try the Spinach pie (that’s the Greek side), strudel (Central Europe generally) and hamentash in apricot, walnut, prune and poppyseed. Oh, and get another coffee to go, Balzac (he was French) would have wanted it that way.

DT

Sullivan Street Bakery

236 Ninth Ave.

www.sullivanstreetbakery.com

212-929-5900

Though there is no Sullivan Street Bakery on Sullivan Street anymore, this bakery’s unbroken reputation for quality is such that it’s both the bread of choice for many excellent Manhattan restaurants and a destination worth finding in both Chelsea and Hell’s Kitchen. Which location is preferable comes down mostly to proximity, you can’t go wrong at either. Once you’re in, however, the question is what to get? Above all, the strecchi are essential: 18 soft inches of pizza bianca dough coated with olive oil, there’s also the ciabatta (“slipper” in Italian), the baguette-shaped stirato and for the neo-rustics, Pane Brutto, which Sullivan describes as a “Whole Wheat Sourdough, Rustic Country Bread, translates Roughly to “ugly Bread.” For those wanting a meal on the hoof, try sandwiches like Uovo Brioche (Italian-style brioche (sweet and airy), slow cooked egg, crispy pancetta); the Caricola (egg, avocado, tomato and prosciutto on a small brioche roll); the Roast Beef (with pickled shishito, mayo, tomato); and the Prosciutto And Mozzarella (with olive oil, salt, pepper, on sesame bacchetta). Sweet tooth? Cream Bombolone, an Italian donut made from fresh brioche dough, fried to perfection and filled with vanilla pastry cream has got you.