Warm, velvet-lined Theatre District dining room serving shareable Delhi plates before evening shows. Bollywood music plays over tightly packed tables covered with brass bowls of 36-hour dal makhani and pani puri margaritas.
Tiny Hell's Kitchen wine bar serving Italian small plates and daily pastas across communal subway-tile counters. Hundreds of bottles line the walls of the tight room, keeping the bar stools close and elbow room at a premium.
Second-floor Midtown izakaya with the tight dimensions and smoke of a Tokyo tavern. Chefs grill chicken skin, heart, and thigh over open charcoal.
Seafood-focused Italian spot on a West Village corner, with a menu of playful dishes like shrimp parm. The buttery yellow room has a buzzy energy and a pewter bar pouring martinis made with garlic-bread-infused vodka.
Intimate, 22-seat Vietnamese wine bar pouring natural vintages and Asian rice wines alongside savory house-made ice cream. Vietnamese new wave plays as glasses of makgeolli and scoops of fish sauce caramel hit the marble bar.
Late-night NoMad bar mixing craft cocktails with fenugreek, pickle oil, and garam masala. The vibrant room runs on loud conversation and rounds of modern North Indian small plates.
Maximalist NoMad dining room with the high energy of a Punjabi party mansion. Charcoal tandoors fire rich sharing feasts while the bar pours spice-forward tequila and mezcal.
Two-room cocktail spot with the feel of a lively house party, complete with vintage couches and a loud soundtrack. The highly technical, culinary-driven drinks are the main draw – expect combinations like strawberry with parmesan or fennel
West Village raw bar squeezing twenty seats into a compact, 400-square-foot room. Walk-ins pack the black quartz counter for razor clam aguachile and lobster ceviche prepared in full view.
Intimate dining room with burnt-orange banquettes and Murano glass chandeliers, serving a dinner-only menu. Shareable plates fuse Caribbean soul and European technique – from salt cod fritters to oxtail gratin.
Vibrant East Village dining room serving the regional classics of northern India. The newsprint-lined space is always packed, with groups sharing large pots of goat biryani and rich butter chicken.
Neon-lit Dongbei BBQ spot packed with low stools and automatic rotating grills. Raw skewers come from a wall of self-serve fridges to cook hands-free at the table, and the bill is just a count of the empty sticks.
Williamsburg wine bar pouring small-producer bottles alongside rotating plates like crab toast and steak skewers. Walnut tables fill the slate-gray front room, leading back to a covered garden patio used for group drinks and wine classes.
Dual-concept cocktail bar where a back room serves drinks that taste like food – think Cold Pizza or Key Lime Pie. Its casual front room is for walk-ins, pouring tap cocktails and serving a standout hot honey fried chicken sandwich.
Intimate hotel bar with wood-paneled walls covered in portraits and a carved stone fireplace. Cocktails are globally inspired – think sesame-washed scotch and Martinis made with aguardiente.
Breezy West Village dining room serving coastal Mediterranean seafood and natural wine. Floor-to-ceiling French doors line the cherry wood space, hosting long dinners over chilled oysters, red shrimp carpaccio, and cold martinis.
Vibrant East Village cocktail bar pairing inventive drinks with Mexican street food-style small plates. The neon-lit room stays packed and loud, running on a steady cumbia soundtrack and rounds of mushroom margaritas.
Modern homage to Punjabi dining culture, built around family-style plates of kebabs and tandoor-fired breads. The bar pours classic Indian punches for a crowd that fills the room nightly – book ahead.
Lively East Village dining room serving housemade pastas and oversized spritzes against pistachio plaster walls. The expansive corner patio runs steady through sunset before the zinc bar shifts into a high-energy cocktail scene.
Gold-and-green Flatiron dining room serving coastal Kerala cooking and tamarind cocktails. An active open kitchen sends out shareable plates of beef pepper fry and coconut curries rich with house-ground spices.
West Village corner restaurant serving precise, seasonal American plates in an earthy, leather-lined dining room. Walk-ins grab bar seats to share warm Parker House rolls, house-made pastas, and bottles from a serious wine list.
Corner cocktail bar mixing fat-washed martinis and spritzes around a walnut horseshoe bar. Hangar doors roll up to the Lower East Side sidewalk for early evening drinks, Italian share plates, and heavy people-watching.
Sixth-floor Williamsburg hotel bar pairing cocktails and natural wine with wide-open Manhattan skyline views. Green velvet banquettes and an outdoor terrace fill up early for sunset drinks and seafood small plates.
Stripped-down wine bar with a Brooklyn feel, pouring natural wines to an upbeat R&B soundtrack. The menu is creative small plates – the seared Arroz a la Plancha and whipped banana pudding are essential.
Twenty-seat cocktail bar hidden above Freemans, styled like an early 20th-century explorer's tavern. Thematic drinks are complex and aromatic – a tasting menu pairs low-ABV cocktails with small plates of seafood.
Stylish Lower East Side restaurant focused on creative meat and seafood plates. The wine program is serious – a sommelier is on hand to help navigate the list, and the signature dirty martini is perfectly briny.
Dimly lit West Village corner taqueria turning out creative tacos and small plates. The outdoor tables and indoor bar run steady with spicy cucumber margaritas and shared rounds of chips and seven salsas.
Narrow East Village dining room serving modern Hawaiian cooking alongside a serious wine list. The kitchen refines island staples with precision, plating upscale musubi and mochiko chicken in a tight, intimate space.
South American tavern in Williamsburg pouring pisco sours and serving shareable plates. Crab empanadas and ribeye tonnato fill the tables in a bright, warm room with a busy central bar.
Warm, minimal Midtown dining room serving the bold, shareable small plates of Kerala toddy shops. Deeply flavored seafood curries, beef fry, and chili-spiked cocktails fill tables in a surprisingly calm setting.
Dark, bi-level Midtown Japanese restaurant serving sushi, cocktails, and robata-grilled plates. The sprawling space divides into an active upstairs bar and a subterranean dining room built around an open grill.
Hybrid SoHo bookstore running as a cafe by day and an intimate wine bar at night. Thousands of books line the walls around sofas and armchairs, with daytime laptops making way for glasses of wine and charcuterie after five.
Lively 40-seat NoHo dining room serving Korean-Southern small plates. Meals begin with a complimentary shot of sake before tables fill with oxbone cream pasta, gochujang baby back ribs, and natural wine.
Warm, exposed-brick Greenwich Village neo-bistro serving Asian American share plates. Playful cocktails and sake land on tables alongside mustard kimchi ragu linguini and fried potatoes with caviar.
Intimate cocktail salon from the Eleven Madison Park team, where large murals by Francesco Clemente line the walls. The menu is entirely plant-based: technical cocktails in the lounge and a tasting menu at the nine-seat chef’s counter.
Warm, 40-seat dining room serving modern Mexican plates across from Seward Park. An open kitchen turns out seasonal skewers, striped bass aguachile, and smoked chicken to custom wood tables under soft lighting.
Kosher East Village dining room serving Middle Eastern plates based on old family recipes. A heated back greenhouse runs steady with shared hummus, grilled arayes, and cold beers.
Japanese cocktail bar set across two floors of a historic carriage house. Downstairs is a classic Ginza-style bar; upstairs, a cozier loft for meticulously crafted martinis and small plates.
Caribbean cocktail bar tucked into a quiet alley, pouring creative daiquiris and rum drinks from a rattan-fronted bar. The menu centers on West Indian patties; the soundtrack is high-energy and the custom paintings depict quiet island life.
Polished Southeast Asian dining room on the border of SoHo and Chinatown. Tropical cocktails and chili crab fried rice crowd the tables in the dark, plant-filled room.
Modern Chinese dining inside a bi-level former opera house with raw, stripped-down walls. The menu is built for sharing – crispy duck, fried eggplant, and inventive cocktails are staples.
Intimate Chinatown dining room with a blond wood chef's counter and small open kitchen. The tight menu runs through shared Korean small plates and rotating house-made banchan paired with wine.
Candlelit wine bar on a historic Chinatown alley, its walls lined with hundreds of low-intervention bottles. The space is tight: patrons sit elbow-to-elbow sharing modern Chinese plates and soy-braised short rib.
Relaxed Clinton Hill cocktail bar building drinks around seasonal ingredients rather than base spirits. Bartenders pour equal lists of alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails alongside vegetable-forward small plates.
Skylit Prospect Heights dining room and backyard garden serving vegetable-forward French and Mediterranean plates. The open kitchen turns out handmade pastas and live-fire dishes meant to share over small-grower wines.
Fully seated vinyl lounge in Dumbo built around custom sound systems and zero standing room. Warm walnut and exposed concrete line an intimate room for signature cocktails, Caribbean small bites, and listening to records.
Buzzy Carroll Gardens bistro serving modern French-American plates in a narrow, glowing room. The open kitchen sends out shareable duck fat potatoes and crab-filled omelettes alongside a deep natural wine list.
Intimate cocktail lounge atop an Art Deco skyscraper, wrapped by a terrace with 360-degree skyline views. The menu is spirit-forward and creative – think tequila Old Fashioneds and clarified milk punches with Earl Grey and champagne.
Grand Lower East Side cocktail bar occupying a vaulted former bank hall. Tables fill early in the evening for oysters, beef carpaccio, and mushroom gin negronis under soaring plaster ceilings.
Warm Prospect Heights corner restaurant pouring natural wine alongside seasonal shared plates. House-baked bread and cured meats anchor a relaxed dinner menu built for passing across the table.
