PrintNew York City's Best Dining Experiences
"I have not been to one other restaurant anywhere in the world where I feel the same energy that I do at Babbo."
Like most serious eaters, I've been searching for deliciousness my whole life, but sometimes, in more reflective moments, even I acknowledge there's often more to eating out than great food. Obviously for me the food is paramount, but there are other factors that go into judging great restaurants. How welcome do I feel? Do I feel well taken care of? Am I having a good time? Does the restaurant make my dining companions and me feel special? Can I easily hear what the people I am with are saying? Is the service personal without being intrusive? Does the energy in a restaurant match or even elevate my own? How does the restaurant's look and feel affect how its customers look and feel?
Most of all, I want the restaurant experience to be about the food, the people I'm eating with, and me—not about the chef or the server or the sommelier.
So taking all these factors into account, what are my favorite restaurant-going experiences in New York? If going to a great restaurant is, as the restaurant designer David Rockwell once told me, like taking a vacation from my life, what restaurants in New York are my five favorite respites from a busy life?
Note: Two restaurants on my list, Per Se and Masa, are very expensive, and some serious eaters may decide they are in fact too expensive. A more moderately priced, just-as-special dining experience can be had at lunch at Jean-Georges, Jean-Georges Vongerichten's flagship restaurant. $14 a course to eat in a most cheerful, light-filled space is the greatest serious food bargain in the world.
Gramercy Tavern
More than anything else, I love how welcome I feel at Gramercy Tavern. The flowers, the artwork, the overall look and feel of the restaurant, and, yes, the service, all combine to make eating at Gramercy Tavern a terrific, satisfying experience. Chef Micheal Anthony's food is almost always spot on (if a little lacking in the crunchy, crisp department), and Nancy Olsen's sophisticated, homey desserts ensure that diners leave happy. 42 East 20th Street, New York NY 10003; 212-477-0777; gramercytavern.com
Per Se
It's hard to get a great dining experience with a view in New York City, but Per Se, in the Time-Warner Center, is one of the few places you can do just that. When I ate at the French Laundry, Per Se chef-owner Thomas Keller's Napa Valley restaurant, a few years ago, I felt that our experience was more about him than me. Of course, this was at a time when Keller had no other restaurants to tend to. But at Per Se my dining experiences have been surprisingly personal, truly pleasurable, and most important, about my dining companions and me. The food is Keller's (and executive chef Jonathan Benno's) unique combination of whimsical, classic, and contemporary, and the kitchen's rare misses are more than offset by its hits and the overall pleasure of dining here. 10 Columbus Circle, New York NY 10019; 212-823-9335; perseny.com
Momofuku Ko
Momofuko Ko is a dining experience unlike any other. Everyone (all 12 diners) sits at a long counter, where they are served by owner David Chang's extremely talented coterie of young chefs. It is an idiosyncratic, deeply personal, oh-so-satisfying experience to be served by a cook. The food in this minimalist setting is relentlessly modern, unique, and rarely if ever silly. 163 First Avenue, New York NY 10003; momofuku.com
Masa
How personal is the diner's experience at Masa? If you sit at the counter (and you should), you can get a bird's eye view of chef-owner Masa Takayama weaving his magic using ingredients you won't find anywhere else, including raw and cooked fish from his native Japan. Yes, it's crazy expensive—perhaps $500 a head all in—but eating at Masa is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. 10 Columbus Circle, New York NY; 212-823-9800; masanyc.com
Babbo
At Babbo the dining experience is all about the transference of energy. I have not been to one other restaurant anywhere in the world where I feel the same energy that I do at Babbo. Mario Batali's food is full of energy and passion and big flavors, and the bilevel space, which is not particularly grand or fancy, makes you feel special. Interestingly, Babbo is the only restaurant on my list where music plays a vital role in the experience. Usually I don't much care for music while I'm eating serious food, but somehow listening to Led Zeppelin while eating one of Gina DePalma's desserts makes perfect sense to me. 110 Waverly Place, New York NY 10011; 212-777-0303; babbonyc.com
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11 Comments:
My wife and I ate at Market Table on our last visit to NYC in December, just before Christmas. The food was incredible, the atmosphere was comfortable and relaxing, and the service was impeccable.
Admittedly, it was a second choice after Babbo (couldn't get reservations), but for serious eaters looking for a the whole package, you can't go wrong with Market Table.
Fillippelli the Cook at 9:33AM on 04/24/08
i have had mixed experiences at babbo. the food is always lovely but the menu rarely changes and lately, the service has been rushed. we had the chef's tasting menu and courses were being served at the same time our plates from the previous course were being cleared!i much preferred the service at felida.
amrobo at 9:38AM on 04/24/08
I love eating at the bar at babbo but sitting at a table is not a huge deal to me.
Late Saturday lunch at the bar at Otto is actually my preferred Batali meal.
alktraz at 9:49AM on 04/24/08
alktraz, we could be eating twins :o) I too think a late weekend lunch at Otto is one of the best eating experiences.
I do love Babbo immensely though! I've never had a bad experience and there has been on average 2 out of 3 times that we've gone and gotten a seat at an inside/upstairs table even without a reservation.
I love the servers there and I agree with Ed that the energy is great. True the core menu doesn't change but there are seasonal specials and I'm actually glad the menu doesn't change. I'd be upset if I went and they weren't serving my favorite pork chops!
Jacquie at 10:11AM on 04/24/08
Restaurateurs constantly weigh the problem of changing menus versus leaving on favorite (and best-selling) items. There isn't any perfect answer, unfortunately.
Me, I love the Jean-George lunch, too, and managed a walk-in at Babbo on a Saturday evening, on a visit to NY with my best friend from college, who'd never been to the city and wanted me to show her around. Babbo did me proud. As far as Gramercy Tavern - one of my favorite ways to end an evening is a drink and perhaps a bite at the bar. I am convinced Danny Meyer does personality testing on potential employees to make sure they're right for his restaurants. The food is fabulous, but it's the staff that make it particularly remarkable.
lemons at 10:19AM on 04/24/08
I love Babbo. But, it can be crowded and noisy (understatement), and not always the exact experience we're looking for.
We've found Daniel to be a remarkably pleasant experience, far exceeding anything we might have expected. Not only was the food exceptional (duh), but it the prices were surprisingly reasonable. The room is spacious (and not just by NYC resto standards) and very comfortable (read unpretentious), and the staff was just flat out phenomenal. Perfect, unrushed service provided by the most genuinely friendly people I've encountered in just about any resto anywhere in the world. We truly felt as if we were guests in their home.
LoCo at 1:14PM on 04/24/08
I totally agree with the Babbo experience. When it comes to restaurants I feel like such a tourist. It is as if I am walking through a musuem and admiring different pieces of art. Details such as flower arrangements, plates, window treatments, ceiling finishes, colors, etc. I try to capture every detail and HOPE the food is only going to make the visual come to life even more. BABBO did it for me!
I have only been to Babbo once, and would LOVE to go back, but it is one of those treasures you want to keep for very special dinners.
The night started like this: I was driving on my way to dinner at Blue Ribbon Sushi (sushi bars - good for single diners...) to celebrate landing a new job, this was in 2005, when I passed by Babbo. I motivated, parked my car, and walked in. It was about 6:20pm. There were a couple of parties waiting for their tables. A young couple was raving about a couple of dishes that I must try. I decided to sit at the bar which was a great experience. The bartenders were the best company I could have had. They made suggestions, had me try the bellini, and made me feel as if I was at someone's house at a dinner party. The food was PERFECT!!!
I had the grilled octopus with “Borlotti Marinati” and spicy limoncello vinaigrette, homemade orecchiette with sweet sausage and rapini, and for dessert lemon fritters. The bartender and I started a conversation about how good the food was with the guy sitting next to me, he was visiting from Texas.
After my meal I took a stroll through the restaurant and loved the layout. The main dining room is warm, inviting, and comfortable. The upstairs an upscale, more feminine, dining room. My favorite part of the restaurant was the center table with the flower arrangement, water, and cutlery. It pulled the restaurant together.
This has been the best meal I have ever had- I agree the energy!!!!
P.S. I saw a great little segment on tv about David Rockwell and would love to spend a day with him walking through his designs.
marysella at 3:04PM on 04/24/08
We had a similar discussion on Chowhound last week (http://www.chowhound.com/topics/509198) ....I have to add Degustation to this list for the interaction with the chef, the intimacy of the space and the overall quality of the food. Not to mention it is very reasonably priced. Somehow this place flies under the radar.
http://always-eating.blogspot.com/
ginsbera at 3:26PM on 04/24/08
Not exactly in NYC, but I love Blue Hill Stone Barns. Fabulous, if you can get a table.
allistew at 2:59PM on 04/26/08
tough list, man
masa and per se are exorbitantly priced - worth it, but still...
ko is an impossible reservation
and babo and grammercy - well good choices as at least they are attainable...
but c'mon...
cook eat FRET at 11:29AM on 04/28/08
We have eaten at Babbo several times, some better than others. The last time we were there (with friends who own a restaurant), the waitstaff was pretentious/snobby, we were rushed through dinner and our guests were not impressed with the restaurant at all. We, as a group, vowed never to go back (and haven't).
Per Se was wonderful. I would love to get into Momofuku Ko, but I think it would be impossible.
LoriB at 12:31PM on 05/07/08