New Yorkers and the visitors who love this city have another reason to flock to the capital of the world in January and early February. From January 21 until February 8, NYC Restaurant Week Winter 2019 promises to be the best yet, with hundreds of participating restaurants helping craft this segment of NYC & Company’s signature dining program. The festivities help diners discover new and celebrate old favorites through affordable deals designed to encourage sampling as many dishes as possible. Cuisines span all genres of dining from elevated French fare to relaxed American and everything in between. Diners can get the jump on crowds and wait times by reserving tables in advance on OpenTable. We’ve rounded up a few of the many places to add to your list of must-try eateries. Not in New York but still looking to enjoy a restaurant week near you? Check out additional January 2019 restaurant weeks. And remember that you can always find the right table anytime on OpenTable.
Gaby Brasserie Française
The midtown Manhattan Sofitel New York hotel is a favorite of travelers and locals. Chef Robert Hohmann has meticulously planned a celebration of NYC Winter Restaurant Week from lively brunches to evening standouts (think lots of wine and drink specials like endless mimosas, bloody marys, or bellini cocktails for a $25 add-on per diner.) Appetizers include baby burrata with grilled asparagus, pancetta, and hazelnut salsa and Gruyere and crab quiche and market greens with goat cheese, fennel, and orange marmalade. Brunch entrées include a choice of croque madame with Parisian ham, Gruyère, béchamel, brioche, sunny side egg, and greens; pan-seared scallops with tabbouleh and herb salad with cider dressing; eggs Benedict / eggs Royale with poached organic eggs, choice of Canadian bacon or smoked salmon on English muffin with Cresskill farm parsley potatoes; or steak and eggs with stout cream featuring grass-fed New York strip steak, fresh organic eggs, and parsley potatoes. Entrées include pan-seared scallops with tabbouleh and herb salad with cider dressing, duck breast with miso almond butter, grilled ribeye, or kale and mushroom ravioli with ginger butternut squash purée. Make a reservation at Gaby Brasserie Française.
db Bistro Moderne
Ask anyone who dines regularly at db Bistro Moderne and they’ll likely testify that everything is worth a trip to this classic-meets-contemporary restaurant. The NYC Winter Restaurant Week menu is no exception, as chef Chris Stam plans to feature mushroom velouté with crème fraîche, chives, and croûtons; garganelli with parsley pesto, confit garlic, almond, and parmesan; and hanger steak with fingerling potato Lyonnaise, maitake mushroom frisée, and watercress salad. The menu includes a two-course lunch with supplemental dessert and three-course dinners. Make a reservation at db Bistro Moderne.
Boulud Sud
A world of flavor is on the menu at Boulud Sud, where chef Ulises Olmos is at the helm. He is highlighting some of his favorite dishes for NYC Winter Restaurant Week. They include lemon saffron linguini with seppia, puntarella, and Sardinian bottarga during lunch only and as part of the dinner menus, an Italian chicory salad with hazelnuts, Pecorino Romano cheese, and candied orange peel. Also on the menu, a Moroccan braised lamb shoulder with harissa-spiced carrots, braised chickpeas, and cilantro with a supplemental dessert. Make a reservation at Boulud Sud.
Noreetuh
Bigeye tuna poke is just one of the items slated for an appearance on the NYC Winter Restaurant Week menu at this First Avenue eatery. Noreetuh is famed both for its chef and co-owner Chung Chow and for its renowned list of specialty sakes, beers, and wines curated by co-owner and manager Jin Ahn. The East Village restaurant, which translates to mean playground in Korean, is known for innovative dishes like bone marrow bread pudding with Maine sea urchin and burgundy truffles and five-spice glazed pork chop with spätzle, pineapples, and pickled mustard greens – but check the restaurant’s website for a final tally of specific dishes being offered. Make a reservation at Noreetuh.
Bar Boulud
This favorite of regulars at 1900 Broadway highlights everything diners love about Daniel Boulud’s more casual restaurants – savory, upscale ingredients in a relaxed setting. For the NYC Winter Restaurant Week menu, chef Dieter Samijn is including a pâté du jour of seasonal pâté, fines herbs salad, and toasted sourdough; the Frenchie burger with pork belly, roasted tomato compote, raclette cheese, and French fries; and gateau Marjolaine with hazelnut dacquoise, praline buttercream, and caramel ganache. Make a reservation at Bar Boulud.
Vandal
This Bowery gem presents a varied and exciting menu of choices for NYC Winter Restaurant Week. Vandal’s dishes include hamachi escabeche; crispy hard shell fish tacos, tortilla soup dumplings;,grilled market vegetable enchilada, wasabi pea-crusted salmon, and prime skirt steak with Thai fried rice, coconut milk, lemongrass, and chile, followed by spiced panna cotta with cranberry gelee or a chocolate bourbon milkshake shot. Arrive hungry and stay for the see-and-be-seen crown in the cellar nightclub after supper. Make a reservation at Vandal.
10 Corso Como
Trying to choose between all the marvelous dishes at this Fulton Street restaurant in the Seaport District may be challenging, given appetizers like vitello tonnato with veal, tuna, and capers; tortino di melanzane with eggplant, Parmigiano, and mozzarella; and fritto misto, a medley of crispy fish, shellfish, and seasonal veggies. Save room for stunners like bigoli cacio e pepe, pasta struncatura, branzino al vapore, and tagliata di manzo at 10 Corso Como during NYC Winter Restaurant Week, when diners can choose between two courses from the lunch / brunch category and three courses during dinner. Make a reservation at 10 Corso Como.
Beauty & Essex
An hour of shopping and dinner at Beauty & Essex make this a truly unique destination. With its contemporary pawn shop lined with vintage jewelry, musical instruments, and artifacts and restaurant, this is what people mean when they say something is New York fabulous. Beauty & Essex is an experience all its own including the grand circular staircase and two-story chandelier. NYC Winter Restaurant Week dishes include crispy eggplant pizzetta and chile relleno empanadas, plus tuna poke wonton tacos, kale and apple salad, spaghettini, Peruvian chicken, grilled Atlantic salmon, and braised short ribs. Desserts will include petite cupcakes, cherry sorbet, and “Les, NYC” doughnuts with caramel, chocolate, and berry dipping sauces. Make a reservation at Beauty & Essex.
LAVO
For lunch, expect to find vegetable minestrone; buffalo mozzarella arancini, classic Caesar salad, sautéed mussels marinara, and tuna tartare on the special appetizers menu, while entrées will include penne alla vodka, pappardelle Toscana with wild boar ragu, and cauliflower steak Parmesan. On the dinner menu, diners’ choices include pizza cacio e pepe, grilled branzino, and ribeye steak, followed by supplemental desserts such as Nutella budino (chocolate hazelnut pudding) with sea salt, seasonal fruit plate, or New York-style cheesecake topped with Amarena cherries, whipped cream, and brulée, along with Oreo zeppole with malted vanilla milkshake. The dinner menu includes many of the same items but also features chicken Marsala, lemon sole piccata, and short rib peposa. Make a reservation at LAVO.
American Cut
American Cut’s menu for this year’s NYC Winter Restaurant Week includes everything you’d expect from these Tribeca and Midtown favorites. Dishes include baked potato ravioli with bacon and crème fraîche, pastrami-spiced salmon with rye berries and caraway-mint yogurt, and a mini Cracker Jack sundae with caramel popcorn, peanut brittle, and popcorn ice cream. Make a reservation at American Cut.
Kingside
Lounging in one of the caramel-colored banquettes at Kingside or settling in at the food counter, this restaurant in the Viceroy Central Park New York is worth a stop during NYC Restaurant Week. Notable goodies include sunchoke bisque with walnut oil, sunflower sprouts, and crispy brioche; kampachi crudo; winter leaves salad; quinoa risotto with white beech mushrooms, Manchego, and black truffles; braised short rib with soft polenta; a sushi platter; and sweet treats like pumpkin cheesecake or Anjou pear and almond tart with zabaglione gelato. Make a reservation at Kingside.
Junoon
Chef Akshay Bhardwaj is showcasing Junoon’s finest abundance of flavors in this NYC Winter Restaurant Week menu. It will include eggplant chaat with crispy eggplant, raita, tamarind chutney, red onion, and chaat masala; a dish of ghost chili murgh tikka prepared with tandoor chicken thigh with cabbage slaw, cashew puree, and cashew crumble; and finally, a malabar shrimp curry with mustard seed, curry leaf, tamarind, and coconut. Make a reservation at Junoon.
TAO Downtown
This impossibly trendy hot spot is the also the top spot for hot and sour soup during NYC Winter Restaurant Week, along with temple salad, spring rolls, spicy tuna on crispy rice, and chicken or shrimp pad Thai. TAO Downtown is also featuring Thai barbeque chicken, Mongolian beef, glazed salmon, and special sushi platters such as crunchy spicy yellowtail roll, chef Yoshi roll, and angry dragon roll. For dessert, guests can indulge in chocolate molten cake, banana pudding parfait, fresh fruit, and sorbet. Make a reservation at TAO Downtown.
TAO Uptown
At sister restaurant TAO Uptown, expect the same punches of flavor, quality, and people-watching. Diners can also expect dreamy special menu items like papaya chicken salad, miso soup with tofu and mahogany clams, lemongrass shrimp skewers, grilled Kalbi-style short ribs, spicy basil chicken lettuce wraps, and crispy vegetable rolls with duck mustard sauce. Guests can also choose from branzino with charred green beans, Kung Pao chicken, pad Thai with chicken or shrimp, Thai sirloin salad with sriracha and peanuts, and the Asian barbecue hanger steak with spiced fries. Other choices include sashimi chirashi bowl with tuna, salmon, hamachi, ebi, and vegetable roll and supplemental desserts including banana pudding, chocolate Zen parfait, fresh fruit and tangerine sorbet, chocolate peanut cake with passion fruit and roasted peanut ice cream, or mango sorbet with seasonal fruit and coconut milk. Make a reservation at TAO Uptown.
Scarpetta
This NoMad restaurant by LDV Hospitality is hosting brunch, lunch, and dinner for NYC Winter Restaurant Week. Guests at Scarpetta can partake of a prix-fixe brunch and lunch menu and a prix-fixe dinner menu. Scrumptious dishes will include creamy polenta with fricassée and truffled mushrooms; roasted beef salad with shaved vegetables, ricotta, and beer vinaigrette; spaghetti with tomato and basil; and biscotti for dessert. Make a reservation at Scarpetta.
