5 Reservations You Should Score For Restaurant 'Week'
Jan. 10, 2017, 9:23 a.m.
Fine dining Italian in Williamsburg, a pan-Mediterranean feast on City Island, upscale Korean in a penthouse, and other ways to maximize your dining dollars.
Restaurant "Week"—a misnomer since the city started putting them on throughout the year—begins another go around starting January 23rd, but reservations are available now for those seeking dining deals. Three course lunches ($29) and dinners ($42) draw people into restaurants ordinarily out of reach for the non-expense account set. There are 378 participating restaurants around the three boroughs—Staten Island has yet to break into the lineup and there's Update: two Bronx restaurants participating—here are a few suggestions on where to throw around your credit card.
LEUCA A newcomer to both NYC and restaurant week, Andrew Carmellini's luxe Italian restaurant inside the swanky William Vale Hotel in Williamsburg offers a lunch deal Monday through Fridays. Primi options include a Sea Bass Tartare with sunflower and orange; Secondi means a Salumi Sub with spicy giardinera and sharp provolone cheese, or a Casarecce pasta with rapini pesto and pine nuts. Finish up with a Dolce of Fennel Panna Cotta or Amedei Chocolate Budino, then waddle up to the hotel's spectacular rooftop bar for a... daycap?111 North 12th Street, Williamsburg, inside the William Vale hotel, 718-581-5900; leuca.com
ARTIE'S STEAK AND SEAFOOD The only Bronx restaurant participating this year, Artie's holds court in City Island even with the mussel sucker crowd staying away during the off-season. Stop by for lunch or dinner and dine on pan-Mediterranean dishes including Wood-Grilled Tuna and Jumbo Pork Chops for supper or New England Clam Chowder and Grilled Shrimp and Calamari Salad for lunch. If it's good enough for Dick Winters, it's good enough for all of us. 394 City Island Avenue, City Island, 718-885-9885; artiescityisland.com
(Gaonnuri)
GAONNURI This Koreatown stunner affords some spectacular views of Midtown from its perch on the 39th floor. Though they haven't released their menu for the 2017 Restaurant Week, their menu from the last go around included things like Calamari Salad, Bibimbap and Dumpling Soup for lunch, with Bossam (braised pork belly), Bulgogi BBQ and Salmon Gui for dinner. Request a window seat if you can. 1250 Broadway, Koreatown, 212-971-9045; gaonnurinyc.com
(Lena Xiao / Gothamist)
MINTON'S Dinner and a show are on the menu at the revamping of Harlem's historic jazz venue Minton's Playhouse. The space where Thelonious Monk and Charlie Parker used to wail now provides a stage for the "old school" musicians on the jazz scene, many of whom are now returning to the stage they once occupied years before. They're offering weekday dinners plus brunch and dinner on Sundays, including Collard Green Salad, Whole Market Fish with harissa and Coconut Cream Cake for dessert, among other dishes. 206 West 118th Street, Harlem, (212) 243-2222; mintonsharlem.com
Silken Tofu at Noreetuh
NOREETUH The year of poke it may have been (RIP 2016), but to sample the full range of Hawaiian cuisine, head to this East Village spot for gourmet takes on Island classics. They're only offering dinner (excluding Saturdays), with a wide range of dish options. Don't miss the Silken Tofu (a $5 supplement) with uni, salmon roe and shiitake mushrooms or for serious uni heads: Uni Tagliatelle with spicy cod roe (another $5 supplement). There are also Crispy Mushrooms with sweet miso on the menu, and Mentaiko Spaghetti with smoked butterfish, aonori seaweed and chili. And, of course, plenty of poke. 128 1st Avenue, East Village, 646-892-3050; noreetuh
Check out the full list of participating restaurants here.