The Best New Restaurants in New York City
"It’s fitting that I slipped into Cecchi’s on my first night back in New York City after weeks of travel. This is where you go to remember why you live in the city; it’s also where you should bring your visiting friends who can’t help but mention how “New York” your life is. The menu, which owner Michael Cecchi-Azzolina says comes from researching decades of New York restaurant menus and their iconic dishes, will remind you exactly where you are. Start at the bar, where drinks range from the cheeky (cosmos! appletinis!) to great pours of Sancerre and Beaujolais. If you’re having a great time, chatting with seatmates and bartenders, stay there and order the New York Happy Meal ($25 martini and fries, offered everyday from 5-6 p.m. and late night). When you’re ready to migrate to a table, you’ll hope you brought enough dining companions to really explore. Starters like the stuffed mushrooms go down easy, but it’s bold reincarnations of the classics like the “Not a Wedge” salad (which comes as finely chopped as Farmer in the Deli sandwich innards, and is cravably tangy) that I would go beeline to in the future. You should like meat if you’re eating here (or be taking advantage of a cheat-day from your efforts at a more plant-based diet—who’s with me?), because the apricot-glazed ribs, the steak-frites, and the burger all deserve your attention. The food is rich, so under-order to start. And make sure to look around the room between bites, as the atmosphere and constant din of spirited conversation is the most New York thing about this place. —M.S." - CNT Editors
