Kiki's Dining & Drinks

"In the short but extremely well-documented evolution of Dimes Square, there are the newcomers (Casino, Le Dive) and the classics (Dimes, Kiki’s). And long after people have moved on to create a new “microneighborhood” elsewhere, Kiki’s will still be here: the perfect fried cheese and tzatziki-eating destination before a night out on the Lower East Side. This Greek spot is cavernous, just the right level of loud, and it upholds the age-old tradition of serving house wine. On a weekend night, there’s going to be a line out the door, and an hour wait at the very least. Put your name down and go grab a $16 glass of skin contact wine at Le Dive first—it’ll make the liter of house red at Kiki’s taste even better." - willa moore, sonal shah, bryan kim, neha talreja, will hartman

"The Waiting Room: Le Dive  The Back-Up Plan: Bar Belly Friday night dinner at Kiki’s in Dimes Square always seems like a good idea, until you show up and find a line of people in big pants and tiny shirts waiting to put their name in, just so that they can wait longer for an actual table. Follow suit, and then head to Le Dive. Chances are high it'll also be teeming with devout downtowners, but there's lots of outdoor seating, the wine is good, and the people-watching is even better. If you can’t score a table, try nearby Bar Belly, which has a very notable oyster Happy Hour." - willa moore

"Kiki’s has been open for a while now, so it technically isn’t “hot” - but it still gets busy just about every night. They also don’t take reservations, so you might have to wait for your table. This wait might be anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour, but there are plenty of places to drink nearby (like Forgtmenot next door), and a meal here is worth it. The Greek food is both very good and reasonably priced, and you can get a $24 liter of wine to go with your lamb chops and octopus (both of which you need to order)." - bryan kim, hillary reinsberg