Favourite West Village Restaurants
 

3 women staying in the West Village mid-November. Looking for great dinner recommendations in the neighbourhood. We like all food and the price point isn't an issue. Thanks for your help.

One word of advice: you say "mid-November" but I'm not sure what that means precisely. Our Thanksgiving holiday is Thursday, November 24). If you want to eat out this day at anything other than a local diner-type restaurant (and you probably do, whether you have a traditional turkey meal or not), you need to make reservations this week. Really, if you want to eat at an upscale restaurant, you need to make reservations this week because mid-November is one of the busiest times of the year in NYC. The week approaching Thanksgiving means many thousands of extra tourists in the city. For simpler neighborhood restaurants, you can make a reservation usually the same day (maybe the day before on a busy weekend).

Now, second. Please don't limit yourself to the Village. There are a lot of good restaurants there, but they just don't represent all of what NYC has to offer. I'd never ever recommend anyone (especially a tourist) limit themselves to a single neighborhood, particularly the Village. In fact, I'm not going to recommend restaurants solely in the Village. I just refuse to ... sorry. There are plenty of restaurants there, so you'll be able to eat, but I don't particularly love the neighborhood for its restaurants.

Here are a few places I like, mostly upscale with one neighborhood restaurant. You'll need to decide on these asap, however, because almost all of them are fully booked through early December by now. But you can probably get a reservation early (as in 5:30 or 6) or late (after 10).

---Blue Hill (expensive, locally sourced seasonal food - reservations required at least a week or two in advance, perhaps more at this busy time of the year).
---Union Square Cafe (moderately expensive Italian-influenced American food that tends to be salty). Very popular but pretty good, though as a newbie you'll likely be stuffed into one of the less-desirable back tables.
--HB Brewery. This is a casual, frenetic place that serves housemade beer and good burgers. Don't expect fine cuisine, but the burgers and fries are surprisingly good. Don't try anything too ambitious, though. The Indian River Ale is quite nice and refreshing, though probably not to British tastes.
---Momofuku Saam Bar (in the East Village). A top ticket, but well worth the wait, which may not be too long if you go early. It does not take reservations. This is Asian, and excellent. Nearby is Momofuku Noodle Bar, which generally has larger crowds and longer waits. Moderate in price.
--Gramery Tavern (expensive, just north of the Village off Park Avenue). American food and one of the better restaurants in NYC. Also books up a month in advance, but the Tavern Room (moderate) does not take reservations. Also good for lunch.
--Gotham Bar and Grill (expensive, upscale American cuisine). Really nice, casually elegant and quite good. Reservations 2 or 3 weeks in advance.
---Colicchio & Sons (expensive, American food by a famous celebrity chef ... at least owned by him). This one is in Chelsea, not the Village, but it's next to the Highline, which is a must-visit. It's also next door to Del Posto, one of the finest upscale Italian restaurants in NYC, but it usually books up a month in advance.
---Tello's (a simple neighborhood Italian restaurant, moderate in price and quite good if you like that kind of food). It's also in Chelsea, but is much closer to the Village at 20th/8th Avenue. Make a reservation the same day if you are eating after 7pm.

"Our Thanksgiving holiday is Thursday, November 24"

Hey Doug, our Thanksgiving holiday here in L.A. falls on the same day. Small world.

Seriously (well, not real seriously), we really enjoyed our dinner recently at North Square Restaurant and Lounge in Greenwich Village. From my trip report:

"We met up with Kim and Mary, and soon we were on our way to Greenwich Village (by subway, of course) for dinner at North Square. This turned out to be our favorite restaurant of the trip, edging out Lucien and The Green Table.

Located on the edge of Washington Square, this is a cool, little New York bistro that Mary heard used to be an art gallery. We had 8:30 reservations, and although we arrived a tad early (our M.O. for the past couple of nights), we were quickly seated.

For an appetizer, I tried North Square’s signature Tuna Tartare with crushed avocado, ginger cured vegetables in a lemon-lime vinaigrette ($10) that was very tasty. Tracy had the Chile Relleno with crab-meat, red pepper, almonds, yellow mole sauce and queso fresco ($11). So far, the place was a winner.

Kim began with Lobster and Crab Cakes, seaweed and vegetable salad with a Thai curry coconut sauce ($12). Mary tried the Radicchio and Boston Lettuce Salad (Boston, in NYC?) that included roasted beets, goat cheese, honey spiced pecans and blue cheese dressing ($9). Everything had been great so far.

Now it was on to the entrées and they also did not disappoint. I had a great meal of Grazin’ Angus Acres Short Ribs with crispy potatoes, sautéed vegetables and an Asian barbecue sauce ($22). Tracy went for the Slow Roasted Organic Chicken Breast, sautéed wild mushrooms, white truffle polenta cake and an herb au jus ($20).

Kim dined on an Herb-Crusted Rack Of Lamb, grilled asparagus, potato and leek galette with rosemary au jus ($28) while Mary decided on the Pan-Seared Alaskan Halibut, with corn and mushroom couscous and lemon herb sauce ($23). Some delicious French wine and, voilà, a perfect meal for slightly less than $200 (not including tip).

The service at North Square was top notch as was the ambiance."

Have fun!!!

((H))

Gotham at the high end

The Spotted Pig for upscale great, great burgers and fries

Blue Ribbon Bakery for variety

Mary's Fish Camp-cramped, no reservations, that makes fabulous seafood.

Corner Bistro-burgers on paper plates

Cones-store made ice cream on Bleecker

East Village
Cacio e Pepe for authenic Romano cooking
Motorino for pizza
Lucien-french bistro w/tablecloths

And Le Gigot, also on Cornelia Street. Charming neighborhood restaurant popular with locals.



http://www.legigotrestaurant.com/

There are way too many to name, but I'll mention a few I've been to fairly recently.

La Ripaille - old-timey French (but not TOO old-timey) with an entertaining owner and friendly service.Very good food, cute space.

Mi Cocina - Jane St., decent Mexican (oops, just googled and it's closed - bummer).

I've always been fond of Cafe de Bruxelles, but I haven't been there in years.

I second Corner Bistro - very unique place, tasty burgers.

And if you're looking for a classy place for a cocktail before or after dinner, Hudson Bar & Books.

Enjoy your girls' trip!

Cafe des Bruxelles has been closed for a couple of years, I believe.

Bistro de la Gare
Fatty Crab

Bookmarking! :)

On the same block as the excellent Le Gigot is "Home" where they make their own ketshup.

Thanks, ekscrunchy. I hadn't googled hard enough! Just read about the basement fire there, and subsequent closing. Sad.

So that I feel less useless, I'll throw Tartine out there, but definitely one you want to get to at off-hours.

Thanks, everyone, for your recommendations. My 'puter is ailing so I haven't been able to go online.

Arriving Nov 17, departing Nov 23 - this is our 4th? 5th? NYC visit just before the American Thanksgiving, but thanks for the heads up.

Yes, Manhattan has way too many wonderful restaurants but we were thinking of focussing a couple of nights on our neighbourhood restos. I'll definitely google all those recommended... that "North Square" menu has my mouth watering...

Anyone have any comments on Anita Lo's "Annisa" restaurant? I think it's in the west village...

Forget to mention The Little Owl.

Yes, Annisa in in the West Village. Her cooking can be spare for some people but the restaurant certainly has its fans.

In that category, same area, I would highly recommend MAS Farmhouse.

http://www.masfarmhouse.com/


http://www.annisarestaurant.com/

Westville - tiny, tiny, tiny, but very charming, a New York version of a fancy meat and three place though that description of it does it a disservice. There's always a line at dinner, but lunch is usually better. Hamburger is fantastic, Cobb salad is great (though I like the regular balsamic dressing not the dill dressing), mac and cheese and lastly the roasted artichoke hearts, divine, wonderful, worth getting takeout for if you don't want to wait in line.

North Square when I went years ago I thought of as kind of generic. Decent food in a hotel, seemed more about servicing hotel guests rather than general population, it just wasn't New York enough. There are so many other great and interesting restaurants in the area, I would rather not waste my time with serviceable.

North Square has a very nice jazz brunch. Perry St. is as far west as you can get, across from the Hudson River. It's at the bottom of a new sleek Richard Meier building. I've only been for lunch but thought it was terrific. http://nymag.com/listings/restaurant/perry-street/

My sister and her friend and I enjoyed a very tasty pasta at Dell'amina (8th and Jane) and the Manager say their newer/sister place - L'Artusi (228 W 10th - between Bleeker and Hudson) has received a better rating in Zagat 2012.

My sister and her friend also liked Piccolo Angelo (621 Hudson - not far from 8th/Jane) - which also had good food at a lesser price. They also have a good lunch special.

Also second Motorino (East Village) for Pizza - especially if you like the authentic Magherita style. They had their own oven built,a la Napoli, but there are also a number of good pizza places on Bleeker St., John's for one, Keste for another.

Motorino's had a lunch special - a BIG pie and a nice salad for $12. Took half of the pizza home.

North Square is one of my "regulars". I had the prix fixe special at Perry St, the menu was limited, but it's the food and service was very good. I'm sure their regular dinner menu is great. I recently had tapas at Snack Taverna, and really enjoyed that meal. Trattoria Toscana and Mappamondo are both good and reasonable Italian food. Then there's the Mario Batali places, Otto, Babbo and Lupa, which are all good.

We definitely recommend Little Owl, Agave and Market Table. Really no matter where you go in the West Village, you're going to have a great experience! Hope you have a great trip!

This is a terrific list, thanks very much everybody.
EK, I'm not sure what "spare" means re Annisa but clean, fresh, sparkling flavours are appealing.
MFNYC, we enjoyed Lupa last visit and I think we are located a few doors from another of Batali's restaurants so we'll probably visit that one.
The food is really spectacular in Manhattan and tonight's the night for googling all the recommendations and trying to make reservations.
Thanks again, Linda

Hi Linda: By spare I meant ingredient driven and, as you put it, "clean," more subtle than overpowering. You've already been drawn to it so you probably know that and can appreciate. I have eaten her food at private events but not had a regular meal at the restaurant. I like the French-influenced food at MAS Farmhouse a lot. Both of these are in a slightly higher price category than most of the others mentioned here.

On another thread, I recommended I Sodi, an under-the-radar place (you probably won't find many non_Italian tourists there) which offers Tuscan food (spare in its own way) in a sleek, stylish setting on Christopher Street. Known for their lasagne, porchetta (they also do a boned out rabbit spiced and rolled in porchetta style), chicken under a brick, and other Tuscan classics.

http://www.isodinyc.com/


Also, for a light meal and good people watching, this branch of the Milanese cafe, on Perry Street:

http://www.santambroeus.com/new/frameset.php

Also for light meals (I've had their biscotti but not eaten there), this is a Tuscan bakery a few doors east of I Sodi:

http://ilcantuccionyc.com/en/colazione/

And I will throw out this place on Houston Street in the WV, new in the past year or so, that was reviewed in the Times yesterday. I've not been there, however. We have very few great Vietnamese places of any stripe outside of banh mi joints, so I may have to get here soon, as I like Vn food a lot:




http://dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.c...ouge-et-blanc/

ek, thanks very much for the additional recommendations. Annisa is definitely in for me and your extra comments re MAS F-House are v. appealing. However I Sodi looks wonderful as well... I'd better bring along my larger sized slacks. What a really terrific list.

Thought I'd let you know we have reservations so far at
I Sodi and Annisa's... looking forward to them.

eks - do you know approximately what are prices for a meal at I Sodi's? Looks like a place I would try.

BowenLinda - hope to get a review from you after you return!!

Thanks

On another thread, I recommended I Sodi, an under-the-radar place (you probably won't find many non_Italian tourists there) which offers Tuscan food (spare in its own way)

I Coppi also offers Tuscan food, in fact they make their own bread without salt in the Tusacn tradition.

http://www.icoppinyc.com/

Flame: Two of us recently (as best I can recall) spent about $115 for dinner including tax and two glasses of wine, but before tip. This was for 2 antipasti (one arugula salad with Castelmagno cheese and one artichoke salad); two primi as main course, their lasagna is excellent, this season they have one with black truffles; and one vegetable side (I liked their peas).

Here is menu with prices; probably does not include up-to-date seasonal fare:

http://menupages.com/restaurants/i-sodi/menu

I would recommend nearby (on the same street, a block east) Il Cantucio for dessert; try their chocolate cantucci.

Let me know how you fare!

Thanks Adu and eks - it will be a while before "I fare" since I am only planning a trip in a few months time. But as I am "a planner" I like to get early info.

You can view menus (and also write-in reviews) on menupages.com to get an idea of offerings and prices.

Recently returned from our 4th annual, sisters-in-law, mid-Nov SUNNY Manhattan trip. Planning for a residential move so will quickly share some thoughts re the really wonderful food we had, pretty well all in the Greenwich/West Village area. Ate at Babbo, Annisa, I Sodi and a terrific, very small Spanish restaurant whose name escapes me.

One of my s-i-law charmed her way w/o reservations for a late dinner at Babbo. Many watched us walk ahead of them but I think living almost next door aided our cause. For appetizers, we shared an argula salad with parmigiano and the grilled sardines. The salad was lovely and fresh and the grilled sardines were delicious. But that dish was ridiculously small - two sardines each half the size of my baby finger. B's entree was a squid ink flavoured ravioli stuffed with goose liver. Excellent flavour, beautifully presented but too rich for an entree for me. K had spaghettini with chives and 1 lb of lobster in a fresh, light tomato sauce - excellent. I had the grilled brazino with vegetables and it was perfectly, just perfectly cooked. Good vibe, great service (nobody said a word to us that the restaurant was closed when we left at 1:45 am - who knew?) and delicious food. I remember $125 for food, wine and tip for each of us.

Next evening was another late dinner at I Sodi. This was K's favourite restaurant of the trip. Small and cozy, personable but professional servers, excellent food. Our shared appetizer was a raw veggie plate with an absolutely delicious Tuscan olive oil bottled by the owner for dipping. Buttery and complicated, it was delicious. K is a pescetarian so I shared a branzino with her and she added on spaghetti with black pepper and pecorino - fresh, fresh, delicious. B enjoyed the house made spinach and ricotta ravioli with butter and sage and I added an insalada mista to the branzino. Another restaurant I would recommend. $100 each including wine and tip.

And finally, Anissa, a restaurant I was eagerly anticipating. A more formal house, again with attentive but personable wait staff (at one point she told K, in a friendly tone, that her wine choice was just wrong). We enjoyed as an appetizer the ceviche fluke - fresh, delicate, delicious, and the field green salad. K had the miso marinated sable with tofu in a bonito broth and absolutely loved it. B and I agreed. B had the olive oil poached halibut and it was another terrific flavour combination. I ate the duo of striped bass with savoy cabbage. Loved the grilled bass, was okay with the second treatment which was, maybe, grilled and then terrine'd. $125 each again for our meal.

All our dinners included tea/coffee and a shared dessert.

We had some great lunches as well, but we were walking much further afield and I didn't note names and menu items.

Another highlight of our trip was our visit to Doyle and Doyle's, an antique, vintage & contemporary jewellery store in the Lower East Village. Beautiful. Needless to say we all happily bought.

Next year we are going to move our get together from NYC, perhaps to Montreal and Q.C. or Paris. We will miss NYC but we'll return in a few years.

Thanks for the reviews.

Echoing the thanks. So glad you enjoyed.

I'll just add a note to this thread, although the OP has come and gone (but hopefully will return soon!)

Perry Street, at the far west end of the street, at the Hudson River/West Street, offers a lunch deal that is quite a bargain considering the $28 price for 2 courses plus dessert. Two of us had an excellent mid-day meal here yesterday, choosing one prix fixe and a couple of a la carte selections. The famous Jean-Georges molten chocolate cake is among the dessert selections, even on the price fixed menu. The vanilla ice cream that accompanies it is the best I've ever tasted.

Serene, quite place, sleek contemporary design, attentive and friendly service.

High probability of celebrity sightings, if that is of any interest.


http://jean-georges.com/

An update... two of the three sister-in-laws will be visiting NYC November 20-25, 2014 (flying out before US Thanksgiving)and staying again in the West Village. We had really wonderful recommendations last time around from the forum and would appreciate new ones, in the WV or close by as we like to walk home after dinner. Mid-range, I guess, $125ísh per person including tax and tip. Like seafood, not meat so much, really no other limitations. Thank you!

I'll return with more ideas, but I would like to mention that two of us had a very good dinner recently at Blue Ribbon Bakery, which is a Village classic, one of a string of well-regarded places owned by two young local brothers. The manager there is a charmer. (Mitchell??) The menu is pretty classic and they are famous for their bone marrow appetizer, and for their fried chicken. They serve breads made in the old oven in the basement, and you would be wise to pick up a baguette or two, and a loaf of their bacon bread, from the retail shop a few steps away. (Look at the cookbook for a general idea of what to expect)

Again, no cutting edge dishes here, but a very pleasant spot with an excellent music selection (Stax, lesser known R&B, etc), played at a normal volume. Good people watching from window tables. It is near the Film Forum, which comes in handy if one is headed there for a film as I was recently. They are very popular for brunch/lunch as well, but I've not been for that:


http://www.blueribbonrestaurants.com...DinnerMenu.pdf

I love Morandi in the West Village. Great ambiance, food, and wine. Fun place with friends.

Bacon bread? Oh my god, that sounds fantastic. Yes, please, more suggestions ek.

Aly, I will definitely check the Morandi out.

Any other recommendations most welcome...

I love Rita Sodi's cooking, but lately I've been eating at Rafele on 7th Ave South - a little less expensive and quite good with a very nice Italian staff.

Little Owl, hands down
go a little out of your way and try Lotus Blue, especially exotic cocktails - very fresh, creatively spiced Chinese food

A little less money makes me smile and I will check out Rafele on 7th, thanks for that CPG.

Thomas, like everyone else I guess, we really enjoy a good cocktail and excellent Chinese food sounds great - thanks for the recommendations.