Serafina In the Sky - Pod Hotel. 71st St.; 646-490-4075. And the kitchen is as at ease with the muscular flavors of octopus a la plancha as it is with balancing the subtle flavors of a spring-pea risotto with Maine lobster and lemon verbena. Though often unjustly overlooked in the mourners kaddish frequently recited over Great New York Delicatessens, this 90-year-old institution quietly doles out towering pastrami sandwiches, tender kreplach, and the elusive tongue polonaise (tongue with a sweet-and-sour raisin sauce) in a no-nonsense dining room where walkers more often than not crowd the linoleum floor. The menu, a choice between a 12- and a 16-course omakase, leans heavily on nigiri, a sushi high-wire act. Honorable Patch mentions: La Caridad 78 (closed), V & T Pizzeria (1951), Symposium (1969). 9. Anyone may read the forums, but to post you must create a freeaccount. No-one's mentioned Gitlitz yet in this thread, the good Jewish delicatessen that was for many years on 77 St. and Broadway. Ephemeral New York's new book made it on their 2016 holiday gift idea list. Favorite hangouts were Cafe La Fortuna lined with pictures of opera singers and opera music playing non-stop as you could enjoy a small European slice of cake, Cafe Mozart, on West 70th Street. Little amaryllis of meat, said a friend, who works at a nearby flower shop. McGlades, a tavern across from ABC, it's a Starbucks now. Dont miss the dessert trolley, and be sure to finish off with an espresso paired with a shot of complimentary anisette. What about all the Chinese restaurants on the UWS, especially in the 90s? Barney Greengrass541 Amsterdam Ave., nr. If a restaurant connected to a high-end gym franchise isn't your first choice for a cool night out, Electric Lemon, the rooftop hotspot perched atop the Equinox Hotel, might make you reconsider. Gabriel fries his chicken to order in a series of bubbling skillets, resulting in a more evenly cooked bird. The New York Times put together a list of New York City's top 100 restaurants, and they're not holding back! Mamas Too!2750 Broadway, nr. Where to Find the Iconic Pizzerias of New York City, Where to Actually Eat Well in Manhattans Little Italy. Absolute Bagels is a filthy little store with sublime bagels. 32 Glorious Chinese Restaurants to Try in NYC. 35 Hudson Yards Fl 24, New York. My. While the address listed here is considered the original Wo Hop, the street-level part of the restaurant is dubbed Wo Hop Next Door. While it would be fair to say that Old John's Luncheonette did briefly close in 2020 before reopening as Old John's Diner, the business kept its same location. Announcing a new leader in the competition: V&T Pizza says 1945. Wow- Captain Nemo, that brings back memories. The dining room is loud and airy whether or not the windows facing the sidewalk are open. Always had a good meal there. The menu is maybe best known for its zucchini fries, omelets, and burgers. The Red Baron -- that was a really strange place; so dark and ominous, corner of 69th and Columbus, Sidewalkers -- the crab place on 72nd between Columbus and CPW, I think where Sambuca is now, Captain Nemo -- 72nd between Columbus and Amsterdam, seafood. Tuesday's - you could get a rack of ribs, big salad with lots of fresh blue cheese, and a baked potato for $9.99. Grays Papaya2090 Broadway, nr. 49 Grove St Corner Of Grove And Bleecker Street. It's China Fun now? And rightfully so: That slice crust hard; inside tender, airy and open is like a Clint Eastwood character. This facsimile Parisian brasserie, founded in 2003, is an UWS workhorse, serving French bistro standards to the neighborhood at a brisk pace, and has continued even during the pandemic. New York City in 3D in the Gilded Age was referenced in a terrific Feb. 27 Travel section article about the city's Gilded Age past. This Astoria beer garden has been around since 1910, and is the oldest of its kind in the city. Their outsides are substantial but ultimately yielding. 's Sacred Cow. Restaurant 222 - on 79th St. 12. Like a swan, it glides above the furious action (and jostling old ladies) of the supermarket below. Its been a long time since the Upper West Side could boast pastrami this good. Although the booming economy of the mid-1980's was a reason so many restaurateurs could take so many chances, Union Square, Montrachet, Arizona 206 and even Gotham lowered the price of a big restaurant night out, charging less than did the "the Le/La restaurants," as Mr. Nieporent called them. Digital sellers want to help you land the hardest reservations in town. One of Manhattans oldest and greatest steakhouse institutions Keens has stood on 36th Street since 1885, and it remains one of Midtowns best restaurants. Photo by James & Karla Murray from their book NEW YORK NIGHTS. They used to be all over the 5 Boroughs and the Suburb's, generally seemed busy to a visitor it's hard to understand why there are now so few left. "It was a pivotal year in the sense that what has now become the model of the contemporary American restaurant began then," said Alfred Portale, the chef and an owner of the Gotham Bar and Grill, referring to 1985. He wanted his servers to be able to answer wine questions, so he had them taste the wines. Oh. Just as the mid-1980's erased dividing lines between established cuisines, they admitted less established cuisines into the club of what was considered noteworthy, stylish, upscale. Mr. Palmer said he envisioned Aureole as "an American Lutce.". Here are seven of the oldest restaurants on the Upper West Side with dine-in options. Since it opened in the early aughts, the cafe has drawn from the shelves during the day (silver dollar pancakes, tuna melts) and the meat counter at night (skirt steak Toscana, beef Wellington with foie gras, a panoply of burgers). L&B Spumoni Gardens was founded in 1939 and is always at its best in the summer when its warm enough to sit at the picnic tables outside. Booked 142 times today. Carmine's ($$) Early last year, the Upper West Side finally got the Korean fried chicken joint it was hoping for, from BoMee Chu and chef Jun Park. 10. They were not alone; I think the average age of the customers was about 75. On the northern end, it borders W.110th street down south to Columbus Circle at W.59th street. All of these dishes can still be found on the menu at this luxurious, old-school downtown restaurant, an elegant relic of NYC's storied history. We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. Chronicling an ever-changing city through faded and forgotten artifacts, Kara Thornton, Publicist, Black Dog & Leventhal 212-364-0537 [email protected], Ephemeral New York's new book was described as "beguiling, lavishly illustrated" by Sam Roberts in his Bookshelf column December 2, 2016, Thanks to EW for the kudos in their December 9 issue. Union Square was a mirror for many new ways of thinking, and these were reflected as well in such restaurants as Jams, which brought the chef Jonathan Waxman from California to New York in 1984, and An American Place, where the chef Larry Forgione combined French technique with American ingredients and recipes. The menu is maybe best known for its . Columbus Ave; 212-362-3800 . Other plusses: No server will ask if youve dined here before. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. 16 Good Restaurants on the Upper East Side. News; . His studied hand, however, makes itself felt in quietly bold choices that enliven the modern American menu: wild mushroom risotto dusted with cotija and drizzled with balsamic vinegar; a cameo of pickled ramps atop a silken celery-root soup; spicy vongole bucatini with Thai chile and miso. 7. Whisk. My mother still lives at the same address. "Everybody was turning away from what was known and traditional and accepted," said Mr. Palmer, who ran the kitchen at the River Cafe from 1983 to 1987, when he left to open Aureole. Click click bloody click pancakes! Rice. 9 Restaurants With Heated Outdoor Dining in the Bronx. I did, and they remembered him (and treated me better because of it). Burgers and sandwiches are exactly what youd expect. View ephemeralnewyorks profile on Facebook. Leonti103 W. 77th St., nr. If you buy something or book a reservation from an Eater link, Vox Media may earn a commission. Fat Guy Hunan food exhibits hot and sour flavors, pickled ingredients, and other staples preserved by drying and smoking. New Yorks 2022 Michelin Bib Gourmand Restaurants, Mapped, 8 Tongue-Tingling Hunan Restaurants in NYC. The menu wasn't in French. Matzo ball soup and hot dogs liberally smeared with mustard are tops, too. The secret to the poultry? Not exactly pre-WWII, but close. The staff was all super" read more, All "west 80s" results in Upper West Side, Manhattan, New York. Valenti gussies up a normcore frise salad with plump moules. The neighborhood Italian restaurants that dot the Upper West Side Bettolona, Pizzeria Sirenetta, Bella Luna, to name a few are geodic in this regard, perhaps none more so than Celeste. Top the veggies with your cheeses. The neighborhood bistro was no more. This is fast food at its flavorful best, and dont miss the spicy masala fries. The restaurant no relation to Ren Redzepis 108 is the first one devoted specifically to the Chongqing municipality in the city. It opened in late 1983, after Mr. Forgione ceded the helm of the River Cafe to Charlie Palmer. The Upper West Side boasts beautiful brownstones, celebrity sightings, and (most importantly) fantastic food. Awadh2588 Broadway, nr. Columbus Ave.; 212-877-2874. The award-winning room, with its vaulted, tiled ceilings is one of the main attractions here, and one of the best seats for slurping more than a dozen kinds of oysters is at the bar. 98th St.; 646-861-3604. To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. Big Nick's Burger and Pizza Joint at Broadway and 77th Street. 21 Spots for Perfectly Braised and Saucy Birria Tacos in NYC. The break with that, at Union Square and other renegade restaurants, was perhaps the biggest sea change of the mid-1980's. In time there would be not only Jo Jo and Jean Georges but Vong and Spice Market, and Mr. Vongerichten would enjoy a success at the high end of New York dining that only a handful of chefs and restaurateurs, Mr. Meyer among them, could match. The space itself, with its tiled floor, wooden booths, and mahogany bar, is one of the main attractions, but Old Town also serves a superb burger and wings. Delicatessen, the art of making tough meat tender, is alive and well at this sliver of a kosher restaurant on West 72nd Street. Peter Luger opened in Williamsburg in 1887 and even today can often be a tough reservation to snag. Boulud Sud20 W. 64th St., nr. The steakhouse Irwin refers to was Mrs. Cue the renaissance tune. In 1972, she nibbled her way into magazine history. To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. I don't know if there was continuity of ownership, but the basic food has always been pretty much the same. Its impossible to leave un-full or unsatisfied. Open in Google Maps Foursquare 541 Amsterdam Ave, New York, NY 10024 (212) 724-4707 Visit Website Barney Greengrass is an Upper West Side institution. There are so many legendary things born in New York in the 80's that we, until now, still cherish. Cafe Luxembourg: 1983. It translated into a heightened obsession with the freshness and sourcing of ingredients -- Union Square was beside a greenmarket that became an increasingly trafficked stop for the city's chefs -- and gave currency to the philosophy that sometimes the best way to treat a great ingredient is to leave it be. Creative banh mi are fit for a picnic at nearby Central Park, and every meal at Banh Vietnamese Shop House is an adventure. In spite of the many lives New York has lived since it opened in what was then remote Tribeca, the Odeon feels both of the 80s and of the moment. There are several that feel rather ancient, like the Emerald Inn on Columbus between 69th and 70th. Try the burgeras good as any in nyc!" There must be a bunch of them around, since there are so many pre-WWII buildings in the neighborhood that were obviously designed for well-to-do people to live in. Fine & Schapiro138 W. 72nd St., nr. 22. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Grand Central Oyster Bar has occupied the subterranean space in Grand Central Station since 1913. Cleopatra, though for a few years called At Our Place, has been there a long time, but it used to be a straight Egyptian restaurant (with a few Mediterranean touches, I guess). The non-cutlet items worth ordering include hot dogs, hummus, avocado salad, and potato cigars (pastry flutes oozing spuds). There doesn't seem to be a history/about page on the web site: http://www.bbqnyc.com/. Much to my surprise, Fine & Schapiro turns out not to be in Zagat. An exciting restaurant founded by Nhu Ton and John Nguyen, Bnh has made the Upper West Side one of the citys primary destinations for Vietnamese food. We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. The second diner on the list of oldest Upper West Side eateries. Balletomanes and boldface names (and Bob and Barbara and everyone else you know) meet at Lynn Wagenknechts excellent bistro. I think "Victors" was the first popular "Cuban Restaurant". Another leadership shuffle hits Conds food title. "The Sturgeon King" holds the crown as the oldest restaurant on the Upper West Side. During happy hour, he does brisk business in gaufrettes and gougres at the bar, incidentally the longest zinc bar in Manhattan, And the menu is AP Bistro. 74th Street Cafe & Steakhouse2121 Broadway, nr. We hear ya! "Some people see a sheet of seaweed and want to be wrapped in it. So the great sturgeon wars of the Upper West Side have panned out. In terms of the paths that Mr. Nieporent and Mr. Bouley took, Montrachet was the genesis of the TriBeCa Grill, Layla, Nobu and now Nobu 57. The thick-cut slices of pepperoni turn into little cups that hold drops of precious grease, glistening like pork nectar. I hear that Ernies and their big bowls has finally bid adeiu. And the tables, though hard to come by, turn often. Dagon is one of the more buzzy restaurants on the Upper West Side right now. ( New York Jewish Week) Ansche Chesed, a historic Conservative synagogue located in a large, Romanesque- and Byzantine-inspired building on the Upper West Side, has completed an . The 90-seat restaurant, on 70th, buzzes with a 1980s New York energy extruded through 1920s Paris. A Meat Lovers Guide to NYCs Essential Barbecue Restaurants. The Village Voice gave Ephemeral New York's new book a nice thumbs up. The breakfasts are especially good, the pancakes, the bulging muffins, and the two-egg breakfasts that come with an expanded choice of meats that includes salami and pastrami shaved thin like bacon, served with mustard. Now, few are left. The restaurant, which opened in 2014, occupies the former Palm Room of the Endicott Hotel, a soaring, skylit space thats easier to fill with light than with people. Ephemeral New York was featured in a wonderful NY Post story on July 20 on the Gilded Age city. The chicken is tender and the outpost is always bustling. But don't let it get around that I don't. Robert Sietsema/Eater NY Happy Hot Hunan Founded by Yunchou. Back then I had a little section called Eclectic, with like 12 places. Before that location, it was across the street at the southwest corner where Dan is. In terms of the talent that passed through the Montrachet kitchen, the restaurant was a cradle for the chefs David Burke, Terrence Brennan and Rocco DiSpirito, among others. Prepare to wait in line to enter. I think La Rosita, further north on Broadway between 107th and 108th Sts., has been there equally long. Geodes form in small spaces. But before 1985, in restaurants as serious about their food and wine as Union Square, the accepted tone of service was much more formal. 89th St.;212-724-2650. Advertisement. In this narrow shop, the walls are ancient tile and the clock works, but, nonetheless, seems stuck in the 1960s. Its longevity is due to both the reliability of its Chinese-American fare and the small, subterranean nature of the real estate it occupies. A tortellini pie veal meatballs, bolognese, mortadella-stuffed tortellini is equal parts Medieval Times and GBBO. Donnez moi pancakes! It's not only in their recollections, but also in the restaurant scene today, that the significance of that juncture is clear. At the Ayurveda Cafe, owned by legit Indian movie star Tirlok Malik, fully vegetarian set meals called thali, in which each element is calibrated to interact according to Ayurvedic principles, are served to local vegetarians, Buddhists, Jubus, hippies, and the hungry. Your email address will not be published. The spread is astonishing. With its garish colors and hard surfaces, the corner that houses Grays Papaya may seem like strange shelter from the storm. La Tacita de Oro, a Cuban-Chinese place, was in the old wooden former-general-store corner building on 100 St. and Broadway for the longest time until a few years ago, when they were forced to move and moved half a block south. 467 Columbus Avenue (between 82nd and 83rd streets) (212) 585-1398. Boy do I miss a lot of those places. 108th St.; 917-675-6878. "7 Of The Upper West Side's Oldest Restaurants.". At Awadh, Anands bi-level restaurant on Broadway, the lamb is as tender as the night, manna for the toothless. Find a Table. Restaurant history of the Upper West Side, Copyright 2001-2023 by the eGullet Society for Culinary Arts & Letters, All Rights Reserved. 84th St.; 212-874-4559. Peking Duck Roll. Chirping Chicken is a larger chain than any other restaurant on the list, but the eatery on Amsterdam between West 76th and 77th streets has been an Upper West Side staple for 40 years. This narrow but delicious stall concentrates on the street food of Mumbai, sometimes known as Bombay frankies. Oxbow Tavern240 Columbus Ave., nr. The Upper West Side of Manhattan is sandwiched in between Riverside Park to the west & Central Park to the east. Did it have something to do with meatballs? On a recent night I paid a fresh visit to the Union Square Cafe, where a hostess greeted a companion and me in a chirpy, ebullient manner. And the wine director -- Union Square has never used the word sommelier -- weaved a mini-narrative, laced with humor, about the producer of a red wine from Tuscany that we ordered. The usual wings, tenders, and sandwiches are available with a choice of flavoring schemes, but a surprise offering is a Nashville-style hot chicken sandwich. You're welcome. I can't remember it ever not being there. It started out in Crown Heights in 2016 and eventually established a branch on the Upper West Side it might also be one of the citys first kosher Texas-style barbecues. Bchamel replaces red sauce in a Roman artichoke lasagna, basically an artichoke in a pasta costume. Ephemeral New York in the NEW YORK DAILYNEWS! According to Tavern's web site, Tavern on the Green opened as a restaurant (it had been home to a herd of sheep since it was built in 1870) in 1934. Restaurant 222 - on 79th St. The hot dog temple has been serving customers at an affordable price for nearly 50 years at the corner of West 72nd Street. He dusts porcini on cod, and is generous with the lobster that studs his gnocchi. He monitored the early days of Montrachet, ate there in its infancy, and was encouraged by its departure from the established French idiom. In a well-appointed ground-floor dining room that used to be John Frasers Dovetail, longtime Marc Vetri protg Adam Leonti delivers his Northern Italian cuisine in what looks like an Art Deco/Pop Art/Salon del Mobile installation (the design was heavily influenced by Ettore Sottsasss famous 1980s Memphis Group). I bet the number of pre-WWII places can be counted on one hand. Inspired by the 1968 thread, I wanted to start a separate topic to discuss Upper West Side restaurant history. Yo quiero pancakes! They had delicious burgers. - Dr. Cox on Scrubs. Broadway Restaurant is run by the Arsenis family and is best known for its burgers and mashed potatoes. Its famed for its mutton chop (though the steaks and the hash are also a good choice) and for the thousands of clay pipes hanging from its ceiling, which used to be rented out to regulars for $5 a year. (sorry) I LOVED that chain; they were all over, until when? Anything that comes out of the fryer is golden: carciofi, fritto misto, ricotta balls. Grab a seat at the bar and order the mezze collection for $45 such as the Japanese eggplant confit, marinated beets, Moroccan carrots, chicken liver mousse, labneh, and muhamarra. 3. After its appearance in Woody Allen's 1984 film, Broadway Danny Rose , Carnegie Deli became a . The only restaurant on the list with white tablecloths, the French Bistro has served customers at 200 W. 70th St. for nearly 40 years. A very close look reveals a phone number under Free Delivery. And that number turns out to still belong to . Caleta 111 (Peruvian - Richmond Hill) 100. Best west 80s near Upper West Side, Manhattan, NY Sort:Recommended Price Offers Delivery Offers Takeout Reservations Mediterranean Italian 1. Let us know in the comment section how many of these Upper West Side restaurants you've eaten at. buzzes with a 1980s New York energy extruded through 1920s . What did people search for similar to west 80s near Manhattan, NY? The sturgeon, however, is golden, the schmaltz herring properly cured, and the salmon as silken as a lullaby. Columbus Ave; 212-362-3800. A nice moules frites, the Provencal basil soup called pistou, and New York strip steak frites, plus a few Italian-leaning specialties such as risotto and short-rib ravioli. . During peak dim sum hours (11 a.m. to 2 p.m.) there may be a line, but its worth waiting in. Dagon,an exciting new restaurant on Manhattan's upper west side is named for the Phoenician and Philistine god of agriculture and the earth, and features cuisine from "somewhere in the Mediterranean.". And if theres any chance that duck gizzards and braised tripe can make it on the Upper West Side, this is their best shot. My "Uncle Levy", opened up "Hebrew National", "Zion" and "Morgan David", Deli's on every few blocks that he set up, operated and sold after they became established. ", Martin's Restaurant & Pub, Bway betw. It was on something like 74 St. and Columbus, and I remember my brother taking me out for dinner there when our folks were out separately. I've mentioned some before. Chinatowns oldest restaurant serves up fresh and consistently delicious dim sum, ordered off a menu rather than a cart. Among them are the house slice, grated post-oven with two-year-old parmesan and sprinkled with a greenhouses worth of basil, and the Angry Nonna, made spicy with Calabrian chile oil and soppressata, and sweet with honey. A waiter broached the question of sparkling, still or tap by asking, "How do you feel about water?" Something went wrong. Here, the very best restaurants on the Upper West Side. But theres more slices at Mamas Too!, and if you cant wait in the pepperoni-slice-only line, youll want to avail yourself of these. Without further ado, here are seven Upper West Side restaurants included on the list of the oldest in the neighborhood. "It was a sensibility, a mentality: no barriers. Try the massive platters of chicken chow mein, sweet-and-sour pork, subgum egg foo young, and beef chow fun. It relocated a few decades ago from the home it had occupied since 1905 to a storefront down the block but its still one of the citys few coal-oven pizzerias. The space is akin to a more enlightened Shopsins: handmade, idiosyncratic, with lots of handwritten notes, but perhaps a few more sculptures of Ganesh. Once entered, the large bar with stunning decor, drinks, and menu items are impressive enough to make you a repeat customer! Fancy. 74th St.; 212-595-1888. It begat its closest rival for unflagging popular affection, the Gramercy Tavern, along with the rest of Mr. Meyer's formidable restaurant empire. Tatiana by Kwame Onwuachi in NYC's Upper West Side. While not a restaurant, but does anyone know how long Williams B-B-Q, the chicken place just off the SE corner of B'way and 86th has been there? Good Enough To Eat has been an institution up in these parts for a good 30 years, and a spot we'll happily go to for simple, heavy handed home cooking. According to their website, Westside Restaurant, Broadway and 69th, has been around since 1965. It is not an offshoot or a clone, and so no matter how wonderful the Mermaid Inn or the Ribbon, for instance, might be, for these purposes, they are hors concours. Lucknow, the capital of Awadh, the state in Uttar Pradesh from whence Gaurav Anand draws culinary inspiration, is renowned for its transcendent taste. Starters include several salads in addition to the usual fried chicken and edamame. A pair of outdoor diners reopened on the Upper West Side, a worker-owned cocktail restaurant and a lawsuit involving Insomnia Cookies all were food news this week. The Coney Island original opened in 1916, selling hot dogs for five cents. Classic pressed sandwiches, pork and pot roasts, rotisserie and fricasseed chickens, mofongos, and meal-size soups have kept patrons coming for decades to this lively spot. Other good bets include the grilled-to-order beef kafta kebabs, garlicky baked fava beans, and the generous three-item combo platters. 2. Thanks to everyone for their support. Now the behemoth Elizabeth Street branch is closed, replaced by a smaller Centre Street manifestation. Today the Upper West Side is considered one of the richest, cleanest, and most expensive places to live in New York City. That means a little bit more cheese and a top-notch crust. There aren't six degrees of separation between the cluster of restaurants that dawned or came of age around 1985 and the most prominent restaurants and culinary figures in New York today. Go with your gut when it comes to choosing your main course. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. 16 Timeless French Bistros and Brasseries in NYC, A red-sauce stalwart of Brooklyn, Bamonte's has been open since 1902 and hasnt been renovated since the 1950s. (Only Nom Wah Tea Parlor, started in 1920 and also on this list, is older.) Weighed in a bowl, these ingredients are then whisked into a kitchen in the back and emerge, mere minutes later, as a delicious dried hot pot. These are some highly rated west 80s near Manhattan, NY: What are some west 80s with a large number of reviews near Manhattan, NY? Outdoor seating. SJ. Columbus tween 70,71. Arizona 206 also underscored the desire to define and showcase distinctly American food and a distinctly American sensibility, a desire evident as well in the approaches of Mr. Forgione and Mr. Palmer. It is often cited in surveys and small talk as many New Yorkers' favorite restaurant. And for a long time there was Diane's, on the east side of Columbus, also good for burgers. Leonti 103 W. 77th St., nr. Chef and Hunan native Kaiyuan Li directs the kitchen, and his creations run to Chongqing chicken, steamed fish head with red chiles, and beef flank in dry wok taking advantage of the chefs experiences in Germany. New York City, NY 10014. The Gilded Age in NewYork. Lombardis is the first pizzeria in New York City and, supposedly, the country. Yeah. These advertising-free forums are provided free of charge through donations from Society members. The UWS branch still hoists the torch high, with a menu that highlights noodles and dim sum, along with a limited collection of classic stir-fries of chicken, pork, and shrimp. The Very Best Upper West Side Restaurants. The next year, he started as chef de cuisine at a new Manhattan restaurant, Lafayette, under the guidance of the French chef Louis Outhier, known in part for incorporating flavors from Asia -- Thailand in particular -- into French cooking. Health experts consider dining out to be a high-risk activity for the unvaccinated; it may pose a risk for the vaccinated, especially in areas with substantial COVID transmission. The owner came over and introduced himself and helped us with the menu. We live in the neighborhood and have been waiting for a good neighborhood place to open. 108th St.; 212-932-2052. There is likely no more recognizable restaurant on the Upper West Side than Gray's Papaya. For over ten years, the unfussy Neapolitan spothas been presided over by owner Carmine Mitroni, a man as incandescent as a chandelier.