Grand Brasserie is a large French restaurant located in the Grand Central Terminal. It’s situated in the historic Vanderbilt Hall. The main parts of the restaurant have an open area view to the Grand Central hall, so you can see the chandeliers and some of the nice subtleties of the terminal. The main interesting aspect of this restaurant is they have a “green room” which used to be the former Michelin Star restaurant “Agern” before it closed during the pandemic. I was easily able to make a reservation for 2 for 5:30 PM.

Located at Mercado Little Spain, Txula Steak is chef Jose Andres love letter to Spain. He’s one of the chefs that has opened a bunch of restaurants, including Nubeluz, Zaytinya, and Oyamel to name a few. The Mercado Little Spain sits at ground level of mall next to the Vessel. You can enter thru the mall via Little Spain to get here, or enter at ground level off 30th St outside. We easily made reservations for 5:30 PM same day on Friday.

There’s been a recent boom in Thai restaurants opening in NYC. This one has an interesting name and is located in the Flatiron area. It is based on an old riverside town by the Chao Phraya river where there’s a food market serving authentic Thai home-style and street food. I took a look at their menu, and it looked smaller than other Thai restaurants, so I am hoping the flavors are less predictable and more refined. I easily made a reservation for 2 for 5:30 PM.

Bar Primi is a casual Italian eatery from the NOHO Hospitality Group and Chef Andrew Carmellini. We’ve been to several of his restaurants already (e.g., Locanda Verde, Carne Mare to name a few), and we’ve found the food pretty consistent. This one is less posh and more casual, located near Penn Station and across the street from the Moynihan train station. It was easy to make a reservation just a few days in advance for 2 for 5:30 PM.

The Noortwyck is a casual restaurant that opened a few years ago by Eleven Madison alums, chef Andrew Quinn and sommelier Cedric Nicaise. What I enjoy a lot about restaurants like these is that the menu isn’t super complicated, and you can easily navigate around. The meal is all meant to be shared, and the portion sizes are very friendly. We booked a reservation for 2 for 5:30 PM on a Friday evening very easily.

Red Rooster at one point in the last decade was well known for its fried chicken. From acclaimed chef, Marcus Samuelsson, this was his first restaurant that he opened in December 2010, focusing on casual Southern eats. It became even more famous when it was on the Michelin Guide, but it has since kind of gone off grid. We were in the Bronx area, so we thought this would be a good time to stop by and check it out. We were able to walk in with 2 at 4:45 PM on a Saturday early evening.

We were walking around the Chelsea area near the Pier, and we had to decide on what to eat. As we walked towards the Little Island, we saw this restaurant that seemed to be open right next to the Crane Club. My partner mentioned they were interested in trying this restaurant, and I did a quick search and noticed this was a pretty new restaurant. The menu wasn’t super interesting, but I figured it was worth a shot. We did a walk-in for 2 at 5:00 PM.

Miss Nellie’s was one of those restaurants near the theaters that always appeared to have an interesting menu. I had this restaurant saved for a few years, so I figured we’d check this out before watching a show. We walked in without reservations for 2 around 5:30 PM without any issues. As I sat down and looked at the menu again, I noticed some of the things I was interested in, such as smoked French Dip, had mushrooms in it. This really narrowed what I would get, so I had some skepticism.

Suki Desu is a relatively newish sushi restaurant that has a few branches opened in Manhattan. It has a small menu, consisting of mainly kaisen don though it does offer alternatives if you’re not a fan of raw fish. Kaisen don is basically raw seafood on top of rice. Their goal is to make rice bowls with authentic Japanese flavors accessible to everyone. Like the recent trend of hand rolls, this one brings raw fish rice bowls at a very affordable price.

Giuletta is a new casual Italian restaurant right next to Grand Central Terminal and the Met Life building. The word signifies “youthful” in Italian. The restaurant comes from the team behind La Pecora Bianca, which is another casual Italian eatery across Manhattan. I made a reservation for Giuletta a few days in advance pretty easily for 2 people at 5:30 PM on a Friday night. According to the business owner, it is “inspired by the feeling of a summer on the Amalfi Coast, the restaurant combines classic Italian dishes, a lively atmosphere, and a welcoming approach to dining that feels both refined and relaxed.”