Kisa is a Korean restaurant that is serving Baek Ban, which is a traditional Korean meal comprising of rice, soup, and banchan. If you’re into set menus similarly to Japanese bento boxes, this will satisfy that itch. I love Korean food in this manner because it’s all usually really tasty and very solo friendly. I was able to walk in at around 5:30 PM on a Wednesday evening without issues.
Le Chêne (Le Chene) is the first solo project for husband/wife team, Alexia Duchêne and Roman Duchêne Le May. The menu features refined French recipes with an extensive wine list. When I looked at the menu, it was appealing because it seemed to resonate French with a slight rustic feel to it. I was able to book a reservation for 2 a few weeks out without issues. You can’t miss this restaurant with its yellow door.
The Gallery by odo is a fusion of a restaurant and art space in the Flatiron area. It’s actually right next door to the odo restaurant and bar. I was easily able to make a reservation for 2 for 5:15 PM a few days in advance. When we walked in, I didn’t really think much of it as an art space. It does have some paintings of outdoor forests hung up on walls and also what appears to be a for-sale dinnerware selection on a table. We didn’t really look extensively as we were here for the food because my partner wanted to try out this place.
Oyamel is one of Jose Andres’ restaurants. Its first location is located in Washington DC, so they decided to open a second here in New York City in Hudson Yards. Jose Andres is one of those chefs and restaurateurs that has a good track record every time they open a restaurant. For his restaurants in NYC, we have been to Zaytinya, Nubeluz, and Spanish Diner. Coincidentally, Spanish Diner has closed and was replaced with Oyamel in the same location. I made a reservation for 2 for 5:00 PM easily for a Friday evening without issues the night prior.
Odo is a Michelin 2-star restaurant located in the Flatiron district of Manhattan. It comes from Chef Hiroki Odo, who moved to New York in 2012 and won a Michelin Star as the head chef at Kajitsu. We looked on the Michelin guide, and we saw this was a 2-star restaurant that we haven’t been to yet. We were able to make a reservation for 2 for 6 PM on a Sunday night without issues.
Bridges opened in the late fall last year, and is headed by chef Sam Lawrence who came from Estela, which is on our list to hit. Lately, this restaurant has been getting some notoriety for having good food and a good ambiance. It’s a bit difficult to get to since you have to walk a bit from the subway entrance. I was able to book a reservation for 2 for the bar about a few days in advance for 5:45 PM.
Hamburger America is a luncheonette-style restaurant with counters for eating a burger. It comes from an American chef George Motz, who is offering an homage to the history of the hamburger. It’s received a number of positive reviews from food critics for some reason, and Yelpers and food bloggers alike rave about this place. I came here as a quick stop around 4:30 PM on a Thursday evening, and I could walk in and sit on the stool without any trouble.
Today was another Broadway showing that we had to attend. Our theater district restaurant pool is thinning a bit, so this one was somewhat difficult to locate. It reminds me of a Midtown staple type of restaurant that is very friendly to the theater crowd, and it’s not hard to get in. We were able to walk in on a Saturday evening around 5 PM without any issues.
Crane Club is located across the street from Chelsea Market. It’s being led by executive chef Melissa Rodriguez, who formerly oversaw Al Coro, which earned 2 Michelin stars at one point. This restaurant is under the Tao Hospitality Group, which oversees some upscale trendy hot spots like Hakkasan, Lava, and TAO Asian Bistro. We were able to make a reservation for the dining room very easily for 5:30 PM on a Friday night. This restaurant’s food was meant to be unapologetically fancy.
Nubiani was a Korean BBQ restaurant that had been on my list for quite some time. I was only reminded of it when my partner wanted to go to it because one of their friends tried to walk-in and instead had to go to Love Korean BBQ. I was easily able to make a reservation for Friday, though they only had early PM openings at 4:30. This is located right across the street from Love, inside a building on the third floor. It’s definitely very inconspicuous, but this is a typical pattern for Koreatown restaurants.