The Independent is a New American joint that is close to the Theater District. Because we had a show to catch and running out of options, we walked into this restaurant on a late Saturday afternoon without reservations. The restaurant has a pretty small menu, and it’s slightly different than your pub style food. For the price, we thought this could be a quick and good way to try this out.
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.
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.
Gramercy Tavern has been on my list for many years already, and it’s a classic New York City restaurant with Michelin popularity. This is one of Danny Meyer’s well known restaurant, so you can expect the flavors to be very similar to his other restaurants. Getting reservations is normally very easy, but when it comes to restaurant week, it’s quite difficult because it’s one of the few Michelin Star restaurants in the city that serves options from its normal menus.
Chef Daniel Humm is a Swiss chef who is most well known for the restaurant Eleven Madison Park. I had visited this restaurant in the mid 2010s, when it served proteins such as duck, clams, and fish on their tasting menus. In 2021, the restaurant converted from an omnivore tasting into a plant-based restaurant, a first of its kind to also receive 3 Michelin Stars for it as well. This was extremely controversial because they were charging high prices for a sole plant-based meal. In October 2025, the restaurant pivoted from a plant-based only menu and offered seafood and animal protein choices for a few of its courses. This shift encouraged me to try this restaurant again to see how it’s evolved. We were able to make a reservation for 2 for 5:30 PM on a Monday evening without any issues in advance.
Four Twenty Five is a contemporary, elevated restaurant from Chef Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. This restaurant was open on Christmas Day, and it was on our list for a while. They offered a tasting menu which mostly resembled items off their normal menu. The day prior, I was very easily able to book reservations without any issues for 2 at 4 PM. We arrived about 15 minutes early, and they had us wait in the bar area while they prepared our table.
The Arden is decently close to the Brooklyn Museum. We were down here with a visiting friend, who really wanted to see the museum. For a Sunday early afternoon, we looked for something that was affordable and not too expensive. Most of the good spots around this area seemed to open closer to the evening, and there were some places I was interested in that were also closed on Sundays for some reason. The Arden would have to do. When we arrived, were seated at the counter top immediately.
One White Street is located in a 19th century townhouse, that was a downtown hangout for John Lennon and Yoko Ono. Much of their produce is source from Rigor Hill Farm, located in the Hudson Valley. They practice sustainability, and much of their menu revolves around showcasing these ingredients. Originally opened in 2021 by chef Austin Johnson, this restaurant has 1 Michelin Star, and reservations are very easy to come by. We booked a pair for 5:30 PM on a Friday evening just a few days in advanced.
Since we’re out in the Tarrytown area, just outside of NYC, we decided to also try out their lunch tray to see how it goes. A few nights ago, we went to a very fantastic, memorable tasting dinner at Blue Hill. For this lunch, we were expecting the ingredients to be very crispy, fresh, and delicious to commemorate everything we learned about the Blue Hill farm experience. I made a reservation for 2 for 1:00 PM on a Sunday without issues a few weeks back. We arrived early, and they accommodated us without issues.