2 Midtown Restaurants Named Among Best Cheap Eats In NYC

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — An Italian sandwich shop and a West African cafe are the two Midtown spots recently ranked among the best affordable eateries in New York City.

The top-40 list by Eater NY was put together by dining critic Robert Sietsema. The latest list was published earlier this month, refreshing the food outlet's previous ranking on the same subject.

Among the new additions to the list this year: All'antico Vinaio, an Italian eatery on Eighth Avenue near West 46th Street, around the corner from Restaurant Row.

Part of an acclaimed Florentine franchise that specializes in focaccia sandwiches, All’antico Vinaio opened last year and has already won attention for its decadent fillings of mozzarella, tomato and basil; its herby pork rolls and its "pungent Tuscan salami slathered with artichoke cream," Sietesma raves.

The sandwich shop first appeared in New York as a pop-up in 2019. Its owners include Joe Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali, children of the chef Lidia Bastianich, who both helped bring the shop to New York.

Meanwhile, another Midtown spot was carried over from Eater's previous cheap-eats list: Voilà Afrique.

Located on Second Avenue with an entrance on East 45th Street, this eatery is "just uphill from the United Nations," Sietesema notes. It opened in 2020, and features dishes sourced from Ghana and Nigeria like "peanut-crusted halal beef kebabs," a classic egusi soup complete with greens and ground pumpkin seeds, and vegetarian peanut sauce with white yam fufu or fermented cornmeal loaf, Eater writes.

It is operated by owner George Quainoo and chef Margarete Duncan, who hail from Ghana and Nigeria, respectively.

Read Eater's full list of "40 Inexpensive Dining Destinations in NYC."