4 Midtown Restaurants Deemed 'Classic' That All 'Must Try:' List

MIDTOWN, NY — It's no surprise that Midtown is home to about a quarter of all the restaurants deemed so "classic" that "every New Yorker must try," according to a new list by Eater.

The online food magazine compiled a collection of 21 eateries in the Big Apple that they said were all "vibrant," decades old, with some in triple digits, and "iconic."

Four spots in Midtown and Hell's Kitchen stood out to Eater. Did your classic spot earn a spot on the list?

Joe Allen (326 West 46th Street)

In Hell's Kitchen, a classic Theater District eatery that's been open since 1965, Joe Allen is the first in the neighborhood on the list. Eater called it a "staple," and "a haunt for theatergoers and actors alike."

"Get the La Scala salad with iceberg, salami, and provolone; the Joe Allen burger or steak frites; and save room for the epic banana cream pie," writes Eater.

P.J. Clarke's (915 Third Ave.)

It is hard to get more classic than P.J. Clarke's, and rightly the nearly 140-year-old spot earns a place on the list. Since 1884, PJ's has offered its simple pub as a standby for stars like Frank Sinatra, Elizabeth Taylor, Hedy Lamarr, Jackie Kennedy, Richard Harris, Dick Clark, Peter O’Toole and many more.

"The bacon cheeseburger is called the “Cadillac” because that’s how Nat King Cole once described it," writes Eater. Also, Buddy Holly got engaged there once.

Grand Central Oyster Bar (89 East 42nd St.)

This classic Gotham raw bar has been underground at Grand Central for 110 years.

"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," Eater writes.

Keens Steakhouse (72 West 36th St.)

Keens opened just one year after P.J.'s, in 1885, and has packed just as much history in its walls as one of the city's most classic steakhouses.

Eater writes that the eatery "used to be home to a famous theatre and literary group, and after that, a pipe club," with dozens of pipes linign the walls, "giving it a warm, unique vibe not like any other restaurant in the city."

Eater adds that the signature order at Keens is the mutton chop.