Restaurants To Try This Weekend In NYC

NEW YORK, NY – Eating out in New York City can be a daunting prospect. With new restaurants opening virtually every day, keeping up with the best spots to try isn't easy – but Patch is here to help. Every week, we’ll show recently opened eateries in your neighborhood.

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Gotham Market at The Ashland

Neighborhood: Fort Greene

Address: 590 Fulton St.

The team behind Gotham Market in Hell’s Kitchen has opened up a second location in Fort Greene, open since January and headed by celebrity chef John Stage of Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, which was voted America’s best barbecue in ABC’s “Good Morning America” poll. Stage brings to the new location a four-piece concept that includes fried chicken, pizza and breakfast. Other concepts include tapas by Boqueria, BBQ by Mason Jar and an assortment of signature cocktails from various bars.

Jajaja

Neighborhood: Lower East Side

Address: 162 East Broadway

When people think of Mexican food, tacos and quesadillas are usually what come to mind. The truth is that the basic elements of Mexican cuisine are starches and vegetables, such as corn, chili peppers and avocados. One new restaurant on Manhattan’s Lower East Side seeks to keep it as simple as that. Jajaja, which opened in April, serves vegan Mexican dishes ranging from turmeric cauliflower rice with black beans to a hearts of palm ceviche with plantain chips.

Lemonia Cafe

Neighborhood: Astoria

Address: 3502 Astoria Blvd.

Astoria is full of brunch and breakfast spots, from Queens Comfort to Mom’s Kitchen & Bar, but a new contender emerged in January. Lemonia Cafe is described as a breakfast-heavy cafe that serves a variety of treats, such as omelettes, egg sandwiches, soups, spinach pastries, cinnamon rolls and chicken pies. Lemonia Cafe is lauded on Yelp as a destination for a quick bite or espresso and for its friendly staff.

Gloria

Neighborhood: Midtown

Address: 401 West 53rd St.

A self-described “neighborhood pescatarian restaurant,” Gloria focuses on sustainable food and has been nestled right in the heart of Midtown Manhattan since March. The 40-seat seafood restaurant sports a light, airy atmosphere and offers plates of lionfish tartare, octopus, fluke, scallop and other options with an extensive drink menu comprising cocktails, wine and beers on tap.

Four & Twenty Blackbirds

Neighborhood: Prospect Heights

Address: 634 Dean St.

Sisters Emily and Melissa Elsen have added a second location to their pie shop Four & Twenty Blackbirds, which has been a favorite in Brooklyn’s Gowanus neighborhood. New pies include a peanut butter and chocolate pie, a green tea custard pie and a brown-butter apple streusel. Four & Twenty Blackbirds will even deliver their pies straight to their customers’ doors.

Unico Tacos

Neighborhood: Long Island City

Address: 31-31 Thomson Ave.

Unico Tacos is a fast-casual collaboration between Michelin-starred chef Suvir Saran and Roni Mazumdar, whose family owns The Masalawala on the Lower East Side. This duo is the collective mind behind Tapestry in the West Village. Now, Saran and Mazumdar invite New Yorkers to “taste the world without a passport.” Guests have a bounty of options, from citrus shrimp tacos with jicama mango slaw to marinated beef tacos with kimchi and gochujang.

Donna Margherita

Neighborhood: Upper East Side

Address: 1304A Second Ave.

Donna Margherita, a new pizzeria in the Upper East Side, served up 14 different kinds of pie on its opening day in April. One of those pies was topped with walnuts, ricotta and radicchio. There’s more to the menu than pizza, however – Chef Rossana Di Michelle also offers lasagna, spicy penne and eggplant parmesan.

The Lately

Neighborhood: Chelsea

Address: 357 West 16 St.

“Mad Men” meets “Twin Peaks” at The Lately in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood. This esoteric cocktail bar opened in late March, the creation of hospitality groups LDV and Den. Its space once belonged to LDV’s nightclub-restaurant No. 8. Bites include hush puppies, falafel gyros, curried chicken skewers, boiled peanuts and a ham sandwich. Guests can sit down with an Old Fashioned amid a mood-lit atmosphere.

Photo credit: Pixabay