Steakhouse in the Lower East Side — 5.0 on Resy across 6,604 diner reviews
Must-try: Steak & eggs, Shakshuka, Manchego mac & cheese
📍 124 Rivington St, New York, NY 10002
secure the four-person table and the evening takes care of itself
Must-try: Hefty cuts of meat, Flambeed ice cream bombe, House wine
📍 137 Eldridge St, New York, NY 10002
a tiny omakase counter with only eight seats
Must-try: 13-course omakase, Seasonal nigiri, Handrolls
📍 79 Delancey St, New York, NY 10002
Contemporary American in the Lower East Side — 4.8 on Resy across 8,142 diner reviews
📍 115 Allen St, New York, NY 10002
New American in the Lower East Side — 4.8 on Resy across 5,232 diner reviews
Must-try: Caviar handroll, Breakfast taco, Agnolotti
📍 63 Clinton St, New York, NY 10002
a Jewish steakhouse crossed with a bar mitzvah afterparty
Must-try: Chopped liver, Chocolate egg creams, Steak
📍 112 Stanton St, New York, NY 10002
upscale anju and banju operating in a lane of its own
Must-try: Bluefin tuna tartare with caviar, Dakgalbi kimchi-bap, Anju
📍 84 Stanton St, New York, NY 10002
Unapologetic Foods' James Beard–winning LES kitchen — regional Indian cooking with serious heat and flavors rarely found outside South Asia
Must-try: Goat neck biryani, Chaap (slow-cooked mutton chops), Crab claws in masala
📍 119 Delancey St, New York, NY 10002
Division Street Greek with no sign, cash-adjacent pricing, and a line that forms before it opens
Must-try: Saganaki flamed at the table, Grilled octopus, Dakos salad
📍 130 Division St, New York, NY 10002
A narrow Canal Street seafood bar with Portuguese and Spanish leanings — tinned fish, grilled shrimp, and vinho verde
Must-try: Grilled head-on shrimp, Tinned fish plate, Squid ink rice
📍 43 Canal St, New York, NY 10002
A Lower East Side wine bar from the Ha's Đặc Biệt team — natural wine, snacks with real cooking behind them
Must-try: Fried rice, Country pâté, Natural wine by the glass
📍 297 Broome St, New York, NY 10002
The Orchard Street wine bar that rewired downtown taste — natural pours and small plates with real technique
Must-try: Beef tartare on crisp bread, Whatever vegetable is on that week, A bottle off the natural list
📍 142 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002
Hidden colonial tavern at the end of a graffiti-lined LES alley — taxidermy, candlelight, artichoke dip, and two decades of neighborhood loyalty
Must-try: Artichoke dip, Trout with almonds, Porterhouse steak for two
📍 Freeman Alley (off Rivington St), New York, NY 10002
Amanda Cohen's vegetable tasting menu on Allen Street — the restaurant that made produce the whole argument
Must-try: Whatever the seasonal tasting menu is built around, Korean fried broccoli, Carrot sliders
📍 86 Allen St, New York, NY 10002
the best Neapolitan pies in NYC, and arguably anywhere
Must-try: Margherita, Five rotating pies, Bianca
📍 175 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002
a great lineup of seasonal pasta and a perfectly low-lit room
Must-try: Seasonal fresh pasta, Cacio e pepe, Low-lit room
📍 9 Stanton St, New York, NY 10002
a memorable breakfast and, later, a genuinely top-notch burger
Must-try: Caesar salad, Steak frites, Top-notch burger
📍 9 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002