FOOD & DRINK
New York City, Without Reservations
When it comes to making restaurant reservations, the New York rule is to call by Sunday for a table the following Saturday. For less organized foodies, these exceptional, welcoming restaurants, found just a few subway stops off the well-worn path, don’t require reservations – or even accept them.
After eating at Freemans, diners pray they’re the last to discover this laid-back eatery – (only partly because it doesn’t accept reservations for parties under six). Hiding in an East Village alleyway, this quirky gem boasts a taxidermy collection on the walls and wild-boar terrine on the menu. But Freemans isn’t all wild game and rustic kitsch. The menu offers solid, well-crafted standards, such as grilled trout with lemon and a delicious, down-to-earth spinach salad. It pays to hunt this spot out; dinner for two with appetizers and wine shouldn’t run over $100.
Al di Là Trattoria
A lush velvet curtain guards the entrance to this Park Slope Italian joint, one of Brooklyn’s foodie favourites. Pull it back and uncover a warm, glowing room overflowing with sophisticated, stylish locals and Manhattanites who’ve happily endured the commute. At Al di Là, it’s all about the food. Pastas like the beet and ricotta ravioli are simple and imaginative, while entrées of hanger steak with arugula or hake baked with cherry tomatoes and black olives are reassuringly simple.
Sripraphai
For one of the best affordable Thai meals in New York City, make your way to Woodside in Queens. The casual decor misleads: dishes at Sripraphai are thoughtful and expertly prepared. Though the restaurant has a novel-length menu, there’s no need to stray from the staples to eat authentically. Green papaya salad, curries and perfectly cooked citrus-marinated fish arrive steaming in minutes. But don’t rush the meal, you came all the way to Queens. Stay a while and put out the fire from your jungle curry with a Singha beer.
Skip celebrity chef Michael Anthony’s $82-per-person prix-fixe menu in the Gramercy Tavern dining room. Eating in the bar (also known as the Tavern) at this legendary New York City restaurant is not only one of the best no-reservations options in Manhattan, it’s also a great deal. Far from Buffalo wings and jalapeño peppers, the Tavern at Gramercy Tavern keeps things classy, simple and delicious, with comfort offerings from seafood chowder to mushroom lasagna, at around $20 each.
A diner offering fresh-off-the-farm seasonal brunch and free-range buttermilk fried chicken, Community Food & Juice doesn’t let the concrete and bustle of Manhattan’s Upper West Side keep it from serving sustainable, local food. Certified by the Green Restaurant Association, the local favourite composts and uses energy-saving kitchen equipment, while guests devour grass-fed antibiotic-free burgers at tables made from reclaimed wood. In this comfortable, unpretentious atmosphere, expect to learn the name of the farm that produced your pulled pork shoulder, as well as that of the person sitting next to you.
(Nicole Pasulka is a Brooklyn-based writer and editor whose work has appeared in Salon, The Globe and Mail, CBC Arts Online and Bust Magazine.)
Useful information
Al di Là Trattoria, 248 5th Ave, Brooklyn, 718-783-4565
Sripraphai, 13 39th Ave., #64, Queens, 718-899-9599
Getting there
We offer the most non-stop service from Canada to all major New York area airports. Book now. Plus, find great deals on car rentals and hotel rooms.
TOP PHOTO: MEDIA CRAFT
SRIPRAPHAI: VANESSA VICHIT-VADAKAN
CUMMUNITY: DYSKE DESIGN STUDIO
Published monthly by