Best Midtown Restaurants? — Page 2

Becco has a great pasta combo where three types of pasta are provided.

Nizza has good gluten free foods. Not as upscale as Becco but if you are gluten free it is a safe option.

Add another vote for both Glass House Tavern and West End Grill. And for breakfast I really like Bond 45 - they have a breakfast buffet that is divine. Glass House is especially convenient for between show dining if you're binge watching both parts of "The Inheritance" in one day right now!

I tried both Glass House and Bond 45 because of gift cards I got through the Audience Rewards program and have made return visits to both because I liked them so much, so if you have a lot of points saved up you might consider that.

"I also have to admit have I have soft spot in my heart for Sardi’s. It’s a must visit for me every trip. Not an inventive menu, but you can get a solid steak and I love their crab cakes. Plus the atmosphere just is catnip for any Broadway-lover. So much history. And the service is impeccable."

I have soft spot for Sardi's also because it was where I took my wife on our first date and after dinner we went to see "Song And Dance". I had not been there for many years so we decided to go again with our daughters a couple of years ago for Sunday brunch before a show. I was so disappointed in the service and the quality of the food. We walked in and there was nobody there to start taking people to tables for almost 10 minutes. People were gathered around just waiting and there was no line to determine who was next. We got seated and it took another 10 minutes for our waiter to come by and ask for our drink order. He had absolutely no personality or customer service skills. When we got our food, my oldest daughter's French Toast was not totally cooked and cold. They took it away and got her another one but no apology about the food not being cooked properly. I guess it was just one of those days but it disappointed me because of the other good experiences I had there years ago,

Agree with votes for Becco!

If you're into Chinese food, try Wu Liang Ye at 36 W 48th Street. I miss this place!

Another vote for Butter. We also like Gallagher’s and do not find it any more touristy than other theatre district restaurants. Glasshouse was fine,not spectacular.

Updated On: 1/4/20 at 04:13 PM

Saar, fusion-ish Indian food just north of Times Square, is incredible.

I ate at Glass Tavern between Parts 1 & 2 last Sunday. It’s main advantage was that it was right across the street. The close proximity allowed for me and my friend to discuss what we’d seen. We both a the prix fixe meal. It was good, but didn’t really register as it was just a backdrop to our conversation.

I only ate at Becco once before I saw Three Tall Women. It was during a Summer heatwave of 2018 and they sat me in the sunroom with no AC except for a fan. To be honest, I wasn’t that hungry so I should’ve cancelled my reservation, but I wanted to experience Becco. I had the three pasta special which I thought was fine. I probably should try again sometime, but my disappointment has kept me from a second attempt.

Ate at Sardi’s again Friday night. It was the final meal of my trip. Always great service and I love the atmosphere. Plus since almost everyone is there before they see a show, it’s fun to talk to them. I sat next to an older male and female who appeared to be longtime friends. They were seeing many of the same shows that I had seen on my trip plus they were seeing Moulin Rouge! Friday night. The woman used to be a voter for the Tony awards so we had a brief conversation about that. She said usually producers and presenters make up the most of body of the voting body of the Tony awards and she used to be a presenter. I would’ve loved to know about more about that but I didn’t want to pry.

Anyway, they’ve taken my favorite steak off the menu and replaced it with fillet mignon medallions which I had last time and thought they were just OK. So I had a pork chop instead and it was just fine, nothing exceptional. But I always get the crab cake appetizer which I still love. No room for dessert this time. I may just start doing the prix fixe menu from now on. I’ve done that before, but usually not, because it had a different steak on it and didn’t include the frozen cake, which I had on my first trip so sentimentally always try to save room for.. But now that the steak is gone, I can still get the crab cakes as my entree on the prix fixe with another appetizer and their very good rice pudding for dessert.

Updated On: 1/12/20 at 11:32 AM

So glad I found this thread - I'm planning to go back to NYC in May and I too want restaurants that are not touristee. I like to eat where the locals eat.

On my last trip I did go to Trattoria Trecolori and I thought the food and service were very good. It's not a fancy place, it's casual Italian but they have an extensive menu and I will definitely go back.

As for Sardi's, I went there on my last trip and I wasn't impressed with the food or the service. It is worth going once in my opinion just because it's legendary. Once was enough for me.

I'm looking for awesome diners, I've heard the Westway Diner on 9th is good.

And one of my favorites is definitely not in midtown but I love Sylvia's in Harlem - I'll make the trip there again. Fantastic and legendary soul food.

dramamama611 said: "I've been MEANING to go to Sylvia's forEVER. Thank you for the reminder: just booked a table."

Get the chicken and waffles - it really is the best fried chicken I have ever had.

And the peach cobbler is more like a peach pie with two crusts - but it's delicious.

The menu does have items on it that they don't make any longer - like the strawberry bread pudding - I was really looking forward to trying it but they stopped making it.

theater245 said: "The ramen at City Kitchen food court next to Row Nyc is fast and really good (sister company to ippudo). City Kitchen also has free bathrooms for the public."

Agree here! Kuro-Obi is the ramen place in there.

Someone also mentioned just going to Hell's Kitchen and eating there, a motion that I will second. Empanada mama is great, I'll even order it to my office when the weather is particularly nasty. Do yourself a favor and order the oxtail empanada and the corn seafood empanada. Use their green sauce liberally.

I'd like to point out that all the positive reviews for Glass House Tavern in this resurrected thread are from 2020, which is an eternity in restaurant time. We ate there this past January, on the recommendation of a friend who, as it turned out, had not been there in many years. Our experience was that it was one of the worst meals we've had in recent memory.

I've tried to forget the specifics, although I do recall that every dish was mediocre at best, lousy at worse. I do remember the crabcake that was far more filler than crab, resembled a large dark brown hockey puck, and was probably about as flavorful. My brief notes in my calendar simply said of the meal: "Zero stars, terrible." Granted this was one meal, one person's opinion, but our experience suggests taking these five-year old recommendations for Glass House with a very large grain of salt. Your mileage may vary.

Updated On: 10/15/25 at 08:10 AM