Taking in the New York City skyline by day is a giddying experience. Big, open skies stretching above an intricate puzzle of glass and steel, impossibly stacked. It’s vast and cinematic, yet feels instantly familiar even if you’ve never set foot here. After dark, though, is when the city shines its brightest. And not just from the glow of the Empire State Building or the neon rush of Times Square.
Once the clock strikes five, whether it’s a Friday, Saturday, or a Monday that feels like a Saturday, the streets hum with an infectious energy. Restaurants fill, bars overflow, quiet galleries turn into social stomping grounds.
New York is a city that feeds the night owls. Some settle into a bar stool and never leave. Others chase the night, bouncing between dinner, a late-night screening, or a museum that keeps the lights on past dusk. Whatever your pace, the city meets you there.
With the help of a few hospitality insiders, we’ve rounded up the best bars, restaurants, and experiences to carry you through the night, no matter what time that starts.
Raoul’s
Since 1975, Raoul’s has been serving Soho more than just steak au poivre and Burgundy. What started as a scrappy French bistro quickly became a haunt for creative luminaries and industry heavyweights. Thomas Keller – who went on to shape American fine dining – helmed the kitchen and its dimly lit leather booths have been frequented by the likes of Andy Warhol, Jeff Koons, and Jean-Michel Basquiat, all rumoured to have traded sketches for meals. The menu has stayed true to itself: foie gras terrine, Comté beignets, and a burger so exclusive (just 12 a night) that it’s gone before it hits the pass. “Raoul’s is evocative of the night,” says Eddy Buckingham, the Melburnian behind some of New York’s buzziest restaurants (Chinese Tuxedo, The Tyger, and SoSo’s) and Australian-style pub Old Mates. “It’s indulgence through a New York City lens.”
Via Carota
At Via Carota, waiting for a table is part of the ritual. Put your name down, then slip across the street to its sibling, Bar Pisellino, for an Americano. Once you return, you’ll be met by the convivial energy of a bustling Italian osteria. Dishes are both elegant and exceedingly generous: the insalata verde arrives as a towering stack of butter lettuce glossed in Sherry vinaigrette; tagliatelle is draped in prosciutto and parmesan; and the bistecca for two, perfectly charred and blushing, could easily feed more than its name suggests.
Diner
Diner opened more than 20 years ago on a once lonesome street in Williamsburg. The neighbourhood has transformed, now busier than ever, but Diner remains an anchor. Housed in a 90-year-old Kullman dining car, it’s cosy and lively, with a menu (scrawled on paper by your server tableside) that shifts with the seasons. Maybe pickled peach crudo in summer, or pork and plums in winter. The French-leaning wine list is extensive, and cocktails bring Martinis in numerous forms, making it as much a place to start the night as it is to end it.
Blue Ribbon Brasserie
When most of Manhattan sleeps, Blue Ribbon Brasserie keeps the lights on. “Blue Ribbon is an icon among hospitality workers, the place to drink Champagne and eat oysters well into the morning,” says Bridges chef de partie Sebastian Javier. Until 2am, the industry hotspot serves bistro classics: towering seafood platters, bone marrow slicked with oxtail marmalade, and duck bathed in orange sauce. The service, according to Megan Sullivan (Union Square Hospitality Group), is just as memorable. “I was there at 1am recently, and somehow, the staff were still so full of energy.”
Bonnie’s
In New York City, some restaurants come in hot, burn bright, then fade. Not Bonnie’s. Three years after opening, Calvin Eng’s Cantonese-American charmer is still packed, and just as good. Named after Eng’s mother, who taught him the foundations of Cantonese cooking, the Williamsburg-Greenpoint local nudges tradition into a new wave. Standout dishes include dao gok, long beans in fermented bean curd garlic butter; cheung fun, chewy rolled rice noodles swirled in a shrimp and scallop XO sauce; and the cha siu bkrib sandwich, stacked with sweet and smoky pork ribs, hot mustard and pickles. Cocktails match the playful energy, none more so than the MSG-spiked Martini that will forever be the talk of the town.
Read the full article by GEORGIE MEREDITH / Gourmet Traveler
