The 25 Best New NYC Restaurants of 2012 (So Far)

Spend any amount of time in New York, and the high turnover in the restaurant game becomes impossible to ignore. Runs are often short in this city. The best new place is always just around the corner of a neighborhood you haven't explored. With spots springing up so regularly, it helps to have a guiding hand.

These are the 25 best new NYC restaurants of 2012 (so far). Get familiar.

Words by Chris Schonberger (@cschonberger) and Ross Scarano (@RossScarano)

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25. Back Forty West

Neighborhood: SoHo
Address: 70 Prince St.
Website: backfortynyc.com

Rustic and environmentally-minded, Back Forty West, the little sibling of Back Forty, asks that you think with your utensils. The menu is organized around what you'll be gripping while you indulge, thus “hands,” “spoon & ladle,” and “fork & knife." The food skips across the globe, from Gastropub to Southern fried. Richness and ruggedness unite the disparate selections. Pig’s-head nuggets and mackerel with green wheat might not sound like they need each other, but they do. And they need you to eat them.

24. Dragonfly

Neighborhood: Upper East Side
Address: 1463 3rd Ave.
Website: dragonflyny.com

Though Cornelius Gallagher left Oceana in '06, his time away from Manhattan has done nothing but improve his craft. Thus, the success of Dragonfly, his new endeavor. The idiosyncratic takes on food from Thailand, Vietnam, and Hong Kong play with bright curries and street food fare like asabi pastrami marrow dumplings. Finish with the huckleberry cheesecake and you'll leave pleasantly confused.

23. Taboonette

Neighborhood: Union Square
Address: 30 East 13th St.
Website: taboonette.com

Having a go-to food spot in unappetizing Union Square is necessary. And if you aren't familiar with Taboonette, you've made a mistake. Serving "Mediterranean pocket food," the counter-service establishment's menu is dominated by pitas you can take with. (To be fair, all the options are available as rice plates, too, but the ingredients piled into pockets of bread is ideal.) The shawarma is moist and well-seasoned, and the vegetarian fillings are hearty. But what really stands out is the seafood. If you're lucky, you'll catch the soft-shell crab special. If it's not your special day, the calamari won't disappoint.

22. HBH Gourmet Sandwiches & Smoked Meats

Neighborhood: Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn
Address: 407 Smith St.
Website: hbhnyc.com

Sandwiches—large sandwiches—bust guts better than the rest, a fact history proves over and over again. At this gem in Carroll Gardens, you can eat like a cartoon character piling more meat and cheese between wedges of bread than is humanly necessary. The cheese steak is gooey and a little tangy, the result of pickled shallots, something Philly hasn't thought of yet. For another offbeat blend of sweet and salty, look no further than the Wild Smokey Gobbler. Those three words don't quite hang together, but the turkey breast, bacon, and Swiss on raisin walnut bread sure do.

21. Potlikker

Neighborhood: Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Address: 338 Bedford Ave.
Website: potlikkerbrooklyn.com

We've missed Liza Queen. Her great Greenpoint joint, Queen's Hideaway, will always hold a special place in the hearts of those that appreciate unpretentious local food served with personality and grace. But the Queen's Hideaway has been closed four years now, so it was with open arms that we received Potlikker, her latest project which she desribes as American fare with “rural and working class roots.” Since it's only been open for a few weeks, it's hard to tell what sort of rhythm Potlikker will fall into, but the menu is exciting. We're craving the Dutch pancake with wildflower honey, goat cheese, and thyme. You should be too.

20. Biáng!

Neighborhood: Flushing, Queens
Address: 41-10 Main St.
Website: n/a

When Anthony Bourdain praises your spot, you can only get bigger. Such is the case with 24-year-old Jason Wang, who got dapped up by the No Reservations host for his low-key Xi’An Famous Foods. Now Wang has upgraded his look with Biáng!, complete with a bigger and badder menu and real servers. The lamb burger is still a must-order, but don't ignore the quail or beef skewers. Eat like a king in Flushing for just $10.

19. Almayass

Neighborhood: Flatiron
Address: 24 East 21st St.
Website: almayass.com

There is a time and a place for white tablecloths, or so the thinking behind Almayass must be. Originally based in Beirut, swank Almayass locations can now be found around the globe; 2012 is New York's time. Upscale takes on Middle Eastern comfort fare, the food is in conflict with the swagger of expensive table linens, but you're in Flatiron and must accept certain things. The hummus, served five different ways, impresses, as does the soujouk, a spiced salami.

18. The High Line

Neighborhood: Chelsea
Address: Chelsea Market Passage (between 15th and 16th streets)
Website: northernspyfoodco.com

To take advantage of the increased foot traffic sunshine brings, a number of great New York eateries opened small stands on the High Line this year. Highly-responsible Brooklyn hot dog purveyor Bark; healthful-but-cheap Northern Spy Food Co., and spartan wine bar Terroir have made selections from their menus available at the Chelsea Market Passage. Particularly noteworthy is the patio wine bar Terroir erected, where strolling patrons can stop for a glass of wine and a veal and ricotta meatball sub.

17. Yunnan Kitchen

Neighborhood: Lower East Side
Address: 79 Clinton St.
Website: yunnankitchen.com

With less rich ingredients, the cuisine of China's Yunnan is underrepresented in NYC, making Yunnan Kitchen a must for Asian food enthusiasts trying to eat the continent. Dairy, mushrooms, and greens figure prominently; the noodles typical of the region are thick and round. Chomp some flowers, have a cold plate of tofu skin, and finish with the ham and rice cakes. You'll become experienced.

16. Acme

Neighborhood: East Village
Address: 9 Great Jones St.
Website: acmenyc.com

Thanks to René Redzepi of Noma—a restaurant in Copenhagen that has earned the distinction “best restaurant in the world” three years running—New Nordic cuisine is currently the hottest food trend on the planet. New Yorkers have a chance to taste what all the fuss is about now that Noma cofounder Mads Refslund has hopped behind the burner at Acme, an old Cajun dive that has been sexed-up and transformed into one of the city’s trendiest hot spots (peep the skinny ties on the bartenders and model types picking at their black carrots, which they may or may not realize are covered in a translucent sheet of lardo). Here, NYC sceniness meets avant-garde cooking—eat hay-smoked sunchokes and look cool doing it.

15. Nicoletta

Neighborhood: East Village
Address: 160 2nd Ave.
Website: nicolettanyc.com

Like a true G, Michael White will tell you: “I eat, sleep, live, and die Italian food." No surprise, then, that he's opened a pizza joint. However, it's a pizza joint that pays tribute to the other region White rides for: Wisconsin. Nicoletta's Midwestern pies—of medium thickness and a pleasant crispiness—come adorned with Wisconsin mozzarella and a substantial red sauce. Vegetarians will flock to the zucchini flower, ricotta and basil pesto pie, while carnivores should try the fennel sausage and pepperoni Calabrese.

14. Sticky's Finger Joint

Neighborhood: West Village
Address: 31 West 8th St.
Website: stickysfingerjoint.happytables.com

With a new crop of hyperfocused restaurants in NYC taking aim at everything from meatballs to porchetta to pudding, it’s surprising that it took this long for someone to embrace the chicken tender. Mildly disgusting name aside, this takeout spot does right by the concession-stand classic: Each free-range, all-white-meat tender is marinated in buttermilk, then battered and fried to achieve a crunchy shell and juicy interior. The no-nonsense version—simply named, “The Finger”—is excellent, especially with a side of honey-mustard sauce. But we also like riffs such as the “Bada Bing!”, laced with umami-rich parmesan, gooey mozzarella, homemade marinara sauce, and fried basil leaves.

13. Blue Ribbon Sushi Izakaya

Neighborhood: Lower East Side
Address: 187 Orchard St
Website: blueribbonrestaurants.com

A new Blue Ribbon venture is always an event; Sushi Izakaya, which opened in March, was no different. Housed in the Thompson LES hotel, the izakaya (a Japanese near-pub) is a place for food and drink shared among friends. The menu playfully incorporates Jewish cuisine, like fried rice with lox and chicken-liver mousse on challah toast. It stays open late, meaning your late-night wing or sashimi craving can be well-satisfied long after the other places have shuttered.

12. Steak 'n Shake Signature

Neighborhood: Times Square
Address: 1695 Broadway
Website: steaknshake.com

It only took 75 years for this beloved Midwestern chain to make its way to NYC, and its arrival is worth celebrating—beyond Shake Shack, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better quick-service burger in the city. Get past the fast-food branding and the greeters dressed like a roller derby, and you’ll soon see why the place is an American classic. While there’s an exclusive-to-NYC Signature Steakburger, boasting a beefy six-ounce blend of organic rib eye and New York strip, we prefer the crust-to-meat ratio of the Double ‘n Cheese—two patties smashed thin on the griddle, draped with American cheese and tucked into a squishy bun. Since Steak ‘n Shake maintains standardized pricing nationwide, the double cheeseburger will set you back only $3.99, and that’s with fries. Bonus feature: This location has one those insane Coca-Cola Freestyle machines, which can dispense more than 125 soda flavors.

11. Frej

Neighborhood: Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Address: 90 Wythe Ave.
Website: frejnyc.com

Put on your bunad, we're going to Scandinavia. But first, a stop in the gorgeous garage that is Williamsburg's Frej, a challenging pop-up operating Monday through Wednesday. Serving modern Nordic cuisine—seafoods lamping with cabbage, smoked brook trout with rye bread—as part of a five-course prix fixe going for the low, low price of $45. Come prepared for whatever the gifted ones want to put together.

10. Bobwhite Lunch & Supper Counter

Neighborhood: East Village
Address: 94 Ave. C
Website: bobwhitecounter.com

The fried chicken wars have reached fever pitch in recent years, with some of the biggest chefs in town—David Chang, Andrew Carmellini—jumping into the fray. This newcomer may not be fancy, but it has quickly established a reputation on the strength of its superlative fried fowl, brined in sweet tea and fried in a pressure cooker to deliver serious flavor. There’s little need to venture much further beyond that on the short menu, though you might round out your meal with a well-proportioned pork-chop sandwich, seared and topped with a down-south chow-chow relish, or another featuring pimento cheese on Orwasher’s bread. For dessert, go with the custardy homemade banana pudding, spiked with bits of Nilla wafer. Or just pop next door to ABC Beer Co., a great new bar-store hybrid offering about a dozen craft brews on tap, by the half-pint or pint.

9. The NoMad

Neighborhood: Flatiron
Address: 1170 Broadway
Website: thenomadhotel.com/#/dining

The age of the grand hotel restaurant is back, thanks to James Beard Award-winning chef Daniel Humm and partner Will Guidara, the team behind the three-Michelin-starred Eleven Madison Park. Whatever you’re celebrating halfway through 2012—a promotion, an engagement, getting to 1,000 Twitter followers—this is the place to blow it out. Order the signature chicken for two, which sounds a little dull until you realize that A) it’s stuffed with foie gras, brioche, and black truffle stuffing under the skin, B) it’s presented to you tableside, as if you were the Henry the VIII, before being carved, and C) you can pair it with a proprietary Brooklyn Brewery ale made specifically to drink with this chicken. If an extravagant meal isn’t in the cards, at least stop by the clubby barroom, where Eleven Madison alum Leo Robitschek serves some of the most interesting cocktails you’ll find anywhere in town.

8. Neta

Neighborhood: West Village
Address: 61 West 8th St.
Website: netanyc.com

Sushi will empty your pockets. True, you'll be happy during the experience, but too often the heaviness of the fish in your stomach doesn't balance out the lightness of your wallet. Neta wants to help. The fruit of a collaboration between two students of master Masa Takayama, Neta uses local ingredients to create beautiful works of Japanese cuisine. For $95, you can enjoy Omakase, the chef's choice. You won't be able to find great sushi for a better price.

7. Reynards

Neighborhood: Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Address: 80 Wythe Ave.
Website: wythehotel.com/dining/restaurant

Chef Sean Rembold of Diner helms the restaurant at the Wythe Hotel in Williamsburg, where the menu changes daily according to what local farmer's have ready. Large windows dominate the space, letting sunshine caress whatever part of the animal the kitchen has just served you. You might be ordering the lamb, but that doesn't mean you'll be getting a chop or shank. Nose-to-tail stays in effect in 2012. The local approach means some dishes won't blow you away, but there is a baseline for quality here, and it is high.

6. Perla

Neighborhood: West Village
Address: 24 Minetta Ln.
Website: perlanyc.com

Michael Toscano, of Babbo and Eataly, heads the kitchen at Perla, another rustic Italian enclave in the West Village. What separates this project from the others is the savagery. Boldness is necessary when going nose-to-tail. If you want to fill your guts with heaps of grilled beef tongue, you must come prepared. The large menu offers sumptuous antipasti and substantial pasta dishes, but for Perla to truly shine, you must burrow deep into the carcass. Or take it to the head—the lamb's head, a special dish that will make you feel like a monster. Awesome.

5. Don Antonio

Neighborhood: Hell's Kitchen
Address: 309 West 50th St.
Website: donantoniopizza.com

Getting pizza in Times Square has long been a dismal proposition, usually involving a greasy slice from Famous Original Ray's Pizza that burns the shit out of your mouth while you wait to get into Newsies, the musical. Thankfully, Kesté’s Roberto Caporuscio and his Naples mentor, Antonio Starita, have finally brought serious pies to Broadway at this sit-down pizzeria. The top-notch, wood-fired Neapolitan-style pies don’t disappoint, but the real star of the show is the montanara: a flash-fried pizza variant that’s taken the NYC pizza scene by storm, popping up at spots such as Forcella and PizzaArte. We like Don Antonio’s rendition, a personal-size disc of puffy golden crust simply dressed with marinara sauce, fresh basil, and smoky buffalo mozzarella.

4. Mile End Sandwich

Neighborhood: East Village
Address: 53 Bond St.
Website: mileendbrooklyn.com/sandwich

Since opening in 2010, Mile End has drawn legions of food obsessives out to Brooklyn for a taste of Montreal native Noah Bernamoff’s smoked meat, as well as the ambitious nouveau-Jewish menu served at night. Now, Manhattanites can score the upgraded delicatessen favorites—smoked brisket sandwiches, Wagyu roast beef on weck, matzoh ball soup—at this casual counter-service spot in Noho. If you’ve got a powerful hunger, go to town on a plate of poutine—salty skin-on fries smothered with white mushroom gravy, cheese curds, and, if you decide to eat like a boss, more of that insanely good smoked brisket.

3. Mission Chinese Food

Neighborhood: Lower East Side
Address: 154 Orchard St.
Website: missionchinesefood.com/ny

What makes a restaurant great? If your answer is reasonable prices, tongue-searing grub, a raucous scene, and a chef (Danny Bowein) with more swag than your favorite menswear Tumblr, Mission Chinese is the place for you. After gaining national attention in San Francisco, where it’s tucked inside of a gritty old Chinese joint in the Mission, the concept has successfully taken root on the Lower East Side. Bowein cares more about flavor than authenticity, so he’s not afraid to mash up tastes from Sichuan and his home state of Oklahoma if the results are right. Bring your crew and pass around plates of mapo tofu with pork shoulder, kung-pao pastrami, and extra-spicy wings with beef tripe. Walk away feeling good (even if you can’t feel your face) knowing that 75 cents from every entrée benefits the Food Bank of New York City.

2. Empellón Cocina

Neighborhood: East Village
Address: 105 1st Ave.
Website: empellon.com/cocina

You might call chef Alex Stupak the Bo Jackson of cooking. At wd~50, he became one of the country’s most renowned pastry chefs, known for employing avant-garde techniques without forgetting to make things taste good. But in 2010, he dropped the mic and walked away from the dessert station to pursue a passion for Mexican food. First came Empellón Taqueria in the West Village, and now this even more ambitious sophomore effort. You won’t find any tacos or burritos on the menu here; instead, Stupak channels South of the Border flavors into smart modernist creations like housemade masa crackers with ruby-red shrimp and sea-urchin mousse. Food nerds can geek out over the impressionist dishes and Instagram-ready plating, but you don’t have to think too hard to realize the grub is straight-up delicious. Get loose with a seriously deep list of tequilas and mescals, and don’t miss the knockout desserts from Stupak’s wife, Lauren Resler.

1. Pok Pok NY

Neighborhood: Columbia Waterfront District, Brooklyn
Address: 127 Columbia St.
Website: pokpokny.com

When it comes to Thai food in America, few chefs can match the chops of James Beard Award-winner Andy Ricker. Since 2005, he’s gained national acclaim for his restaurants in Portland, to the point that New York food folks were practically foaming at the mouth by the time he finally set up shop in Brooklyn this year. Waits for a table can drag out for up to two hours, but there’s a reason beyond hype that people are willing to see the mission through. Ricker goes to great lengths to get the details right in dishes he encountered while traveling in Chiang Mai and other parts of northern Thailand—in short, there are few places you can taste food like this without hopping on a plane to Southeast Asia. Highlights include sliced pork neck balanced with raw mustard greens, street market-style hoi thawt (a fried crêpe stuffed with mussels), and his signature Saigon-inspired chicken wings, which combine fish sauce, garlic, and roasted dry-chili paste to glorious effect. Other wings in New York now feel very bad about themselves.