The MICHELIN Guide Inspectors spend all year uncovering the best restaurants to recommend—and what they've found is too good to keep a secret. These 13 new additions across Manhattan, Brooklyn and North Salem are sure to whet your appetite for something delicious.
Also new this year? New York, Chicago and Washington, D.C. will be feted at our MICHELIN Guide Ceremony on November 18 along with brand-new selections in Philadelphia and Boston as part of our Northeast Cities selection.
Manhattan
Bánh Anh Em
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Long before doors open, a queue quickly forms along Third Avenue. Indeed, the demand for this no-reservations hotspot is serious – and well justified. Carefully prepared and astutely seasoned, the dishes coming out of this Vietnamese kitchen make a striking impression. Just-baked baguettes for the banh mi are top-notch: airy, light, flaky and warm. Brisket, tendon, tripe and steak come together in a soulful pho served with homemade noodles. There’s more, like steamed rolls with minced pork (bánh cuốn) and crispy, golden crepes served with bundles of fresh herbs (bánh xèo). Bring friends, order generously and crowd every square inch of the table.
Bartolo
Cuisine: Spanish
Oozing with style and class, this little West Village hideout feels like a secret. A cozy front bar, thick wood-beams across the low ceiling and handsome banquettes strike an intimate, amber-hued mood. Rich, hearty Spanish cooking is front and center, so you’ll want to share everything. Start with cristal bread lined with butter and topped with anchovies or, for something lighter, ajo blanco with honeydew sorbet. Larger plates are well-suited to serious appetites: Grilled Iberian pork, oxtails braised in red wine, and roasted suckling pig and lamb. A lengthy cocktail list and sharply dressed servers keep the night moving along.
Comal
Cuisine: Mexican
Welcome to Mexico City by way of the Lower East Side. Sporting wood tables, tile and a touch of greenery, this vintage room is where you’ll want to settle in and see where the night goes. Chef Gaz Herbert brings contemporary touches to a tight menu packed with flavor. Think al pastor but in skewer form and carefully charred. Mussel with corn custard, mil hojas potato, crab tostada with eggplant – the cooking is seasonally minded and smartly prepared. With a side of rice, the smoked half-chicken is a must-order and channels all the nostalgia of a backyard barbecue. To finish, soft serve ice cream is a cute, sweet send-off.
Gui
Cuisine: Steakhouse/Korean
Dining in the heart of Times Square isn't always a good bet, but Gui Steakhouse changes the narrative. A natural choice for pre- or post-theater dining, it's also worth a trip without show tickets to experience their traditional steakhouse classics with Korean influences in a sleek setting. The menu includes raw bar items (Alaskan king crab leg) before shifting the focus to steaks with Japanese wagyu and USDA Prime meat. With a beautiful sear and deep grill marks, the aged steaks are finished simply with a sprinkling of Maldon salt. While steaks are indeed the raison d'être, the menu also features traditional American dishes like flounder and grilled chicken alongside Asian-inspired plates like chicken katsu, dan dan noodles and wagyu fried rice.
Lei
Cuisine: Chinese
In the beating heart of Chinatown on Doyers Street, Annie Shi’s little wine bar is a gift to the city. Rare wines are everywhere. They line the edges of the room, and they fill countless boxes stacked to the ceiling. People are everywhere, too, sitting elbow to elbow and even spilling out onto tables in the alley. This talented team doesn’t waste a single square inch of space – and that includes the kitchen, which turns out smart, thoughtful modern Chinese dishes. Chilled celtuce with shallots and red wine vinegar is an essential starter. Other hits include fried whiting with seaweed, scallops with lily buds and ginger, and hand-rolled noodles with braised lamb.
Markette
Cuisine: Contemporary
Right on 7th Avenue in Chelsea, walls of mirrors, modern lights and cozy banquettes make for a stylish stage where Chef India Doris crafts an impressive, nicely trimmed menu that pulls European and Caribbean influences. Carefully prepared and packed with flavor, the best dishes are the most personal: Salt cod fritters arrive with a fiery habanero aioli, and braised oxtail capped with cheddar polenta is a dreamy pie that would outclass its British pub relative. To finish, strawberry cheesecake prepared as a Swiss roll is a clever, beautiful effort. A gorgeous cocktail bar framed in recessed lighting shakes and stirs all night long.
Muku
Cuisine: Japanese
It's intimate, with counter seats for around ten, but this ambitious restaurant punches above its weight. The kaiseki-inspired menu highlights goho, or the Japanese rule of five, featuring five distinct cooking techniques from raw and grilled to simmered, steamed and fried. Seasonality is paramount, and these meticulous dishes showcase an impressive mastery of flavors. Shabu shabu with Japanese wagyu and a deeply flavorful broth; gohan featuring rice with finely diced chicken and maitake mushrooms; soba noodles made with buckwheat from the chef's hometown—each dish displays confidence and precision. Mizugashi with diced crown melon, sake lees ice cream and honeydew soda foam is flawless, and accompanied by a smoked green tea, it's an unforgettable ending.
Sushi Akira
Cuisine: Japanese
Chef/owner Nikki Zheng polished her skills at some of New York's top sushi restaurants, including Masa and Sushi Nakazawa, before striking out on her own with Sushi Akira. It's a special place, located on the Upper East Side and catering to a dozen guests with a well-priced, 18-course omakase featuring a variety of chilled appetizers, nigiri and dessert.
Chef Zheng showcases a calm and precise rhythm as she prepares plates like Japanese tilefish and tofu with dashi broth, and nigiri like minced squid with shiso leaf, soy-marinated bluefin tuna and hairy crab, among others. The meal ends on a light note with a slice of Japanese melon and custard.
Yamada
Cuisine: Japanese
Chef Isao Yamada's life's work has been kaiseki, and this impressive venture adds an interesting facet to the roster of high-end Japanese dining in New York. Diners here are treated to a personal expression of seasonality, with each course highlighting a distinct method of preparation. An array of sashimi bears impressive fish; the owan, or clear soup course, may brim with King crab dumplings; and the gohan, or rice course, may be a seasonal delight folded with Maine lobster, Nantucket sweet corn and maitake mushrooms from the Catskills.
The chicly spare room is reserved for a handful of diners at an L-shaped counter, while the pale, earthy aesthetic is enhanced with ikebana and a windowed Japanese dry garden.
Brooklyn
Olmo
Cuisine: Mexican
Olmo has a true neighborhood feel, where communal tables encourage new friendships, and light wood and plenty of white create a soothing ambience. The food is inspired by Mexico City with a focus on nostalgic, approachable flavors. Find everything from chicharrón preparado and eggplant milanesa to lacto-fermented crudités on this menu. There are so many winning dishes, but the grilled branzino over a bed of stewed beans with a colorful circle of morita salsa is surely one to consider. Carne asada is another can't miss, with a 12-ounce steak topped with a bright salad of verdolaga greens and shaved fennel, but it's that smoky chipotle bearnaise that steals the show. The flan paleta drizzled with caramel hits all the right notes.
Rose Marie
Cuisine: American Contemporary
Rose Marie is the free-spirited little sister to Yellow Rose, the beloved Tex Mex spot in the East Village from Chef Dave Rizo and Krystiana Rizo. This Williamsburg offshoot has a more freeform groove, along with a rustic charm. Meanwhile, the menu leans contemporary American with a few Southern flourishes. It's the kind of place you'll want to drop in for a cocktail and a snack, or stay for a satisfying dinner, choosing from items such as sprouting cauliflower salad, saltine-crusted fish with Carolina Gold rice, steak tartare. A patty melt with griddled onions, Vermont cheddar, bacon and pickled green tomato and an order of crispy potatoes with mayo might just be the perfect order.
Sal Tang's
Cuisine: Chinese Contemporary
It's classic Cantonese American with a modern twist at Sal Tang's, where everything from the dining room to the kitchen's dishes feels nostalgic, albeit with a refined, modern twist. Red lanterns are suspended from the ceiling, paper mâché dragons and cherry blossom wallpaper line the walls, and dark wood anchors this space that's just right for a weeknight meal. Meanwhile, the kitchen delivers nostalgic favorites and updated takes on beloved Chinese American dishes. Don't even think about skipping the egg roll, with its crispy shell and overstuffed filling. Another can't miss? Wonton soup, with its light, savory broth bobbing with pork wontons. Beef and broccoli is yet another classic dish before two refreshing scoops of bright and bold blood orange sorbet.
North Salem
Cenadou
Cuisine: French
Named after the Provençal word for “dining room,” Cenadou is warm and welcoming with crisp white walls, dark wood tables and royal blue chairs. Large windows line the room, framing views of the lush greenery just outside. In fact, this North Salem address is home to two enticing spots, with sibling La Bastide located one level down.
Expect French bistro classics with a modern, Provence-inspired update, as in poached vegetables with a warm aioli emulsion or rack of lamb over a smoked eggplant purée with olive tapenade, lamb jus and herb oil. Even dessert offers a twist on tradition with baba au rhum given a tableside pour of rum as well as a dollop of Earl Grey whipped cream.
Hero image: Natalie Black / Markette
