Terrible service...we've been here an hour and seen no food. Terrible experience! Can't tell you…read morehow the food tastes because we are being held hostage with no food after over an hour. Now that the food finally came everything was delicious. And they also made up for the long wait with extra drinks and a fabulous desert. Not sure what took so long but can recommend highly for the food.

An amazing brunch experience especially on holidays. This place goes above and beyond in terms of…read moredecor, service, and ambiance. The cocktails are amazing and very clever, you will take alot of pictures for Instagram. The food is just above average, but you really are there for the decor and drinks! We went during Halloween 2025 and had an amazing time. Special thanks to the staff who served us at the bar while waiting for our table. Ambiance: 5/5. Although a little small, it's more cozy than crowded. There are decorations wall to wall (and ceilings) during the holidays. The bar is not really meant for kids but they will enjoy the spectacle as much as adults. Drinks: 5/5. Each drink is creative, well mixed, and STRONG. Worth the higher price tag for the artistry. Food: 4/5. Good but not amazing. Solid brunch options and portion sizes, and solid for the price. Service: 4.5/5. Attentive, polite and efficient despite the large crowds coming into this place.

Every dish on the menu is incredible. And I'm 100% sure because we ordered every dish on the menu…read more The tomato martini! Loved this. It was a little sweet in a great way. Wish I had ordered two! The menu is really approachable and well curated so you don't get lost deciding what you want. The highlights I would definitely order again- roti, salt cod fritters, corn orzo, grilled prawn, braised oxtail, pan seared dorade, and peri peri chicken. Every bite was incredible, the prawn and peri peri chicken keep me up at night. Highly recommend, can't wait to come back.

Lived up to the hype. I'm still slightly shocked that Marakette is tucked away in such a…read morerugged-looking location just a few blocks from Penn Station. You wouldn't necessarily expect to stumble upon it here, which makes the restaurant feel like a bit of a discovery. The art, colors, and overall design are full of touches inspired by African and Caribbean diaspora culture from the paintings down to the silverware. It's thoughtful, colorful, and gives the space a real sense of identity without feeling forced. My partner really enjoyed the entire meal, which made it an especially good choice since we were celebrating her birthday. We did the Restaurant Week special, and it was well worth it. The peri-peri chicken and fries are an absolute must -- both were fantastic. They were also sweet enough to surprise us with a complimentary dessert, which was a lovely birthday touch. My disconnect: I felt like the staff was upselling quite a bit throughout the meal. Nothing terrible, but it did take away slightly from the otherwise relaxed experience. One last note, the downstairs bar looks like it could be a very solid post-work hangout. I'd definitely come back to check it out. Great food, great atmosphere, and a surprisingly good find near Penn Station.

The challenge is how do you pronounce the name of this place? While we struggled with this, we had…read morea far easier time selection what we wanted on the menu, and that's not a small task as they feature a great variety of selection. The dining area is well furnished, and fits the atmosphere. Staff were friendly and helpful. Reservation is available online, and you may want to use it during peak hours. Do save some room for desserts, it is well worth the wait.

I'm so glad my friend recommended going here because it's one of those restaurants that pique your…read moreinterest but you never really know how to navigate-- but lucky me, I had an Albanian friend to show me around. First thing you'll notice upon entry is how absolutely decorated it is. If you're a fan of Witcher, it's like walking into an an old-timey tavern. If you have no idea then-- it's like an old-timey tavern. I wouldn't be surprised of they had bard Fridays and homemade mead. It's also a big space. Reminds me of one of the last remnants of the bygone era that was the Obama-era glow. Like peak millenial where restaurants were starting to get viral but not to the point where they have to hyper compete with a gimmicky dish. The prices are a bit steep and was making me consider dropping my rating down a star but fuggit, I like their food. I played it safe and got the mixed grill meats but that's because I lack reading comprehension and thought the main dish (I don't know what it's called, it's just the 1st entree listed) was a baked meat pie situation, it was more grilled steak on a bed of mash potatoes but these mash potatoes were savory like gravy. I wish I got my friend's dish. The mixed grilled meats were a lot closer to doners or skewer meat. Different cuts but also different flavors. What they had in common was a sort of spice-forward sizzling taste. My friend got two appetizers (which I also don't know the name of) but were definitely the most beautifully presented foods I've had in a long while. They were both creams but one had a pepper in it (not the spicy kind). The pepper one was a light refreshing sourness and the other was a heavier but not heeeeavy savory one. Both great to dip your bread in. I wanted to try the lemon cookie for dessert but my friend got us all Tres Leches by accident. That was great but I would say the most non-novel out of everything we got. Delicious, just not something out of the norm-- which is what I go for when I'm trying a new cuisine like Albanian. I wouldn't say this is normal day-to-day Albanian (I have a few friends), it's more like the Americana equivalent, an upscale where Albanians go out to eat.

The food was absolutely fantastic and the restaurant felt like an old Balkan home. Definitely…read moreshould make reservations.

4/5 (complimentary) Bread with Ajvar 4/5 Sopska Salad…read more4/5 Lepinja with Kajmak 4.5/5 Fried Spearing 4/5 Mixed Grill -- a very large amount of meats, I would say easily suitable for 3-4 if you are ordering apps. Everything on the platter is on the saltier side, smoked flavor is however excellent. The sausage variety on the platter was probably my favorite! The vibes here feel like eating at your grandmother's house in Europe! Caution that it is cash only! We came on a Monday evening, and seated immediately with no reservation. I did notice that most tables seated by us did have a resy.

This place felt like a no-frills fish n' chip shop that one could come across in London (or…read moresomewhere in Belgium for that matter!). It's a very small, but cozy restaurant, and one could tell that those that own it care about the space and how well organized, clean, and put together it is. The sense of minimalism and European food brands (ex. malt vinegars) add charm to the simple setting giving off a non-pretentious, relaxed, ambience. The waiter was friendly and efficient. Now for the most important part: the food! The fish n' chips are deliciously superb. The cod tasted fresh. The batter was light, crispy, and spiced well. What was noteworthy was the tartar sauce. It has a unique tang to it that made the fish n' chips refreshing despite the fact that it's deep-fried. Maybe it was a usage of lime and celery? The chips were nice and crispy, but you could definitely taste the potato still. I ate the whole plate. A pleasant experience. I know where I'll go to get my fish n' chips next time I'm in Manhattan.

I don't critique every little tiny restaurant that I go to in Manhattan and North/Central NJ I but…read morethis one's unusual in its West village combination of Belgium and British food, it's not entirely cheap but pretty authentic for the claim that they stake. It's not fancy at all and it's a little pricey for it and fanciness but they do a hell of a moules and Frites ( mussels and french fries Belgian style loving the authentic Dijon mustard and the service, that is sincere.. I like sitting outside on Hudson Street watching the wheels go round. I can't give it 5 stars because it's kind of dumpy inside. The patient waiter made up for that, not everything is a value on the menu. Good luck figuring that out. Order mayo and diesel mustard for the frites. Give it four stars,it's funky, but it's cool.

We wanted to have dinner at this new American restaurant in Nolita called --- "O" but according to…read moreResy they were fully booked up. We were put on the notify list but weren't notified. I emailed them but there was no reply. I called them for three days at assorted times but no one ever picked up the phone. So we opted for Wallse. Making a reservation via resy was easy. We arrived and the hostess sat us at our table immediately. No needless trip to the bar. The room was empty at 6pm but by 6:30 it was full. The service was excellent. The food was perfect. The wine very good. The chef/owner Kurt came out to say hello. No patron was on their cellphone. No female guest was wearing a see thru nude dress. No male guest was wearing a wife beater tank top with arms and arms of decorative tattoos. No one took photos of themselves in front of the Julian Schnabel painting in the main dining room. On our way out I poked my head into the kitchen and thanked the chef. It was a very pleasurable evening.

Wanted to try a Michelin-starred place while friends were in town visiting, and Wallsé had one star…read morewhen we came, which felt like the right occasion to spend the money. For the prices and the pedigree, though, you'd expect more from the décor and furniture. It genuinely felt like sitting in someone's dining room, just with a bigger bill at the end of the night. Worth knowing the full arc here, because it's a good one: Wallsé is chef Kurt Gutenbrunner's flagship, an Austrian restaurant that's occupied the same corner of the West Village since 2000. Gutenbrunner trained at Michelin-starred Tantris in Munich and spent a decade working under David Bouley before striking out on his own, and Wallsé earned its first Michelin star in 2006, holding it for an impressive 17 consecutive years. That streak ended in 2022, the exact window this visit fell into, so the "1 star" I noted at the time was Wallsé right at the edge of losing recognition it had carried for nearly two decades. The wine list is a genuine point of pride here too, all-Austrian and repeatedly named the best of its kind in New York, which tracks with the impressive collection on display. My friends and I ended up ordering what amounted to a self-assembled tasting menu: foie gras terrine and a hand-cut tartare with soft egg and caviar to start, then Wiener schnitzel with potato and cucumber salad, short rib "goulash" with young carrots and crème fraîche, a chicken breast with stem cauliflower and leek purée, and a Bavarian pretzel on the side. These are the exact dishes the restaurant is known for, the schnitzel especially is the one people consistently point to as the reason to come here. I'll be honest, I was disappointed across the board. I've spent real time in Vienna, multiple visits, and genuinely love the food there and the coffeehouse culture that comes with it. I came in hoping to recreate a piece of that. What I got instead felt like a kitchen trying to be clever for the sake of being clever, without a clear point of view behind any of it. Fine dining, at its best, gives you something unexpected but coherent, dishes with a real idea underneath them that reward the extra attention and the extra cost. This didn't feel like that. It felt like ambition without execution, dressed up and priced accordingly. I'm not a food critic, and I don't pretend to understand how hard professional kitchens actually are to run. But when a place misses the basics and charges a premium for the miss, I'm going to say so. Impressive wine list, impressive room in theory, food that didn't back any of it up on the night I was there. Given they've since lost the star that got me in the door in the first place, I don't think I was alone in that read.

we were in New York City looking to try something new and online reviews came up with Old Tbilisi…read moreGarden so we decided to check it out. We made a reservation for 8p and arrived a couple of minutes early but the restaurant was relatively empty so it was quick to get a table. We ordered the eggplant appetizer, the Georgian salad, the mushroom dumplings, and the cheese and spinach baked good. The eggplant and salad both came outburst and both were good in terms of size and flavor. The salad had a good dressing which complimented it and did not overpower it. The eggplant was really good but would've been better with bread, so we requested bread and it was an additional charge and some pieces were very chewy and a bit hard to chew. The baked good came out afterwards and it was a combo between a pizza and phyllo dough. The portion size was really good and the flavor was decent albeit a bit bland. The mushroom dumplings were also good size and came with 4 pieces with sour cream on the side. The portion size was good and the flavor of the dough was good, the inside was also decent but lacked some flavor. Overall good flavor and portion size of food. A bit bland but overall good

Ambiance is amazing, particularly when seated in the garden. So many delicious dishes: the Khinkali…read moreand Khachapuri are both must-haves for the table. The Lobio and any of the meat stews are great entrees. Would definitely recommend trying this place out sometime.

I can only describe my experience at Oti as warm and delightful. We went for date night and felt as…read morethough we weren't in New York anymore but rather in a friend's home in eastern Europe. Everyone was so friendly, the vibes were warm, and the food was delicious. My boyfriend described the ricotta toast as a "symphony of flavors"-- sweet, savory, salty, sour, it had it all. The dinner was topped off with a surprise dessert of gummy bears that came with the check. I couldn't help but think that this is what hospitality is to me, delightful experiences that we keep wanting to talk about and coming back to. Immediately after dinner my boyfriend added Oti to his list of favorite restaurants in the city, we can't wait to come back!

Side note: As this place is technically Romanian, I requested to change the listing from New…read moreAmerican to Modern European to match the other Romanian places along with potentially switching cocktail bar to small plates though this can go either way. Anyway this is a tiny spot with the inside looking like someone's house so it's a fun atmosphere. They apparently added cocktails since I was here a while ago which is a good idea as the somewhat salty food here definitely goes with drinks. I believe I had a glass of white wine when I was here but I'm not positive. The service was friendly and gave recommendations to the people here who weren't sure what they were going to order. In terms of Romanian food, I heavily prefer Danubius in Queens among other spots near there but this is a decent option and especially if you don't want to travel to Queens/Brooklyn. For prices as no one has taken a photo of the menu yet, the larger/shared plates are from around $16 bucks (outside of the not so good mamaliga) to $21 while the small plates are around $10. I went with two dishes and one was good and one was just alright and I tried some other dishes from some other people which ranged from bad to OK/decent. In general, the food was fine though lacking some of the more unique flavors listed. The more expensive of the option and easily the best food I had here was the Pickled Mushroom Toast for $21 listed as market mushrooms pickled in a housemade brine on top of bone marrow ricotta spread on top of toast soaked in beef juice. While I could not really detect the beef juice, this had wonderful textures and flavor with the mixed pickled mushrooms being a highlight which had some softness and crunch. The ricotta added some creaminess and the little brown parts on it (presumably the bone marrow) had a bit of richness. The good sourdough from whatever bakery they get it from was nice and thick which is a good idea as it probably would have fallen apart otherwise. If you don't love pickles, you'll probably hate this but I liked it a lot. The other dish which was just okay was "The Mici (meech)" for $16 consisting of lamb and beef housemade sausages spiced with Romanian herb blend and served with miso mustard. The sausages were a bit soft with the texture not being my favorite compared to other restaurants serving this dish. The mustard and herb blend on top was a bit overpowering with a light fermented flavor presumably from the miso which also added a unique though slightly unappetizing off yellow color. The portion size was decent as it definitely could have been split between two people and it was just fine overall. From others, I tried a few different things which were mostly the small plates which are worse. The Mamaliga ($10) had a worse texture than at Danubius or at Moldovan Cafe and I wish I had the eggs and a stronger cheese which is usually what makes this a lot better and I wouldn't recommend it. The Spiced Pickled Red Grapes ($9) was a novel idea with lightly spicy grapes and would go well with a cocktail or beer. The Zakuska dip ($9) was the best of the smaller plates with the same good bread and a nicely roasted red pepper/eggplant dip with a bit of sweetness from the caramelized onions though I prefer similar dips from other places. They also gave us some Gummy Bears as dessert at the end which was unique (no, I'm not writing more about them.) If every dish here was as good as the mushroom toast, I would much more heavily recommend this place but that's not the case as if I didn't have said mushroom toast, I'd very likely be giving this place a 2 for the overall quality. As the best word to describe this place is unique and OK, 3 stars is accurate.

It was all perfect. Very cute inside, fantastic service, fantastic food. Will definitely be going…read moreback!!

This was my first time trying actual Romanian food, as most restaurants I have been are marketed as…read more"eastern European" with the cabbage rolls, pierogi, etc. Thus, it is hard to give an accurate star rating since I don't really have an adequate baseline of what Romanian food should be, but combining the food and the excellent service, this place deserves a 5 stars. We were a party of 7 and we walked in on a Sunday dinner, and there was no wait. There was a wedding nearby in the restaurant, so it was a bit loud, but it was a good vibe. We ordered a bunch of dishes, such as the Platou Taranesc, Salata Bouef, Pomana Porcului, Pastrama, Mititei, Sarmale, Papanasi, and Coltunasi Platou Taranesc - country plate, basically bread and cold cut, Romanian style. It was a good experience but something I would normally not go out of my way for, since I don't like cold cut. But it is worth trying since Romanian food has a lot of cured meats and such, so the variety here is apparent Salata Bouef - bouef salad. Not beef salad. It is like a potato salad with chicken and veggies. Fairly hearty despite looking like small portions Pomana Porcului - traditional style pork fried meat - does not look fried, but it is a bit cured. A bit tough, maybe that's how they prepare it, but nonetheless flavorful. Pastrama - lamb pastrami - also a bit tough but cured. I liked the flavors but definitely need to eat it like a fork and knife style, not one bite Mititei - Romanian skinless sausages - kind of like a kofta (ground beef) and I loved this meat dish the most Sarmale - stuffed cabbage roll - one of the best cabbage rolls I have tried. Manageable size for each roll, and the cabbage has just the right amount of softness and the filling is super flavorful. Would recommend this 100% Papanasi - Romanian donuts - they say 2 pieces but the pieces are huge and sweet and hearty. A great way to conclude the meal, and enough to feed 4+ people after a nice meal Coltunasi - dumplings - we got beef. These are good but did not stand out. A nice starter Service was amazing and deserving of the auto 20% gratuity. The only miss is the water refills are not as frequent but the server gave us some sides on the house and gave us amazing recommendations of what to try for food for the first time and brought out everything we needed to enjoy the meal.

The food here is so fresh and pretty good. The ideal starter is the ustipci which is bread with…read morefeta cubes and honey. It's an interesting combo but it is delicious. For the mains, there are several items to choose from and our table had the snicla which is a chicken cutlet sandwich, carne asada sandwich, onaj nas sandwich and a flatbread. The overall table favorite was the snicla, flatbread and onaj nas. We also had two mini burek one with cheese and one with meat and their cevapi. The service is alright, the staff didn't seem to care or come back to check in with the table. The worst part of this is they automatically add a tip regardless of your party size. The ambiance is okay, it has the full European vibe and guest will be sitting outside in the front smoking or in the back smoking. Overall, Cafe Bubamara is a great place for lunch or dinner they have a great selection for dishes from savory to sweet and everything tastes extremely fresh.

Such a charming and eclectics place, Cafe Bubamara is an absolute delight. The service was…read morefriendly and welcoming. The decor is very flea market chic. They also have beautiful garden seating. I ordered Turkish coffee, fresh grapefruit juice, Gurmanski dorucak, mini burek with spinach and cheese, and fruit cake. I love Turkish coffee and this was very good. The juice was tart and delicious. The breakfast platter was a showstopper. Two fried eggs, tomato, feta, two meat patties, and homemade bread. The flavors of the meat blew my mind. Who knew that Croatians make the most delicious burgers. This is a hearty and fantastic dish. Also, the burek was flaky and light and not very mini. I took home the cake and enjoyed it later. Light, delicate and not overly sweet, this was a star. Open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, you should stop in for any meal. Not cheap, but you get what you pay for and you get a lot of bang for your buck. I can't wait to r