Illustration by Bella Foster

Minetta Tavern
The apotheosis of speakeasy chic, with terrific steaks thrown in.

Aldea
A gourmet restaurant for the non-gourmet future, with cutting-edge Continental cooking, decent prices, and a clean, modern look.

The Breslin Bar & Dining Room
April Bloomfield’s ruinously delicious pub fare, on a slightly more ambitious uptown canvas.

Maialino
A classic Roman trattoria, reconstituted brick for brick in the ultraprofessional Danny Meyer style.

Sorella
Emma Hearst’s small-plates Northern Italian concept may be the most inventive new Italian joint in town.

Vinegar Hill House
Solid haute-barnyard fare as it’s meant to be served, in a loud, cozy room out in the provinces, with the wood oven roaring.

Sho Shaun Hergatt
Chef Hergatt revisits the glory years when Asian flavor met impeccable classic technique.

A Voce Columbus
Missy Robbins came from Chicago with an outsize reputation. This is her local coming-out party.

Seäsonal Restaurant & Weinbar
Exceptional “new” Austrian greenmarket cuisine in a modest midtown setting at good prices.

Marea
Michael White’s upscale fish house is the most ambitious new restaurant in town, and, on some evenings, the most accomplished.

Related:

• Archive: “Cover Story”
• Articles by Adam Platt
• Table of Contents: Jan 4, 2010 issue of New York | Subscribe!