New York City's Best Date Restaurants
New York City boasts a vibrant culinary scene. The Ambiance Matchmaking team has gone above and beyond to select the best restaurants for your date night.
CHELSEA
DA ANDREA
Located in San Francisco's historic Jackson Square, Cotogna ('quince' in Italian) is a popular, rustic-modern eatery serving In business for 20 years and featured in the New York Times, this cozy neighborhood Northern Italian fare offers a romantic, charming setting amongst vine-laden flowers, elegant linen, china, and glassware. A great spot for brunch, the Italian waitstaff are attentive and friendly, and they boast the tastiest cocktails around.
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RH ROOFTOP
Located on the rooftop of the beautiful Restoration Hardware hotel, this venue features an ingredient-driven menu accompanied by a curated selection of artisanal wines and craft beers. Its fairytale forest meets modern, swanky art deco ambiance making for a very unique dining experience. It’s also a hot brunch spot!
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WORTHWILD
This welcoming neighborhood bar and restaurant in Chelsea serves craveable American cuisine, craft beer, and great cocktails. It also offers a lively bar scene in a more intimate dining room setting.
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GREENWICH VILLAGE
THE CABIN
Set in a restored historic space with high style, Mister Jiu's offers high-end Chinese cuisine with a Californian accent. In the legendary East Village community, The Cabin is a cozy, rustic, comfortable eatery decked out with wood-paneled walls, infinity mirrors reflecting birch trees, and leather banquettes lining the perimeter of the venue. Featuring a full-service bar serving delicious and unique specialty cocktails, individual starters, and main courses, The Cabin serves mouthwatering American Classic dishes with a twist.
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CATHÉDRALE RESTAURANT
This French-Mediterranean restaurant offers a show-stopping main dining room featuring a soaring ceiling, an open kitchen, and an outdoor dining terrace.
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SOCIETY CAFE
Society Cafe is an art-deco-inspired market-to-table American restaurant by rising-star chef, Manuel Gonzalez. Enjoy signature cocktails and unique culinary creations, in a beautifully inspired space. Nestled within Walker Hotel, this 75-seat venue offers signature cocktails and unique culinary creations.
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SOHO
ANTIQUE GARAGE
Converted from an old mechanic shop, chef and owner, Utku Cinel has owned this “best-kept secret of SoHo” since 2003. The menu embraces a diverse collection of cross-cultural influences spanning the Mediterranean, with responsibly-sourced, fresh, organic ingredients. Utku’s private collection of antiques offers an eclectic, unique, and romantic ambiance, a charming and elegant nod to old New York.
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CHARLIE BIRD
Inspired by NYC’s farmer’s markets and inspiring travelers with sophisticated palates, Charlie Bird’s menu offers a broad wine list, seasonal Italian fare, and delicious espresso. Decorated in caramel leather and Carrara marble, the art inside features photographs of boom boxes. Heated covered sidewalk seating and a heated patio allow for patrons to enjoy their meals al fresco, and is open for both brunch and dinner.
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ARORA SOHO
Serving innovative regional Italian cuisine, all of their pasta, bread, and desserts are made on the spot using only fresh, seasonal ingredients. Their extensive wine list represents all Italian regions, focusing on indigenous varieties to enjoy paired with native cuisine.
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LOWER EAST SIDE
LENA
Ramen Parlor is your go-to place for the best ramen in the city. Try the Spicy Garlic Lobster Pork dish and you won't be disappointed. The lobster oil adds a new layer of depth to the broth without overpowering it. This French restaurant, wine, and cocktail bar is a modern, dramatic, cozy spot on the Lower East side with European flair. With cute décor, candlelit, music, and a calm atmosphere, this spot transports you straight to the Basque region of France.
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TRE
Tre’s traditional Neapolitan street food menu boasts a wide selection of food and wine pairings in a rustic dining room with an outdoor patio option. They offer live jazz on Thursday nights. Local, farm-fresh ingredients are paired alongside imported wines to create dishes that are pleasing to the mind, body, and spirit.
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LE ENFANTS DE BOHEME
This cozy, urban corner cafe offers locally sourced French fare for dinner, weekend brunches, and happy hours. They source seasonal ingredients from local producers and have a warm, inviting bar scene serving craft cocktails.
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FREEMAN'S
A very chic, American restaurant in a rugged, clandestine Colonial tavern decor draws a hip crowd to this hideaway. A seasonal cocktail and food menu is offered in this perfectly cozy space located at the end of an unused alley off the Bowery.
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UPPER EAST SIDE
FELICE 83
This gorgeous Tuscany-inspired setting offers native rustic cuisine, preparing Italian classics by partnering with local farms. Surrounded by design elements of the Tuscan tradition, wine jugs hanging from the ceilings, surrounded by subdued lighting, exposed brick walls lined with linear shelves filled with wine, as well as rich, tufted leather seats. The airy outdoor patio serves lunch, brunch, and dinner seven days a week.
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THE EAST POLE
This timeless, sophisticated Upper East Side haunt, decorated with drawings of old maps and subtle nautical accents is housed in a historic brownstone on a quiet block of 65th Street. The menu features simple yet elevated home cooking with a focus on local, seasonal, organic produce and sustainably sourced proteins. Their signature cocktail menu and full bar service focus on small-batch distilleries, breweries, and wineries.
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BOQUERIA
Influenced by the rich culture of Barcelona, this vibrant Spanish tapas restaurant serves small plates, inspired by fresh seasonal produce like croquetas and paella that pair perfectly with sangria or craft cocktails.
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WILLIAMSBURG
MAISON PREMIERE
This atmospheric garden is inspired by hotel lobbies and grand eateries in New Orleans, New York, and Paris, this restaurant serves oysters, cocktails & small plates. With more than 30 oyster varieties and a traditional absinthe service, showcased in the center of this bar is a meticulously fabricated replica of the absinthe fountain located in the famed Olde Absinthe House in New Orleans.
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THE FOUR HORSEMEN
This well-known wine bar owned by James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem serves small plates in cozy digs with light woodwork. One unique aspect of this joint is its focus on natural wine, Their charcuterie boards and homemade bread and butter offer a delectable complement to their top-notch main courses, which change regularly.
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LILIA
In a redone auto-body shop, Lilia brings the best of Italy to Williamsburg where wood-fired seafood, hand-crafted pasta, classic Italian cocktails, and warm hospitality come together to create a casual dining experience.
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BROOKLYN
AURORA
Aurora restaurant is a landmark of Italian cuisine, creating a perfect balance of tradition and innovation, paying homage to top-quality Italian imports, sustainably grown local produce, and house-made specialties. The wine list offers more than 150 labels, along with craft beers, signature cocktails, and a full liquor bar. Rustic and charming exposed brick walls and high ceilings open to an intimate, leafy garden, enclosed during the colder months.
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CELESTINE
Located just under the Manhattan Bridge, this restaurant offers sweeping views of both bridges and the downtown city skyline. While Mediterranean coastal cuisine is the seasonal menu’s cornerstone, their wine list focuses on small, natural producers, and their cocktails are crafty as well. Located within a LEED Gold Certified building, Celestine is proud to be a part of the DUMBO community.
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THE RIVER CAFE
Nestled under the Brooklyn Bridge with sweeping NYC skyline views and Michelin-starred American fare, this especially romantic atmosphere is accompanied by live piano, fresh floral arrangements, and impeccable service. With an elegant fine dining room and a serious dress code, this establishment has been wowing patrons from around the globe since 1977.
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