NYC Restaurants To Try This Weekend

MANHATTAN, NY — Picking a restaurant in NYC can be daunting, with hundreds of different options that change frequently. Every week, Patch rounds up the best new restaurants and bars that have opened throughout the city. Here are the best new spots to grab dinner or a drink this weekend.

This week, check out a Hawaiian bakery in the East Village, a New Orleans-style restaurant and bar in Prospect Heights, and more.

Mahalo New York Bakery

Where: 443 E. Ninth St., East Village

What to eat: Baked goods, with a Hawaiian twist. Mahalo, a Queens-based bakery, added its second location in the East Village this month. The owner planned the bakery to bring the flavors of Hawaii to New York City. The menu includes mango, hibiscus and pineapple guava cupcakes, among other flavors.

Bar Alaska

Where: 174 Rivington St., Lower East Side

What to drink: Beer, cocktails, and other standard bar fare. The happy hour menu at Bar Alaska features $5 draft beer and $5 vodka shots, plus $10 for a set of three oyster shooters. You can also get some craft cocktails like the "Alaska Mule," made with vodka, cherry shrub, lime juice and ginger beer.

Lowerline

Where: 794 Washington Ave., Prospect Heights

What to eat: New Orleans food (think po-boys and oysters) plus craft cocktails and beer. The restaurant promises a place where "you can delight in freshly shucked oysters on the half shell without pretense, feel happy with a hot roast beef po-boy dripping with gravy, enjoy a steaming bowl of seafood gumbo, and wash it all back with an ice cold beer." The menu features po-boys, oysters, gumbo, crawfish etouffee and more.

Il Gatto Nero

Where: 2758 Broadway, Upper West Side

What to eat: The idea behind Il Gatto Nero is to provide a local spot for good Italian food and good wine. The restaurant was initially born as Macchina but is starting a second life as Il Gatto Nero under new management. Check out the full menu here.

Image credit: Courtesy of Mahalo New York Baker