NYC Restaurants You Can Try Tonight

GRAMERCY, 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 restaurant opened by a teenager in the Lower East Side, a new location of a popular French steakhouse and more.

Boucherie

Where: 225 Park Avenue South, Gramercy

What to eat: The popular French steakhouse Boucherie has opened a new location this week, bringing its upscale dishes to the Gramercy Park neighborhood. Boucherie opened its original location in the West Village in 2016. Its new location is slightly smaller, with 222 seats. In addition to a French-inspired menu, Boucherie has a lengthy drink list featuring absinthe-driven cocktails, according to the restaurant’s website.

MáLà Project

Where: 41 W. 46th St., Midtown

What to eat: Like Boucherie, MáLà Project is also adding a sister restaurant, with its brand new Bryant Park opening this week. The Chinese eatery first opened in the East Village in 2015, and quickly became a critically beloved dining destination. Since the restaurant opened in the East Village, “we have received a lot of love and support from locals and tourists,” the restaurant said in a statement. “To make it more accessible to people, we opened the Bryant Park location, with a convenient lunch menu designed for the working crowd, so that people can enjoy a quick and satisfying meal even during weekdays.” If you're looking for a spot to celebrate the Lunar New Year, MáLà Project is serving lots of celebratory dishes. You can see the full menu here.

Basta

Where: 62 E. 34th St., Midtown

What to eat: Mediterranean. Basta is a new Manhattan restaurant opened by an alum of the nearby Gramercy restaurant Nur. Eater New York took an early look at the menu, and options include the Tunisian, made with thinly sliced dough with branzini and sea bass.

Gem

Where: 116 Forsyth St., Lower East Side

What to eat: This new Lower East Side restaurant comes from 19-year-old Flynn McGarry. The precocious teen opened the LES spot as a combo neighborhood coffee shop and intimate restaurant. Currently, Gem is a coffee shop by day, but starting soon it'll add dinner options. The restaurant plans to serve 12 to 15 course dinners for $155 a head. The full experience includes champagne and snacks, plus a course in the kitchen where you "become familiar with Flynn and his kitchen team," according to Gem's website. The format for the dinners? They come from the dinner parties that a precocious 13-year-old Flynn used to throw in his mother's home.

Want some more options? Here are all the New York City restaurants who nabbed a nomination this week for the James Beard Foundation Awards. Some of the city's best spots, including Balthazar, Momofuku Noodle Bar and The Red Cat, are all up for awards.

Image credit: Courtesy of Boucherie