Reservations Open For NYC Restaurant Week Summer 2018, July 23-August 17

—NYC & Company’s Signature Dining Program Returns

July 23–August 17 Across All Five Boroughs—

—New $26 Two-Course Prix-Fixe Lunch Designed to

Boost Daytime Dining—

 NYC & Company, the City’s official destination marketing organization, today announced details for NYC Restaurant Week summer 2018, now in its 26th year, and opened reservations for booking on NYCgo.com. Also announced was a new prix-fixe lunch offer with a two-course (appetizer and entrée) menu priced at $26. Waiving the mandatory third dessert course from the previous lunch offer, diners will now save time, and demand for restaurant daytime dining is expected to rise. Full program details are:

-       Dine over 23 days between July 23 through August 17, 2018*

-       Enjoy the option of more than 380 participating restaurants

-       Receive two-course prix-fixe lunches for $26 and three-course prix-fixe dinners (with dessert) for $42**

-       Explore restaurants among 42 distinct neighborhoods, across all five boroughs

-       Discover 33 individual cuisines

-       View a full list of participants, browse menus and book tables now at NYCgo.com/restaurantweek.

*Saturdays excluded; Sundays optional

**Beverages, gratuities and taxes not included; Prices in USD

“There is no better way to celebrate the diversity of New York City’s unmatched culinary scene—the true dining capital of the world—than by experiencing a great meal (or two) among restaurants of 33 distinct cuisines participating in NYC Restaurant Week this summer,” said Fred Dixon. “We look forward to welcoming visitors, meetings delegates, and residents to enjoy new dining experiences in neighborhoods across all five boroughs this season.”

The summer 2018 season features 24 new restaurant participants: Baar Baar, Barano, Boucherie Park Avenue South, Cleo, DaDong, Empellón, Fish Cheeks, Gloria, Greenwich Steakhouse, Harvey, La Sirena, Lugo Cucina Italiana, Mifune New York, Naoki Takahashi, Nix, Quality Eats – Nomad, Royal 35 Steakhouse, Scampi NYC, Talde, The Musket Room, The Sea Fire Grill, The Whitby Bar & Restaurant, Trattoria Italienne, and Tudor City Steakhouse.

Diners seeking inspiration for where to dine this summer can turn to NYCgo.com for curated restaurant collections themed to unique dining experiences. Included among the eight collections, all available now, are: “NYC Classics,” “Squad Goals” (group dining), “Swipe Right” (date-friendly establishments), and ideal for summer, “BYO SPF” (alfresco dining), among others. Over the course of NYC Restaurant Week, continue to browse NYCgo.com for additional editorial content set to debut over the first three weeks of the program, including neighborhood itineraries for dining near Grand Central, NoHo and SoHo.

Along with content on NYCgo.com, NYC Restaurant Week will be promoted through digital and print advertising, and through out-of-home advertising on NYC bus shelters, street pole banners, LinkNYC screens, and NYC taxicabs. Additionally, advertisements in PATH trains and stations feature exclusive creative detailing a NYC Restaurant Week manifesto.

American Express is proud once again to sponsor NYC Restaurant Week this summer. In 2017, over 9,700 more restaurant locations in the New York area started accepting American Express® Cards. So now, more places than ever welcome your Card.

Additional brand partners include booking partner OpenTable and culinary arts organization James Beard Foundation.

Diners can follow @nycgo and @nycrestaurantweek on Instagram and @nycgo on Facebook and Twitter for NYC Restaurant Week content. Furthermore, an Instagram photo contest will award four weekly winners (one each week of the program) with $300 in gift cards from participating restaurants by using the program hashtag #NYCRestaurantWeek.

Lastly, New Yorkers and visitors looking for additional value this summer and fall can seek out two additional NYC & Company signature programs. NYC Broadway Week^SM returns September 3—16 (tickets on sale August 15), and NYC Off-Broadway Week^SM returns September 24—October 7 (tickets on sale September 10), both offering 2-for-1 tickets to some of the best live shows in New York City. Visit nycgo.com/broadway-week and nycgo.com/off-broadway-week for more.

To view a full list of participants, make reservations, browse menus and more, visit nycgo.com/restaurantweek.

About NYC & Company:

NYC & Company is the official destination marketing organization for the City of New York, dedicated to maximizing travel and tourism opportunities throughout the five boroughs, building economic prosperity and spreading the positive image of New York City worldwide. For all there is to do and see in New York City, visit nycgo.com.

Reservations Now Open For NYC Restaurant Week, January 23rd-February 10th 2017 #NYCRestaurantWeek

—Celebrated Biannual Dining Promotion to 
Return January 23–February 10—

—Dine and Save at More than 375 New York City 
Restaurants Across 41 Neighborhoods—

NYC & Company, New York City’s official destination marketing organization, today announced that reservations are now open for NYC Restaurant Week^® winter 2017, taking place January 23 through February 10, 2017. New Yorkers and visitors are encouraged to book now to receive great deals at more than 375 participating restaurants in 41 neighborhoods across the City. Diners can enjoy three-course prix-fixe lunches for $29 and three-course prix-fixe dinners for $42 (excluding beverages, gratuities and taxes). Saturday dining is excluded from the program and Sundays are optional. To view a full list of participants, make reservations, browse menus and more, visit nycgo.com/restaurantweek.

“NYC Restaurant Week is an opportunity to experience the City’s incredible dining choices at an extraordinary value,” said Fred Dixon, president and CEO of NYC & Company. “We invite New Yorkers and visitors to plan their next outing now in the dining capital of the world.”

NYC Restaurant Week Winter 2017 by the numbers:

·         3 course prix-fixe lunches for $29*

·         3 course prix-fixe dinners for $42*

·         More than 375 participating restaurants

·         32 individual cuisines

·         32 new participating restaurants

·         41 neighborhoods across 4 boroughs

·         14 days to dine (January 23–February 10)**

                                                                                *(Beverages, gratuities and taxes not included)

**(Saturdays excluded, Sundays optional)

This winter’s iteration features 32 new participants: Amada, Angus Club Steakhouse, Artie’s Steak & Seafood, Bedford & Co., BKW by Brooklyn Winery, Del Frisco’s, Edi & The Wolf, Felice 64, Freud NYC, Green Fig, Haru Chelsea, High Street on Hudson, Hudson Garden Grill, Hunt & Fish Club, Jue Lan Club, Kingsley, Le Coq Rico, Leuca, Maiella, Maison Hugo, Maysville, Members Dining Room at the Met, Neta, New Leaf Restaurant, Oro, Penthouse808, Quality Eats, Salvation Taco, Schilling, STK Downtown, Tarallucci e Vino–NoMad and Tavern62 by David Burke.

“NYC Restaurant Week inspires New Yorkers and our guests from all over the nation and the world to experience the quality, variety and hospitality that our restaurants are renowned for,” said Tracy Nieporent, Partner/Director of Marketing for Myriad Restaurant Group and Chairman of NYC & Company’s Restaurant Committee. “Our vibrant dining community looks forward to welcoming diners to enjoy compelling international cuisines, across the boroughs and in over 40 neighborhoods.”

NYC & Company’s long-standing corporate sponsor American Express will return with an exclusive offer for American Express® Card Members who participate in NYC Restaurant Week. Card Members can enroll any eligible American Express Card, use their enrolled Card to spend $35 or more at any participating restaurant and get a $5 statement credit up to four times. Terms apply. To learn more and enroll in this offer, visit americanexpress.com/nycrestaurantweek.

NYC Restaurant Week is the first dining program of its kind, established in 1992 during the Democratic National Convention. New this season on nycgo.com, the City’s official tourism website, consumers can use enhanced quick search filters to navigate restaurants by key features such as New Participants and Notable Chefs, allowing diners to easily select their ideal dining experience.

NYC Restaurant Week is one of the featured promotions within NYC & Company’s new Nonstop NYC winter campaign. Also included are celebrated programsNYC Broadway Week^SM (January 17–February 5) and NYC Off-Broadway Week^SM (February 27–March 12) and the first-ever NYC Attractions Week^SM (January17–February 5) that offers two-for-one admission to popular attractions, tours, culture and performing arts at more than 70 participants across all five boroughs. More information on these four promotional programs, as well as how to find the best hotel rates of the year this winter, can be found at nycgo.com/nonstop. 

NYC Restaurant Week is promoted through exclusive content on nycgo.com; out-of-home media in the five boroughs; print and digital advertising, including promotion through media partner Time Out New York; commercials running in NYC taxicabs and through social media posts using #NYCRestaurantWeek.

Taste Your Way Through NYC's New And Upcoming Food Halls

NYC & Company, New York City’s official destination marketing organization, invites visitors and locals to discover New York City’s new and trending food halls, featuring an array of dining possibilities, from casual eats to high-end restaurant offerings.   

“New York City’s food halls are an exciting way to experience the City’s vibrant and evolving food scene,” said Fred Dixon, president and CEO of NYC & Company. “From new openings like TurnStyle and The Pennsy to mainstays like Chelsea Market and Grand Central Market, there are so many fantastic food hall options to choose from, giving visitors more reasons to return again and again.”

New York City has long been home to popular food markets like Arthur Avenue Retail Market, Chelsea Market, Eataly, Grand Central Market and Gotham West. In addition to these iconic places, the City is experiencing a trend in the rise of food halls, celebrating cuisines from around the world.  

Highlights of recent openings include: 

Berg’n: Since opening in 2015, the Brooklyn-based food hall in Crown Heights has quickly emerged as a local hotspot for its trendy food offerings. Visitors and locals can sample tasty burritos at El Meat Hook, Filipino-inspired cuisine at Lumpia Shack and pulled pork and brisket at Mighty Quinn’s Barbeque. Led by the founders of Brooklyn Flea and Smorgasburg, Berg’n is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Visit bergn.com for more information.

City Kitchen at Row NYC: The Times Square food court, located within the Row NYC Hotel, opened in March 2015 and features a diverse collection of vendors such as Azuki Sushi, Dough, Gabriela’s Taqueria, ilili Box, Kuro Obi ramen, Luke’s Lobster and Whitman’s New York. For more information visit citykitchen.com.

Hudson Eats: The upscale dining terrace located in Lower Manhattan’s Brookfield Place features many of New York City’s top casual eateries, including Black Seed Bagel, Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar, Chop’t, Dig Inn, Mighty Quinn’s Barbeque, Num Pang, Skinny Pizza, Sprinkles and Umami Burger. The 30,000-square-foot space provides seating for up to 600 guests and offers views of the Hudson River and Statue of Liberty. Additional information can be found at brookfieldplaceny.com.  

Le District: Brookfield Place is also home to an authentic French shopping district serving artisanal French foods. The 30,000-square-foot space boasts a brasserie-style restaurant called Beaubourg, the Market and Garden District offering French groceries, and a café where guests can snack on chocolate, coffee, macarons and croissants. Visit brookfieldplaceny.com for more information. 

The Pennsy: Just steps from Madison Square Garden, the high-end food hall is home to vendors The Cinnamon Snail, Pat LaFrieda Meat Purveyors, Mario by Mary, Lobster Press and The Little Beet. The space also includes an indoor dining lounge, an outdoor patio space and a full cocktail bar serving daily happy hour and new drink specials throughout the week. For more information visit thepennsy.nyc. 

Queens Night Market: The large, family-friendly open-air night market in Queens features independent vendors selling merchandise, art and food that celebrate the rich cultural diversity of the borough. The market is located outside the New York Hall of Science in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, and currently runs every Saturday through August 20^th. The market is open from 6:00 pm through Midnight. For a complete list of upcoming vendors visit queensnightmarket.com.  

UrbanSpace Vanderbilt: Less than a five-minute walk from Grand Central Terminal, the Midtown food hall features over 20 artisanal and chef-driven food concepts, including notable Brooklyn pizza joint Roberta’s, popular doughnut chain Dough and the Red Hook Lobster Pound. Additional information can be found at urbanspacenyc.com.  

TurnStyle: Manhattan’s new underground food hall and retail space located in the Columbus Circle subway station holds over 30 small restaurants and shops, including Blossom du Jour, Bolivian Llama Party, Doughnuttery, Dylan’s Candy Bar, The Pizza and Yong Kang Street. A MetroCard is not required to gain access to the market. Visitors can enter at Columbus Circle or 57th Street and Eighth Avenue. Visit turn-style.com for the complete list of shops and restaurants. 

Upcoming in 2016: 
Eataly: The popular Italian marketplace, home to restaurants, food and beverage counters, a bakery, retail items and cooking classes is expected to open a 40,000-square-foot outpost at 4 World Trade Center later this year. Visit eataly.com for additional information.       
The Great Northern Food Hall: In early summer 2016, internationally acclaimed chef Claus Meyer will open a Nordic-inspired food hall inside Grand Central Terminal’s Vanderbilt Hall. The 5,000-square-foot space’s offerings will include baked goods, granola and Danish open-faced rye sandwiches called smørrebrød. For updates, visit grandcentralterminal.com. 

Gotham Market at The Ashland: Gotham West Market, the day and night dining destination in Hell’s Kitchen, will be opening a new location this fall inside The Ashland in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene. The 16,000-square-foot space will have a pop-up place for local chefs and restaurateurs, in addition to full-time food vendors like Apizza Regionale (Italian fare), Flip Bird (rotisserie chicken), Mu Ramen (bowls of noodles, burgers and Japanese snacks) and popular Midtown barbeque restaurant Mason Jar. Visitgothamwestmarket.com for more information. 

Upcoming in 2017: 
Bourdain Market: American chef and television personality Anthony Bourdain will be opening a 155,000-square-foot international food market on Manhattan’s Pier 57 in 2017, which would make it the largest food hall in New York City. Complete details have not been announced, although the space will reportedly feature over 100 vendors from around the globe. For more information visitbourdainmarket.com.  

Empire Outlets Marketplace (MRKTPL): Scheduled to open in November 2017, Empire Outlets will become New York City’s first shopping outlet, located in Staten Island’s waterfront St. George district and featuring 100 shops of the finest brands. Within the complex, an innovative artisanal food market, called Marketplace (MRKTPL), will showcase the best local and international purveyors. It will be Staten Island’s first artisanal food hall. Visit empireoutletsnyc.com for more information.

Upcoming in 2018: 
The Shops & Restaurants at Hudson Yards: When open in 2018, the Restaurant Collection at Hudson Yards will feature 12 luxury restaurants, including a steakhouse and American grill by chef Thomas Keller. The final 10 restaurants have not been confirmed, although Spanish chef José Andrés and Greek seafood chef Costas Spiliadis will reportedly be adding outposts to the collection. For updates visit hudsonyardsnewyork.com. 

About NYC & Company:

NYC & Company is the official marketing, tourism and partnership organization for the City of New York, dedicated to maximizing travel and tourism opportunities throughout the five boroughs, building economic prosperity and spreading the positive image of New York City worldwide. For more information, visit nycgo.com.

Danny Meyer Says There Will Soon Be No Need To Tip At His New York Eateries

(Photo: 2005 photo by Quentin Bacon)

Soon, when you visit some of New York’s most acclaimed restaurants, you’ll be able to pay your tab without leaving a little something extra, guilt-free.

Restaurateur Danny Meyer said Wednesday that hisUnion Square Hospitality Group will be eliminating tipping, starting next month.  In a letter on the group’s website, Meyer said that the new policy will kick in at The Modern restaurant at the end of November, and be instituted at the group’s remaining New York eateries next year.

USATODAY

Where to dine with Danny Meyer's hospitality philosophy

“Starting at The Modern in late November, you will no longer find a tip line on your check, and there will be no need to leave additional cash at the table, the coat check, or the bar," Meyer said. “Once these changes are implemented, the total cost you pay to dine with us won’t differ much from what you pay now. But for our teams, the change will be significant. We will now have the ability to compensate all of our employees equitably, competitively and professionally. And by eliminating tipping, our employees who want to grow financially and professionally will be able to earn those opportunities based on the merit of their work."

Danny Meyer says his Union Square Hospitality Group will eliminate tipping, starting at The Modern restaurant in November. (Photo: Michael Weschler)

Meyer noted that various laws prohibit certain restaurant workers, like dishwashers and cooks, from getting tips, “even though their contributions are just as vital to the outcome of your experience at one of our restaurants."

Meyer’s eateries are just the latest high-end restaurants to ban tipping. Pittsburgh restaurant Bar Marco instituted a no-tipping policy in April. The renowned vegetarian restaurant Dirt Candy in New York City enacted a no-tipping policy in February.

Still, the National Restaurant Association says that the "no-tipping'' practice is far from an industry trend.

"The move towards a non-tipped environment is a new and somewhat small concept with only a handful of restaurants testing it nationwide,'' says Christin Fernandez, the association's spokeswoman. "As the industry of hospitality, we’ve found the practice of tipping has traditionally attracted millions of employees to our industry and still has strong support from American diners.''

Fernandez added that nationwide, restaurant employees are supposed to be paid at least the federal minimum wage, and some cities and states like New York have approved minimum wages of $15 an hour.

Chez Panisse in Berkeley, Calif., began adding a surcharge to patrons’ checks in the late 1980s to boost wages for all of its employees.

“We don’t have a no-tipping policy,’’ Chez Panisse general manager Jennifer Sherman says, noting that some customers do leave extra, which goes to the server. However, a 17% surcharge is tacked on to all bills.

“That goes to the house and is distributed to staff in the form of higher wages,'' says Sherman. "And we subsidize health insurance and paid vacation.’’

The eatery's legendary founder, Alice Waters, felt such a policy was only fair. "Alice felt really strongly that the inequities between the front and back of the house was not how she wanted to run her business,'' Sherman says. Additionally, with servers in U.S,. restaurants traditionally earning low wages and deriving a good deal of their income from tips, “she felt strongly it was good to go to a more European model, adding a service charge and paying everybody more equivalent wages.’’

Amanda Cohen, owner of Dirt Candy, says that there is a 20% administrative fee on every bill that is later distributed among the staff. "We still are getting résumés, nine months in, from people who want to work for us,'' she says.

Before moving to the restaurant's current Lower East Side location, Cohen remembers having difficulty finding cooks. "They had left the city,'' she said. "When you pay somebody $10 to $12 an hour, it's hard to live in Manhattan, or Brooklyn or anywhere in the five boroughs. And when you're commuting an hour to an hour and a half to get to your job, and working 12 hours, it's not sustainable.''

The administrative fee was a way to "break down the discrepancy between the back of the house and the front of the house,'' she says. "My goal is to leave this industry a better place than when I came in.''

Source:  Charisse Jones, USA TODAY

Michelin Announces Its New York Stars

Le Bernardin has retained its three Michelin stars. CreditNicole Bengiveno/The New York Times

Michelin, the Paris-based purveyor of gastronomic guides, has released its annual list of starred ratings for New York City restaurants. While much anticipated, it is short on surprises.

All six restaurants that showed up last year in the top category, three stars, have maintained their standing: Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare, Eleven Madison Park, Le Bernardin, Masa, Per Se and Jean-Georges. “It’s been 11 years, and I’m very happy about it,” the chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten said.

The news in the two-star category is the elevation of the Modern from one star, which it had when Gabriel Kreuther was the chef, to two, with Abram Bissell now in charge of the kitchen. Mr. Kreuther’s new restaurant, Gabriel Kreuther, which opened in late spring, received one star.

Daniel Boulud, whose restaurant Daniel went last year from three stars to two, retains its two stars, as do Aquavit, Blanca, Ichimura, Jungsik, Marea and Soto. Atera, which had a change of chefs this year, from Matthew Lightner to Ronny Emborg, has also kept its two stars, as has Momofuku Ko, which moved.

In addition to Gabriel Kreuther, there are nine other newcomers among the 60 restaurants in the one-star category: Tempura Matsui, Sushi Yasuda, Cagen, Hirohisa, Somtum Der, Uncle Boons, Rebelle, Semilla and the Finch. Picholine, which kept its one star, will leave its longtime home near Lincoln Center and seek a new space, its chef, Terrance Brennan, said Wednesday.

Sushi Nakazawa, which was not given any stars in last year’s guide, even after receiving rave notices from Pete Wells of The New York Times and other critics, has once again come away empty-handed. “Last year Michelin told us we got no stars because they didn’t have the capability to visit us enough,” Alessandro Borgognone, the restaurant’s managing partner, said. Michelin uses anonymous inspectors who pay for their meals.

The rankings are to be announced Wednesday night at a reception at the Manhattan Classic Car Club. (Michelin is a tire company, after all.) Unlike in past years, Michelin declined to release the ratings to reporters under a news embargo to help them prepare for the announcement. But those grand plans took a detour, as several restaurants, informed of their awards, posted the news on Twitter and other social media. So Michelin agreed to release the news in the afternoon.

The Michelin Guide New York City 2016, which lists nearly 900 restaurants, goes on sale Thursday for $18.99. For the complete ranking:michelinmedia.com.

By FLORENCE FABRICANT, www.nytimes.com