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New York City’s summer Restaurant Week is back for its 30th anniversary, with reservations now open for specially priced lunches and dinners from July 18 through August 21. Encompassing all five boroughs, the month-long program features more than 600 restaurants, including 60 of Wine Spectator’s 2022 Restaurant Award winners.
Each year, Wine Spectator honors restaurants that show a strong commitment to wine through broad, deep and carefully curated wine lists, accompanied by stellar wine service. (Learn more about the awards here.) The Restaurant Week participants span Manhattan, from Vinateria in Harlem down to Tom Colicchio’s Temple Court in the Financial District, and even include Grand Award winners, such as Upper West Side favorite Nice Matin. Wine director Aviram Turgeman said they are regular participants, as providing their guests with seasonal Provençal specialties at value prices encourages them to explore Nice Matin’s 2,500-selection wine list, which has plenty of options from the region to complement those dishes.
This summer, many New Yorkers are seeking refuge and fun in their favorite neighborhood spots, as well as making their way through their ‘must-try’ lists after two years of takeout, outdoor dining and indoor restrictions. For summer 2022, locals and visitors will be able to choose from prix-fixe lunch and dinner menus offered at $30, $45 or $60. Fred Dixon, president and CEO at NYC & Company, which organizes the event, said they are pleased to be celebrating “a major milestone coinciding with the palpable vibrancy in our city right now.”
In honor of the 30th anniversary, NYCGo created an easy-access list of classics: 14 participants from the first NYC Restaurant Week, held in 1992, including Award of Excellence winner The Palm–Midtown, Best of Award of Excellence winners Barbetta and Union Square Café and Grand Award winner Tribeca Grill. Their longevity is a remarkable accomplishment in a challenging industry that saw frequent turnover even before the pandemic.
“Restaurant Week gives us the opportunity to meet new faces and expand our own community,” said Megan Sullivan, general manager of Best of Award of Excellence winner Ci Siamo, which Danny Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality Group opened in 2021. “We’ve found that while we welcome many guests for the first time during Restaurant Week, many of those guests become regulars and longtime supporters. NYCGo has been an important advocate for our industry over the past 30 years, so it’s our pleasure to continue to be a Restaurant Week participant.”
In another nod to the 30th anniversary, many restaurants this year will include an option of wines by the bottle for $30 to complement their meals. Although wine is not a component in all of the Restaurant Week menus, some, such as Best of Award of Excellence winner Noreetuh, are taking advantage of the promotion to do something special with their wine programs.
“Restaurant Week is an opportunity for us to showcase our unique restaurant to a broader set of diners, and for us to pair wines in a coursed-out setting to match the food,” Noreetuh’s owner and wine director, Jin Ahn, said. “In today’s world, wine pairing often occurs only in a fine-dining setting. Restaurant Week enables us to showcase such luxury in a more casual environment.”
Diners can take advantage of plentiful weekday/weeknight reservations throughout the month. Saturdays are excluded and Sundays are optional. To check available dates and menus and to make reservations, visit nycgo.com/restaurant-week. The list of all participating Wine Spectator Restaurant Award winners can be found here.