Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

Yay--A question about my neighborhood!
I highly suggest eating dinner at the bars in any of the nicer restaurants in the area (no need for a reservation). Chances are you'll be able to spend about $30 for dinner on an appetizer or two and a drink.
I'd suggest getting appetizers at the bar at Fatty Crab (broadway and 77th) (nothing goes better with their "fatty sliders" than PBR in a can for $3), Cafe Frida for truly excellent mexican on 77th and Columbus (again, sit at the bar), and Salumeria Rosi for cured meats and wine (Amsterdam and 73rd). If you want to splurge, Dovetail does an excellent Sunday Supper for $38 (on Sundays, of course!)--they also have a great bar. I believe Telepan does as well (69th and Columbus), but check. Both may be a bit too fussy for your taste.

Wine bars with food:
Barcibo Enoteca 69th and Broadway
Bin 71 (columbus and 71--also one of my favorite quiet brunch spots on weekends. Always a seat. Good panini)

Burgers, pizza, and pubs, and cheap eats:
burger and a beer at the "Amsterdam Ale House (formerly Westside Brewery) on 76th and Amsterdam, or follow the trend and go to Shake Shack (Manhattan's In and Out) on Columbus and 77th
Patsy's for pizza on Columbus and 76th (no delivery or slices--but they do have "individual pizzas)
or Rigoletto for pizza (Columbus and 70th)
I like Maoz for their falafel boxes (Broadway and 70th)
Aroma Cafe on 72nd between b-way and columbus has good sandwiches I'm told and free wifi

Dessert
Gellato at Grom on Broadway and 77th (or thereabouts)
Cupcakes at Magnolia on 69th and Amsterdam (another trend)

I second recommendations for:
Levain cookies
Beard Papa cream puffs
Grandaisy
Zabars
Barney Greengrass
La Caridad
Putting together a picnic and eating in the park (either Riverside or Central Park)

Finally, Harry's Burritos has a happy hour if you're looking for a cheap margarita to unwind with (but don't eat there!)
And the boat basin cafe at the 79th Street Boat basin (79th and hudson river) is a good place to get a sandwich and a drink and watch the river. Not great food, but you can't beat the location.

I'm not sure if smoked whitefish is always Haddock. You would have to ask. If you're looking for the equivalent of Finnan Haddie, the only place I've found it is Citarella (and every supermarket in Maine). Russ and Daughters, Zabar's, and Fairway do not carry it--or at least they didn't when I was looking in December.

This is excellent to know. It sounds like should the best thing to do is supplement the microwave/convec with a large countertop convection oven if I can't reconfigure the kitchen and put in an in-wall convection oven.

This is excellent advice. I shall be heading to the Trader Joe's directly (of course, the one in Manhattan is typically out of food, but I will try!)

Tortillas
Cheese
These two items have made my life infinitely better

@cyberoo Damp Potholders, I've suffered from their ill effects time and time again. (It's just a little damp, it's still a pot holder, surely I'll be fine. Stupid.) Young and frustrated, I tried to finish opening a can of Crisco with my hand, after the can opener had failed halfway. That did not go well.

Oh, I do hope this arrives at a netflix near me!

"Yuba Shabu tofu cord cooked in a earthware pot"--a bittersweet favorite as it is no longer offered at Yakitori Totto, the only place I've personally had the delight of experiencing it. And what delight! Wonderful, thin strips of yuba cooked in a bubbling pot filled with a magical concoction (soy something perhaps) then eaten, always, just a little too hot. Alas, it is no longer on the menu--quite possibly because of diners like me, who accidentally caused a small eruption after not tending the pot. Forgive!

There are marvelous desserts you can do on the stove. For dessert, you could poach some pears or quince (I once used Japanese plum wine and it worked well) and serve with creme anglaise and maybe pomegranate seeds if the color worked. Toasted nuts (in a pan or the toaster oven) always seem to make holidays feel more holiday-ish, I think, and can be worked in with salads or any winter vegetable roasted in the toaster oven (brussels sprouts, cubes of butternut squash, etc.) For snacks, you could make some candied pecans--toss with some corn syrup and, if you want a kick, cayenne pepper, and throw in the toaster. As for the beef, I would be very excited to be fed the Beef Bourguignon other posters have mentioned!