Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

Top-level comments: Corton didn't impress me. Kin Shop is in downhill alert - is Dieterle even still in the kitchen? And after reading about Sam Sifton's experiences at Masa, I'm highly unlikely ever to wish to go there.

Williamsburg restaurants need to be higher on the list. Where are Diner, Aurora, and Masten Lake? And #101 for Fette Sau - the place is a pain to deal with but it's probably the best BBQ in NYC - and would win in many other cities as well. "Don’t feel like hopping the train across the river," says Platt in his Fedora review - I suspect this sums up his feeling about outer-borough food in general.

OK, for new Italian joints, Ciano is excellent. But Scarpetta is an overrated nightmare of fratboys, terrible acoustics & a parody of Conant's cooking at his earlier places.

This list is incredibly predictable... agreed with the other commenter who points out the lack of Asian food. And Redfarm is, unfortunately, mediocre.

#52 is an inside joke btw (though one of the few picks of his I'd support).

Prune should be much higher. Few NYC restaurants are as taken for granted as this temple of reliable excellence. (For that kind of food, it blows away The Dutch.)

Balthazar doesn't belong on ANYONE's list in 2011. The cracks are showing, and it feels like a tourist-filled hotel bar pretending to be a Parisian bistro. The place is a joke.

Ssäm Bar should be at the top of Chang's restaurants (can't speak to Ko, but certainly above the other two), not the bottom. It remains superb, change of chef or not.

Casa Mono is a shadow of its original self.

This list is a tired, Manhattan-centric, celebrity-oriented parody of what's happening in New York food these days. I usually enjoy Platt, but he should be ashamed.

Oh man, me too. Both as a child and now. There's something oddly addictive about Milanos (and Lidos).

I'd be interested to try these though.

Also - did someone really recommend Rein's? A fun place to go for an early taste of NYC for those completely starved for it (which is how they sell themselves), but I wouldn't call it "good".

I juiced mine the wrong way around too - thanks for the tip!

Interesting tidbit: David Thompson in 'Thai Food' advocates squeezing all limes by hand. He says the Thai find that the juice from mechanical juicers is too bitter because the pith and seeds get squeezed as well. YMMV...

Is this one of the same sons who ran that terrible pizzeria at the corner of MacDougal and Houston?

Ahem. That's the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.

I'll add a fourth voice on Red's being overrated. It's totally quantity over quality - a great lobster roll has a sense of proportion, between meat, bun and dressing. Red's is just the meat of an entire lobster piled onto the roll, with virtually nothing else. It's impossible to eat and the meat is not the best.

My favorite was H.J. Blake's on North Haven - now sadly out of business.

Steamed eggs at 7 minutes (in NYC, added when the water is already steaming) turns out perfect soft-to-medium cooked eggs, with none of the chalky consistency you get from boiled eggs. A tip I got from David Thompson's Thai Food.

Fette Sau for sure. Probably #1 in the city.

I like Virgil's but it's more like exiting NYC and entering America. That area is a bit of a black hole unfortunately.

If she's into Korean food, then Kang Suh at W 32 and Broadway for BBQ. Open 24 hours.

Would 90 minutes give you time for lunch at the 8th Ave. Shake Shack?

I wouldn't sign off on the Thai restaurants in Hell's Kitchen - total crapshoot, even at the best of them (which is probably the original Wondee Siam - note BYOB and no rezzies).

It doesn't sound like you're looking for high end, but La Grenouille is one of a kind and can't be found in this country outside NYC. I'd also nominate the Pool Room at the Four Seasons for a similar experience. Dress up.

Eataly rules but can be a zoo.

Wow! one of the best SE posts in a bit. Super stoked to try this place - thanks!

I don't think it smells that bad! I kind of like the aroma actually...