NYC Guides, Midtown South/Chelsea

Below, you will find restaurants/specialty shops that have been categorized by their respective cuisines.  I have only included venues where I have personally either dined-in or ordered-out.  

 *For listings without links, please refer to Menupages or New York Magazine for further information.

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American 

• Cafeteria  Modern American diner food served in a retro-chic atmosphere~perfect mac n' cheese served by some of Chelsea's best looking male waiters
• Colicchio & Sons  Tap Room
• Cookshop  Simple and clean American served in a bright and modern atmosphere~brunch is a stand out
• Elmo  FABULOUS gay eye-candy
• Friedman's Lunch  reasonably priced, scratch-made American comfort food
• Highpoint Bistro & Bar
• Hill Country Chicken
• Mesa Grill  Highly recommended for a unique brunch
• The NoMad
• The Standard Grill 
• Tipsy Parson
  
• Trailer Park Lounge & Grill
  

Bagels

• Murray's Bagels
• The Corner Cafe 

Bakery/cafe

• Amy's Bread  at Chelsea Market: Grab & go bakery with wonderful sandwiches~make sure to try the grilled cheese made with NY State cheddar
• Big Booty Bread Co  Without question, the neighborhood's best bakery with a unique Latin flare
• Billy's Bakery  Though I've only had their uber delicious cupcakes, I hear they've got many other delicious treats. This is Katie Holmes' favorite cupcake joint!
• CupcakeStop
• Doughnut Plant  donuts
  
• Fat Witch Bakery
  
• Forager's City Grocer
• Haven's Kitchen  bakery/cafe, cooking school
• La Bergamote  French patisserie
• Macaron Cafe
  
• Ronnybrook Milk Bar
• Stick & Pop
• The City Bakery  sandwiches & stuff, too!
• The Donut Pub
  

Bar food

• 230 Fifth Avenue
• Chelsea Brewing Company  After hitting golf balls at Chelsea Piers, nothing tastes better than an ice cold beer and some damn good nachos...especially when you're enjoying these in a great "brew pub" atmosphere overlooking the Hudson River
• Stout NYC  Located in a "restaurant desert," this bar/restaurant serves up ice cold beers, great burgers and shockingly good pizzas

BBQ

• Hill Country  The most lean and tender brisket in the city~decent side dishes~homemade peanut butter and jelly cupcakes for dessert

Belgian

• Markt  My favorite nabe standby restaurant~consistently great Belgian fare and beer served in a charming atmosphere~great burgers, fries, French onion soup and brunch

Burgers

• brgr  NYC's chic version of the Wendy's burger (square-shaped patty that sits perfectly on a simple bun) with wonderful additions including brie cheese & sliced avocado~home to some of the best chocolate chip cookies in the city
• Pop Burger  I'm convinced that Pop Burger started the haute-mini-beef burger (a.k.a. slider) craze across the country~yummy key lime martinis~retro chic atmosphere
• Rare Bar & Grill
  

Chinese

• Buddakan  Sexy Meatpacking Asian with wonderful food and fantastic interior design~mingle amongst cougar packs, wannabes, movie stars and the Wall Street crowd
• Grand Sichuan International
  
• Lan Sheng
• Rickshaw Dumpling Bar  What a concept! Order your dumplings at the counter, then decide if you want to take them home or eat them at the restaurant~make sure to order a homemade lemonade and the dessert dumplings (filled with hot chocolate) to go along with your meal
• Szechuan Gourmet 

Coffee shop

• Stumptown Coffee 
  

Diner

• Eisenberg's Sandwich Shop  Home of the best grilled cheese sandwich in town~grab a stool at the counter, take-out or order in...This place is great
• Hollywood Diner 
• New Venus 
• Skylight Diner  The Lunch Belle's favorite diner~yummy patty melts, fries, milk shakes and baklava

Food truck

• Desi Food Truck  Indian

French 

• Gascogne

Gastropub

• The Breslin Bar & Dining Room 

Gourmet/specialty

• Eataly  Italian superstore brought to you by Mario Batali & friends
• Forager's City Grocer  grocer, take-away
  
• Haven's Kitchen  bakery/cafe, cooking school
• Trader Joe's

Greek

• Periyali  Yummy neighborhood Greek with great service and tasty food served in a warm and intimate setting

Indian

• Junoon
• The Kati Roll Company

Italian

• Del Posto
• Donatella
• Le Zie
  
• Lugo Caffe  Italian served up in a swanky, art deco atmosphere~enjoy homemade pastas, pizzas and a vast outdoor patio located across the street from Madison Sq. Garden
• Manzo  located within Eataly
  
• Scarpetta
  
• Tre Dici  Delicious Italian served in a chic atmosphere~great prices, homemade pastas and wonderful service make this neighborhood spot a true gem
• Zio

Korean

• Koryodang  bakery, bubble tea, shave ice
• Kunjip

Mexican

• Crema Restaurante  Haute Mexican in Chelsea~gorgeous atmosphere, great cocktails~upscale twist on traditional Mexican~be weary of steep prices
• El Idolo Taco Truck
• El Ranchito del Agave
• Great Burrito
  

Middle Eastern/Mediterranean

• ilili
• Olympic Pita  Kosher, as well
• The Hummus & Pita Co.

Pizza

• Famous Original Ray's Pizza
• Gotham Pizza
• Patsy's Pizzeria
• 2 Bros. Pizza  ($1/slice!)
  

Sandwiches, soups, salads, etc.

• Bluedog Cafe
• Forager's City Grocer  grocer, take-away
  
• Grey Dog Coffee
• Lenny's  Some of NYC's best sandwiches~make sure to try one made with their amazing chicken cutlet~sit-in or grab & go
• Zeytinz
  

Seafood

• BLT Fish
• The John Dory Oyster Bar

Spanish/tapas

• Boqueria

Specialty

• The Lobster Place

Steakhouse

• Keen's Steakhouse  The best filet mignon in Manhattan, in my humble opinion, served in one of the most charming and romantic spaces of all time~highly recommended

Sushi/Japanese

• Momoya Chelsea  sushi and hot dishes~great lobster tempura roll
• Morimoto