Pizza, pasta, risotto, gelato… Italian food has managed to capture the hearts and stomachs of many people around the world and their food continues to dominate in terms of popularity. New York City is home to some of the best Italian restaurants that have succeeded in showcasing delicious, innovative, and well thought through cuisines.
Hungry? Here are the best Italian Michelin Star restaurants in NYC and a few that are yet to earn stars but are recommended by the Michelin Guide too.
1. Ai Fiori – 1 Michelin Star
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Ai Fiori has managed to receive numerous star recognitions from Michelin as well as The New York Times. They are located on the Second Floor of Langham Hotel, and as you enter, you are welcomed by a sweeping staircase in the hotel’s lobby. Their menu boasts Italian favourites, with a touch of a contemporary flair. Their pasta is superb, do try the thin spaghetti tossed in a chunky tomato sauce infused with scallion, garlic sweet crabmeat and spicy chilli. Finish the course with their velvety Paris-Brest.
Address: 400 5th Avenue 2nd Level the Langham NYC 10018
Operating Hours: 5-9:30PM Sunday to Thursday, 5-10PM Friday & Saturday
2. Pasquale Jones – Michelin Guide Recommendation
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Pasquale Jones is situated on the corner of Mulberry and Kenmare Streets in Manhattan’s Little Italy. The restaurant features wood-fired food and Neo-NY style pizza. It first opened its doors in 2016 and has since become an instant success. Their signature clam is a must-try while visiting their restaurant, as well as their al dente rigatoni that’s tossed in a ricotta sauce, with pork sausage. For dessert, do enjoy their lime curd topped with a mascarpone ice cream. Reservations are hard to land, so do make sure to plan ahead.
Address: 187 Mulberry St. New York, NY 10012
Operating Hours: 5-9:30PM Monday to Thursday, 5-10PM Friday, 12-3PM & 5-10PM Saturday & Sunday
3. Carbone – 1 Michelin Star
Carbone is an Italian American restaurant founded and owned by Mario Carbone, Rich Torrisi and jeff Zalaznick. The restaurant pays homage to the essence of many amazing Italian American restaurants that have come before them in the mid-20th century in New York. These restaurants captured the essence of true dining, offering customers a comfortable setting and exceptionally well-prepared food. Carbone employees can be seen around the restaurant floors cradling loaves of garlic bread with fresh mozzarella. A must-try dish is their spaghetti alla gricia.
Address: 181 Thompson St, New York, NY 10012
Operating Hours: 5-11:30PM Monday & Tuesday, 11:30AM-2PM Wednesday to Sunday
4. Marea – 1 Michelin Star
Located in Central Park South, Marea is elegant and high-class. This Italian restaurant offers top quality seafood like their Nova Scotia lobster with burrata. Their house-made pasta is exquisitely done and worth a try too. If you have a sweet tooth, tantalize your appetite with their tiramisu, which is served alongside a mascarpone gelato.
ddress: 240 Central Park S, New York, NY 10019
Operating Hours: 12-2:45PM Daily, 5:10PM Sunday to Thursday, 5-11PM Friday & Saturday
5. I Sodi – Michelin Guide Recommendation
The Manhattan area has a classic Italian and new Italian, but not many can be said to really stand out from the rest. Rita Sodi is a Tuscany native who aims to change that with her ristorante. She’s managed to consciously select every aspect of the restaurant including the design and interior. I Sodi does a stellar job with their al dente rigatoni, and their hearty and meat-focused dishes such as the Coniglio in porchetta.
Address: 105 Christopher St, New York, NY 10014
Operating Hours: 4:30-9:30PM Daily
6. L’Artusi – Michelin Guide Recommendation
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Lartusi opened in 2008 and its focus is to present a modern take on traditional Italian cuisine by combining comfort and creativity. The restaurant seats 110 customers, featuring two floors of comfortable banquette seating. Lartusi offers delicious Italian favourites such as a well-charred octopus paired with creamy potatoes, infused with chillies, olives, and savoury pancetta.
Address: 228 W 10th St, New York, NY 10014
Operating Hours: 12-2:30PM Monday to Friday, 5-11PM Sunday to Thursday, 5PM-Midnight Friday & Saturday
7. Mercato – Michelin Starred Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten
Marcato first opened its doors in 2010 and the founder Fabio Camardi, wanted to create a family-style restaurant that resembled his birthplace in southern Italy known as Taranto. Chef Emanuel Concas is a Michelin Star chef who has been in charge of the kitchen at Mercato since the first day they opened its doors. The chef and his crew continuously strive to create unique experiences of the Italian cuisines they serve. A good starter to enjoy is their fave e cicoria, which is a straightforward puree of fava beans and garlic chicory greens. A visit to an Italian restaurant is not complete without having pasta, so indulge in their orecchiette with broccoli rabe and garlic.
Address: 352 W 39th St. New York, NY 10018
Operating Hours: 11:30AM-12AM Monday to Sunday
8. Lavagna – Michelin Guide Recommendation
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Lavagna is situated in the heart of the East Village in New York City and was opened in 1999. The restaurant offers traditional Italian trattoria fare at affordable prices in a lively, casual, and intimate atmosphere. Their philosophy in the kitchen is to prepare good and simple Italian food by using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Their homemade pasta, wood oven-roasted fish, roast pork chop and their rigatoni with sweet and spicy sausage have all managed to become classic favourites for years.
Address: 545 E 5th St. New York, NY 10009
Operating Hours: 5-10PM Monday to Friday, 1-10PM Saturday & Sunday
9. Convivium Osteria – A Bib Gourmand
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The chef and owners Carlo and Michelle Pulixi run this Italian restaurant that’s known to stop anyone passing by in their tracks. The establishment’s aesthetic is homey and quaint with rustic clay urns and gleaming copper pots to reflect the chef’s Sardinian roots. The menu is built around meat that’s carefully sourced. Some items to try on their menu are their braised artichokes, and the agnello, which is a pistachio-crusted roasted lamb in a red wine sauce.
Address: 68 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11217
Operating Hours: 5-10PM Tuesday to Thursday, 5-10:30 Friday & Saturday, 5-9PM Sunday
Get ready for a flavour sensation. These Michelin Italian restaurants In NYC all deserve a try!