Are you visiting NYC for Thanksgiving? Or a local and you’re sticking around for Friendsgiving? Maybe you’re tired of being the host with the most? (read as: NO cooking for once!)
Any reason is a good reason to be in the Big Apple for the holiday. And we’re here to help! Below are our top picks for Thanksgiving Day feasts – mostly pre-fixe menus with two takeout options thrown in. Get ready for a mess-free, stress-free holiday with plenty of extra time to explore this amazing city!
For an Italian twist on traditional: Rafele
Rafele is offering up a delicious menu for Thanksgiving. They’ll have a roasted organic turkey with pork belly(!) served alongside Italian stuffing and a red wine reduction – YUM! Get an autumn salad and butternut squash soup to start (with fried Buffalo ricotta clouds!). The added bonus here is a delicious pasta to start. Butternut squash & burrata stuffed cannelloni with bechamel & parmesan. Drooling. And don’t forget about dessert – a pumpkin twist on their famous ricotta cheesecake or a taste of ‘Mamma Fedora’s apple pie’ is sure to send you off in a festive mood.
Let the heat from the restaurant’s wood-fired oven and the smoke from Chef Raffaele’s good looks warm your heart and soul this year.
$67 per person
29 7th Ave S, New York, NY 10014 – rafele.com – (212) 242-1999
Blow your diet, in style: Il Buco Alimentari e Vineria
Il Buco Alimentari e Vineria is doing a beautiful Thanksgiving menu, with decadent family-style sides and your choice of antipasti and main courses. Imagine antipasti such as chicories which are slow roasted beets with local yogurt & porcini vinaigrette, as well as crispy brussels sprouts with toasted peanuts, mustard, shallots & garlic colatura – let your mind and tastebuds linger on that. Traditional meets unique with your choices – you can’t go wrong with turkey and sourdough stuffing or switch it up and try the cod en papillote or mushroom/sage/pumpkin seed risotto. And beautiful extends to the space as well. In short, Il Buco Alimentari e Vineria does everything right. Both the cuisine and the space are reminiscent of a rustic market straight out of Tuscany.
$105 per person
Thanksgiving 2019
53 Great Jones St, New York, NY 10012 – ilbucovineria.com – (212) 837-2622
How the hip and happening do the Holiday: The Smile
The Smile is a beautiful space in Nolita offering a LOT of food to satisfy all of your deep Thanksgiving day desires. Start with a choice of butternut squash soup or the kale & honeynut squash salad (goat cheese, honey nut squash, toasted pumpkin seeds, champagne vinaigrette – YUM!). Alongside their apple-cider brined turkey, you’ll get delectable sides such as olive oil & caper mashed potatoes (unique spin!) or brussel sprouts with pomegranate seeds and bacon (bacon makes brussels sing!). The classics leveled WAY up. Top it off with a brown butter pumpkin pie from renowned Four & Twenty Blackbirds (browning butter is the key to success in cooking & life!) or an apple crumble and you’ll be guaranteed to roll home full and happy. P.S. Only the cool kids need apply: This place is hipper than Brooklyn.
$75 per person, vegetarian and vegan options available
Children 10 and under are 1/2 price.
Optional American wine pairing | $38 per guest
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26 Bond St, New York, NY 10012 – thesmilenyc.com – (646) 329-5836
If ambiance is your angle: Palma restaurant
Viewing this amazing converted farmhouse is a must for any NYC visit. But come for the Thanksgiving fare and you’ll have an experience you’ll never forget. Fresh flowers adorn every inch of this 1810 carriage house, embracing you with warmth and a familial spirit. Tuck into fabulous antipasti and then either spinach and mushroom truffle fettuccine (!!) or pumpkin ravioli with sage & brown butter sauce (woot there it is!) , before choosing turkey, porchetta or seabass as your main. An apple or chocolate torta completes your delectable dining experience at Palma.
$85 per person
28 Cornelia Street, New York, NY 10014 – palmanyc.com – (212) 691-2223
To experience a reinvention of a neighborhood staple – with divine results: Dante
The original Caffe Dante opened in 1915 and was a neighborhood staple for many years. In 2015, the owners entrusted New-York based Aussies to carry on the tradition and put their unique spin on things. And this Thanksgiving, we are thankful for them. They are known for their amazing cocktails so naturally their Thanksgiving menu starts with a beautiful autumnal cocktail. Then move onto your choice of shrimp cocktail, the famous Lioni burrata (made locally by hand in Brooklyn) or the San Daniele prosciutto. Move along to their beautiful turkey or fazzoletti pasta. Simply spoil yourself with sides with choices such as: roasted squash and sweet potato with cinnamon creme fraiche, collard greens with ham and jalepeno vinegar, or truffle mac n cheese (can it be Thanksgiving Day now please?!). Finish out your night with choice of: bourbon pecan pie, butternut pumpkin pie, or Dante’s pumpkin eggnog (all 3 please!). Enjoy your time on this iconic street with a meal that is just as iconic. You’ll have stories to take you through the holiday season.
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$90 per person
79-81 MacDougal Street, New York, NY 1014 – https://www.dante-nyc.com/welcome/ – (212) 982-5275
BE THE FAMILY HERO
Get Thanksgiving to Go! More time to socialize with friends and family, run that Turkey Trot, watch the parade and/or football – really just do WHATEVER you want instead of prep and clean all day long.
The Smile TO GO
Plenty of traditional and unique options sure to impress (you’re going to pass it off as your own cooking, right? Pro tip: Just throw the containers far, far away ahead of time!). Artisanal cheeses and charcuterie to start, traditional turkey and interesting sides for the main course (pumpkin feta chive biscuits!), & brown butter pumpkin pie to close it out. Home run holiday!
Thanksgiving order form 2019
Il Buco Vineria TO GO
The whole she-bang – turkey, sides & dessert to feed 10 people for $450. Worth it to not have to cook AT ALL? Yes!
Or procure just your turkey and turkey gravy from Il Buco and tackle the sides yourself. The turkey really is the hardest and most time-consuming part. Spend some time perfecting those mashed potatoes (or enjoying a drink) instead!
Place your order online, over the phone, or by email.
Thanksgiving Catering 2019 or call (212) 837-2622
After you feast, come visit us over the holiday weekend to walk off your meal and learn a bit about the city with a Foods of NY Tours Food Tour! (And there will still be food – it’s Thanksgiving weekend after all!)
Enjoy! Let us know what you decide. Happy Thanksgiving from our home to yours!
Love,
The Staff at Foods of NY Tours
