How to Find a Restaurant in New York

New York, New York. The world-famous city is known not only for its monuments, museums and nightlife, but also for its ever-evolving selection of food. Nestled among Laundromats, coffee shops and retail stores sit some of the world’s finest restaurants. Read on to discover how you can find delicious cuisine for any occasion.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Computer with Internet Access
• Telephone line
• Zagat Survey (optional)

1. Decide your rough budget by determining a general range of how much the payee wants to spend on the dinner. Subtract 26.375% (18% suggested tip and 8.375% tax) from the total and divide by the number of attendees. The final number is your ideal cost per plate for dinner and drinks.
2. Log on to the Internet. Many sites such as http://menupages.com and http://newyork.citysearch.com/ allow users to search New York’s restaurants by cuisine, price and location, enabling diners a wide range of choices based on their needs. If you have access to a Zagat Survey guide for New York City, you can find similar information along with a street map and special features such as “child friendly” locations and restaurants with the “hottest servers.” (Zagat Survey can be found on the Internet at www.zagats.com; the site requires paid membership.)
3. Read reviews of venues that interest you. Both websites listed above and Zagat Survey allow readers to rate their experience after a visit. These reviewers do not get paid and are unaffiliated with the establishment, so you can feel (relatively) confident that the evaluation is unbiased.
4. Make a decision based on your research and phone for reservations. Be sure to find out dress code and cancellation policy before confirming your time slot.

Tips & Warnings

• Make your reservations in advance. While a lunchtime slot is easier to secure than a dinner reservation, be aware that restaurants—especially good ones—rarely have a free seat at peak times.
• Many restaurants will not take reservations more than one month early. Some don’t take reservations at all.
• Restaurants can ask diners without reservations to wait two hours or more for a table.