Sylvia's Restaurant is a soul food restaurant in Harlem, New York City.
Sylvia Woods's Harlem soul-food restaurant has served fried chicken, collards and yams in New York City since 1962. Kitchen leans soul food.
Editorially verified May 18, 2026 by Lewis Vaughan, TableJourney editor. Source.
Signature dishes: Smothered chicken, Cornbread
Must order: Smothered chicken, candied yams, cornbread.
Tip: Sunday brunch books up two weeks in advance. Weeknight dinner is the easy seat for the same menu.
Address: 328 Malcolm X Boulevard, New York, NY 10027, New York City
Marcus Samuelsson's Lenox Avenue Harlem room runs an Afro-Swedish-Southern hybrid menu in New York City. Priced at $$$. Kitchen leans soul food.
Signature: Yard bird fried chicken, Helga's meatballs
Order: Yard bird fried chicken with mac and greens.
Tip: Sunday brunch is the room's big draw; bookings essential. Bar walk-ins for a quick supper around 18:00.
Amy Ruth's on West 116th Street has served chicken and waffles in Harlem, New York City since 1998. Order the the reverend al sharpton: chicken and waffles.
Signature: Chicken and waffles, Smoked turkey wing
Order: The Reverend Al Sharpton: chicken and waffles.
Tip: Weekend brunch is the destination; weeknight dinner serves the same plate without the wait.
Marcus Samuelsson's Lenox Avenue Harlem room runs an Afro-Swedish-Southern hybrid menu in New York City. Priced at $$$. Kitchen leans soul food.
Signature: Yard bird fried chicken, Helga's meatballs
Order: Yard bird fried chicken with mac and greens.
Tip: Sunday brunch is the room's big draw; bookings essential. Bar walk-ins for a quick supper around 18:00.
Amy Ruth's on West 116th Street has served chicken and waffles in Harlem, New York City since 1998. Order the the reverend al sharpton: chicken and waffles.
Signature: Chicken and waffles, Smoked turkey wing
Order: The Reverend Al Sharpton: chicken and waffles.
Tip: Weekend brunch is the destination; weeknight dinner serves the same plate without the wait.
ABA Turkish Restaurant on West 57th runs charcoal-grilled lamb and Mediterranean mezes a block from Central Park in Midtown West, New York City.
Signature: Iskender kebab, Lamb adana
Order: Iskender kebab: vertically grilled lamb on pide bread under tomato sauce and yoghurt.
Tip: Halal kitchen, open 11:00-22:00 daily; the lamb chop platter and the kunefe dessert are the consistent picks across recent reviews.
Thai Villa near Union Square serves Bangkok and Chiang Mai cooking in Flatiron, New York City. Order the crab fried rice and the khao soi northern curry.
Signature: Pad kee mao, Khao soi
Order: Crab fried rice and the khao soi northern curry.
Tip: Two seatings on weekends: 18:30 and 21:00. The 21:00 service is quieter and easier to walk into without a wait.
Miss Lily's on Houston Street has run Jamaican island food in SoHo, New York City since 2010. Jerk chicken from the wood smoker, daiquiris from the back bar.
Signature: Jerk chicken, Curry goat
Order: Jerk chicken, rice and peas, fried plantains.
Tip: DJ nights run loud past 22:00. Brunch is the calmer service if you want to talk.
Yopparai on Clinton Street runs the Lower East Side's most serious sake bar in New York City. 70 by-the-cup sakes, izakaya snacks, 25 covers.
Signature: Sashimi platter, Sake flight
Order: Sake flight of three small cups and the daily sashimi.
Tip: Sake flights run with three-paragraph notes per pour. Bring patience and a friend who reads.
