The top reason you should ring in the New Year in New York City is that, whether you’re looking for a high-octane champagne infused dance party or a mellow sit-down dinner, options catering to every whim and taste abound around town.
Should your celebratory checklist include an Italian meal, we’ve highlighted some of our favorite places to indulge in the final hours of the decade. It is never too early to cheers to 2020 so...Buon Anno!
This rustic, Italian farmhouse is ramping up its chill vibe by hosting a fabulous dinner party, complete with an acclaimed jazz quartet and dancing, to usher in the new decade. Cocktail hour kicks off at 8 pm featuring an open bar, a raw bar with east and west coast oysters and shrimp cocktail among the pickings and passed hors d' oeuvres like parmigiano arancini, caviar with crème fraîche on ancient grain timilia crackers and short ribs skewers. Guests will feast on specialty dishes during a buffet-style dinner. Choices include delicious housemade salumi and cheese, crudités with tahini and yogurt dipping sauce, casarecce pasta with shaved brussels and guanciale, agnolotti with black truffles, whole roasted fish, and wagyu with salsa verde and romesco, concluding with gelato cones and assorted cookies for dessert. All revelers will be sent home with a treat. Reservations are required via Resy; $275 per person, plus tax. Dress code reflects the NoHo neighborhood-style: anything goes.
Il Buco Alimentari
Beatrice and Julio, the husband and wife duo behind this tiny, hip gem on Lower East Side, are ringing in the New Year with traditional Italian dishes filled with symbolic gestures for a “good end and a good beginning.” That means lots of “cchie”, or lenticchie inspired recipes representing luck and prosperity like cotechino served with seasoned sausage, wine broth, vegetables and lentils, and the zampone, a deboned pig trotter stuffed with sausage meat. Pork signifies the bounty of the land while the pomegranate included in red Sicilian shrimp crudo with burrata appetizer is for loyalty and fertility. An a la carte menu is also available. With less than 40 seats in the house, you need luck on your side to get a table, especially after 9 pm when the festivities ramp up. If you’re in, expect a limoncello toast with Julio.
Il Posto Accanto
If over-the-top Ibiza style revelry is your jam, LAVO Nightclub is throwing a lavish New Year’s Eve bash from 9 pm – 1 am. This trendsetting hot spot with its sprawling dance floor, luxe banquettes and state-of-the-art lighting and sound system will pump up the volume into 2020 with a premium open bar, a live DJ spinning tracks from hip hop to house to mashups, complimentary hors d’oeuvres and a champagne toast at midnight plus party favors. Tickets run from $150 to a $5,000 VIP experience for 20, which includes reserved seating and bottle service. Should you crave an Italian meal while celebrating the night away, book a table for the 9:30 pm seating at the restaurant upstairs. (There are also 5 pm and 7 pm slots). Festivities are similar to the nightclub atmosphere, except here you can order food from the all-day menu. It’s a $300 food and drinks minimum per person.
Lavo
Those who've peaked on the holiday merriment and prefer a no-frills yet a no less than mouth-watering dinner should head to this charming Williamsburg oasis. December 31st will be business as usual, serving up a standard menu and keeping to regular hours of operation, although Chef Missy Robbins cooking is anything but ordinary. Her famous hand-crafted pastas including the sheep's milk cheese-filled agnolotti with saffron, dried tomato, and honey or the mafaldini, pink peppercorn, parmigiano, are alone a culinary celebration. House classics like the cacio e pepe fritelle and the grilled clams with calabrian chili and breadcrumbs are available without a tweak. What makes this meal unusual; however, are those Friday feels on a Tuesday since Wednesday is a day off. So go ahead, have another round of negronis.
Lilia (ph Evan Sung)
For its inaugural New Year’s Eve, award-winning chef Alfred Portale, who spent more than 30 years at Gotham Bar and Grill, is offering two options for guests at his new Chelsea restaurant which opened its doors in November. For those with late-night plans who want a food experience, a three-course prix fixe seating for $85 is available from 5:45 pm - 6:45 pm. Short rib carpaccio is among the antipasti choices, and entrée options include seafood spaghetti with ruby red shrimp, clams, and octopus along with an olive oil cake or a molten chocolate tart for dessert. If dinner is your main event, a $175 five-course tasting menu with wine pairings ($135 additional charge) is being served from 7:45 pm – 10 pm. You will feast on dishes such as mafaldine pasta with black truffle, halibut with osetra caviar, shaved brussels sprouts and romanesco cauliflower, plus a rack of lamb. There will be a complimentary champagne toast at midnight, and if you happen to walk in and score a seat at the bar, selections from the tasting menu are available to order. Table reservations are required.
Portale