2. Hearth – East Village
Hearth is the perfect home away from home for Thanksgiving. With a cozy atmosphere, Italian-influenced “healthy fine dining,” and a James Beard Award nomination, it’s probably a better place to celebrate the holiday than home. Start with autumn squash soup with creme fraiche or a pear and Pecorino salad, then move on to roasted turkey breast with mushroom leak stuffing, cranberry sauce, turkey gravy, and traditional sides. Finish with pumpkin pumpkin mousse or apple crisp. A three-course dinner is $128 per person and an optional wine pairing is also available for $42. Visit the site for reservations.
3. Carmine’s – Times Square and the Upper West Side
Can’t fit visiting family members at your dining table, or just can’t understand the joy of cooking for hours on end? Carmine’s offers a family-style Thanksgiving menu with an 18-pound turkey and all the traditional fixings, sides, and pies. The dinner package feeds 6-8 people for $395. It’s available for dine-in, take-out, and delivery. Call or pre-order online. If you prefer pasta to potatoes, the restaurant’s regular menu is also available for dine-in clients.
4. Fraunces Tavern – Financial District
For something a little different and so uniquely New York, head to this historic tavern for a traditional holiday feast. This year’s menu consists of turkey, steak, branzino, or short rib pappardelle. Close out the meal with date and sticky toffee pudding or harvest pumpkin pie. To make your reservation, email info@frauncestavern.com or call 212-968-1776.
5. Bubby’s – Tribeca
Enjoy a family-style meal at Bubby’s, which offers a Thanksgiving menu that includes deviled eggs, a market salad, pickled market vegetables, and buttermilk biscuits for starters, followed by a choice of roasted turkey and old-fashioned ham with pineapples and cherries, plus all the sides: cornbread sausage stuffing, green bean casserole, candied sweet potatoes, and roasted seasonal veggies. The prix fixe menu is $125 for adults and $70 for kids under 10, not including beverages. A Thanksgiving take-out menu is also available.
6. Hill Country Barbecue – Flatiron
Want a little sweet tea with your turkey? For Southerners who miss home cooking or native New Yorkers who want something out of the ordinary, Hill Country pays tribute to the lone star state by smoking its barbecue low and slow over Texas post oak. This year’s Texas-style Thanksgiving menu showcases pit-smoked turkey, signature barbecue, and all the traditional sides and desserts. The meal runs $95 per adult and $45 for kids ages 5-12. Bonus: Kids under 5 eat for FREE! Reserve your feast online for takeout or make reservations to dine in.
7. Oceana – Rockefeller Center
Oceana, one of New York’s top seafood restaurants, offers a three-course, prix fixe meal that costs $105 for adults and $55 for kids under 12. A mouth-watering menu includes traditional favorites plus seafood specialties, including crab cakes, grilled swordfish, seared branzino, and more. An orange dreamsicle parfait sounds like the perfect sweet ending to this meal.
8. Cote – Flatiron District
If you’re thinking a little outside the box for Thanksgiving dinner, how about ordering some Korean barbecue? Billed as NYC’s first Korean steakhouse, Cote offers a Thanksgiving feast featuring four different cuts of USDA prime and American Wagyu beef. The meal also includes Korean side dishes and accompaniments like noodles, stews, and an assortment of lettuce leaves to wrap your meat. Cost is $158 per person.
9. Orsay – Midtown East
This modern French restaurant offers a three-course prix fixe menu that includes harvest salad, a choice of turkey with all the trimmings, sirloin steak, or salmon, and dessert. It’s $82 per adult and $35 for kids under 11.
10. The Regency Bar & Grill – Upper East Side
For an indulgent Thanksgiving dinner experience, consider booking at the Upper East Side’s Loews Regency New York Hotel, where the menu kicks off with a roasted butternut square and Granny Smith soup or seasonal beet salad. Main courses include traditional turkey and fixings or options like crusted filet of beef and pan-seared halibut. Finish off with a selection of seasonal pies, including maple pecan or pumpkin. $185 for adults and $65 for children under 12. Book your reservation in advance for this sit-down affair.
11. Friend of a Farmer – Upper West Side and Gramercy Park
Since opening its doors in 1986, this rustic spot has been instrumental in promoting the farm-to-table movement in NYC. Its Thanksgiving menu features its usual seasonally fresh and local ingredients and includes oven-roasted turkey with the traditional fixings: mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, gravy, and cornbread stuffing. The feast runs $100 per person and should be booked in advance online.
12. Freemans Restaurant – Lower East Side
Hidden at the end of a Lower East Side alley, this hip spot serves a four-course traditional Thanksgiving dinner for $132 per person. Highlights from last year’s menu include a hot artichoke dip, spiced carrot soup, roasted turkey with mashed potatoes, and gravy. This year’s menu will be released on the website soon. Make reservations online.
13. Tavern on the Green – Central Park
Celebrate a classic New York Thanksgiving in Central Park and enjoy executive chef Bill Peet’s traditional five-course Thanksgiving menu with turkey and all the trimmings. Dinner costs $135 per adult and $65 for children 12 and younger. Email reservations@tavernonthegreen.com or call 212-877-8684 to book.
14. Jones Wood Foundry – Upper East Side
Jones Wood Foundry is a food-driven pub that uses locally sourced ingredients to put an updated twist on British culinary traditions. On Thanksgiving, chefs prepare a turkey dinner with trimmings, including sausage and sage stuffing, caramelized Brussels sprouts, sweet potato purée, roasted potatoes, and honey-roasted carrots, served with gravy and cranberry sauce. Dinner is $98 per person; $44 for kids under 6. Visit the website to book your reservations. Prefer to stay in? Order a similar menu to-go and reheat it at home.
15. The Fulton by Jean-Georges – South Street Seaport
The Fulton spices up its three-course Thanksgiving prix fixe menu with festive pies, including farm stand apple pie, heirloom pumpkin, and classic pecan. While you can enjoy a traditional turkey and all the fixings, other options include black sea bass or longevity noodles. The meal is $168 per person. Guarantee a spot by making a reservation.
16. Charlie Palmer Steak New York – Midtown
Thanksgiving dinner at this modern American steakhouse is $97 per person. The family-style menu includes roasted heritage turkey with classic stuffing, traditional sides, and sugar pumpkin cheesecake for dessert. Book your reservations online.
17. Noho Hospitality Group – Manhattan
Multiple locations
Several Manhattan restaurants are part of the Noho Hospitality Group and offer decadent Thanksgiving dinners for both dine-in and take out, including The Dutch where guests can enjoy a family-style main course that includes organic roast turkey, mashed potatoes, rich turkey gravy, and spoonbread stuffing for $155 per guest; $68 for children 12 and under.
The nearby Lafayette restaurant is also serving tasty fare. For $135 per person ($68 for children 12 and under), guests select their choice of appetizer, entrée, and dessert from several delectable options. See the menu online.
18. Bateaux New York – Chelsea
Hop aboard the glass-enclosed Bateaux New York for a luxurious Thanksgiving Day cruise. Enjoy a chef-prepared, three-course, plated, holiday menu while taking in spectacular views of the Manhattan, Brooklyn, and New Jersey skylines. The cruise comes in at $140 for adults and $119 for children ages 4-12. It’s FREE for ages 3 and under.
Restaurants Open on Thanksgiving in Brooklyn
19. BKLYN Larder – Prospect Heights, Brooklyn
If you want to enjoy Thanksgiving at home without the work, reserve your meal from BKLYN Larder, a local establishment that’s been supplying Park Slope and Prospect Heights with hand-crafted cheeses, homemade prepared foods, and hard-to-find grocery items. For Thanksgiving, choose either a whole turkey or a turkey roll—a de-boned turkey with pork stuffing—and a variety of side dishes and sweets. Order online or email catering@bklynlarder.com.
20. As You Are – Boerum Hill
This cozy spot in the Ace Hotel offers a cornucopia of flavors curated by Chef Camille Becerra, including a hearty turkey dinner accompanied by your choice of delectable sides. A kids turkey dinner is also available. Make your reservation online.
21. Palo Santo – Park Slope
Palo Santo, a neighborhood favorite, peppers its Thanksgiving menu with Latin-inspired flavors. There’s turkey, of course, but also fish, meat, and vegetarian options. A three-course meal runs $75 per person, with an optional wine flight for $25 and a kids’ menu for $45 (with smaller portions of the same options). There will be three seatings at 2pm, 5pm, and 8pm. Reserve online.
22. Leuca – Williamsburg
Located in The William Vale, this restaurant serves Southern Italian cuisine such as handmade pasta, wood-fired pizza, and rustic dishes. For Thanksgiving, enjoy an Italian-inspired prix fixe menu featuring a variety of antipasti, turkey with apple fennel sausage stuffing, and Sicilian pistachio cake. The menu is $125 per person. Make reservations online.
23. Stone Park Cafe – Park Slope
Celebrate the holiday with a three-course menu with a choice of entree, including free-range turkey, vegetable pot pie, or pan-seared halibut and your choice of seasonal sides. Sweets include warm apple strudel pie and chocolate bourbon pecan pie. Reserve now; $100 per person.
More Restaurants Open on Thanksgiving in NYC
24. The Queensboro – Jackson Heights, Queens
This festive meal includes a seasonal salad, heritage turkey, and traditional sides. There are also beef, fish, and vegetarian options. Round out the feast with a selection of sweet pies. Dinner is $86 per person; make reservations online.
25. Victory Garden Cafe – Astoria, Queens
Try a Mediterranean-inspired feast for Thanksgiving from this family-owned bistro. This wallet-friendly holiday menu offers a choice of main course—turkey, lamb chops, or shrimp scampi, a Greek salad, and a signature Greek dessert—all for $49.95. Reserve online or by phone.
26. Bario’s – Heartland Village, Staten Island
This Staten Island restaurant has an extensive catering menu for every major holiday. Its Thanksgiving feast serves 6-8 and includes a 10-12 pound turkey, all the fixings, veggies, appetizers, bread, salads, pasta, and dessert for $249. For an extra-large group of up to 15, you can feast on a 20-pound turkey with all the fixings for $349. Call or order online.
Unless noted, photos courtesy of the restaurants. A version of this story was published in 2017; it is updated annually.