East Village Restaurant Guide 2021
My favorite places to eat in the East Village after living here for a short 5 months.
Breakfast, Brunch, Coffee & Juice
Tompkins Square Bagels
A classic East Village breakfast spot. Perfect for a Sunday morning, post night out bagel. They have basically anything you could ever want to put on a bagel. I like their sun-dried tomato cream cheese, birthday cake cream cheese, as well as their chicken sausage and caramelized onions. You really can’t go wrong here. Lines can be long, but you can order online ahead of time!
Veselka
I’ve only been here once for brunch but I really loved their smoked salmon eggs benedict. It came with potato pancakes that were incredible and it was a very satisfying brunch. Their portions are large, and their pierogis are also very tasty.
Mudspot
This is a very no-frills brunch spot and they have really incredible rich coffee. Their iced maple mud latte is incredible, and everything on the breakfast menu is well made, seasoned and presented. There is almost always a wait on the weekends but the tables turn over fairly quickly. The interior is also very cute.
All the King’s Horses
This is a coffee spot with really good high quality coffee. I was impressed by their iced latte and felt like it was strong and not overpowering.
East Village Organic
I’ve probably spent most of my money at this grocery store, but they have the best juices and smoothies. I don’t know what it is about their juices but they are always fresh and they have tons of options. I’ve also heard they make amazing acai bowls! They have a super friendly staff and have awesome organic food options as well.
Lunch
Evil Katsu
This place very recently opened up and my god it is good. It’s a bit on the pricier side but their katsu is perfectly cooked. I had the katsu bites and potato salad and was impressed with how well everything was seasoned. I will definitely be going back to try one of their famous katsu sando’s.
Yubu
Another fairly new addition to the East Village neighborhood. I’m actually not sure what the name of the dish they make here is called, but it is essentially a tofu wrapped opened faced Korean sandwich. They have lots of toppings, from salmon to avocado to beef. The portions are really perfect and it’s fairly affordable. They also have really cool drinks.
Desi Galli
I’ve been here more times than I’d like to admit but this is my favorite Indian restaurant in New York so far. They have a lot of Indian street food options from vada pav to pav bhaji. I love everything here, and it’s affordable and there’s a lot of variety.
7th Street Burger
A completely no-frills smashed burger joint. I had their impossible burger and it was so good. Their house sauce is also perfect. It’s also so incredibly affordable.
Electric Burrito
This is a San Diego style burrito, which basically means that they put fries in their burrito and the meat is extra crispy. I love their California Carnitas burrito. It’s so incredibly filling and the vibes inside the restauraunt are so good.
Dinner & Drinks
S’mac
A restaurant devoted to just mac & cheese, it doesn’t really get better than that. They have so many flavors of mac & cheese and they are all good. My personal favorites are the masala mac and french mac. Super unique flavors that are well seasoned and portioned. There’s something for everyone here.
Mokyo
I haven’t actually sat down and eaten here but their corn dumplings are fantastic.
2 Boots Pizza
This might be one of my favorite pizza spots. I just love all of their multi topping pizzas, they are super interesting and are unlike any other topping pizzas I’ve had.
Somtum Der
I’ve tried a couple of different Thai places in the East Village, but this is probably my favorite. Their pad thai is not overly sweet, and everything is perfectly portioned and reasonably priced.
La Palapa
Probably my favorite spot for drinks, specifically their frozen margaritas. If you like a good passion fruit frozen margarita, come here to get a large pitcher. Their tacos are also pretty good.
