SF Woman Dining Alone, Dinner Rec Midtown

[redchair]

I'm flying in from San Francisco on a Friday night, staying at the Sofitel on W. 44th. I would love a nice NY Italian dinner and a half bottle of wine at a place where I would not feel weird eating alone, somewhere not too far from my hotel. Any suggestions? (Favorites in SF for guidance: Zuni, Nopa, Bar Tartine, Aziza).

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Tartine
253 W 11th St, New York, NY 10014

[NigelTufnel]

Convivio is your best bet with a cute little bar that is perfect for a solo diner. An easy 10 minute stroll east. Alto is also up the block and very good too. Marea is tough to get in to.
As for Lupa, I suspect that the commenters recommending it haven't been in a while. It USED to be great, but the Denton partners sold and it's pretty mediocre over the last year or so. Enjoy wherever you end up!

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Lupa
170 Thompson Street, New York, NY 10012

Convivio
45 Tudor City Place, New York, NY 10017

Marea
240 Central Park South, New York, NY 10019

[dafunk]

The bar at Marea. Get the fusilli, it's indescribably good

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Marea
240 Central Park South, New York, NY 10019

[Blakekitty]

I've had good luck dining alone at Bar Americain..the bar can get busy..but they
have dining friendly bar stools with backs and the service is always good.
52nd near 7th.

[jillsunnyside]

Prune! Of course!!

[AubWah]

Do Esca its close by and great seafood!

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Esca
402 West 43rd Street, New York, NY 10036

[daveena]

Looks like you're aiming for a comfortable, casual vibe friendly to solo diners, bar seats a plus - I'll second Lupa (there's usually a wait during peak dining hours, but as a solo diner, you're at an advantage), and add Salumeria Rosi to the list (it's further uptown, but also west side, so easy to get to from where you're staying). Public transportation in NYC is way better than in SF, so I wouldn't restrict yourself to your immediate neighborhood.

Of the places listed in this thread that I've been to, I think Esca, Alto, Marea, and Convivio are all more formal than what you're looking for, and I didn't find sitting at the bar at Babbo very relaxing.

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Lupa
170 Thompson Street, New York, NY 10012

Babbo
110 Waverly Pl, New York, NY 10011

Esca
402 West 43rd Street, New York, NY 10036

Convivio
45 Tudor City Place, New York, NY 10017

Salumeria Rosi
283 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10023

Marea
240 Central Park South, New York, NY 10019

[penthouse pup]

Lupa is a madhouse during prime hours. I would not recommend this...

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Lupa
170 Thompson Street, New York, NY 10012

[daveena]

Oh yeah, plus it's going to be on a Friday night. Scratch Lupa. I've been during prime hours before and found it ok once I got a bar seat (as opposed to Babbo, where I kept feeling elbows and purses digging into me the entire time), but dealing with the crowd after a long flight's probably not ideal.

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Lupa
170 Thompson Street, New York, NY 10012

[AdamD]

Cafe Linda. Cellini. Fresco by Scotto. Alto.

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Fresco by Scotto
34 E 52nd St, New York, NY 10022

[bhsnyc]

that's a tough area for good food, but consider Batali's Esca http://nymag.com/listings/restaurant/...

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Esca
402 West 43rd Street, New York, NY 10036

[redchair]

What would you recommend if I were willing to go a little further afield? Many thanks!

[fm1963]

Alto, Convivio, Lincoln, and Marea are all midtown, though I'm not sure whether they are similar to your Italian favorites in SF.

Ai Fiori is another option, though the food seems more French than Italian, except for the pasta.

If you're willing to go downtown, Scarpetta, Babbo, Maialalino, Osteria Morini, and Lupa would be my top choices.

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Lupa
170 Thompson Street, New York, NY 10012

Babbo
110 Waverly Pl, New York, NY 10011

Scarpetta
355 West 14th Street, New York, NY 10014

Convivio
45 Tudor City Place, New York, NY 10017

Marea
240 Central Park South, New York, NY 10019

[berna]

I second, third and fourth Marea. Just made a resy for when my bro from San Fran comes out next month. You will be very comfortable as one at the bar and the food is off the charts, imho!

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Marea
240 Central Park South, New York, NY 10019