This four-year-old, charming Italian wine bar, located across the street from the Hotel on Rivington, has become a dependable staple in a neighborhood where even locals can’t keep up with the ever-changing, hotter-than-thou restaurant scene. An off-shoot of Greenwich Village’s tiny Ino, ‘inoteca is a boisterous celebration of Italian culinaria, and the lively atmosphere, tasty antipasti and large selection of wines attract a chic crowd of mostly thirty-somethings. Inoteca’s menu, overseen by Eric Kleinman (the former sous chef of Lupa, another Italian favorite), is mostly a small-plate affair, heavy on paninis, bruschette, antipasta, with a few substantial dishes, like the popular polpette (meatballs) that are served in a fragrant tomato-citrus sauce. The wine list is more extensive with bottles sourced all across Italy and the islands, and thanks to the well-informed, friendly wine stewards, you’re bound to discover interesting new vintages every time you go.

Inoteca is a lovely spot for a snack and pre-dinner drink, especially if you’re already in the area exploring sights like the Lower East Side Tenement Museum or, starting in December, the anticipated New Museum. On weekend nights, it’s a good idea to arrive early (‘inoteca doesn’t accept reservations). Open daily from noon-3 a.m.

On the 7th floor of New York’s most stylish department store, this restaurant draws ladies who lunch and midtown shoppers. The enfilade of rooms face Central Park and the plaza before the Plaza and has been glammed up by LA designer Kelly Wearstler to create the atmosphere of a Park Avenue apartment. Its Gotham Salad is a popular favorite for good reason. Tip: It’s also open for tea and drinks and a good spot for an early bite, since it stays open until 8 p.m. during the week. Reservations recommended.

Enlarge Photo

EDITOR’S NOTE: Maremma is currently closed for a renovation.

Big changes for chef Cesare Casella. He’s sold his successful restaurant, Beppe; become the French Culinary Institute’s dean of Italian studies, in which role he developed a new curriculum in New York and Parma, Italy; and launched his new place, Maremma, in the Village. As a young chef, Casella turned Il Vipore, his family’s restaurant in the hills above Lucca, into a big hit, and he has been true to authentic Tuscan tradition ever since he arrived here, in the early ’90s.

Though the restaurant itself (named for a stretch of Tuscan coastline) could be anywhere, once the food arrives, you are incontrovertibly in Casella country, patrolled by the chef himself, signature sprig of rosemary tucked in the vest pocket of his whites. Acknowledged on Maremma’s menu are upstate New York farms that raise produce from Italian seeds especially for the restaurant. Casella is a master of beans, whether in a salad of seven varieties or as a side with good olive oil. Maremma’s pastas astound: strozzapreti—soft Swiss chard dumplings with guanciale (pork jowl); hand-made gnocchi; and the welcome return of spaghetti alla carbonara. Beef matters to this chef, and his oxtails, braised pork shank and Tuscan steak are fine, as is a wine list carefully curated by a sommelier only too happy to pair a glass with every course.

François Payard’s famous patisserie supplies many of the city’s best restaurants with bread and pastries. Early in the morning you can come for fresh croissants and coffee and hot chocolate as many Upper East Siders do. The tiny front tables remain filled throughout the day with people having sweet and savory snacks but there is also a proper dining room in the back and upstairs, where full lunch and dinner menus are served. A visit here is as close to a trip to Paris as you can get without leaving Manhattan.