Where to Eat Near Lincoln Center
Before the opera, the ballet or the Philharmonic: Tatiana in Geffen Hall, the antipasto bar across Broadway, a French room on 68th and the rooftop for after.
The best places to eat near Lincoln Center are Tatiana, Kwame Onwuachi's restaurant inside David Geffen Hall (6 minutes from the Met Opera plaza), Café Fiorello across Broadway for pasta and the antipasto bar (6 minutes), and La Boîte en Bois on West 68th for a small, old-fashioned French dinner (9 minutes). After the curtain, The Smith and The Empire Rooftop are both about five minutes away and open late.
The campus is its own little city, and the eating around it is better than it was five years ago. Tatiana gave Geffen Hall a destination restaurant. Daniel Boulud's new Brasserie Boulud at 1900 Broadway, which folds his old Bar Boulud, Boulud Sud and Épicerie into one big room with a pre-theater menu, was holding a soft opening at the end of September 2026; check Resy before you count on it. Walking times below are measured on a pedestrian route map from Josie Robertson Plaza, the fountain in front of the Met Opera, and hours were checked against each restaurant's own site.
A timing note: most Met Opera weeknight curtains are 7:30pm, with some Friday and Saturday performances at 8pm, and Philharmonic evening concerts at Geffen Hall usually start at 7:30pm. Check your ticket.
At a glance.
- 04Tatiana by Kwame OnwuachiKwame Onwuachi's destination restaurant inside Geffen Hall
- 05Café FiorelloThe classic antipasto bar and pasta across from the campus
- 11The SmithA dependable after show dinner open until midnight on weekends
- 14The Empire RooftopA rooftop bar with plaza views open late for drinks
- When
- Most Met Opera weeknight curtains are 7:30pm
- Book ahead
- Tatiana, Atlantic Grill and La Boîte en Bois all book up early
The quick answer
- Fastest good food: Le Pain Quotidien on West 65th, 7 minutes.
- Best sit-down: Tatiana, 6 minutes (Tuesday to Saturday only).
- Best late: The Smith, 6 minutes.
- Best drink: The Empire Rooftop, 5 minutes.
If you have 30 minutes
The Belgian bakery chain's Lincoln Plaza branch is right across Broadway from the campus and the least stressful way to eat before a 7:30 curtain: tartines, soup, a salad, good bread. It is open 6:30am to 8pm weekdays and 7:30am to 8pm on weekends, so it is a pre-show stop only.
Go for: a tartine and soup. Know before you go: it closes at 8, so do not plan on it after.
A French tartine café on the third floor of the Deutsche Bank Center shops at Columbus Circle, walk-in only. The petite tartine and soup lunch combo is $17.50 until 5pm, the croque monsieur $16.50, and the weekday happy hour from 4 to 7pm takes half off wine by the glass.
Go for: a tartine and a half-price glass at 5pm. Know before you go: it closes at 8pm (7pm Sunday).
The standing-room hot dog counter at 72nd and Broadway is a longer walk, but it is the fastest meal in this guide once you get there. The Recession Special, two franks and a tropical drink, is listed at $7.50 on its menu, and recent posts put it closer to $8.50. Either way, dinner is under $10.
Go for: the Recession Special. Know before you go: it is no longer open 24 hours; it closes at 10pm Sunday to Wednesday and 11pm Thursday to Saturday.
Sit-down before the show
Onwuachi's restaurant inside Geffen Hall is one of the hardest reservations in the city and the best dinner you can have on the campus. The cooking draws on the Caribbean, West Africa and the Bronx: the short rib pastrami suya on caraway coco bread, curried goat patties, egusi tortellini with Dungeness crab, braised oxtail. It is a room with energy, which suits a night out.
Go for: the short rib pastrami suya and the goat patties. Know before you go: dinner only, 5 to 10pm, Tuesday to Saturday; closed Sunday and Monday, which rules it out for weekend matinees. Book on Resy and try the bar for walk-ins.
The big Italian room directly across Broadway from the campus has been feeding opera and ballet audiences for decades, and it knows the drill. The vegetable antipasto bar is the signature: three choices for $28 or five for $38. Thin-crust pizzas (the Margherita is $28) and the lasagna ($39) round it out.
Go for: the antipasto bar and a pizza to share. Know before you go: it bills itself as pre-theater friendly and open late; book the 5:30 slot for a 7:30 curtain.
A seafood and sushi restaurant facing the campus, with a raw bar, a sushi bar and the catch of the day. It is a good choice when you want something lighter than pasta before three hours in a velvet seat.
Go for: sushi and the catch of the day. Know before you go: closed Sunday and Monday; opens at 5pm Tuesday and Wednesday, 4pm Thursday and Friday, 3pm Saturday.
A tiny, family-run French dining room in a brownstone between Columbus and Central Park West, open since 1985 and run for this exact audience. The pre-theater menu leans on the classics: escargot, pâté, roast duck. It feels like a secret even though it has been there for forty years.
Go for: the duck. Know before you go: dinner service ends at 9:15pm (9:45pm Friday and Saturday), so this is a before, not an after.
The more relaxed room next to Jean-Georges's flagship, facing Columbus Circle. The crispy trout sushi and the rigatoni with meatballs are the dishes to know, and it serves dinner from 5pm every day of the year. It is the elegant choice for a special night at the opera.
Go for: the crispy trout sushi. Know before you go: reserve on Resy or OpenTable, and ask for the terrace in good weather.
A family trattoria with Abruzzo roots on Columbus Avenue since 1993, with 75 seats inside and a heated outdoor section. It is less of a scene than the big rooms across Broadway and easier to book on short notice. Dinner starts at 4pm daily.
Go for: a house pasta and a glass of red. Know before you go: it takes reservations on OpenTable.
If you are going to the opera and want zero risk of missing the overture, eat in the house. The Grand Tier's pre-theater menu is $125 for three courses (wine pairing $52) and is served two hours before curtain; the matinee menu is $87 for two courses.
Go for: the peace of mind. Know before you go: only open around performances; book ahead. For cheap seats to go with it, see how to get free Met Opera tickets through the lottery.
After
Big, loud and quick, The Smith is the dependable after-show dinner right across from the campus, open until 11pm most nights and midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. The skillet mac and cheese ($21), the Burger Royale ($26) and the flat iron steak ($39) are the orders.
Go for: a burger and a glass of wine after the curtain. Know before you go: it opens at 8am for breakfast too, useful on a matinee day.
A classic Upper West Side brasserie with zinc, mirrors and a crowd that has come from the opera for forty years. The steak frites with an aged prime strip ($56), the Luxemburger ($29) and the French onion soup ($20) are the reliable orders. The brasserie menu from 3:30 to 5pm is useful for early curtains too. Our Upper West Side guide has more around it.
Go for: onion soup and steak frites. Know before you go: dinner runs to 10pm; book for right after a shorter performance.
In the 6 Columbus hotel, a sushi bar with a grill menu from the Blue Ribbon team, and kitchen hours that run until midnight Thursday to Saturday per its listing. It is a good pick when someone wants sushi and someone else wants fried chicken.
Go for: a sushi platter and sake. Know before you go: it takes reservations for small parties.
Drinks
On top of the Empire Hotel, across the street from the campus, a big indoor-outdoor rooftop open until 1am Wednesday to Friday and 1:30am on Saturday. Weekday Sunset Hour specials run from 4 to 7pm. More views in our rooftop bar guide.
Go for: a drink before curtain with the plaza lit up below. Know before you go: reservations open 14 days out, and private events close it often, so check the homepage first.
The Lincoln Square branch of the old Third Avenue saloon sits in the same building as the Empire Hotel. It is the simplest post-show drink with a burger on the side, open until midnight Tuesday to Saturday.
Go for: a beer and a burger at the bar. Know before you go: it gets the whole post-opera crowd at 11pm; grab a stool fast.
On the top floor of the Museum of Arts and Design, Robert looks straight out over Columbus Circle and the corner of Central Park, with live jazz some evenings. It serves dinner until 10pm Sunday to Thursday and 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and the bar is the move after a show.
Go for: a cocktail at the window. Know before you go: last reservation is 8:30pm most nights, 9:30pm on weekends.
A dressy cocktail lounge in the Columbus Circle tower with Central Park views, open until 1am Tuesday to Thursday and 2am on weekends. It is more nightlife than neighborhood bar, and it runs reservations and bottle packages.
Go for: a late cocktail with the park view. Know before you go: Sunday it closes at 10pm.
West of the campus toward the river, a French wine bar with around 50 wines by the glass and a menu of moules, tartare and croque monsieur. It opens at 4pm daily and runs until midnight, which is exactly the post-ballet window.
Go for: a glass of Burgundy and the tartare. Know before you go: it is a small room; weekend nights fill up.
Timing it right
Tatiana, Atlantic Grill and La Boîte en Bois all book up around curtain times, so reserve 5:30 for a 7:30 start. Geffen Hall's lobby bar and intermission bars open an hour before concerts, which covers a glass of wine if dinner runs long. For what to hear once you are inside, see our classical music guide.
More pre-show guides
This page is part of our where-to-eat-near series. See also where to eat near Carnegie Hall, before a Broadway show, near Madison Square Garden, near the Met, near Bryant Park, near Barclays Center and near the World Trade Center.
The Shout NY take
Lincoln Center finally has a restaurant worth planning a night around in Tatiana, and a new Boulud brasserie on the way across Broadway. For everything else, stick to the classics: Café Fiorello's antipasto bar before, Café Luxembourg's onion soup after, and a drink on the Empire's roof in between.
Questions, answered.
- What is the best restaurant near Lincoln Center?
- Tatiana by Kwame Onwuachi, inside David Geffen Hall, is the most exciting restaurant on the campus and a 6 minute walk from the Met Opera plaza. It is dinner only, Tuesday to Saturday, and books up on Resy.
- Where can I eat quickly before the opera at Lincoln Center?
- Le Pain Quotidien on West 65th Street (7 minutes) and Tartinery at Columbus Circle (8 minutes) are the easiest quick meals. Gray's Papaya at 72nd and Broadway, a 14 minute walk, is the fastest and cheapest.
- Is there a restaurant inside the Metropolitan Opera House?
- Yes. The Grand Tier Restaurant serves a $125 three-course pre-theater menu two hours before curtain, and a $87 two-course menu before matinees, per its current menu.
- What restaurants are open late near Lincoln Center?
- The Smith at 63rd and Broadway serves until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays and 11pm other nights. P.J. Clarke's in the Empire Hotel building runs until midnight most nights, and The Empire Rooftop pours until 1 or 1:30am.
Next up
The Upper West Side GuideIt’s more than strollers and Zabar’s. Here’s where to find the neighborhood’s real character, from pre-theater cocktails to the city's most essential appetizing counter.Read it Get the Shout Sheet.
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