Wed 7 Oct
This was Wednesday, October 7.
A tight Wednesday — one new room and four return guests, every line re-checked at each room’s own site today. Two share the West Village, one hides under East 9th Street, one is out in Red Hook, and none of them asks for a card. The sake basement pours until 2:50am and the Red Hook counter serves until it sells out, so hours are exactly as each room states them.
We never hold, resell or book a table. Availability moves minute to minute, so go early rather than late.
Fiaschetteria Pistoia West Village
West Village
The Tuscan fiaschetteria on Christopher Street — crostini toscani, panzanella, panna cotta with berry sauce, and honest Italian wine in a storefront that plays little sibling to the East Village original. This is the branch that never books, and the site says so right next to the phone number.
The way in
walk in — the West Village room is first come first serve with doors at 5pm, and the phone line is saved for bookings at the East Village room only
Why we say so
Their own site labels the West Village room "(FIRST COME FIRST SERVE)" in its locations list and again on its reservations page, and captions on the same site announce "Doors open 5:00 pm at Fiaschetteria West first come first serve."
Via Carota
West Village
The Grove Street osteria that rewrote how New York eats Italian — vegetable antipasti, cacio e pepe cut thick, a bellini at the bar while the room hums under dried flowers. Midweek afternoons it belongs to whoever walks in off Grove.
The way in
walk in — the osteria keeps no reservation book and says simply “walk-ins always welcome”, with Wednesday hours of 11am to 11pm
Why we say so
Their own site states "Walk-ins always welcome," and the site’s own schedule lists Wednesday as "11am - 11pm".
Kiki’s
Lower East Side
A wood-beamed Greek room at Division and Orchard — lemon potatoes, grilled octopus, carafes of house wine under thirty dollars, and some of the best people-watching downtown. The tables for two belong to the door.
The way in
walk in — walk-ins are always welcome, with booking kept for groups of four and over; the room serves Wednesday from noon to midnight
Why we say so
Their own site states "Walk-ins welcome — reservations recommended for groups of 4+," and the site’s schedule lists Wednesday as 12:00 to 24:00.
Sake Bar Decibel
East Village
Down the stairs under East 9th Street: a cramped, loud, wonderful basement sake bar — hundreds of bottles, fried chicken skin, oden, and salarymen three inches from your elbow. The closest thing to Tokyo’s Golden Gai that New York keeps, and on a Wednesday it runs past two in the morning.
The way in
walk in — the room calls itself a walk-in bar with only limited reservations, and serves Wednesday from 6pm to 2:50am
Why we say so
Their Resy page states "We are predominantly a walk-in bar. Limited reservations are available 10 days in advance," and their own site’s schedule lists Wednesday as "6pm - 2:50am".
Hometown Bar-B-Que
Red Hook
The Red Hook smokehouse by the water — brisket by the pound, Korean-engineered pork belly tacos, picnic tables under string lights and the smell of oak for blocks. A counter that answers to nobody’s booking app, only to the pull of the day’s brisket.
The way in
walk in — the counter runs first come, first served until the day’s smoked offerings sell out, Wednesday noon to 9pm
Why we say so
Their own site states "we offer walk-up service to our counter on a first-come, first-served basis—until we sell out of that day’s specially cooked offerings," with hours "Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday Noon – 9pm".
None of these work tonight? Tell us what does — $12.
Your party, your neighborhood, your hour. One person researches tonight and sends three to five rooms with the way in, under 10 minutes.
We loaded every one of these pages ourselves before writing this. Check their hours again before you put your coat on.
Tonight’s five are here.