New Long Island restaurants to try

Taïm Mediterranean Kitchen, Farmingdale

This fast-casual Mediterranean mini-chain has opened its first Long Island location. Whether you’re craving the original falafel pita, a Mediterranean bowl or Impossible kebabs, you can customize your meal from a selection of bases (think cumin jasmine rice or turmeric pearled couscous) and toppings like olives, feta, hot peppers, pickled cabbage or onion. Get saucy with tzatziki, lemon mint vinaigrette, spicy green chile, harissa and tahini.

American Beauty in the Park, Massapequa Park

This bistro has opened its third Long Island location, having previously established itself in Massapequa proper (2016) and Bellmore (2019). All excel at housemade ricotta with grilled peaches on a crostini; as well as fried shrimp tossed in Thai chiles, ginger, soy and crushed peanuts. The house burger is an American Beauty signature.

Crumbl Cookies, Massapequa

Massapequa is the latest Long Island location of Crumbl Cookies, the jumbo cookie chain that started in Utah and now has over 800 stores nationwide including Levittown and Port Washington. The oversize cookies come in classic and unique flavors that are not too sweet, and feel indulgent. The Massapequa store looks identical to its sister locations — a spare pink and white space with an open kitchen and self-ordering kiosks — and offers a weekly rotation of six flavors. New cookie drops are announced on Sundays at 8 p.m. on the brand’s social media pages, including Instagram.

La Tapachulteca, Hempstead

This Salvadoran eatery opened five months ago in an area already flush with Latino dining options. The front of the store is a deli-style restaurant and bakery selling pupusas and an incredible version of the iconic Salvadoran pound cake, the quesadilla. The back area has a market with fresh produce.

Clay Oven, Coram

After a year in a shopping center on Middle Country Road in Selden, Lubna Habibi has packed up her tandoor ovens and moved this location of her Indian restaurant three miles east to Coram Plaza. The tandoor produces succulent chicken, lamb chops as well as seekh kebabs, made with ground chicken, onions, coriander and green chilies. Alongside familiar braised dishes such as chicken tikka masala and vindaloo, you’ll find less-familiar curries such as sultani gosht (lamb or goat on the bone in creamy saffron sauce), malrani chicken (marinated in yogurt and coconut milk and topped with cashews), karahi chicken (the ginger-cumin-chili preparation named for the pot it is cooked and served in) and tawa keema (ground chicken seared on a flat grill). Vegetarians also have their choice of almost 20 entrees.

Tiger Sugar, Carle Place

As if boba weren't already wild enough, now Long Islanders can get their milk tea swirled in the shape of tiger stripes. Tiger Sugar, a rapidly expanding Taiwanese brand, has opened its first Long Island location at the Parkway Plaza shopping Center in Carle Place.

Seven, Long Beach

Marco Almeida and his brother Hugo recently opened Seven in the cavernous space that used to hold 7Seventy7. The brothers brought on consultants to update the menu and interior decorating scheme, which now straddles the line between nightclub and your cultured aunt who's into thrift shopping. Although many of the Italian classics on the menu have been replaced with tuna poke tartare, lobster rolls and bourbon cream sauce mussels, the vodka diabla is one of the best items on the menu.

Just Salad, Huntington

NYC-based Just Salad has opened in Huntington, offering Long Islanders their latest fast-casual daily dose of green eating. Diners choose a lettuce, wrap or grain bowl base, then pile on veggies, proteins, crunchy toppings and housemade dressing. If you don't want to DIY, there are 15 combinations on the menu, from standards like Cobb and Caesar salads to modern creations like Crispy Chicken Poblano.

Schnitzels Gastropub, Stony Brook

This German gastropub digs deep into the schnitzel repertoire. There are German wursts from Karl Ehmer in Patchogue that figure in sandwiches and charcuterie boards, and a ginormous pretzel, made in Canada according to Bavarian specifications.

Youta Ramen, Mineola

This new Mineola eatery is the brainchild of Thanontuch Tyler Laiamnuay, the chef, and Pat Boon, a seasoned restaurateur who worked at Sripraphai in Williston Park. Thai by birth and ramen by choice, the old friends have created a shrine to their shared love of the savory Japanese kitchen in general and tonkotsu ramen in particular.

Street Food on the Green, Montauk

Noted sushi chef Jun “Johnny” Lin has opened this new spot, featuring an Asian-inspired menu loaded with sushi rolls, poke bowls and hot menu items including pork and chive dumplings, veggie spring rolls, scallion pancakes filled with spicy lobster and a hoison-roasted duck wrap. Local catch, udon-stir fries and an assortment of hibachi plates round out the offerings. A raw bar and daily specials alternate depending on the day’s catch.

Arepalicious Express, Rockville Centre

On a Rockville Centre street lined with American flags and taco joints, this new Latino eatery is turning out some rockin' arepas. It's the second location for brand, which is based in Ozone Park, Queens and offers a different style of arepas than the common Venezuelan variety. They are softer and showcase the sweetness of the corn; thick pancakes with a gooey center of mozzarella cheese. Ingredients are piled on top in a flurry of meats and pink sauce.

Al Pastor Taqueria, Merrick

At this spruce little shop, almost everything is made from scratch. The “Merrick-style tacos” include birria (braised beef with cheese, served with consommé for dipping); shrimp with creamed avocado, lettuce and citrus slaw; Cajun chicken with “grandma’s sazon” and cotija cheese; and tempura-battered cod with shredded lettuce and molcajete salsa. Also on the menu: guacamole, nachos, beef chili, Veracruz vegetarian fried rice, burritos, quesadillas, “messy tostadas,” tortas (Mexican sandwiches), tres leches cake, churros sundaes and milkshakes from classic chocolate or strawberry to cookies ’n’ crème and horchata.

Hunter & Thief, Lindenhurst

After nearly four years of pandemic-related setbacks this long-awaited cocktail bar, which feels more like something you’d find in Brooklyn, is finally in operation. Trendy cocktails like espresso martinis and aperol spritzes are on draft. There are also funky orange wines, fancy Billecart-Salmon rosé bubbles, canned and bottled cocktails like Whitebox’s negroni; plus ales and lagers. Alongside the bar menu, snacks and comfort food include seasonal ricotta toast, fried chicken, fish and chips, and a burger.

Burgercade, Riverhead

This super-casual burger joint-video arcade opened in July, replacing the short-lived LuchaCubano. Burgercade’s starter burger, $5.15, is a quarter pounder made with ground brisket from Cow Palace in Rocky Point and served on a Martin’s potato roll. Add cheese, or another patty — you can’t spend more than $10. There’s also a black-bean burger and a fried fish sandwich, chicken tenders and wings, bubble waffles, milkshakes and a root-beer float.

Skorpios by Avli, Huntington

After sitting empty for months, one of Huntington Village's oldest restaurants has reopened under new ownership. But don't worry, Skorpios is still in the family, taken over by the prior owner's daughter and her husband. The new Skorpios stays true to its roots: a casual spot with a large grill counter up front and a homey Greek diner setting in the small dining room. The menu is a mix of burgers and Mediterranean staples like beef and lamb gyro, pork souvlaki and chicken doner, available in platters and sandwiches.

Shake Shack, Oceanside

This rapidly expanding burger chain has opened its fifth Long Island location in Oceanside. The menu is the same you'll find at other Shake Shacks in the state. In addition to the seven meat-based burgers, there are two chicken sandwiches, a grilled cheese, the iconic flat-top dog that hearkens back to the chain's origins as a hot dog cart in Madison Square Park, and even dog biscuits: the Bag O' Bones and the Pooch-ini (with frozen custard).

Toast Coffee + Kitchen, Long Beach

This sprawling multilevel brunch cafe on the bottom floor of a historic Long Beach building is the newest addition to the popular Toast Coffee + Kitchen chain. Try Nonna's skillet, a cast iron pan of scrambled eggs ladled with fresh ricotta cheese and blistered grape tomatoes, or go for the cookie dough pancakes.

Frida's Mexican Cuisine, Plainview

The new Frida’s Mexican Cuisine, an offshoot of Frida’s Mexican Grill in Seaford, takes over the Craft 387 Bistro spot in the Plainview Shopping Centre. The eatery delivers Mexican and other Latin flavors in a bright, beautifully styled room accented with velvet furnishings.

South Swell, West Babylon

A pared-down offshoot of the popular Swell Taco restaurant has launched at West Babylon’s Bergen Bay Docks. Open for breakfast, lunch and happy hour, South Swell is a seasonal location catering to boaters fueling up at the on-site gas station and walk-in patrons who can dine on the docks at picnic tables shaded by oversized umbrellas.

eL Tacobar, Sag Harbor

Last year, French restaurateur Laurent Tourondel closed his LT Burger on Main Street in Sag Harbor and did a full concept change, reopening in June as a boho chic taqueria. In true Mexico City style, you'll find an open kitchen with a spinning trompo of al pastor pork and workers rolling balls of corn masa into tortillas. Taco varieties include a lobster taco with local corn and a Montauk cod taco, battered and deep-fried Baja style.

Dozo Dozo, Woodbury

This swank newcomer in the Woodbury Commons’ shopping center is meticulously designed and feels more upscale than your typical neighborhood sushi bar. The chef hails from Manhattan’s Hatsuhana, which honors the traditional Japanese service focused on preparing fish without gimmicks. What's different here: The Dozo Dozo hand rolls. There are 12 (starting at $9) utilizing different fish and sauces, all served over a sprinkling of sushi rice. Try the spicy tuna with mayo and sweet potato chips or spicy yellowtail with shishito peppers. There's also eel with avocado, and miso blackened cod with a Kobucha puree. Choose five for a $40 tasting plate.

I am Nacho Mama, Port Washington

Run by chef-owner Carlos Juarez and his family, I Am Nacho Mama originally began as a food truck in East Meadow before expanding to a Hicksville storefront in 2019. In July, the restaurant’s second location opened on Port Washington's Main Street, serving a menu full of Latin fare inspired by countries such as Mexico, Guatemala (where Juarez is originally from), Puerto Rico (where his wife, Yvette, is from) and Spain (where both of their grandparents are from).

Right Coast Taqueria, Mineola

Five years after the first Right Coast Taqueria opened in Deer Park, partners Dave Preisler and Richard Zoob have opened a new location in Mineola. Try everything from Mongolian beef tacos to fish tacos made with tortilla-crusted Alaskan pollock or fried shrimp with sriracha aioli and avocado ranch slaw.

Pupusas City, Middle Island

In 2021 the big, red food truck of Iris Viera's future was born: Pupusas City. Now, her first brick and mortar has opened in Middle Island. Viera’s Salvadorean-style pupusas are the real deal, crispy on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside. She prefers rice flour, which delivers a softer pupusa than their cornmeal (masa) counterparts. The recipe comes from her maternal grandmother and is “made with passion and love,” she said.

Over Easy, Huntington

Luigi Aloe is back to breakfast. The hospitality veteran’s first restaurant was Munday’s, Huntington’s century-old luncheonette. Now, after decades of work that kept him out well past dark, his new venture, Over Easy in Huntington, closes every day at 4 p.m. The weekday-only specials are Over Easy’s most value-priced items. At breakfast, blue plates are $4.99 (Monday is eggs; Tuesday, pancakes; Wednesday, waffles, Thursday; quesadilla, Friday, French toast). The lunch lineup, $9.99, is a smash burger, tuna or chicken salad or melt, grilled cheese with bacon and tomato, fried chicken, shrimp salad sandwich — all with fries and coleslaw. The rest of the menu strays far from luncheonette standards, though almost everything is under $15.

L. O. L BBQ & Bar, Great Neck

At this new Chinese barbecue spot, the emphasis is on an amazing variety of charcoal-grilled meats. The menu includes more than 50 skewers including Taiwanese sausage, lamb ribs, duck neck, chicken wings and veggies like potato slices and enoki mushrooms.

Pizzeria Undici, Massapequa

This savvy new slice joint is making waves on the South Shore with its midcentury modern aesthetic and an irresistible crackly crust. Pizzeria Undici opened in late May on the same retro block of Merrick Road that hosts All American Hamburger and Marshall's Ice Cream Bar. The menu here is basic, with a small selection of cheese, pepperoni and Italian-style offerings including an upside-down Sicilian with thick, doughy crust and a layer of sweet tomatoes on top of the cheese.

Nunzi's by the Water, Freeport

Modern Italian gets a seaside spin in Freeport, where Nunzi's by the Water has opened in a marina along a busy canal. The restaurant is an offshoot of Nunzi's in Farmingdale, but in Freeport, “we made sure to expand our seafood selection, emulating a more relaxed dining experience that adds to the 'by the water' atmosphere,” said owner Michael Napolitano. Expect calamari and baked clams, but also lobster rolls and beer battered fish tacos.

Flourbud Bakery, East Moriches

Farmers Market baker Cristina Tovar has opened this new shop where croissants (chocolate, plain, almond, cheese) are already emerging as big sellers, as are Danish pastries topped with local fruits and even Mexican-style street corn. There are also dainty meringue-topped tarts filled with chocolate ganache and lemon curd, big cookies (oatmeal-raisin, chocolate-chip), and biscuits and scones.

Kura Revolving Sushi Bar, Carle Place

Japan's kitschiest conveyor belt sushi chain has officially opened its first New York store in Carle Place. The appeal is in the novelty: diners sit in private booths as sushi dishes weave through the dining room on a pair of conveyor belts. One belt churns out small plates of nigiri and rolls encased in plastic pods to keep them fresh. The other shoots out orders from the kitchen like a bullet train.

Citrus Wine Bar, Melville

Michelle and Rolando Adamovicz, owners of 110 Bagel Market and Bistro in Melville, have opened this new spot next door. The area seats the shop’s breakfast and lunch crowds during the day, while simultaneously “adding something different to the area in the evenings.” At night, the sleek lounge, anchored by a U-shaped marble bar, highballs and bistro tables, focuses on boutique vineyards and hard-to-find bottles. As for food, build your own charcuterie board or choose from a selection of tartines.

Maggie's Eatery, Miller Place

When Tyler Hannibal took over Crazy Crepe in Miller Place and transformed it into Maggie’s Eatery, his concept was simple: “I knew that if I cooked good food, that people would come.” Since he opened, people have been coming steadily, drawn to the reasonably priced sandwiches, salads and bowls that nevertheless bespeak a chef’s hand.

JTI's American Kitchen and Bar, Brightwaters

Chef Nicholas Trovato has taken over the former Jon Thomas Inne in Brightwaters in a full circle story: It was the site of his first kitchen job in 1985. Putting modern twists on comfort food, this bright, renovated gastropub with high ceilings and exposed wood beams is housed in a historic building that's been around since 1925.

Blé Cafe & Bakery, Port Washington

Blé is French for “wheat,” and that grain lies at the heart of the menu at this new Port Washington cafe-bakery. Blé Cafe & Bakery sprawls over two addresses — 63 and 65 Main St. — in the corner building that housed Yamaguchi before it was damaged by fire in 2013. Half of the store is given over to a vast counter where pastries, cakes, pies, tarts, breads and grab-and-go sandwiches are displayed. The other half is an airy dining room with table service, offering a separate menu featuring breakfast dishes (eggs, French toast, crepes) plus sandwiches and salads.

Nice Day, Plainview

The typical Chinese takeout offers anywhere from 200 to 300 dishes. Nice Day offers a streamlined menu featuring fewer than 60. The lineup draws on the Chinese American repertoire: Chicken prepared a la General Tso or Kung Pao, with orange or sesame seeds; broccoli with chicken, beef or shrimp. There’s fried rice and lo mein; egg drop, hot and sour and wonton soups. About a third of the fare delves more deeply into authentic Chinese with dan dan noodles, bok choy with shiitake mushrooms, and the “Mala Dragon Stir Fry Pot,” a dry stir fry that can be ordered Sichuan style with chili peppers and Chinese peppercorns. Not in either category, you’ll also find cheeseburger egg rolls and loaded General Tso’s chicken fries.

Mack's, Babylon

A successful brunch restaurant calls for striking a delicate balance between homeyness and serving food that patrons wouldn't cook at home. If anyone in your family cooks like they do at this new brunch spot, you’re very lucky. Plates at Mack’s brim with colorful veggies and sauces, and the biscuits are fluffy enough to be split in two for an eggs Benedict, like the Burlington Benny with melted Vermont Cheddar and thick slivers of maple bacon and a perfect poach. The restaurant also serves lunch and does a spectacular fried chicken sandwich.

Sparrow Kitchen & Cocktails, Garden City

The owners of Sparrow Kitchen & Cocktails are involved in more than a dozen crowd-pleasing eateries and bars in Nassau County (Mesita, Salt on the Water, ITA Kitchen and Guac Shop). For their new Garden City spot, Sparrow Kitchen & Cocktails, the owners replaced the barn-moderne décor of the former Mighty Quinn’s BBQ with a coolly elegant design. There's a seasonal fluke ceviche with rhubarb and spring onion; chilled lobster with tarragon and chives; bucatini cacio e pepe; and pan-roasted halibut with fennel pollen and spring succotash. It also offers dishes in a more “eclectic New American” vein: Bone marrow with glazed cipollini onions on toast; a half-pound burger with hand-cut fries; and a 14-ounce aged, prime New York strip steak with 1,000-layer potato and chimichurri.

Mac & Melts, Plainview

Mac & Melts, which closed its Garden City location in 2022, has reopened inside Coliseum Kitchen in Plainview. Head to the food hall to enjoy Alpine mac with Gruyere and caramelized onions, buffalo chicken mac or the Mac & Melt sandwich featuring fried mac-and-cheese smashed between slices of firm white toast with a hint of sun-dried tomato pesto.

Victorias Helado, Riverhead

This new Riverhead shop is one of the few places where you can sample both spellbinding varieties of granizados and raspados. It also carries other shaved ice styles from El Salvador and Costa Rica, like the fabulous strawberry copo sweetened with condensed milk and topped with dried milk powder. In true Latin snack shop tradition, the shop will serve you a tricked-out bag of chips squirted with hot sauce and Mexican candies. Or a hollowed-out pineapple stuffed with a bouquet of chopped fruits and candies, a staple of the Mexican beachside.

What the Falafel, Sag Harbor

This new eatery seems tailor-made for vegans and vegetarians who are looking for a healthy lunch option, or fixings for a picnic at the nearby harbor. All the pita sandwiches and bowls are stacked with fresh veggies like radishes and pickled pink turnips. The Greeky pita ($15) is a highlight, the fluffy bread tucked with yogurt tzatziki sauce and scatters of fresh mint that lighten the flavor of the hearty falafel. Raw onions make the pita pocket pop.

Pio Pio, Glen Cove

This famous NYC Peruvian spot has made he leap into Nassau. Here's your chance to try the Peruvian national cocktail, the pisco sour — and a menu that extends way beyond rotisserie chicken to encompass the seafood soups chupe and parihuela, the great potato dishes causa de pollo and papa a la Huancaina, the Chinese-influenced arroz chaufa (fried rice) and lomo saltado (stir-fried beef), jalea (fried mixed seafood) and ceviche (raw, marinated fish).

Minnow at the Galley Ho, New Suffolk

Andrea Tese is taking culinary sustainability to new heights with her new North Fork restaurant, Minnow at the Galley Ho. Not only are most of the ingredients local and seasonal, not only does the kitchen eschew shrimp, salmon and any other sea creature that does not swim in these waters, but she and chef Cheo Avila are trying their hardest not to buy anything that is packaged in plastic. Among menu highlights are black bass crudo, blackfish amandine, Long Island duck with frites and pastries from NoFo Baker. With a generous porch offering panoramic views of Cutchogue Harbor, Tese hopes that people who are looking at the water will be compelled to want to protect it.

Dirty Taco & Tequila, Smithtown

With five locations (and another in Port Washington to come later this summer), this local outfit owned by the Cataldo family has built a strong following. The sprawling, airy building in Smithtown is its biggest effort to date, serving up a menu of Los Angeles-style fusion tacos from Vietnamese shrimp to Teriyaki salmon and kung pao chicken.