Union Square Restaurants in NYC, by What You Need
By Jules Bennett · October 7, 2026 · 7 min read
Union Square restaurants in NYC, sorted by need: a quick lunch, a table near the Greenmarket, a group dinner or a late bite, with hours from their own sites.
The best Union Square restaurants in NYC depend on what the meal needs to do: Union Square Cafe on East 19th Street for an occasion or a private room of up to 40, Tarallucci e Vino on East 18th Street for an all-day table a block from the park, Casa Mono on Irving Place for small plates until 11pm, and Rezdôra on East 20th Street for pasta worth planning around. For a fast weekday lunch, Zero Otto Nove on West 21st Street serves pizza from noon, and Eataly’s Flatiron marketplace at 200 Fifth Avenue is open daily from 7am to 11pm. Hours, prices and policies below were read from each restaurant’s own site in October 2026.
This is a guide by need rather than by cuisine. It leans Italian, because that is most of what the blocks north of the park cook, but two of the most useful rooms here are not: Union Square Cafe, and Casa Mono, which is Spanish. Everything is within a short walk of Union Square Park.
Which Union Square restaurant fits what you need?
| Restaurant | Address | Best for | Key verified detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Union Square Cafe | 101 East 19th Street | An occasion, or a private room | Dinner 5pm to 10:30pm, last reservation 9:30pm; private room up to 40 |
| Tarallucci e Vino | 15 East 18th Street | Any hour, near the Greenmarket | Opens 8am weekdays; happy hour 3pm to 6pm at the bar and outdoors |
| Casa Mono | 52 Irving Place | Late small plates | Noon to 11pm every day |
| Rezdôra | 27 East 20th Street | Pasta worth booking ahead for | Dinner to 11pm nightly; $110 regional pasta tasting |
| Massara | 913 Broadway | Campanian cooking, a table of 7 to 10 | Chef’s Table for seven to ten guests |
| Zero Otto Nove | 15 West 21st Street | A quick lunch with pizza | Weekday lunch noon to 3pm; pizzas $19 to $24 |
| Novitá | 102 East 22nd Street | A longer weekday lunch | Lunch Monday to Friday noon to 3:30pm |
| Eataly Flatiron | 200 Fifth Avenue | The most choice, fastest | Open daily 7am to 11pm |
Where to eat near Union Square for a quick lunch
Lunch is where the area thins out, because several kitchens only open for dinner on some days. The reliable options:
Zero Otto Nove, 15 West 21st Street, serves lunch Monday to Friday from noon to 3pm, then dinner from 5pm. Pizza is the fast route: the menu runs from a Napoletana at $19 and a Marinara at $21 to a Margherita at $22 and a Caprese at $24. Saturday is dinner only, and Sunday service starts at 4pm. (212) 242-0899.
Eataly Flatiron, 200 Fifth Avenue, is open daily from 7am to 11pm, which makes it the safest bet for a lunch at an odd hour or a group that cannot agree. (212) 229-2560.
Tarallucci e Vino, 15 East 18th Street, opens at 8am Monday to Friday, 9am Saturday and 11am Sunday, and serves straight through. Pasta on the current menu runs from $23 for the Spaghetti al Pomodoro to $36 for the Linguine alle Vongole. (212) 228-5400.
Novitá, 102 East 22nd Street, serves lunch Monday to Friday from noon to 3:30pm, with no lunch on weekends. (212) 677-2222.
Union Square Cafe also serves lunch Monday to Friday from 11:30am to 2:30pm. Rezdôra and Massara both serve lunch Tuesday to Friday from noon to 2:30pm, but not on Mondays, when both are dinner only.
Where to eat near the Union Square Greenmarket
The market sets up on the park itself, so the useful question is which kitchen is closest and open when you finish shopping. Our guide to planning a day around the Greenmarket covers the market’s own days and hours.
Tarallucci e Vino, a block north of the park on East 18th Street, is the easy choice: it opens at 8am on weekdays and serves straight through to dinner. Its happy hour, 3pm to 6pm in the bar and outdoor area only, is the natural stop after an afternoon at the stalls.
Union Square Cafe, at 19th Street and Park Avenue South, runs a pasta list that reads like a market report. Dinner listings in October 2026 included Agnolotti al Mais with sweet corn, summer truffle and Asiago, and Spaghetti al Pomodoro Fresco with confit tomatoes and blistered Sungolds. Its midday menu, daily from 2:30pm to 5pm, covers the gap between lunch and dinner when most kitchens are closed.
Restaurants near Union Square for groups
The thresholds matter more than the room. Tarallucci e Vino requires a card on file for six or more and a prix fixe from eight, at $65 per person for dinner. Zero Otto Nove offers a five-course group dinner at $75 per person for ten or more, booked by phone. Massara’s Chef’s Table takes seven to ten guests for a four-course seasonal menu.
For a private room, Union Square Cafe’s Park & Irving Room seats up to 40, its semi-private Alcove up to 10, and a full buyout up to 100 seated. Casa Mono can be booked privately for 40 seated, or its sister tapas bar, Bar Jamón, around the corner on 17th Street, for 22. The full breakdown, with contacts and cancellation terms, is in restaurants near Union Square for groups.
Where to eat late near Union Square
The square closes earlier than its foot traffic suggests. The latest kitchens:
- Casa Mono, 52 Irving Place: noon to 11pm every day.
- Rezdôra, 27 East 20th Street: dinner from 5pm to 11pm every night.
- Tarallucci e Vino: to 11pm on Friday and Saturday, 10:30pm the rest of the week.
- Union Square Cafe: dinner to 10:30pm, but the last reservation is 9:30pm.
Novitá closes at 10pm every night, and Zero Otto Nove at 9:30pm Monday to Thursday and 9pm on Sunday. For the Italian rooms sorted by closing time, see Italian restaurants near Union Square, by closing time.
Where to book a special-occasion dinner near Union Square
Union Square Cafe is the neighborhood’s classic: founded in 1985 by Danny Meyer and now led by Executive Chef Lena Ciardullo, with lunch, a midday menu, dinner and weekend brunch from 11am to 2:30pm. Book on OpenTable or at (212) 243-4020.
Rezdôra describes itself as a New York Times three-star restaurant and a Michelin Star recipient from 2021 to 2025, cooking Emilia-Romagna food centered on house-made pasta under Chef Stefano Secchi. Its regional pasta tasting is $110 a person, with an optional $90 wine pairing; the whole table must take part, and the site asks you to allow two hours.
Casa Mono describes itself as a forty-seat Michelin-starred restaurant. Small plates make it the occasion dinner that does not take all night.
Massara, from the same chef as Rezdôra, cooks the regional cuisine of Campania from a wood-burning oven and grill, with dinner nightly from 5pm to 10:30pm.
How to plan a meal around Union Square
Check the day before the restaurant. Monday removes lunch at Rezdôra and Massara, weekends remove it at Novitá, and Zero Otto Nove serves Saturday dinner only. Then check the hour: almost every sit-down room here starts dinner at 5pm, and that first seating is usually the easiest to get, while after 10:30pm only Casa Mono, Rezdôra and, on Fridays and Saturdays, Tarallucci e Vino are still serving. If you are arriving by subway and want to know which exit to use, this guide to Union Square’s subway exits sorts the nearby rooms by staircase.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best restaurants near Union Square Park?
It depends on the job: Union Square Cafe on East 19th Street for an occasion, Tarallucci e Vino on East 18th Street for an all-day table a block from the park, Casa Mono on Irving Place for small plates until 11pm, and Rezdôra on East 20th Street for pasta. Rezdôra describes itself as a New York Times three-star restaurant and a Michelin Star recipient from 2021 to 2025, and Casa Mono describes itself as Michelin-starred.
Where can I get a quick lunch near Union Square?
Zero Otto Nove on West 21st Street serves lunch Monday to Friday from noon to 3pm, with pizzas from $19, and Eataly’s Flatiron marketplace at 200 Fifth Avenue is open daily from 7am to 11pm. Closer to the park, Tarallucci e Vino on East 18th Street opens at 8am on weekdays and lists pasta from $23.
Which restaurants near Union Square are open late?
Casa Mono on Irving Place is open until 11pm every day, and Rezdôra on East 20th Street serves dinner until 11pm every night. Tarallucci e Vino runs to 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays and 10:30pm otherwise, while Union Square Cafe closes at 10:30pm with its last reservation at 9:30pm.
