Choosing a restaurant for dinner before a Broadway show can sometimes be just as important as the show itself. The process of figuring out where to eat for dinner before a Broadway show can be stressful, and frequently leads to some mediocre food, and even worse, missing out on great food in New York. The Theatre District is crowded with choices for dining, so a little inside knowledge helps you decide what’s good and what’s just tourist food.
The following places have always consistently provided adequate quality food with a priority in having you in the theatre on time. You’re really setting yourself up for a night of Broadway enjoyment.
Table of Contents
The 10 Best Pre-Show Dining Spots
1. Sesamo Italian Restaurant
Cuisine Type: Italian fusion with Japanese touches
Price Range: $$$
Address: 764 10th Ave, Manhattan, NY 10019
Sesamo is a secret find on 10th Avenue in Hell’s Kitchen, providing a combination of Italian dishes, mixed with some Asian fusion. It feels like a real, tasteful combination, and everything in this restaurant feels authentic and real, no gimmicks. I really liked their $60 Theatre Prix Fixe menu because of the quality of the dishes, I thought its a steal.
If you are planning on having a dinner before the show we recommend arriving at least 90 minutes before the show. It is an easy 12-minute walk from most theatres and other venues.
2. Glass House Tavern
Cuisine Type: New American/Gourmet
Price Range: $$$
Address: 252 W. 47th St. between Eighth Avenue and Broadway
Glass House Tavern is a favorite among Broadway insiders. The place has a chic ambiance, and its food is both creative and comforting.
Off the $65 fixed-price menu is arguably the best deal in the Theatre District. You will find upscale options like small filet mignon and veal tortellini, which beats the lower-priced items you’ll see on pre-show menus. They serve the fixed price menu from 3 PM to midnight, making it very convenient for dining before or after the show.
The dining room has a sleek, modern look, with low lighting and comfy booths conducive to discussions about theatre. This is a welcome change from the frenetic action usually found at busy Broadway eateries nearby. If you would rather be more casual, you can sit at the bar and order off its lighter food menu.
Reservations are highly recommended at peak pre-show intervals (5:00-6:30 PM). When Broadway is running on all cylinders, recent tables can be reserved up to two weeks in advance.
3. Havana Central: Your Go-To Cuban Pre-Theatre Spot
Cuisine Type: Cuban
Price Range: $$
Address: 151 W. 46th St. between Sixth and Seventh Avenues
As you step foot in Havana Central, the lovely rhythms of Cuba’s musical mix and the richness of colors will quickly wash away the busy bustle of Broadway. The $49 pre-show option is easy to recommend, a mojito with sides for the main course, dessert, and without spending a fortune.
The chicharrones snap is always on point and their ropa vieja may actually make you skip the play. Five minutes from an impressive collection of larger theaters such as the Hudson and Palace, you truly can’t beat the location. Unlike the other tourist traps nearby, they are devoted to real Cuban flavors. Masitas (fried pork) are served with some perfectly nutritious black beans and sweet plantains for every dollar spent!
Their pre-show business is always packed before a big show. To that end, do not reserve a table. You’ll be kicking yourself as the noise and commotion at this cheerful eatery will soon fill to capacity with theatre-goers looking for more than subpar pre-broadway eats!
4. Barbetta
Cuisine Type: Historic Italian
Price Point: $$$
Address: 321 W. 46th St. between Eighth and Ninth Avenues
Eating at Barbetta is like stepping into a living museum of New York’s food landscape. The Maioglio family is preserving this slice of food history for good since 1906, and it is the oldest continually family-owned restaurant in the city.
The menu is a historical record as it shows the year the dish appeared, which allows you the opportunity to sample the 1906 classics like wild mushroom risotto and current North Italian cuisine. In the summertime, the outside dining adjacent to land and spending time in one of the area’s hidden garden spots is a perfect place to have dinner.
The set menus—for lunch $41, dinner $63—are a robust four-course meal. It isn’t the least expensive meal you’ve ever had, but sitting at a white tablecloth table surrounded by over a hundred years of newly cleaned Broadway history, you will see the value.
A short 8-10 minute walk from nearly every theater in the area makes it a perfect beginning of your night, as dinner is the opening act. Just remember if you are bringing a large party to call ahead for reservations, as this historic Broadway dining option fills up fast during the hectic show seasons.
5. Sardi’s
Cuisine Type: Continental American
Price Point: $$$
Address: 234 W 44th St.
You can’t talk about dining on Broadway without referencing Sardi’s. Open since 1927 with walls covered in caricatures, the restaurant has experienced decades of theatrical moments. Cast parties, Tony award parties, and Broadway stars enjoying a meal at one of the corner tables.
In terms of menu items, the food tends to play it safe and not very adventurous. The salmon with sweet potato and ginger is a regular menu item I enjoy, and the spinach cannelloni with béchamel is very good too. The food is not on-trend or really inventive as you will find around town, and that is really not what you come here for. While the food is certainly respectable, it is the history and atmosphere you come to enjoy more than the food.
Sardi’s is located directly across the street from the Shubert Theatre, and only steps away from several other spots. There is no formal pre-theatre menu, but just let them know your curtain time, and they will handle accommodating you. They have been accommodating guests’ requests since Calvin Coolidge was President.
Yes, the history and location do make it a bit more expensive, but to sit where Broadway deals are made and feel the energy of the past, worthy. I would suggest you book well in advance as it is very popular and make sure you ask for a table on the main floor, as that is where you get the full experience.
6. Marseille
Cuisine Type: French/Mediterranean
Price Point: $$$
Address: 630 Ninth Ave. between 44th and 45th Streets
If you’re looking for stylish French comfort in Hell’s Kitchen that doesn’t try too hard, you can’t do better than Marseille, which is a much-needed breather from the neighborhood’s frantic dining spots.
The menu straddles the line somewhere between classic French cuisine and Mediterranean. There’s tempered appeal for purists here with the escargots doused in garlic-butter, but one can go with a lighter twist instead with the shrimp beignets. The Nice-style lamb may be the under-the radar offering, achieving that southern French coast ambience through and through.
Their oyster happy hour (3:30-5:30pm daily) is really the place for matinee-goers or early shows. Half-price oysters and discounted apps mean that pre-theater fine dining becomes affordable.
Besides bistro-styled meals in the Thearte District that rush in one hour or less, Marseille presents a genuine European atmosphere in which dinner is an experience temporal, not just the thing you work through. Just notify the server of your curtain time, and everything will be paced to the minute without rushing you.
7. Bond 45
Cuisine Type: Italian-American
Price Point: $$$
Address: 221 W 46th St.
Bond 45 is a lively restaurant located in the Theatre District. Because it is so close to so many Broadway theatres, it is a great place for theatre lovers to grab food.
Inside the restaurant, the air is alive with theater actors, theatre directors, theatre managers and theatre aficionados. The decor has a little old New York vibe with some vintage photos and warm lighting; a little contemporary vibe with some liveliness; and it is just a little nostalgic, maybe.
Upon entry, you are greeted with an antipasto bar?! It consists of a rainbow of grilled and marinated vegetables. A plate full on every table you are assigned to. Not an accompaniment, a vehicle for unpretentious good Italian cuisine.
The food is commonplace Italian American food like seafood, meat dishes, and pastas, each presented in generous portions. This is not about creativity here but about making good dishes that are well cooked, and fast. In that context, like the Broadway experience, theatrics are limited. The restaurant does not have a spectacle menu to serve theatre-goers, but the kitchen is quite fast and attuned to show times.
This isn’t an afterthought, you will need a reservation, particularly with Broadway in full production schedule. It is best to reserve 2-3 weeks out, and have an early or late reservation on peak dining hours ahead of time.
8. Trattoria Trecolori
Cuisine Type: Classic Italian
Price Point: $$
Address: 254 W. 47th St. between Eighth Avenue and Broadway
Located next door to Broadway’s Lena Horne Theatre (the home to Six), this family run Italian eatery delivers the real deal – real Italian food in all its authentic glory right next to the glitter of Broadway without falling prey to a tourist trap.
Their menu includes something for everyone. Craving chicken parm, or fettuccine alfredo – you will have its right textbook version. Want something really off the beaten path? The parmesan crusted veal with vermouth reduction has some serious cooking chops, and the squid ink pasta is crammed with seafood.
This balanced offering is ideal for family outings to the theater – you can pick up some fussy eaters, as well as those who appreciate food; furthermore, both can leave happy. The long narrow space is cozy rather than cramped, and their simple white tablecloths and family photos offer a warmth without any obvious pretentions.
Most entrées are under $30 with portions that are worth the expense – that’s a remarkable value in this neighborhood. No fancy pre-theatre menu, but the servers ask about the curtain time and adjust the pace. Good, simple old fashion Italian food when you need it.
9. Friedman’s at the Edison Hotel
Cuisine Type: American comfort food
Price Point: $$
Address: 228 W. 47th St. between Eighth Avenue and Broadway
Friedman’s takes diner food to a new level without being totally pretentious about it. Set inside the retro Edison Hotel, this place provides comfort food that tastes fantastic—not just goes along for the ride until the play starts.
Their gluten-free game literally turns the switch on for celiac patients. Almost everything but the menu can be modified to gluten-free and tastes like the real deal—not cardboard versions. The menu consists of pure American standards done well. That fried chicken gives you the crunch you expect without the pool of grease, and yes, breakfast at 7pm before the show. Nothing fancy, just good execution with no food service truck ingredients.
If you are into prices, just over $25 for most things—basically a steal in this neighborhood. This retro hotel vibe gives some character without trying too hard. Unpretentious, good-enough food that doesn’t abdicate your wallet or your palate.
10. Cha Pa’s Noodle & Grill
Cuisine Type: Vietnamese
Price Point: $
Address: 314 W. 52nd St. between Eighth and Ninth Avenues
Not every pre-Broadway-show dinner requires a second mortgage and white table clothes. Cha Pa’s Noodle & Grill offers the real Vietnamese deal at prices to leave money for souvenirs.
Across from the Neil Simon Theatre (MJ, currently), this little spot has the legit stuff. The banh mi sandwiches there – crunchy baguettes loaded with pickled vegetables, herbs, and protein – are perfect for pre-show snacks in a hurry.
The pho lives up to the hype. There’s ten versions from beef to veggie, and you get soup that has been actually cooked for enough time – none of that bouillon cube, shortcut nonsense. They are offering Vietnamese, not Americanized fake.
With all of 30 seats, the atmosphere is cozy, not crowded. You will likely experience a wait during peak times right before a show if you don’t have reservations or plan ahead. Make the reservation if you are catching something hot.
Insider Tips for Broadway Dining
Reservation Strategies
During peak Broadway periods (October – December and March – May), obtaining a restaurant reservation can be difficult. During these months, most restaurants in the Theatre District are often filling 85-95% of their tables by 5:30 to 6:30 pm.
If you want to eat at more established venues like Bond 45 and Glass House Tavern, you should plan to make a reservation 3-4 weeks in advance. They typically work through reservation systems like Resy or OpenTable, which open up available slots a little over 28 days in advance. You can easily set a reminder on your calendar to remind you to book at 28 days ahead of time to secure your reservation.
If you’re going to eat out on the same day, consider the following:
- Call the restaurant directly and inquire about any last-minute openings instead of only relying on your apps.
- Try to dine earlier around 4:30 PM or after 8:00 PM. It may be easier to find an open table at those times.
- Ask if you can sit at the bar, as they typically accommodate walk-ins at the bar.
- Use OpenTable’s “Point System” to possibly give you access to reservations that normally aren’t available.
And if you are unable to get a reservation, it is always a good idea to have some backup options in mind. This is especially the case with weekends, where many people dine before popular shows and the demand for tables is higher!
Timing Your Meal
If your show is at 7:00 PM, consider a reservation for dinner at 5:00 or 5:15 PM and give yourself approximately 90 minutes for dinner. If your show is at 8:00 PM, consider a reservation of 5:45 PM or 6:00 PM. This takes the stress out, and it just feels good to not rush.
When you arrive at the restaurant and are seated, let your server know your showtime at the onset of your meal. Don’t wait until after you eat and are ready to pay the check. Restaurants in the Theatre District can almost always adjust the timing of the meal if they know your timeline at the beginning.
If you need to eat quickly, consider these tips:
- Order all your courses at once instead of one by one.
- Choose dishes that don’t take long to prepare.
- Request the bill when your main course arrives.
- Use phone apps to pay swiftly.
A lot of restaurants are using technology to make the dining experience faster and more enjoyable. More and more restaurants are offering a “Theatre Express” option via their online reserving systems, which guarantees that your meal will be completed within a prescribed amount of time.
Conclusion
Dinner in advance of a Broadway show does not have to serve only as a refueling station prior to the main event. The dining landscape of the Theatre District has developed into a significant partner of the theatre scene, with the spectrum of cuisine types, quality, prices and ambience to choose, making the choice of restaurant difficult.
The next time you are determining your dinner in advance of a Broadway show, do not resort to a chain or tourist trap. These restaurants offer the real New York experience you will want to check out – they prepare your stage before the main show on Broadway.
