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Award-Winning Wine and Greek Cuisine at Nerai NYC

Nerai, an upscale restaurant in Manhattan, brings Greece to Midtown East. Experience the fresh flavors of the Aegean Sea with a range of delicious seafood dishes, hummus, housemade feta, and grilled pita bread. Whether you’re looking for a place to power lunch or a romantic spot after a Broadway show, Nerai presents an elegant, hospitable dining room for all (in addition to patio space outside!). Their wine program recently received the prestigious Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence as well, planting Nerai firmly on the map as an essential dining destination. Read on to learn more about New York’s Nerai!

Nerai

Haute Greek Cuisine 

Nerai serves a fresh, impeccably sourced take on Greek cuisine, courtesy of chef Moshe Grundman. Whether at lunch or dinner, you’ll love the meze spreads, seafood, and pasta on these menus. Standouts include fresh oysters, grilled octopus starter over santorini fava, squid ink pasta linguini with Maine lobster, and duck moussaka entree with fig jus. The lunch menu, perfect for business or pleasure during a day in the city, features entree salads, skewers with grilled pita, and a salmon burger with avocado on squid ink brioche bread. 

At dinner, a wider array of entree choices include the Xtenia Me Panseta (scallops with ouzo honey-glazed pork belly, sunchoke, and rainbow cauliflower) and filet mignon with feta mashed potatoes. Don’t miss desserts like walnut cake with chocolate gelato, or the trio of Greek yogurts. 

If you’re just headed to the bar, indulge in a label from Nerai’s award-winning wine program along with a savory snack like zucchini chips and tzatziki. Lunch and dinner menus offer prixe fixe options (with additional wine pairings available at dinner only), or you can order dishes a la carte. No matter which you choose, you’ll want to come back so you can try everything! 

Pre- & Post-Theater Dining

Nerai

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Before or after your Broadway show this weekend, book a table at Nerai for a three-course meal you won’t soon forget. This $49 prix-fixe menu presents a winning selection among Nerai’s best dishes. Start with spanakopita or grilled haloumi cheese with figs, and follow with mains like grilled chicken with potato gnocchi.

Baklava

Dessert options include a plate of baklava topped with tahini parfait, sesame brittle, and pistachio gelato. This menu is available Friday and Saturday, 5-6pm and 9-10:30pm. 

Wine Spectator Recognition

Nerai wine

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This month, Wine Spectator listed Nerai’s wine program among their 2019 winners of the Best Of Award of Excellence. This award honors restaurants with a deep catalog of exceptional wines. At Nerai, Wine Director Michael Coll and Sommelier Will Marengo are responsible for a list full of Greek labels to complement the cuisine. Wine Spectator also notes the moderate price range of Coll and Marengo’s list, as well as the size of the wine cellar, which offers 575 selections and contains 3,850 bottles! 

Private Dining

If you’d like to see that wine collection firsthand, book a private room in the wine cellar, called Cava Nerai. The restaurant opens spaces like the wine cellar, the garden, the bar room, and the white room for a range of events of various sizes. Their catering options include a seven-course tasting menu or a less formal family-style meal. Fill out this form, and throw your next party in a tasteful space with Mediterranean flair.


Nerai is located at 55 E. 54th St. Call 212-759-5554 or visit nerainyc.com for reservations and more.

About the Author

Merrill Lee Girardeau lives and writes in Brooklyn.

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