4 Best Restaurants in New York City, New York

There are two prime times at Tatiana's: day and night, in two adjacent venues. Sitting at a boardwalk table on a summer afternoon at Tatiana Grill, enjoying ocean breezes while eating lunch alfresco, is a quintessential Brighton Beach experience. Nighttime is a more exuberant affair, especially when Tatiana Restaurant and Night Club hosts an extravagant old school Vegas-like floor show, with dancing, costumes, and acrobatics. The menu has a bit of everything, spanning the regions of the former Soviet Union, including the sweet and savory vareniki, a pierogi-like dumpling from Ukraine, and pelmeni, small dumplings of pork and veal, hailing from Siberia. There's also staples like herring, and of course, caviar. Vodka can be ordered by the bottle. 

If you need evidence that Rockaway is becoming hip, look no further than this sceney spot serving a mix of Russian and Central Asian specialties. There are juicy pelmeni (meat) and manti (spicy lamb) dumplings, lagman noodles, and savory filled pastries known as bichaki, plus the expected very good borscht. Pressed tin ceilings, exposed-brick walls, and menus written on blackboards give the place a decidedly Brooklyn vibe.