Waterfront Dining

1 Main St, Brooklyn, NY 11201 (map)

Waterfront properties tend to be stuffy, which is one reason why Bubby's DUMBO location is so wildly popular. The atmosphere is casual, funky and friendly, and the food is similarly easygoing; it's the same menu of comfort food served at the original Bubby’s in Tribeca: burgers, barbecue and baked goods at a pretty reasonable price point. The real draw is brunch, which fills up the giant restaurant (three levels plus a bar) nearly every weekend.

59 Chelsea Piers Ste 62, New York, NY 10011 (map)

It's hidden away inside Chelsea Piers' vast complex alongside a gym, a bowling alley and a driving range, but this brewery and restaurant delivers one of the best Hudson views on the whole riverside. The rear deck faces the piers, and while the golf range obscures part of the vista, you're still sitting in the sun, watching the waves lap against the bulkhead and breathing in river air. The food is nothing special, but order some cold beers and you're in for a nice evening.

2-01 Borden Ave, Long Island City, NY 11101 (map)

This artificial beach in Long Island City is vulnerable to rain, gets very crowded and is hard to access by any standard. But it's still worth visiting thanks to its stunning Manhattan river views and its hamburger, which is one of the best in all of New York City. Made fresh every day with LaFrieda beef and aggressively seasoned with a secret house spice blend, these burgers are the perfect thing with which to toast the sun setting over the Chrysler building. One of the coolest features about the Water Taxi Beach is that, as the name implies, you can (and should) travel to and fro by boat.

1 Water St, Brooklyn, NY 11201 (map)

Happily, the restaurant with the best river views in the city also happens to have the best food of any waterfront restaurant. Given the River Cafe’s stunning vista at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge, the place could probably get away with mediocre food, but instead it's continued to be a hatchery for great chefs from David Burke and Charlie Palmer to current chef Brad Steelman, whom the restaurant’s ever-present owner Buzzy O'Keefe supplies with the most expensive, exactingly sourced ingredients available.

500 E 30th Street, New York, NY 10016 (map)

Chances are you've driven by this East River spot (which is literally built-out atop the river just off the FDR Drive) and wondered, what is that place, anyway? It's the lesser-known sister restaurant to the River Cafe, and as such it has access to the same world-class ingredients as its Brooklyn sibling. It's not quite as attractive, obviously, but it's much better than it looks and its water views are so dramatic that it hardly matters. The Water Club specializes in catered affairs and banquets, although it is also open as a restaurant.

401 44th Dr, Long Island City, NY 11101 (map)

This immense, ultra-modern edifice in Long Island City remains one of the city's best-kept secrets, a riverside oasis complete with a tinkling piano, floating barges and the rare boast that every single table has a river view. The food is typical wedding or banquet-style fare; not much different from what you might find in a good Midwestern hotel. The service is a bit on the elaborate side, as befits a "special occasion" restaurant.

2902 Emmons Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11235 (map)

Few venture to Sheepshead Bay, but the place has some of the nicest waterfront real estate in the city and a tradition of seafood restaurants that's almost 100 years old. Alas, most of these are gone, but Il Fornetto is carrying the torch. Aside from the commanding views of Sheepshead Bay, the resto boasts solid Italian seafood and off-track betting in its Saratoga Room Sports Lounge. But the outdoor dining pavilion is the place to be, especially on a sunny summer afternoon.