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Alongside restaurants like Grand Central Oyster Bar and Bamonte’s, The Russian Tea Room is an NYC institution. This place is located among a row of high-end hotels just south of Central Park, and you come here as much for the setting as you do for a meal. The space features dark green walls with gold trim, red banquettes, and two genuine Picassos and one Chagall (mixed in with reproductions). The staff won’t tell you which paintings are real just in case you’re secretly a Danny Ocean-level art thief.
Russian dishes like kulebyaka and beef stroganoff are available (as well as an eye-popping selection of vodkas), and the popular afternoon tea comes with more savory and sweet items than you can probably finish. The creamy shrimp salad and smoked sturgeon sandwiches are two favorites, and you should prioritize the chocolate chip scone and mini red velvet cupcake if you know you can’t finish all the desserts.