9 Restaurant

This rocky Hell's Kitchen spot has a funny way with numbers: Shortly after a splashy media preview in October, it deep-sixed original chef Michael Berardino (and his Mediterranean menu), opened for zero days, and is now attempting a second shot at getting things off the ground. Replacing Berardino is Oak Room toque Eric Hara, who himself was part of a recent chef switcheroo—he parted ways with Dekko Café and Cienna, both in Astoria, as their consulting chef. Hara is onboard 9 as both partner and chef, and the menu skews New American, with a focus on hearty and comfort-y. There's cheese steak strudel, matzoh ball soup with bone marrow, pretzel dog sliders and mac-and-cheese with crab and sea urchin—Hara's always had a witty knack for turning conventional dishes on their head. The space itself remains the same—sleek and modern, with splashy graffiti art on one wall. Here's hoping the chef shakeup fills out one other number: the restaurant's 75 seats.

See more: Hell's Kitchen restaurants, Midtown restaurants, Midtown West restaurants, American contemporary restaurants