Restaurant in New York City, United States
Book for brunch; vegetables are the point.
Loring Place is a consistently recommended vegetables-forward New American in Greenwich Village, ranked on the Opinionated About Dining Casual North America list since 2023. The wood-fired cooking and market-sourced menu make weekend brunch the session to prioritize. Booking is easy — aim for 10–14 days out for Saturday or Sunday. A stronger, more ingredient-focused choice than most downtown brunch options at this price tier.
Loring Place is worth booking for weekend brunch, especially if you want a vegetables-forward New American meal in a room that feels more considered than the typical Greenwich Village option. Chef Dan Kluger has built a track record here that shows in the details: the kitchen takes seasonal produce seriously, and the wood-fired cooking adds a layer of technique you do not find at comparable price points nearby. It ranks #375 on the Opinionated About Dining Casual North America list for 2025, down from #364 in 2024, but consistently recommended since 2023 — a signal of staying power rather than a flash-in-the-pan opening. If you are weighing brunch options downtown, this is a cleaner, more ingredient-focused choice than Beauty & Essex and a more relaxed setting than Clocktower.
Loring Place sits at 21 W 8th St in Greenwich Village, named after the Bronx street where Kluger's father grew up. The room runs mid-century in aesthetic — bright orange window frames, boldly striped banquettes , and is generously sized without feeling like a hotel dining room. The space handles both a focused weekday lunch crowd and a more relaxed Saturday brunch without the atmosphere collapsing in either direction.
The cooking is rooted in market sourcing and wood-fire technique. The OAD writeup singles out the wood-grilled broccoli salad with orange, pistachios, and mint as an anchor dish, and the wood-oven pizzas made with house-milled whole wheat flour are cited as a consistent draw. This is not a steakhouse sneaking vegetables onto the menu as an afterthought , the vegetable focus is the whole point, and it reads that way on the plate. For an explorer-minded diner interested in where ingredient-driven New American cooking is happening at a casual register, this is a legitimate destination rather than a fallback option.
Weekend brunch runs Saturday and Sunday from 11 am to 3 pm. That is the format to prioritize here. The mid-century room reads better in daylight, the wood-fired dishes translate well to a late-morning format, and the pace is less compressed than weeknight dinner service. Weekday lunch runs Monday through Friday, 11:30 am to 2:30 pm, if a quieter visit is your preference.
For context on how this kitchen sits in a broader national conversation, Craft and ABC Kitchen occupy adjacent territory in New York , seasonal, mid-casual, chef-driven , but Loring Place pulls more specifically toward wood-fire and vegetables as organizing principles. Outside New York, the same ethos shows up at places like Single Thread Farm in Healdsburg at a much higher price point, or Lazy Bear in San Francisco in a more theatrical format. Loring Place sits closer to the accessible end of that spectrum , less ceremony, lower spend, still a kitchen with a clear point of view. If you want to understand the same vegetables-first New American approach applied at fine dining scale, The Inn at Little Washington or Eleven Madison Park represent that tier. Loring Place is the version you book when you want the quality without the occasion overhead.
Google rating sits at 4.6 across 1,085 reviews, which reflects broad satisfaction rather than a niche cult following , a useful signal that the kitchen performs consistently across different diner types, not just food-focused visitors.
Other Pearl picks worth pairing with a downtown visit: The Four Horsemen for natural wine and a similarly ingredient-led dinner, and our full New York City bars guide if you want to extend the evening. For broader planning, see our full New York City restaurants guide, hotels guide, and experiences guide.
Address: 21 W 8th St, New York, NY 10011. Hours: Monday–Friday 11:30 am–2:30 pm and 5:30–9:15 pm (Friday until 10 pm); Saturday 11 am–3 pm and 5:30–10 pm; Sunday 11 am–3 pm and 5:30–8:30 pm. Reservations: Booking difficulty is rated Easy , you should not need more than a week or two of lead time for most slots, though weekend brunch fills faster than weekday lunch. Aim for 10–14 days out for Saturday and Sunday. Dress: No stated dress code; the mid-century casual room sets the tone , smart casual is appropriate and comfortable. Budget: Price range not confirmed in our data; expect a mid-range casual spend consistent with the Greenwich Village neighborhood and OAD Casual ranking.
It works for a low-key special occasion , a birthday dinner for someone who prioritizes food quality over theatre, or a weekend brunch celebration. The room is attractive and the cooking is accomplished enough to feel intentional. It is not a white-tablecloth tasting-menu night out; for that in New York you would look at Atomix or Le Bernardin. But for an occasion where the food matters more than the ceremony, Loring Place delivers without requiring $300+ per head.
Yes, especially for a weekday lunch or early weekend brunch. The generous room size means solo diners are not crowded into awkward corners, and the casual format does not make a table-for-one feel odd. If bar seating is available , not confirmed in our data , that would be the natural solo perch. The ingredient-focused menu is easy to work through at a single-diner pace.
Booking difficulty is rated Easy at Loring Place. For weekday lunch, a few days' notice is usually sufficient. For weekend brunch , the session most worth prioritizing , book 10 to 14 days out to have a real choice of time slots. The restaurant's consistent OAD recognition since 2023 means demand is steady rather than seasonal, so there is no specific rush window to target.
Bar seating availability is not confirmed in our current data. The room is described as generously sized, which typically means some walk-in flexibility exists at off-peak times. If bar dining is important to your visit, contact the restaurant directly to confirm. For a venue where bar seating is a confirmed and central feature, The Four Horsemen in Brooklyn is a strong alternative in the same seasonal-cooking register.
ABC Kitchen is the closest direct comparison , seasonal, vegetables-forward, mid-casual, Union Square location. Craft shares the ingredient-led New American approach but skews slightly more formal. The Four Horsemen in Williamsburg is the right call if natural wine is as important as the food. For a step up in formality and spend within New York's New American space, see our full New York City restaurants guide. Outside the city, Bayona in New Orleans and Providence in Los Angeles represent the same chef-driven, ingredient-focused ethos at different regional price points.
| Venue | Cuisine | Price | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loring Place | New American | Nice range of tasty vegetable dishes. Dan Kluger has vegetables in his fingers! The market and the seasons are the basis of his creations. Definitely a place to be!; Opinionated About Dining Casual in North America Ranked #375 (2025); Named after the Bronx street that his father grew up on, Loring Place is where Chef Dan Kluger serves up delicious, stylistic, and locally sourced Californian cuisine to a downtown crowd. And yet, none of this comes as a surprise as the chef has showcased his talents for years and been the recipient of much acclaim in the city. His skillfully made, vegetable-centric American fare served here is unique and spirited, beginning with wood-grilled broccoli salad with orange, pistachios, and mint. The wood-oven pizzas, made with house-milled whole wheat flour, are a hit at any time. The generously sized room is uncluttered and mid-century chic, with bright orange window frames and boldly striped banquettes.; Opinionated About Dining Casual in North America Ranked #364 (2024); Opinionated About Dining Gourmet Casual Dining in North America Ranked #176 (2023); Opinionated About Dining Casual in North America Recommended (2023) | Easy | — | |
| Le Bernardin | French, Seafood | $$$$ | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Atomix | Modern Korean, Korean | $$$$ | Michelin 2 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Eleven Madison Park | French, Vegan | $$$$ | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Masa | Sushi, Japanese | $$$$ | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Per Se | French, Contemporary | $$$$ | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
What to weigh when choosing between Loring Place and alternatives.
It works for a low-key celebration rather than a milestone dinner. The mid-century room with orange window frames and striped banquettes is well-designed and relaxed, but this is not a white-tablecloth occasion restaurant. If your group wants vegetables-forward New American cooking in a considered setting, it delivers. For a more formal special-occasion meal in New York, Atomix or Le Bernardin is the stronger fit.
Yes, particularly at lunch — the room is open and uncluttered, which makes solo dining less awkward than at tighter downtown spots. The menu structure, with shareable vegetable dishes and wood-oven pizzas, adapts reasonably well to ordering for one. The Greenwich Village address at 21 W 8th St means you're not going far out of your way.
Book at least one week out for dinner and two to three days out for weekend brunch; the room is generously sized, which helps availability compared to smaller downtown restaurants. Friday and Saturday evenings fill fastest given the later 10 pm close. Weekday lunches (11:30 am–2:30 pm) are the easiest walk-up window if you're nearby.
The venue data does not confirm a dedicated bar dining option, so check the venue's official channels at 21 W 8th St or check current availability when booking. The dining room is described as generously sized, which typically supports some walk-in flexibility, particularly at lunch on weekdays.
For vegetables-forward New American cooking at a similar price tier, Loring Place sits in a small category in New York. If you want to spend more for a tasting-menu format, Eleven Madison Park runs the plant-based angle at a significantly higher price point. For something more casual at lunch in the Village, the neighbourhood has several options, but Loring Place's OAD Casual North America ranking (top 375 in 2025) puts it ahead of most generic alternatives in the area.
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