The Fat Radish

This out-of-the-way Lower East Side spot helped launch a romantic, cozy empire including the East Pole and the Leadbelly. Cool-kid clientele pack the high-ceilinged, exposed-brick room nightly. Fat Radish is a spinoff of A-list catering company Silkstone, and it’s easy to imagine some veggie-centric menu items — olive-oil-dressed sliced radishes, carrots with whipped ricotta, buttermilk-braised turnips — being passed around at downtown fashion parties. Other seasonal fare leans more pub-grubby (this is a self-proclaimed “seasonal British” restaurant, after all), including a bacon cheeseburger with duck fat chips. Also meaty: monkfish vindaloo with cipollini onions, roasted chicken, and bacon-wrapped Brussels sprouts.