After a big night at Madison Square Garden, it’s nice to replay the action over a meal nearby — without gagging.
But while there are better choices inside the arena than in the past, the neighborhood’s fast-food pits have changed little since “Jamaican meat patties” felled me during the 1976 Democratic National Convention.
Most of the better places nearby close at 10:30 p.m. or before — exasperating in a district teeming with life at all hours. Still, there’s decent dining if you know where to look, even if they aren’t found in the Zagat Survey.
Below, my picks, both before and after the show — plus what to avoid always.
Good pre-show choices
STELLA 34 151 W. 34th St., 212-967-9251 (Macy’s sixth floor)
Garden-goers in the know flock to the best Italian trattoria ever inside a department store. Chef Jarett Appell’s wood-burning, Neapolitan-style ovens turn out richly embellished pizzas ($16 to $20) and strongly seasoned meat and fish ($20 to $33). There’s fresh-made pasta too ($19 to $23). A pity it closes at 9:30 p.m.
NICK & STEF’S 9 Penn Plaza (Eighth Avenue and 33rd Street), 212-563-4444
Inside the MSG building, but with a separate street entrance, its solid American menu includes one of the best Caesar salads in town, assembled table-side. (Starters $13 to $15, steaks $39 to $53.) Serves till 10 p.m.
KEENS 72 W. 36th St., 212-947-3636
Historic, atmospheric steakhouse is famed for its “mutton” chop ($51) that’s not quite mutton and more like lamb, but pleasurable by any name. (Starters $11.50 to $20, steaks $49 to $54.) Serves till 10:30 p.m.
STAGHORN STEAKHOUSE 315 W. 36th St., 212-239-4390
Named not for a beast but for a fern, Staghorn lays on a beef-centric, traditional American menu in comfortable surroundings. (Starters $5 to $17.95, most entrees $37.95.) Serves till 10:30.
CAFÉ CHINA 13 E. 37th St., 212-213-2810
Serious Szechuanese cooking in sexy rooms inspired by 1930s Shanghai. Marvelous whole fish and scorching sauces. (Small dishes mostly around $10, entrees $15 to $33). A place so atmospheric deserves to stay open late — but it serves only till 10 p.m. Sunday to Wednesday and till 10:30 p.m. Thursday to Saturday.
ARNO RISTORANTE, 141 W. 38th St., 212-944-7420.
Old-school Italian of an increasingly scarce breed — wood-paneled, carpeted and comfortable. Solid menu has $8.75-16.95 starters and pasta and main dishes in the low-high $20s. Theoretically open till 11 p.m. but the manager told me last orders should be in by 10:30 or earlier.
ABAYA 318 W. 36th St., 212-868-3399
Conventional but edible Thai menu with most choices under $15 in bare-bones room. Till 11 p.m. Monday to Friday, 10:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
Where to eat after
WEST 32nd STREET between Fifth and Sixth avenues
Many of the dozens of moderately priced Korean spots on this colorful block serve past midnight, and some all night. Sprawling menus can confuse even those who eat a lot of Korean food, but after enough sizzling kimchee and shots of high-proof soju, you won’t care.
GAONURRI 1250 Broadway at 32nd Street, 212-971-9045
Corporate-looking place on an office building’s 39th floor offers grand views and usually terrific, fiery Korean food. Friendly waitresses help you “cook” at gas-flame table grills. (Table barbecue $28 to $35, other dishes all over the price map.) Downdraft ventilation keeps air smoke-free. Serves till midnight.
DESMOND’S 513 Seventh Ave., 212-391-6900. (Enter on West 38th Street.)
Classically styled steakhouse serving USDA Prime cuts is open till midnight. “Racquet Ball” rib-eye ($55 and enough for two) is the sleeper hit. Rare bonus: a voucher for six hours of free parking at a next-door garage after 5 p.m.
ACE HOTEL 20 W. 29th St., 212-679-2222
Along with the nearby NoMad Hotel, the Ace offers the scene-iest eating about 15 minutes from MSG.
It’s home to April Bloomfield’s British-inspired, pork-and-lamb-heavy BRESLIN (212-679-1939; smaller items $5 to $14, large $21 to $49) and THE JOHN DORY OYSTER BAR (212-792-9000; raw bar $2 to $18, “plates” $15 to $26). Both serve till midnight.
NOMAD HOTEL 1170 Broadway, at 28th Street, 212-796-1500
Depending on the night, three-star NOMAD RESTAURANT serves till 10, 10:30 or 11 p.m. But mahogany-steeped NOMAD BAR (10 W. 28th St., 212-796-1500) goes till 1 or 2 a.m.
Daniel Humm’s fun menu (most items $6 to $19) includes a famously fat hot dog and mini pot pie of chicken, truffles and foie gras that’s worth $36. But it’s louder than MSG in the final minute of a 1-point game.
Must avoid
TGI FRIDAY’S 484 Eighth Ave. at 34th Street
This might be the worst of the world’s 992 TGIFs. Chemical-tasting shrimp and steak almost terminated my intestines.
STAGE DOOR DELI 5 Penn Plaza (Eighth and 33rd)
After putting up with rude MSG staff, you deserve better than chicken parmigiana on a bun tarted up as a “Da Vinci Hero.”