Manhattan’s spring restaurant season is rolling forward with a notable new opening that sushi lovers have been waiting for, while a beloved Hell’s Kitchen haunt recently served its final bowl. Here’s your Tuesday update on what’s new and what’s gone in the borough.
Sendo Is Now Open in Greenwich Village
If you’ve been watching the downtown sushi scene, this one’s been on the radar for a while: Sendo, the Tokyo-inspired fast-casual sushi bar that earned a cult following in NoMad, has officially opened its second location at 43 W 8th Street in Greenwich Village. The site went live in early May 2026, and the brand confirmed it on their official website with a “NOW OPEN” banner.
The Greenwich Village location expands on the original NoMad concept — which operates from a compact 300-square-foot space at 876 6th Avenue — with a roomier second-floor setup offering roughly 29 total seats: 15 at a bar and 14 at tables. The bar will serve beer and wine, a step up from the original’s take-out-focused setup. Expect the same core menu philosophy: nigiri, handrolls, and omakase sets starting at $32, all prepared with the same emphasis on quality fish and Japanese technique that made the first location such a hit for value-conscious diners.
Sendo’s model is built on what the owners call “omotenashi” — the Japanese concept of wholehearted hospitality — delivered at accessible price points thanks to low overhead and high turnover. The NoMad location became a neighborhood staple for locals who wanted a genuine omakase experience without the $200-per-head price tag, and the Village location brings that same energy to one of Manhattan’s most food-saturated neighborhoods.
West 8th Street puts Sendo right in the middle of the activity corridor that connects Washington Square Park to the Sixth Avenue shopping strip, making it a natural post-park or pre-movie destination. The nearest subway stops are the A/C/E/B/D/F/M at West 4th Street, a short walk away. Takeout and delivery are available through sendo.nyc.
The Meatball Shop’s Last Outpost Has Closed
On the other end of the ledger, The Meatball Shop — once a multi-location NYC institution — closed the last remaining location in Hell’s Kitchen in late March 2026. The restaurant, which opened its first location on the Lower East Side in 2010 and expanded to become a six-location mini-chain before the pandemic, had been operating just the one Hell’s Kitchen spot for the past few years before calling it for good.
The Meatball Shop was one of the defining casual-dining concepts of the 2010s New York food scene — unpretentious, affordable, endlessly customizable, and always reliable for a weeknight dinner. Its closure is another reminder of how dramatically the middle tier of the Manhattan restaurant business has been reshaped by the combined pressures of rising rents, changing dining habits, and the pandemic’s lasting economic effects. Many long-running spots across the borough have followed the same path in recent years: not failing dramatically, but quietly reaching the end of the road when leases come up or the economics stop making sense.
Also on the Radar: Chinatown’s Phê
Chinatown continues to be active. The bánh mì café connected to the forthcoming Phê Vietnamese concept has been operating on a limited basis near the Mắm space, with a fuller opening expected soon. This corner of lower Manhattan is seeing as much new food energy as it has in years, with newer spots absorbing foot traffic from residents and visitors moving between the Financial District and the Village.
For a broader look at what’s opening and closing across the city this week, see our NYC Restaurant Openings & Closings roundup from May 18.
What You Need to Know
- Sendo Greenwich Village is now open at 43 W 8th Street — Tokyo-style sushi, omakase sets from $32, beer and wine at the bar
- Nearest subway: A/C/E/B/D/F/M at West 4th Street
- Sendo NoMad remains open at 876 6th Avenue as well
- The Meatball Shop closed its last NYC location (Hell’s Kitchen) in late March after a 15-year run
- Phê in Chinatown is operating in limited capacity and expected to fully open soon
- Sendo’s omakase sets start at $32 — one of the better values for quality sushi in Manhattan right now
