A pan-Asian restaurant from the chef behind Lower East Side’s Filipino-Thai hot spot Pig & Khao.

Former Top Chef contestant Leah Cohen and husband Ben Byruch's latest concept eatery has been inspired by the duo’s years of overseas travel, and has a broader scope than their Lower East Side hipster spot. Piggyback highlights familiar cuisine with nuances of Asian flavors, influences and techniques - bringing a melting pot of regions throughout Asia to West 30th Street. Specialties include Cantonese-style pan-fried red mullet fish, charcoal-smoked dry-aged ribeye with roasted bone marrow, and rice noodles topped with pan-seared cod marinated in turmeric, fish sauce butter, peanuts, dill and lime juice. There’s also an extensive drinks menu with wine, several beers on tap, and cans of beer that are both local and from different regions throughout Asia.

Byruch carefully conceptualized and designed Piggyback NYC to serve as an evolving canvas of modern street-style art. The restaurant has a narrow, brick-walled space with a bar and some tables, and a kitchen pass-through that opens into a bright, airy and informal dining room whose walls all papered with Asian newspapers, American movie posters and retro advertisements. 

Ideal For

Asian bites and cocktails

Signature Dishes

Shrimp Toast Okonomiyaki - brioche bread topped with shrimp mousse, cabbage salad, bonito flakes, nori and homemade kewpie mayo and okie sauce; Chả Cá Lã Vọng - rice noodles topped with pan seared cod marinated in turmeric, fish sauce butter, peanuts, dill and lime juice and Cantonese Style Pan-Fried Rouget - red mullet fish with shaoxing rice wine, sesame oil, cilantro and soy sauce.

Signature Drinks

The Claude Monet made with gin, shochu, butterfly pea, lemon and Prosecco and The Desperate Housewife with vodka, Aperol, Prosecco, blood orange, lemon and Collins.