Overview
- The Dining Out NYC program, which reopened Wednesday, lets restaurants place limited seating in the street through Nov. 29 under seasonal rules.
- DOT counts roughly 1,800 eligible sidewalk or roadway setups this year, with just over 700 fully licensed and many others operating on conditional sidewalk approvals.
- Only about 500 roadside setups have approvals so far in 2026, a level similar to last year but far below the roughly 8,000 participants during the emergency program.
- The current law requires multi-stage reviews by community boards, the City Council and DOT that can stretch six to eight months, with added fees, design standards and fines for violations.
- City officials are pushing to allow year-round roadside dining and streamline approvals, arguing it would cut costs for small restaurants that now rebuild and store structures each winter.