The thing about Michael Chernus is that you’ve seen that guy somewhere. It could be on several episodes of “Orange Is the New Black” or opposite Rachel Weisz in “Dead Ringers.” Or, more recently, as John Wayne Gacy in the 2025 Peacock series “Devil in Disguise” and as Ricken Hale on “Severance.” (No, he doesn’t know when they’ll start filming the next season.)

But in the fall of 1995, Chernus was an 18-year-old freshman at the Juilliard School who was absolutely thrilled to be living in New York City. And that hasn’t changed. “I just love that element of how we all come together over food and we all pack into these tiny spaces and wait in line to go out to eat or we all grab a slice at the corner shop,” he said. “There’s nowhere else in the world I’d rather be.” Read on to see why Chernus regrets never dining at Elaine’s, how he wooed his wife with one critical Google restaurant search and why he feels a little embarrassed that he has never worked at a restaurant.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

Michael Chernus’s New York City Dining History

What was the first restaurant you remember eating at in New York City?

I have a vivid memory of getting Manhattan clam chowder at some diner near Times Square when I first came to New York City to audition for Juilliard. This would have been my very first visit to New York ever, and it felt so exotic, so foreign, so thrilling to eat Manhattan clam chowder in Manhattan.

Once I arrived at Juilliard in the fall of 1995, from the suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio, and was living on the Upper West Side, I frequented so many Upper West Side haunts like the Emerald Inn,Malachy’s, Ruppert’s,Diane’s,China Fun,Big Nick’s,Harry’s Burritos. My friend Erin Gann and I would go to Ruppert’s all the time and share stuff because we were broke, but we felt like real New Yorkers there.

What New York City restaurant do you miss the most? What do you miss about it?

I desperately miss Kodama Sushi, which was a staple of the Broadway community, on West 45th. My friend Reg and I would sit at the bar, and they would serve Otokoyama sake in a wooden masu cup. They had rolls named after different Broadway shows, and the vibe was just great there. I think for most actors, once the show is over that night, then there’s this moment of relief. There’s this big breath of, OK, I’ve done my day’s work, now I can go out and maybe indulge a little bit. Not too much, but I can go out and have a meal. I can have a drink.

If a friend asks you for a restaurant recommendation in New York City, where do you send them?

I definitely always recommend Frankies 457 Spuntinoin Carroll Gardens. The cavatelli with hot sausage and browned sage butter? I mean, come on! The prune dessert — and I’m not a dessert person — is awesome. And the olio martini! I wish I could duplicate that olive oil martini at home. So good! Too good.

What historical New York City restaurant do you wish you had eaten at?

It’s New York, so you see celebrities walking down the street or on the subway, but I always felt like Elaine’s was the place to really go and not just be a fly on the wall and see notable New Yorkers, but to be among them. I never went, so I don’t know, but the illusion of it was that it was sort of like being in the room where it happens. It doesn’t feel like there is a scene like that anymore. And, of course, for obvious reasons, I wish I would have gone to Windows on the Worldin the World Trade Center.

What is the most romantic and cozy restaurant in New York City?

Minetta Tavern is so warm and cozy and feels like old New York. It’s very romantic. I like an old place. I’m always charmed by a restaurant or a bar in New York City that’s been around for really long time, whether it’s McSorley’s or Old Town Bar orPete’s Tavern or the old Chumley’s. You just feel the history and all the stories that must have happened there and all the people who sat at the bar.

If you were leaving the city forever, where would you have your farewell dinner?

I adore Chez Ma Tante in Greenpoint. Those chips and aioli all night long, baby.

Where did you enjoy your favorite meal this year?

Outside of New York City, my best meal this year was definitely at Le Swan in Toronto. We shot “Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy” in Toronto, and that's an awesome food town. It’s so fun — the menu is wild. It's a “French diner,” so it's a bunch of junk food, but fancy. The corn dogs are out of this world. Toronto is big and sprawling but maintains a real identity throughout. And the food scene is bananas. It’s out of control.

What is your favorite New York City neighborhood to dine out in?

Fort Greene, where I just closed a play at the Space at Irondale. You’ve got so many great spots there, like Walter’s, Sailor, Margot, Theodora. And then in Clinton Hill, you have Locanda Vini e Olii for the chitarre pasta alla buttera. When you do a play, that neighborhood for that short amount of time becomes your neighborhood, and you know the bodega on the corner, you know where you like to get your coffee, you where the good snacks are, you know where the good quick bowl of ramen is, and that starts to become part of the fabric of not only your routine, but of your performance.

What’s the most important or memorable moment to have happened to you in a restaurant?

My first date with my wife, Emily Simoness, was at the now defunct Buttermilk Channel in Carroll Gardens. Emily ran an amazing arts nonprofit at the time called Space on Ryder Farm. It was an artist residency program on a 130-acre working organic farm in Brewster, N.Y. So, when she agreed to go out with me for dinner, I quickly googled “farm-to-table restaurant Brooklyn” and suggested Buttermilk Channel even though I had never been there. It was an extraordinary night, in no small part due to the wonderful atmosphere and vibe of that place.

Michael Chernus’s Dining Habits

What dish do you always order if it’s on the menu?

Always start with a dozen raw oysters to share — half a dozen if I’m by myself.

What is the best time to sit down for dinner?

When you’re hungry is the best time to sit down for dinner. It’s New York — any time is good for dinner. Literally, any time. We have a toddler, so dinner for my wife and I now is like at 6 p.m. But when I’m in a play, dinner is post-show at, like, 10 p.m.

How long would you be willing to wait for a table at a restaurant you really wanted to go to?

Not for very long. In New York City, there are so many good restaurants — why wait?

Linger after a meal or pay the check and leave?

Get out of there and go have a drink somewhere else if you want to continue the conversation. The servers need to flip that table. Let the servers make their money — don’t linger.

What restaurant dish has become too expensive?

Bread. I don’t want to have to pay for bread. Give us this day our daily bread. For free.

Do you prefer to eat family-style or to order for just yourself?

I love the idea of family-style dining. But, in practice, I find it stressful. I worry about getting the piece of chicken that I want. What if everyone else takes all the good chicken?

Do you dine at restaurants by yourself? Why or why not?

I dine at restaurants by myself all the time. It's the best. Bring a book, sit at the bar, live your best life.

Do you order from the cocktail menu or do you order the same drink everywhere?

I usually order a Tito’s martini with a twist (or, if they have them, blue cheese olives). I’m not opposed to ordering off the cocktail menu, but usually those drinks are too fussy with too many ingredients. Give me cold booze in a cold glass, please.

Do the health department’s restaurant grades matter to you?

Restaurant grades absolutely matter to me. And they should definitely matter to you, too. Why would you risk eating at an establishment with a C rating?

Lightning Round

What is your stance on spiels from your server?

I always ask what my server likes on the menu, what their favorite dish is. They work there, so they know what’s what. I feel like working in the service industry is like a badge of honor for an actor. I think I feel some slight embarrassment that I never worked in a restaurant. Am I really an actor if I’ve never been the server? It’s like if you’ve never been on “Law & Order,” are you really a New York actor?

What is your bagel order?

My bagel order is an everything bagel toasted with Nova lox, cream cheese, tomato and capers. No onion. And a Dr. Brown’s Cel-Ray soda.

Is brunch good or inherently evil?

I think that brunch is mostly bad. Don’t get me wrong, I have had some super fun brunches in my day. When I was in my 20s and I lived in the East Village and I woke up at noon on weekends — back then brunch was king. Sidewalk Cafe, 7A Cafe, Around the Clock Diner. These were my spots.

If you had a restaurant, what would you call it, and what type of food would it serve?

If I had a restaurant, it would be called the Butter Chern, and it would serve dishes like the Chern and Burn, the Chernsauce, the Chernstile, the Disco Incherno, the Chern of the Century, the Chern It Up, the U-Chern, the very popular Two Cherntables and a Microphone and the unfortunately named Chernobyl. It’s up to you to figure out what those dishes would be and what they could possibly consist of. But I can guarantee that they would be delicious. To everything … chern, chern, chern.

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