A corner location in lower financial district at Rector and Washington. Both indoor and outdoor patio (with heaters) seating.

A surprisingly eclectic menu with offerings ranging from salads to sliders, flatiron steaks to boulognese pasta, eggs benedict to crawfish, tuna tartare to hoisin chicken, custom omelets to pappardelle...you get the idea -- a very wide range of creative stuff suitable for snacks, quick meals and full blown feasts. Also a reasonable selection of wines, beers, champagne and specialty drinks -- key lime pie martini or JT double wicked anyone? Usually have some good soups. And most of the food is excellent.

Service is a bit uneven at times and the plastic furniture is nothing special, but everyone seems to be trying hard. When visiting our son in this area we find ourselves coming back to this place repeatedly as a convenient and quality place within walking distance for just about any time of day. Not bargain priced but this is NYC and Merchants is always an interesting option in this vicinity with extended hours. Dinner entrees high teens to mid-$20's.

I took my 8 year old son and my 1 year old daughter to Merchant's Cafe on Rector Street in Manhattan on the advice of a stranger in the lobby of the condo we were staying in. It had a kid's menu which was a plus. We went fairly early, like 5:30 or so, and it wasn't crowded at all. I had the roasted cod on potatoes, and my son had the pasta with tomator sauce (which they put on the side per my request, nicely). I also bought my daughter the chicken fingers (since she won't eat fish), and she seemed to like what she ate. My food was pretty good, with curried lentils between the cod and the potatoes. It was a bit pricey but that's to be exprected, I'm sure, of a sit-down restaurant in the heart of lower Manhattan. What I didn't expect was how slow the service was -- we had to wait quite a long time for our food, and for drink refills and our check. But perhaps had I ordered wine or something it would not have seemed so long. At least they brought the kids' food first.
Also, the place was being renovated so there was scafolding above our heads, which was a bit unnerving, especially for my little one.

Went for a late 3pm lunch, the waiter was very nice and patient with our menu questions. Had the salmon with vegetables, pretty good, salmon was cooked medium as I ordered. We had the lobster sanoowich, very tasteful with nicely cooked bacon, ahi tuna sandwich was well cooked but lacked some seasonings/flavor. A good place for an informal lunch/dinner. Prices are not bad for NY.

Diner like atmosphere with interesting fare. Quaint service and worth a stop. Good location for downtown stays.

I ate here with three friends whilst on holiday in NY. The food was fantastic. One of the best places we ate during our stay in NY. The service was great. Very friendly waitress. Good selection on the menu and reasonably priced. There is a nice area outside on the forecourt to eat, which we did.
I did use the restrooms whilst here and although as the previous reviewer said, they are not marked male or female, they certainly were clean and not in the state as described below.
Overall worth a visit if down that area.