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    Home » Destination

    Posted on: Jun 19, 2018 · This post may contain affiliate links ·

    New York City Food Guide

    3 shares

    The number one question I get asked most is - "where should I eat in New York City?" For years I've been meaning to share my New York City Food Guide, and now that I live 3000 miles away, I finally sat down and wrote it up. New York City is a melting pot of cultures and unarguably serves some of the world's best food. Even my Californian-lover husband would agree with me on this.

    You want Indian food, they have amazing Indian food, you want Thai food, they have incredible Thai food. Traditionally speaking, New York City is most famous for its pizza and bagels, neither of which I indulged in too much because I'm more of a sit-down-and-dine type kinda gal. That will quickly change on future visits since I no longer have access to the best pizza and bagels in town. With that said, here are some of my favorite NYC eateries.

    Asian

    Tao (downtown/uptown): lychee martini, glazed salmon, banana bread pudding

    Bagels

    Ess-A-Bagel (midtown east): any bagel with jalapeno cream cheese, sun-dried tomato cream cheese
    Best Bagel and Coffee (midtown west): favorite. garlic bagel with chive cream cheese + tomatoes & jalapenos

    Brunch

    Clinton Street Baking Company (lower east side): blueberry pancakes with warm maple butter
    Jane Restaurant (soho): vanilla bean french toast, home fries, rosemary fries
    The Cookshop (chelsea): huevos rancheros
    The Smith (multiple locations): I haven't been, but I've heard amazing things

    Chai

    The Chai Spot (lower east side): favorite. traditional cardamom chai, coconut rose chai

    Cheesecake

    Pasticceria Rocco (west village): strawberry cheesecake, rainbow cookies

    Chinese

    Joe's Shanghai (chinatown): pork soup dumplings

    Cuban/Latin

    Victor's Cafe (midtown west): red sangria, ensalada de aguacate y berro, cilantro cuban tamale, tres leches

    Cupcakes & Bakeries

    Coffeeshop

    • Pasticceria Rocco Italian coffeeshop (west village): strawberry cheesecake, rainbow cookies, lattes

    Cookies

    • Levain Bakery (midtown west): chocolate chip cookie
    • Milk & Cookies Bakery (west village): chocolate chip cookie, white chocolate macadamia
    • Schmackary's (midtown west): red velvet cookie

    Croissants

    • Lafayette Bakery (noho): pistachio supreme (similar to a croissant)

    Cupcakes

    • Georgetown Cupcake (soho): salted caramel, strawberry
    • Molly's Cupcakes (west village): favorite. cake batter, butterscotch
    • Sprinkles Cupcakes (multiple locations): red velvet, banana
    • Billy's Bakery (multiple locations): carrot, banana
    • Butter Lane (east village): banana
    • Magnolia Bakery (multiple locations): banana bread pudding

    Donuts

    • Angelina Bakery (midtown west): favorite. chantilly cream bombolone (Italian donut)

    Pastries

    • Pasticceria Rocco (west village): strawberry cheesecake, rainbow cookies, lattes.

    French

    Le Bernardin - 3 Michelin Star (midtown): favorite & outstanding experience, pricey. black truffle tagliatelle, salmon tartare, hazelnut praline

    Greek

    The Greek (tribeca): bifteki - beef patties, feta cheesecake
    Estiatorio Milos (midtown west): milos special fried eggplant zucchini tower, Greek salad, grilled vegetables

    Healthy Fast Food

    Locations all over NYC

    Dig Inn: favorite. wild salmon, sweet potatoes
    Sweetgreen
    Dos Toros

    Holiday Markets

    Located at Bryant Park & Union Square between Thanksgiving and New Years

    No Chewing Allowed: favorite. dark hot chocolate
    Sigmund's Pretzels: truffle cheddar, garlic parsley

    Hot Chocolate

    No Chewing Allowed (holiday market only between Thanksgiving and New Year, WTC Oculus all year): favorite. dark hot chocolate

    Indian

    Indian Accent (midtown west): favorite & exceptional. potato sphere chaat, bengal rice khichdi, baked sea bass, makhan malai, doda burfi
    Junoon (flatiron): eggplant chaat, piri piri shrimp, murgh lababdar, daal makhni, junoon spice naan with gruyere
    Baar Baar (east village): dahi puri, potato tikki, paneer pinwheels
    Rahi (west village): edamame artichoke chaat, lotus root kofta, seven mushroom khichdi
    The MasalaWala (lower east side): dahi puri, chicken tikka masala, masala chai
    Taco Mahal (west villlage): masala chai latte - cold

    Italian

    Carbone - 1 Michelin Star (greenwich village): favorite & exceptional. spicy rigatoni vodka, zucchini flowers, Italian rainbow cookie cake, carrot cake
    L'Artusi (west village): favorite. olive oil cake, spaghetti
    Babbo (greenwich village): pappardelle bolognese, mascarpone cheesecake, (I wasn't impressed by the vegetarian items)
    Rubirosa (nolita): fresca, vodka, tie-dye, tuscan kale campanelle pasta

    Japanese

    Nobu 57 (midtown west): favorite. miso black cod, Peruvian chicken skewers

    Korean

    Hangawi (midtown east): favorite. lychee mojito, stuffed shitake mushrooms, bean curd with kimchi, combination pancakes, tofu chocolate pudding

    Mexican

    La Esquina (lower east side): grilled corn, grilled fish tacos
    Toloache (midtown west): guacamole, truffle quesadillas, margaritas 

    Michelin Star Restaurants

    Carbone - 1 Michelin Star (italian/greenwich village): favorite & exceptional. spicy rigatoni vodka, zucchini flowers, Italian rainbow cookie cake, carrot cake
    Le Bernardin - 3 Michelin Star (french/midtown): favorite & outstanding experience, pricey. black truffle tagliatelle, salmon tartare, hazelnut praline

    Middle-Eastern/Moroccan

    Mamoun's Falafel (west village): falafel
    Casa La Femme (west village): branzino, french fries, babaghanoush, hummus, crabmeat kofta 

    Pizza

    Roberta's (midtown east, brooklyn): favorite. margherita
    Rubirosa (nolita): favorite. fresca, vodka, tie-dye, tuscan kale campanelle pasta
    Joe's Pizza (west village): favorite. fresh mozzarella, plain cheese
    Razza Pizza (jersey city): margherita

    Romantic Restaurants

    Salinas (chelsea): red sangria, croquetas del dia, seco paella
    La Lanterna di Vittorio (greenwich village): pesto lasagna, pomodoro e basilico, tiramisu, warm pecan pie
    Casa La Femme (west village): branzino, french fries, babaghanoush, hummus, crabmeat kofta 
    The River Cafe (dumbo): chocolate Brooklyn bridge cake

    Spanish

    Salinas (chelsea): red sangria, croquetas del dia, seco paella

    Street Food

    The Halal Guys (midtown west): chicken & rice

    Thai

    Thai Villa (flatiron): favorite & exceptional. royal pad thai, hok talay, coconut sticky rice, Thai iced tea

    Trendy

    Catch (meatpacking district): cod lettuce wraps, mushroom spaghetti

    Vegan

    Beatnic (previously named By Chloe - flatiron): guac burger, sweet potato fries, chipotle aioli sauce, beet ketchup
    Planta (nomad): rainbow roll, avocado lime tartare


     

    OVERRATED NYC RESTAURANTS

    Bar Pitti: rude service, obnoxious staff. food is average with the exception of the famous pappardelle alla fiesolana.
    Afternoon Tea at The Palm Court - The Plaza Hotel: it's an experience at a landmark hotel, but the food is overrated.
    Ilili: it's not the same anymore, their food has been off the last two times I visited.
    Prince Street Pizza: wasn't impressed, nothing special about the sauce.
    Red Bamboo: unimpressed.
    Chez Josephine: poor service, average food.. don't believe the hype.
    Veniero's: definitely not the best cheesecake in NYC, so disappointed with the classic Italian desserts. 


     

    NEW JERSEY RESTAURANTS

    Bakeries & Desserts

    La Bon Bake Shops (south plainfield/other locations): brown derby, hungarian cheesecake
    The Original Fudge Kitchen (ocean city): vanilla nut fudge, chocolate nut fudge
    Thomas Sweet (new brunswick): any ice-cream and topping combo

    Farmers Market

    Delicious Orchards (colts neck): dutch apple pie, pecan pie

    Indian

    Simply Chai (new brunswick): rose gold, dhamakedar falooda, air-fried magic masala fries

    Pizza

    Razza Pizza (jersey city): margherita
    Lombardi's Pizza & Co. (martinsville): 7051 pizza, bella pizza, calabria pasta
    Manco & Manco Pizza (ocean city): plain pizza, white spinach pizza


    And for more inspiration, check out my NYC Bucket List - I'm still working on it! 🙂

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    1. Jhiane says

      June 19, 2018 at 4:50 pm

      I’m so glad that you came up with this guide . You have impeccable taste in food and trust your opinions. I will use this every time I dine in nyc

      Reply

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