Headed to NYC for the first time! Recs for a burby boy?

[Blumbo]

Hey - weird that I’ve never been to NYC but randomly found 50$ round trip tickets so made a spontaneous decision for my vacation! Everything I know about the city is from food YouTube ie. Munchies/Eater but any recommendations for food and places to see or places to avoid for a dude who grew up in the suburbs? Btw hotel is in Manhattan near Midtown.

 

[knifeq2121]

go to L’Industrie pizza either in west village or if you’re gonna be in the area you can go to williamsburg. maybe check out russ and daughters. what kind of food do you like? there’s a million places you can go to chinatown or ktown, there’s a bunch of fantastic italian restaurants of course.

 

[Blumbo]

go to L’Industrie pizza either in west village or if you’re gonna be in the area you can go to williamsburg. maybe check out russ and daughters. what kind of food do you like? there’s a million places you can go to chinatown or ktown, there’s a bunch of fantastic italian restaurants of course.

I love almost every type of food and will be for sure be visiting Chinatown. I probably can’t leave the city without eating the following:

- Pizza
- Bagel
- Pastrami
- One upscale sit down spot

 

[knifeq2121]

I love almost every type of food and will be for sure be visiting Chinatown. I probably can’t leave the city without eating the following:

- Pizza
- Bagel
- Pastrami
- One upscale sit down spot

for bagels russ and daughters has good lox but their bagel itself isn’t great. the pastrami at katz is good but not worth $30 for a sandwich imo.

 

[Gshep91]

for bagels russ and daughters has good lox but their bagel itself isn’t great. the pastrami at katz is good but not worth $30 for a sandwich imo.

Katz is a tourist trap for sure.

Also, tell me why I’d have bet money that they closed down? Was there another deli that did?

 

[Heckel7302]

Katz is a tourist trap for sure.

Also, tell me why I’d have bet money that they closed down? Was there another deli that did?

It was the Carnegie Deli. They closed in 2016, then Amazon got involved and brought the brand back in various incarnations.

 

[Blumbo]

Is los tacos no 1 a tourist trap?

 

[Naftoor]

Leaving for NYC today, so definitely following this thread for recommendations! Planning on hitting up flushing since Chinatown was turning into a ghost town in my trips prepandemic

 

[PPIIBBSS]

Oh hey my buddy was just visiting NY, so I put together a little list of places I like. I am by no means an expert, but I have been a chef for 17 years, and my family lives in New York, so I am there at least once per year. Most of my recs are in the lower half of Manhattan. I do also have recs for Long Island, as that's where my family is, but most ppl don't get out that far when visiting NY.


My top recommendation is a slice of New York cheesecake at Rocco's. The kind with no crust. But you don't need to specify, if you just order new york cheese cake, that's what they'll bring you. And a cup of earl grey to compliment the flavor.

Rocco's is right around the corner from Joe's Pizza, if you wanna double load on dairy and carbs. But seriously good slices. Of course you can find better at corner shops outside Manhattan, but as far as the city goes, they're one of the best for sure.

If you want more of a sit down meal, Suprema Provisions is an amazing underrated italian place. Their pasta dishes and octopus were done RIGHT.

And then if you're up for a bit of a walk from that area, Swift Hiberian Lounge pours the best pint of guiness in the city, maybe in the country. I don't even like Guiness, but man theirs is something else. Turns out the flavor of guinness HEAVILY depends on how it's poured. They've got decent pub food as well, and live traditional music some nights.

If you like a really good drink, check out Attaboy Speakeasy. It's a bar where you just tell the bartenders what sort of flavors you enjoy, and any other preferences you have, and they will just make you amazing drinks. They don't serve any food.

When you show up to Attaboy, it will seem like it's closed. You have to ring the bell, and someone will come out and put your name on the list. It will likely be a 2+ hour wait, so I recommend putting your name on the list, then taking a taxi across the Brooklyn Bridge. Getting out of the taxi, and walking back across the bridge, back into Manhattan. Then either hoof it or grab a cab back to the speakeasy. That should kill most of the wait time, and the walk across the bridge is absolutely magical. Bring a cup of hot tea or coffee on the walk with you if you can.


I'd love to hear your thoughts if you wind up going to any of these places!

 

[Blumbo]

Oh hey my buddy was just visiting NY, so I put together a little list of places I like. I am by no means an expert, but I have been a chef for 17 years, and my family lives in New York, so I am there at least once per year. Most of my recs are in the lower half of Manhattan. I do also have recs for Long Island, as that's where my family is, but most ppl don't get out that far when visiting NY.


My top recommendation is a slice of New York cheesecake at Rocco's. The kind with no crust. But you don't need to specify, if you just order new york cheese cake, that's what they'll bring you. And a cup of earl grey to compliment the flavor.

Rocco's is right around the corner from Joe's Pizza, if you wanna double load on dairy and carbs. But seriously good slices. Of course you can find better at corner shops outside Manhattan, but as far as the city goes, they're one of the best for sure.

If you want more of a sit down meal, Suprema Provisions is an amazing underrated italian place. Their pasta dishes and octopus were done RIGHT.

And then if you're up for a bit of a walk from that area, Swift Hiberian Lounge pours the best pint of guiness in the city, maybe in the country. I don't even like Guiness, but man theirs is something else. They've got decent pub food as well, and live traditional music some nights.

If you like a really good drink, check out Attaboy Speakeasy. It's a bar where you just tell the bartenders what sort of flavors you enjoy, and any other preferences you have, and they will just make you amazing drinks. They don't serve any food.

When you show up to Attaboy, it will seem like it's closed. You have to ring the bell, and someone will come out and put your name on the list. It will likely be a 2+ hour wait, so I recommend putting your name on the list, then taking a taxi across the Brooklyn Bridge. Getting out of the taxi, and walking back across the bridge, back into Manhattan. Then either hoof it or grab a cab back to the speakeasy. That should kill most of the wait time, and the walk across the bridge is absolutely magical. Bring a cup of hot tea or coffee on the walk with you if you can.


I'd love to hear your thoughts if you wind up going to any of these places!

Whoa thanks for the lovely and detailed recs!! Some of these spots are within a 10 minute walk of my hotel so will definitely be checking them out!

 

[PPIIBBSS]

Whoa thanks for the lovely and detailed recs!! Some of these spots are within a 10 minute walk of my hotel so will definitely be checking them out!

Oh man you've got a great location! One final thought: There are some very expensive places in that area, but all of the best places I've eaten in Manhattan have been hole in the wall spots with totally unassuming prices. You can go wild with a course meal and wine pairing, and it will probably be phenomenal, but there's no need to spend a lot of money to eat amazing food in Manhattan.

 

[PPIIBBSS]

Oh shoot I almost forgot my favorite spot! Marie's Crisis Cafe! It's a dive bar where the off broadway performers hang out. They've got a piano, and every night they're singing showtunes... and they're so good it's scary haha. Such a fun environment- drunk performers just having fun with their talents. Expect a true dive bar selection- maybe Stella at best haha. Also right around the corner from Joe's and Rocco's, so one evening could easily cover all those spots. But your tummy the day after pizza, cheesecake, and beer...

 

[Blumbo]

Oh shoot I almost forgot my favorite spot! Marie's Crisis Cafe! It's a dive bar where the off broadway performers hang out. They've got a piano, and every night they're singing showtunes... and they're so good it's scary haha. Such a fun environment- drunk performers just having fun with their talents. Expect a true dive bar selection- maybe Stella at best haha.

Wow sounds like a lot of fun!!

 

[user 16756]

Balthazar, Dominique Ansel Bakery (not for a cronut though, for a kouign amann) are both to your south but still on the island.

 

[PPIIBBSS]

Gonna add one more here. If you are looking for that upscale creative coursed menu experience, check out Dirt Candy. It's a 100% vegetarian restaurant, but if you have an adventuruous pallette, what they're doing is truly unique. As far as coursed meals go, they weren't crazy expensive either. Still expensive though haha

 

[gaijin]

Hey guys... really love this thread. I'm actually leaving tomorrow for a week or so in NYC, and if any of you have any additional tips I'm all ears. In particular I'm thinking of two types of places:

1. The guys on their way to Michelin stars but who have not get gotten them (and thus not raised the prices yet).

2. Those fantastic cheap holes in the wall that have ambience and good food for good prices. Nothing strange, just good food and great wine, you know.

Any hints appreciated.

My base will be in Murray Hill but willing to travel. More focus on food than alcoholic drinks.

 

[Just a DK]

Barstool here used to be my perm address.

https://www.hardtoexplain.co/

 

[nhb22]

Hey guys... really love this thread. I'm actually leaving tomorrow for a week or so in NYC, and if any of you have any additional tips I'm all ears. In particular I'm thinking of two types of places:

1. The guys on their way to Michelin stars but who have not get gotten them (and thus not raised the prices yet).

2. Those fantastic cheap holes in the wall that have ambience and good food for good prices. Nothing strange, just good food and great wine, you know.

Any hints appreciated.

My base will be in Murray Hill but willing to travel. More focus on food than alcoholic drinks.

What type of food?

 

[panda]

Hey - weird that I’ve never been to NYC but randomly found 50$ round trip tickets so made a spontaneous decision for my vacation! Everything I know about the city is from food YouTube ie. Munchies/Eater but any recommendations for food and places to see or places to avoid for a dude who grew up in the suburbs? Btw hotel is in Manhattan near Midtown.

di fara pizza in Brooklyn, get regular pie don't bother with toppings.

 

[xtcxtq]

Little Italy Pizza, personal favorite. Have some of the best crust out there. Located right beside empire state
2 E 33rd St, New York, NY 10016

The Harold Bistro, Really good option for some brunch grabs and calm peaceful bar at night
Broadway on, 1271 W 32nd St, New York, NY 10001

 

[Blumbo]

When I went, I ended up really enjoying Nami Nori and Rocco's in Greenwich village, and another memorable night was getting pizza at L'Industrie in Brooklyn (probably slightly overrated but still yummy) and walking back over to Manhattan at night. Can also vouch for Dominique Ansel's Kouign Amann. Get a charsiu bao at Mei Lai Wah in Chinatown too, probably one of the best I've had.

 

[gaijin]

What type of food?

Open to most styles but kind of in love with French bistro or something like that.

 

[service.94107]

MTC kitchen shop!

Also the Korin shop to see the super long maguro knife (500+ mm?)