New York - Food

[kittyriot]

My girl friend and I are heading out on our New York trip next week. Is there any restaurant/bar we MUST check out? I have a bit of a list that I've thrown together but personal recommendation are sooo much better!

[lrmrtn]

What types of food are you looking for and what areas will you be in?

[bliz1712]

You might have more suggestions from the parenting board. I know they have a lot of people that frequent the NY area.  No advice from me, I haven't been there yet.  That's one on my bucket list.

[kittyriot]

Apr 28, 2017 11:15:38 GMT -5 lrmrtn said:

What types of food are you looking for and what areas will you be in?

We're staying in midtown, two blocks from Grand Central.

We're planning on shopping/eating and doing museums. So we'll probably be in Museum Alley, Central Park South, Times Square neighbourhoods. 

But there's some things we want to do a little further south, we want to go to the Chelsea Market and walk a bit of the highline so we'll be heading that way at some point too.

[kittyriot]

Apr 28, 2017 11:37:31 GMT -5 bliz1712 said:

You might have more suggestions from the parenting board. I know they have a lot of people that frequent the NY area.  No advice from me, I haven't been there yet.  That's one on my bucket list.

That's good advice - thanks!!

[scout251]

I have not been but many friends of mine say Eataly is fantastic.

www.eataly.com/

[kittyriot]

Apr 28, 2017 11:50:52 GMT -5 scout251 said:

I have not been but many friends of mine say Eataly is fantastic.

www.eataly.com/

This is on my list!!! I've heard good things too!! 

[lrmrtn]

Here are my favorites:

Dos Caminos - www.doscaminos.com/ - They have several locations and all of the other restaurants in the same group are good.

Rosa Mexicano - www.rosamexicano.com/ - several locations too

Union Square Café - www.unionsquarecafe.com/

Sarabeth's (for brunch) - sarabethsrestaurants.com/ (several locations too)

Molyvos: www.molyvos.com/

I'll let you know if I think of any others.

[scout251]

Mmm certainly not a nice place but Blockheads has yummy margaritas if you just want something cold & tasty. My friends and I rang up quite the tab there years ago.

[comicSans]

For brunch: www.cafeundeuxtrois.com/

[lrmrtn]

Apr 28, 2017 12:15:05 GMT -5 scout251 said:

Mmm certainly not a nice place but Blockheads has yummy margaritas if you just want something cold & tasty. My friends and I rang up quite the tab there years ago.

+1 I miss those days...

[kittyriot]

Apr 28, 2017 12:17:54 GMT -5 comicSans said:

For brunch: www.cafeundeuxtrois.com/

Because they have the cutest name ever, this looks like a must!

[kittyriot]

Apr 28, 2017 12:00:08 GMT -5 lrmrtn said:

Here are my favorites:

Dos Caminos - www.doscaminos.com/ - They have several locations and all of the other restaurants in the same group are good.

Rosa Mexicano - www.rosamexicano.com/ - several locations too

Union Square Café - www.unionsquarecafe.com/

Sarabeth's (for brunch) - sarabethsrestaurants.com/ (several locations too)

Molyvos: www.molyvos.com/

I'll let you know if I think of any others.

Those are looking delicious! Thanks for the recs! We both love anything from central or latin america...!

[emmagk]

If you want something super touristy but the best view then the rotating bar at the top of the Marriot Marquis times Square is fun

[lrmrtn]

Apr 28, 2017 12:25:46 GMT -5 kittyriot said:

Apr 28, 2017 12:00:08 GMT -5 lrmrtn said:

Here are my favorites:

Dos Caminos - www.doscaminos.com/ - They have several locations and all of the other restaurants in the same group are good.

Rosa Mexicano - www.rosamexicano.com/ - several locations too

Union Square Café - www.unionsquarecafe.com/

Sarabeth's (for brunch) - sarabethsrestaurants.com/ (several locations too)

Molyvos: www.molyvos.com/

I'll let you know if I think of any others.

Those are looking delicious! Thanks for the recs! We both love anything from central or latin america...!

Mexican is my favorite!  Both places make fresh guacamole at the table for you so be sure to get that if you go.  And the drinks are phenomenal!  Both do get busy so if you are thinking of going, try to make reservations if you're going at traditional meal times.

[babybarlow2014]

If you want a fancy experience may I suggest Per Se?

Its a Thomas Keller place. Daily menus plus farmer and forager selections. Plus all the wine and yummy cocktails.

And because I love Keller...pastries from Bouchon.
I dropped an easy $50...lol
But delicious.

[babybarlow2014]

Forgot to add...Per Se is prepay, I believe. Nuts.

[kittyriot]

Apr 29, 2017 10:09:19 GMT -5 babybarlow2014 said:

If you want a fancy experience may I suggest Per Se?

Its a Thomas Keller place. Daily menus plus farmer and forager selections. Plus all the wine and yummy cocktails.

And because I love Keller...pastries from Bouchon.
I dropped an easy $50...lol
But delicious.

Bouchon is on the list!! But I hadn't really given Per Se any thought. I want to do something nice one night but I think my girl friend might vomit at the price tag of Per Se.

But we both are foodies, so I know one meal she'll be willing to go all out. I am going to go back to the website and peruse.

[lrmrtn]

Here are some others:

If you're in Little Italy: Ferrara Bakery

Blue Hill - pricey but the tasting menu is an experience

Gramercy Tavern - it's almost impossible to get reservations but you can eat at the bar. And they have a basil mojito that is amazing.

[duskymonkey]

Oops! I just saw this. Are you in NYC now? So jealous! I haven't been back since DS was born. You can blow some serious bucks at Per Se for sure but it's worth once in a lifetime IMO! I also only now roast chicken TKs way.
OMG! if I was still there I would buy all the fresh pasta at Eataly! and speaking of Mario Batali, Casa Mono & Bar Jamon is just a hop skip and jump away from Gramercy Tavern. They have great tapas and great vibe too. I worked in the area and used to see MB riding his vespa in his orange crocs so funny! Craft on the other side of GT has solid food too. You can usually get reservations during lunch there. In the same area - diagonally across from Craft, not an eatery but a must visit is ABC Carpet and Home. The merchandising there is just stunning! Go browse - you won't regret it. I would walk thought there everyday on my way home from work.EVERYDAY. OK. You got me at Food! back to it. Not sure how adventurous you are but here's a rundown of some must eats!
​
St. Marks / East Village
Ippudo - Ramen
Momofuku - David Chang has a bunch of eateries in Manhattan now. Great fare and reasonable priced too. - Google him
Angel's Share - it's a cocktail bar hidden away with impeccable service - So this used to be a quiet place 15 - 20 yrs ago but it's stupid packed now and cant get in but a buddy of mine told me they opened up at place a couple blocks away. Also hidden away lol! but it's above Sharaku at 14 Stuyvesant St between 2nd &T 3rd Ave. Only open Thursday - Saturday, 6 to 12am. It's all unmarked but enter Sharaku and go up the stairs - very special indeed if it is anything like the original inside Village Yokocho ( a Japanese Izakaya )
Veniero’s - I prefer it over Ferrara's but if you're in Chinatown/Little Italy, check out Nyonya - it's a Malaysian restaurant. Authentic hawker style dishes -cheap! - stick to the noodles. Their main dishes are so.so but depends on what you order then you can have dessert at Ferrara's next door

Mid-town
Korean Bakery - 31 West 32nd St between Broadway & 5th Ave in Koreantown - I dunno the name of it but they're open till midnight.
Bryant Park - food kiosks around the park - on a nice day grab something and sit on the lawn chairs and people watch.
Times Warner bldg - there's a Whole Foods downstairs - huge prepared foods area. Great to grab something and go sit on Central park benches and people watch.

SOHO
Little Owl - corner of grove and bedford st. tiny restaurant but good food.
Blue Ribbon - on Sullivan st close to Spring St - open till 4am but have good food. We usually go there at like 2 or 3 before heading back home lol! frequented by chefs after hours.
Laduree - not been to the one in here but been to the one in Paris and it's great.

UES
Daniel - this is one of Daniel Boulud's restaurants and you can again drop some serious bucks there but the food is stunning.

I can't possibly list everything but the Frick museum has a lovely collection of art, furniture, ceramics etc. and the architecture inside is stunning. If you want to get away from the hustle and bustle go there. I loved going there in the hot summers and just sit in the peaceful cool atrium to read. They have days where it's free entrance so check it out and see if it coincides with your trip.

I need to stop and I am greatly missing NYC now. Enjoy your trip! and tell us all about it!

[kittyriot]

duskymonkey - thank you!!! We leave Thursday morning so we're not there yet.

Momofuku is on the list already as is Lauduree.

Thank you for all the great suggestions. We are definitely adventurous eaters. We're spending an afternoon in Chinatown and want to do dim sum. Do you have suggestions on that??

Frick and the tenement museum are on the list and I am so excited for both! We plan on doing the MoMA and the Guggenheim as well.

Food and museum are pretty much the only plan!

[lrmrtn]

If you're doing museums, you must do the Egyptian temple at the Met. My absolute favorite! Enjoy!

[duskymonkey]

kittyriot, oh no you didn't mention dimsum! I was contemplating during my 1st-Tri about a trip to Seattle/Vancouver BC to go eat dimsum! I am now in 2nd - Tri so that urge has waned and plus still bloody waiting for my Green card renewal to arrive. I am afraid to go across the border without it even though I have temp travel papers...do not want to get stuck returning.
Honestly, you can get much better dimsum in Vancouver BC or Toronto, Vancouver for sure has damn good dimsum. I cant remember where in Canada you are. Also dimsum in Manhattan is no longer and outer boroughs of Brooklyn in the place to go, Queens is a close 2nd. And plus also the couple places I used to go to in chinatown I don't know the name of - I just know how to get there lol! I'll message my buddies tomorrow ( it's late EST ) and see if any one of them knows what the names are or even the address and will get back to you tomorrow!
Speaking of museums, I also love the Neue Galerie - close by to both the Met and Guggenheim I believe on 5th Ave by the park. They have a small collection of Klimt works and other Austrian/German artist. I wanted to cry when they brought in a Schiele exhibit a few yrs back - I love love his drawings. They also have a lovely chic Cafe in there serving pretty good fare and patisseries.

[kittyriot]

I was worried about that! Toronto has the second largest Chinatown in the world and has AMAZING dim sum places. I'm there a lot and often eating at some dumpling house or dim sum place. So good to know we may be disappointed!

[duskymonkey]

kittyriot, Yeah,,,skip Ctown and dimsum...you WILL be disappointed, I can guarantee it. I've eaten in enough dimsum establishements in Vancouver to tell you that nothing here compares and I've friends in Toronto telling me it's better there too but of course we have some superb dimsum back home in Malaysia so with that...not worth your time. The cantonese food here isn't as good as Toronto or Vancouver. I would suggest checking out the Malaysian place if you haven't experience it. Let me know if you're thinking of trying and I can tell you what to order to start. Anyways if you're willing to try dimsum here are the places I would go to in Manhattan.

Ping - on Mott between Pell & Chatham Sq. LOL...of course nobody knows the address! but it has a sign - I just never pay attention to it. It’s not as horribly crowded and less of a wait time. Not as palatial as a few other places I went to initially but I cant stand the crowds and fanfare of the others. They have good if not I think better food than the other larger places. Arrive early by 10 or you'll still be waiting in line.
Hop Seng - Chatham Sq. between Doyers and Mott. It doesn’t have the push carts and they have a menu. It’s a small almost hole in the wall but I usually go there to take home my dim sum and it's really cheap but good. Usually end up either in Queens or Brooklyn with friends over weekends and take visitors there too.
I forgot to mention - Buddakan in the meat packing district. It is loud and the decor and ambiance inside is awesome, food is pretty good for a place like that. Can’t remember which SITC episode but I swear I recognized the interior to be similar to Buddakan if they did a location shoot.
Another place you should check out if in Soho is Mariebelle Chocolate shop. Not the best chocolate IMO but it’s so pretty…almost too pretty to eat! pricey but makes great gifts and the store is really chic too. Maybe you can pick up a small box for your little girl!
Also if you're in East Village and want great ethnic grub for cheap. There's a place called Caracas Arepas. They're Venezuelan stuffed corn patties...I drool! it's the only place I know you can get them at without making it yourself. My GF who is Portuguese who lived in Venezuela taught me how to make them and I wanted to pee myself when I came across this place just walking one day. They have a sit down restaurant now but used to be a hole in the wall no bigger than my living room - kitchen and all with 3-4 tiny tables and they are so delicious cheap eats.
NYC is a great place and if I had gobs of money I would live there in a heartbeat! Enjoy the city and all it has to offer. Have a fabulous time!

[comicSans]

^^ Buddakan is a Stephen Starr restaurant. We went to the one in Philly for our anniversary one year. It was awesome.