Sparkles and Shoes

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My Favorite New York City Eats

| Delicious Eats, New York City

Nearly four years ago, in July of 2013, I wrote a post called The Best Food in New York City that still gets a lot of traffic and recently I revisited it.  I have to say, I am quite pleased as many of my recommendations have stood the test of time but since so many people are heading to my city and are asking for recommendations, here is an updated list of my favorites! Now take this title with a grain of salt, I have not even been to a fraction of the places to eat in New York City, but these is a roundup of my top picks by cuisine.  

New York City Eats - Petrin Hill

These are my favorite foods, my Manhattan eats, and they are in alphabetical order because it’s not fair otherwise:
 
BRUNCH. Friend Of A Farmer. 77 Irving Place. 
 
If you are coming to visit New York City, you are going to need to brunch.  NYC girls really like to brunch (we treat it as a verb) and I do not think people in any other city brunch the way we do. Maybe in the city that never sleeps it is that breakfast is just too early of a meal for Saturday or Sunday or that we simply use any excuse for good company and a good meal.  Whatever the reason Friend of a Farmer is where I brunch. Not only is the food here incredible but the fireplaces and unique decorations create an inviting homey atmosphere.
 
When you look at the menu your first question is most likely going to be sweet or savory and let me tell you, you can not go wrong with either. My favorite brunch items are their  Taylor’s Tasty Toast, Healthy Farmers Omelette, and of course, the Egg’s Benedict.  And as someone who grew up in New England I must point out that with any dish that needs it you will get a mini-sized jar of REAL maple syrup. It makes all the difference. They do not take reservations (they do not have to) and you will not be seated until your party is complete, but brunch on anyway!
 
CEVICHE. Cuba, 222 Thompson Street. 
 
I had never had ceviche until the Spring of 2013 but for a seafood lover it was love at first bite.  The foreign name put me off and I had a preconceived notion that it was very spicy.  Boy was I wrong! It is a delicious raw fish dish seasoned with citrus and it is amazing to me that a food I never thought I would try could make it on to my best of NYC list.  The ceviche del dia at Cuba is authentic, delicious, and it is a surprise every time you go what it is going to be. If the daily special does not tickle your fancy I recommend the ceviche mixto, the seafood mixed appetizer drenched in lime sauce. And if cigars are your thing, the guy in the corner rolling them, apparently, is makes a good quality product.
 
FROZEN MARGARITAS. Southern Hospitality BBQ. 200 5th Avenue. 
 
They are delicious.  Perfect for the summer heat wave and they come from a magnificent alcoholic frozen slushy machine.  To make it better, Monday through Friday from noon to 7pm they are on $6!  Yes, to all of you in small towns and the middle of the country, that may seem pricey, but in NYC that is a good deal! For how strong they are, one is enough and two might leave you teetering on out of there. If you need something to soak up the alcohol I highly recommend the pulled pork slider.  Oh, and as if you needed another reason to go, this is JT’s restaurant! #bringingsexyback
 
ITALIAN #1.  Becco. 355 W 46th  
 
If you were to ask me my favorite spot the answer has not changed since high school. I started coming to this restaurant with my family before the theater enjoying the incredible low priced pasta specials at Lidia Bastianich’s restaurant and now I have come to love the $25 bottles of wine just as much! You can read all about the amazing atmosphere, adorable location and delicious food in my dated, but still accurate post, Food & The City: Becco a now extinct Sparkles and Shoes series I think I should bring back! 
 
ITALIAN #2.  Eataly. 200 5th Avenue.  
 
While not quite a restaurant if you are in NYC you must stop by Eataly. Pizza, pasta, wine, prosciutto de parma, mozzarella, gelato, and more? Yes!  Again, this establishment already got it’s own post but I could not leave it off the list.  At Eataly you can shop gourmet Italian groceries, eat at one of the nine restaurants open under this one roof, pop by one of two cafes, or even take a cooking class!  Go and prepared to be amazed.
 

MAC and CHEESE.  Beecher’s Handmade Cheese. 900 Broadway. * 

Mac and cheese as the first thing on the list? Yes, you better believe it. Delicious. Mind blowing.  This puts Kraft to shame, and even my beloved Annie’s has to stay on the shelf.  You walk into the store and you will see why it is my happy place.  They make their killer mac and cheese with two types of cheeses they make on the premises with a background hint of garlic powder and chipotle pepper. This stuff is absolutely magical and worth the $6.50 they charge for a cup.  And if you are still hungry, add of cup of their terrific tomato soup!  If you are like me, and could eat Mac and Cheese as your meal check out the 21+ cellar in the basement and take it up a notch by choose the m+c with crab, old bay aioli, bread crumbs, yum!

MEDITERRANEAN Fig and Oliive, 420 W 13th St
 
This is a chain here in New York City with six locations and while I have been to almost all of them, the West Village one is my favorite. Every meal is begun with the fresh baked bread and the trio of olive oils and it just sets the stage for what will be an amazing course.  I usually go for some sort of fish and share different plates depending on who I take to this upscale spot.  It is definitely not a weekly type of place but somewhere, for instance, I went when I got my first job promotion and always try and hit up during restaurant week!
 
MEXICAN Calexico, 491 2nd Ave
 
I first discovered Calexico when I lived in Brooklyn – which feels like a million years ago – as there was a location directly across the street from my apartment in Greenpoint.  My year in Brooklyn was not the best but one of the things I knew I would miss when leaving was the delicious elote and baja fish tacos I had come to love.  Therefore, you can imagine how happy I was when a location opened a year and a half ago on the Upper East Side only a few blocks from my apartment.  If you are looking for true New York City Eats, you can stop here!
 
SANDWICH SHOP.  ‘Wichcraft.  11 West 40th Street 
 

The summer seasonal BLT sandwich is amazing at ‘Wichcraft but my favorite is their goat cheese.  It is filled with avocado, celery, walnut pesto, and watercress on multigrain bread, and is just yum!  I thought this ingredients strange for a sandwich but they proved me wrong and I have never heard anyone get something they have not liked.  You must make sure to complement your sandwich, though, with one of their cream’wiches, homemade cookies with ice cream in-between.  If you need help picking they sell 55,000 of their peanut-butter ones each year. Even if you are stuffed, do not leave without one.  After ten years they have 15 locations in Manhattan but my favorite is the one in Bryant Park. And no, this is not a typo, this place is actually called ‘Wichcraft, no “t”.

SUSHI.  Sashimi Express. 354 E 78th St

Last but not least my favorite cuisine! I am a huge, huge sushi fan and after searching high and low I have come across my favorite.  Sushi is one thing I really do not like to skimp on because it is raw fish and you want high quality to avoid getting sick.  To my astonishment Sashimi Express has managed to get amazingly fresh fish at low prices – my favorite item is the roll combos, three rolls for $9.50 or seven rolls for $21, a definite steal!  A few insider tips, they only take cash, you can call ahead order, and Monday and Thursday are the best days for the highest quality fresh fish.  Yelp describes the spot perfectly, as a, “Tiny Japanese nook with minimal seating offering sushi, sashimi & roll combos & platters” so stop by, but expect to get your sushi to go! 

 

So there you have it, ten of my favorite New York City Eats.  I know they are specific but I will gladly go into detail if you have questions. Please let me know if you have been to one of them and what you thought of if there are any you would like to try out and just note all of these addresses are in Manhattan. 

Which of these New York City eats sounds the best to you? 

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Comments

  1. Amanda says

    You wrote a list of best New York food and there is not a single pizza place? That’s my favorite type of food from the city!

  3. TAMMY says

    You should have added Shake Shack to the list. I will have to try out a few of these. Thanks.

  4. Pam says

    I take all my company to Eatly…so fun.

    I also love Fig and Olive for a bit of a splurge. Looking forward to trying the ohers!

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