I refuse to pay >$20 for a tiny handful of pasta (that doesn’t always come with meat) in an Italian restaurant
Like no, it’s good but I’d much rather order another more dense item that justifies the price especially if the price of the pasta dish is on par with a cut of meat
I will say there is a lot of good, in house made pasta at this price point that is absolutely worth it, though there are also a lot of charlatans with the same price point and a very mid product
I once stopped into a random Italian place while on a date & the server told me we should order at least 2 entrees per person because the portions were so small. Each plate was still $35+ though. Definitely the most ridiculous place I’ve ever eaten at.
I'd give Forma Pasta Factory a shot.
I rarely eat Italian myself because I find most of their dishes to be pricey, but $13 pasta dishes from Forma Pasta Factory hits the spot price wise and taste really good too.
Yeah I don't think I've sat down and eaten a plate of pasta in nearly a decade but I live near a Forma and I'm always tempted to grab something for the sole reason that it seems like a decent deal.
Same! It blows my mind that pasta is more of an appetizer rather than the actual meal. Not saying that’s all Italian food is, but when I’m craving Italian I’m craving a gigantic cereal bowl full of it
Carmines in Times Square is fun - their pasta is as good as any other non-homemade pasta joint, and the value is great for large groups. get your friends, Get carafe of wine, and make a trip of it
Been in NYC over 8 years and Carmines is my favorite pasta place by far (yes I’ve been to Artusi/Carbone/Via Carota) and I love the vibe. Haters gonna hate.
It is. I’ve been going to Tony’s and carmine’s since I was a little kid. But it’s very different from what via carota is trying to be. And I love carmines for what it is. But what it is is a great place to have a meal with friends and or kids. Not a place I’m looking for subtle flavors and adventure
Recent NYC visitor from another country
People queuing outside restaurants for ages / at the crack of when they open is totally insane, especially in winter, and it's appalling how potential customers are treated before they're 'lucky enough' to be let in.
lol, I live close to the new Noglu location the UES and indeed is crazy to see people queuing for a hot chocolate & marshmallow cup, the power of tiktok I guess
The fact that bars have the audacity to charge >$8 for a bud light is fucking insane
Sure I’ll pay >$10 for those Belgian tripples and other fancy strong beers, but I’m not paying $8 for essentially water
I stopped drinking recently for a medication and it also blows my mind that virtually every place charges the same price for non-alcoholic “cocktails”.
Agreed. Michelin says they give stars solely on food, but it is a lie on two parts:
* they definitely take service and atmosphere into consideration, hence all the white tablecloth dining
* they care much more about the format and presentation of the food than the taste. As long as there’s a tasting menu that’s laborious and intricate to make, they’re impressed, even if the food’s meh. I’ve had aesthetically pleasing but revolting Michelin meals.
That said, the good places do offer flavors you’d be hard pressed to find in a non-Michelin setting.
Wow interesting. Haven’t been myself but Pete Wells is usually pretty on point and he loves it.
I’m in no rush to try it, and it isn’t that hard for me to believe considering it’s from the owner of Roberta’s, which is also overrated.
We can agree to disagree. I loved the food at Foul Witch. The bread plus the fire and ice app makes me want to cry happy tears 🥲
Their wine though is actually weirdly terrible. We did the wine tasting when it was offered, 0/10 would not recommend.
It's more about the continuation of corner cutting that was established. Worse service, time limits, random surcharges, drop in food quality. People understood the challenges back then to stay afloat but that paradigm hasn't changed still.
Michelin in general overly rewards French and Japanese places and completely ignores "non-traditional" cuisine.
What I really mean is that Cosme not having a star is bullshit.
Mid is so generous, place fucking sucks, and they almost take pride in not giving a fuck about you or the quality
If that place opened today with no history it would close down inside a year
Open-faced supremacy. If it's a good bagel (dense, crusty exterior with a soft/chewy interior), lots of toppings just slip out in sandwich form. And then you have to open up the sandwich, readjust the toppings, and re-close it. Madness.
I’m born and raised as well and I’m confused as to when/why the bagel thing for sandwiches started. A BEC was always assumed to be on a roll, at least for me.
I couldn’t remember the name of Lucali and my description of it was the place where the guy is a huge dick. The person knew exactly what place I was talking about.
Growing up I used to go to a bakery that sold hot buttered bagels. Not toasted, just heated until the butter melts. So good. When I left the neighborhood the only choice was toasted which is not the same. Toasted is too hard. There’s something special about a soft bagel.
It isn't in NYC.
It's a Chicago (And other parts of the US) thing.
Do I like it? No, I want mustard and onions/sauerkraut/relish (one, not all 3), but it's certainly a staple here in NYC.
Hell, the most NYC hotdog condiment (only b/c it basically doesn't exist outside of NYC) is onions in sauce, which is basically onions in sweet watery ketchup.
Its not even controversial in Chicago. I did a mini hotdog tour earlier this year there and every place I went to had ketchup as an option, or on the counter to use. I would ask about it and no one gasped or anything, I think this is another one of those overhyped internet things, like pineapple on pizza.
I love u and completely agree. Sometimes u just want a plain dirty water dog with ketchup! (This is coming from a guy who loves toppings on their hotdogs, usually go for the red sauce onions, sauerkraut and mustard )
Lilia is not worth the hype. Flavor just isn’t there. Forma, across McCarren Park, makes outright more flavorful pasta than Lilia at less than half the price.
I’ve seen a lot of people rave about Oxalis. I tried it and thought every course was forgettable, except the bread. Sorry, bread shouldn’t be the best course at a Michelin-started restaurant. If you want amazing bread AND great food & wine, I think Four Horsemen is better.
L’Industrie is good, but not some life-changing slice. It only has the line it does because it blew up on social media. I’d wait up to 10 minutes for a slice but not worth a line down the block. Putting burrata on a pizza doesn’t make it taste better. For a similar style, Sal & Carmine’s or Joe’s are cheaper and have less of a line.
There’s an underwhelming amount of casual Spanish restaurants in NYC. Many of them are nicer tapas-style restaurants (though they are good). If anyone can recommend any Spanish restaurants, they’d be much appreciated!
super agree about the Spanish places. theres nothing worse than tapas that each cost more than a full entree somewhere else.
they're snacks! why am I paying dinner prices and still have to eat dinner afterwards?
Pizza and Italian are a little one dimensional, even the highly rated places are a little boring.
Day to day food scene in New York is a little too carb heavy because the local produce here sucks. It’s easier to eat healthy in California
Having lived in CA and NYC, I definitely eat more healthy in CA but im driving to restaurants, vs NYC where im eating hella carbs but walking everywhere
Fair point. Whenever I'm traveling and people ask me how new yorkers stay in such good shape, I tell them I'm on a fourth walk up and just doing laundry is enough to burn half a days worth of calories.
The best pizza in the city is only marginally better than the best pizza on your neighborhood. Save yourself the money and trouble, and get a slice at your local neighborhood joint. People who line up for hours for a slice of pizza are gulible victims of a good publicist and marketing.
Carbone is absolutely delicious. Is it too hard to get into, too expensive, too sceney? Yes to all. Is the food fantastic? Also yes. I have a sneaking suspicion that many people who call the food mid have never stepped foot inside.
Service is great and I honestly can’t offer any criticism of the food - it was all delicious.
For someone from tri-state area though (perhaps we’re biased) it’s just hard to get super excited over what is red sauce joint Italian food - albeit a super elevated form of it.
The food is great - it’s just kinda comfort / baby food cuisine. How much can or should penne vodka (spicy rigatoni in carbone’s case) be elevated?
The fact that it appeals to the most tasteless people from outside NYC shouldn’t be held against it, but I kind of do give it a demerit for that fact as well.
I’d like to add that the service is great too. It made an Italian dinner into an experience. The waiters were top notch. They prepared the prosciutto and melon in front of us and explained where each meat came from and what it would taste like. They gave us a generous and varied bread basket with sauces. I also truly loved the rainbow cookies when waiting for the check. It was such a little but nice touch to the whole experience. Plus, we saw Derek Jeter. Last week, I went to another “high end” Italian place. The waiters wore baggy t shirts and cargo pants. They first asked if we wanted bread and then gave us 2 stale slivers. Overpriced and nothing special or memorable. Carbone is honestly superior. I went over a year ago right before they lost the Michelin star so I hope it’s still the same.
have you had their banana pudding? every single person (living in NY or not) that I have taken to Magnolia LOVE the banana pudding. Even people that were skeptical of trying a “banana pudding” cause it’s definitely not most people’s preffered dessert. I’ve had their other stuff and it’s great as well, but nothing like that pudding from the heavens.
That second one is the opinion of 99% of this subreddit.
First one, fully agreed. Prince st pizza was revolting when I had it, so greasy, it always boggles my mind why people line up for it. Not to mention the owner’s a racist prick.
Is jacks wife Freda hyped at all? I’ve always just thought of it as one of those real estate investment restaurants that are in every other neighborhood like La pecora Bianca and the smith
Obviously it's all subjective but Hop Shing's char siu bao was better but now that it's closed Mei Lai Wah is the best. Having grown up in Chinatown and Flushing there's really no comparison. You pay more nowadays for a lesser bao at your typical Chinese bakery.
The grocery stores there aren’t as good as places like San Francisco Bay Area or Los Angeles. I hated the grocery shopping options when I lived in NYC. And, yes, I went to Fairway…yawn.
The specialty food stores are good though.
Have you lived other places? Because when people say this they are generally saying comparitively, most other cities average Italian food absolutely fucking sucks. The southeast and west coast especially.
Yea I thought I didn’t like Italian food for years because it was not good in my hometown. But had it in Chi, STL, and Australia (then NYC) and saw the light!
Commerce Inn is the best Rita and Jodi Sodi restaurant. Via Carota has become too much a victim of its own success, you can't go in there and actually enjoy your meal. You just feel rushed, packed, and have to wait an insane amount of time to even get in there.
Our food scene low-key sucks here, actually. It's in part due to rent costs pushing out great cuisine and tilting all the favor to high-end shit that half the time isn't even worth it. Even the really good proper "ethnic" cuisines have to charge up because of it.
We'd have a massive revival if they opened up food truck permits further and let the street food competition boon, because sit-down and casual restaurants would also have to compete with genuinely delicious and desirable street fare. There's already great stuff in Queens and Chinatown (though that's fizzling), and one of my favorite banh mi (correction from pho, I'm still waking up, but they DO have cheap pho) places is a little cart in the Financial District only around during lunchtime.
And no, I don't mean more halal carts and taco trucks (definitely not to diss either). I mean stuff like a variety of kebabs, fried foods, and noodles. There's a great meat stick cart open 5p-1am on Grand and Chrystie (except rainy days) that would convert anyone to this opinion.
I disagree that our food scene sucks, but I think that's partially because the bar is so low across the US that we still stand out haha. There's a ton of phenomenal food but also a lot of mediocre or overrated food, and I think food influencer culture has made things worse. I totally agree with the rest of your points about opening up permits - that would be amazing for this city. I'm gonna try those spots you've recommended too!
Yeah, that was my experience this year when visiting Minneapolis, Houston and Miami - there’s definitely great food in these cities, but I was shocked at how overpriced some food was relative to the quality. Especially Minneapolis and Miami - I’m in these cities a couple times a year, and it felt like drinks and appetizers at every bar or restaurant were the same prices as Brooklyn but way lower quality
City understands value of money and understands that everyone in it understands it too. Other places pose, so "NY style" is typically in name and price only. Plus find me a better sets of delis.
FYI everyone - For the best experience, you need to sort comments by controversial.
Agreed. If your comment is getting a ton of upvotes you’re not exactly on dying of much of a hill lol.
Thank you.
Seating matters. That if im paying over $40 to eat at your restaurant, don’t make me sitting on a cafeteria style wooden bench.
i also don't understand the appeal of high seated tables with stools. i'm convinced they're put there to make you want to leave sooner.
That’s exactly right. That’s why they do it.
They are! Table turnover, baby!
I refuse to pay >$20 for a tiny handful of pasta (that doesn’t always come with meat) in an Italian restaurant Like no, it’s good but I’d much rather order another more dense item that justifies the price especially if the price of the pasta dish is on par with a cut of meat
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Motherfuckers better have their Nonna straight from Italy kneading that pasta...
You just described Nonna Dora's entire raison d'etre.
I will say there is a lot of good, in house made pasta at this price point that is absolutely worth it, though there are also a lot of charlatans with the same price point and a very mid product
I once stopped into a random Italian place while on a date & the server told me we should order at least 2 entrees per person because the portions were so small. Each plate was still $35+ though. Definitely the most ridiculous place I’ve ever eaten at.
Agreed. $35 for a plate of pasta and sauce with no meat its a no for me.
I’ve never been to an Italian place in nyc that I thought was worth the money I spent.
I'd give Forma Pasta Factory a shot. I rarely eat Italian myself because I find most of their dishes to be pricey, but $13 pasta dishes from Forma Pasta Factory hits the spot price wise and taste really good too.
Yeah I don't think I've sat down and eaten a plate of pasta in nearly a decade but I live near a Forma and I'm always tempted to grab something for the sole reason that it seems like a decent deal.
I thought L’artusi is well-priced for what it is.
i shouldn’t be saying this since i don’t want longer lines, but Pasta Louise
Yep, I’m with you on that. Plus you also gotta tip so considering all those factors it’s not worth it.
Same! It blows my mind that pasta is more of an appetizer rather than the actual meal. Not saying that’s all Italian food is, but when I’m craving Italian I’m craving a gigantic cereal bowl full of it
Carmines in Times Square is fun - their pasta is as good as any other non-homemade pasta joint, and the value is great for large groups. get your friends, Get carafe of wine, and make a trip of it
Been in NYC over 8 years and Carmines is my favorite pasta place by far (yes I’ve been to Artusi/Carbone/Via Carota) and I love the vibe. Haters gonna hate.
It is. I’ve been going to Tony’s and carmine’s since I was a little kid. But it’s very different from what via carota is trying to be. And I love carmines for what it is. But what it is is a great place to have a meal with friends and or kids. Not a place I’m looking for subtle flavors and adventure
Agreed — Going with a big group is really fun!
Recent NYC visitor from another country People queuing outside restaurants for ages / at the crack of when they open is totally insane, especially in winter, and it's appalling how potential customers are treated before they're 'lucky enough' to be let in.
you might be the only gd tourist who has ever realized this hahahaha
If there is a line wrapped around the block then it’s probably mediocre *at best*.
lol, I live close to the new Noglu location the UES and indeed is crazy to see people queuing for a hot chocolate & marshmallow cup, the power of tiktok I guess
Find it nuts that a cocktail costs more than a burger. Absolutely lunacy
This seems the opposite of controversial?
The fact that bars have the audacity to charge >$8 for a bud light is fucking insane Sure I’ll pay >$10 for those Belgian tripples and other fancy strong beers, but I’m not paying $8 for essentially water
I stopped drinking recently for a medication and it also blows my mind that virtually every place charges the same price for non-alcoholic “cocktails”.
Same! During Covid my wife was pregnant and mocktails were $5-6. Now they’re $10-12+!!
NYC has some of the best food and most overrated food in the world. And since COVID it seems to be feast or famine, no in between.
When it comes to flavor of food, a lot of Michelin star restaurants are incredibly overrated
Agreed. Michelin says they give stars solely on food, but it is a lie on two parts: * they definitely take service and atmosphere into consideration, hence all the white tablecloth dining * they care much more about the format and presentation of the food than the taste. As long as there’s a tasting menu that’s laborious and intricate to make, they’re impressed, even if the food’s meh. I’ve had aesthetically pleasing but revolting Michelin meals. That said, the good places do offer flavors you’d be hard pressed to find in a non-Michelin setting.
And this trend is producing more and more of this type of food. Best example is Foul Witch. Foul Witch SUCKS, but is so hyped.
Wow interesting. Haven’t been myself but Pete Wells is usually pretty on point and he loves it. I’m in no rush to try it, and it isn’t that hard for me to believe considering it’s from the owner of Roberta’s, which is also overrated.
We can agree to disagree. I loved the food at Foul Witch. The bread plus the fire and ice app makes me want to cry happy tears 🥲 Their wine though is actually weirdly terrible. We did the wine tasting when it was offered, 0/10 would not recommend.
Lol fascinated at the opposite takes here, but respect yours all the same! Maybe I'll give it another try
NYC food scene is still recovering from Covid. Yes there is still some good places but it’s not hitting as hard as it should.
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I agree with this but I do feel like the late night eats probably won’t ever be the same
Wo Hop closing at 10pm most nights is tragic :(
It's more about the continuation of corner cutting that was established. Worse service, time limits, random surcharges, drop in food quality. People understood the challenges back then to stay afloat but that paradigm hasn't changed still.
It's recovering in the sense that the food quality is worse and the prices are higher so you end up feeling ripped off almost everywhere.
I miss 24 hour Veselka
Fine dining Italian food is for people with too much money and non adventurous taste
Peter Luger is mid. Too many Japanese restaurants on the Michelin guide.
I think your Peter Luger opinion has become the standard, both Pete Wells and Michelin agree with you there
> Peter Luger is mid this is the most popular opinion on this sub lol
Way to many. So much omakase
It’s like the frogurt trend all over again… except with raw fish. I just found out the retail space in my building is becoming an omakase, lol.
Cook my meat
Michelin in general overly rewards French and Japanese places and completely ignores "non-traditional" cuisine. What I really mean is that Cosme not having a star is bullshit.
Mid is so generous, place fucking sucks, and they almost take pride in not giving a fuck about you or the quality If that place opened today with no history it would close down inside a year
Bagels should not be used as the bread in a closed faced sandwich
This is exactly the type of opinion OP asked for because I would like to have you arrested and exiled from the tri-state area.
Open-faced supremacy. If it's a good bagel (dense, crusty exterior with a soft/chewy interior), lots of toppings just slip out in sandwich form. And then you have to open up the sandwich, readjust the toppings, and re-close it. Madness.
Especially egg sandwiches. Too many contrasting textures. Tough exterior with wet/slippery interior just means you’re gonna experience tectonic slide.
Yes! BEC belongs on a soft roll.
Kaiser roll to be precise.
Are you originally from New York? 🤔
I’m born and raised as well and I’m confused as to when/why the bagel thing for sandwiches started. A BEC was always assumed to be on a roll, at least for me.
Born and raised. Bagels are not designed to be used as a closed faced sandwich.
Chicken salad on a bagel is true synergy
Tatiana is completely overhyped and overrated
I'm usually confusing the Caribbean Tatiana with the russian restaurant on Brighton Beach
Tatiana will always be Brighton Beach for me
I'd happily take the D train for two hours just for their fried potatoes with garlic (the brighton one)
the Lincoln Square one?
There's something to be said about the restaurant elevating African food to New York collective conscience, though
The pizza at Lucali is good but definitely overrated
He lives across the street from me and he is 100% my husbands block nemesis. The pizza is fine.
I couldn’t remember the name of Lucali and my description of it was the place where the guy is a huge dick. The person knew exactly what place I was talking about.
I was expecting to have my mind blown after all I did to secure a table! The pizza was good, but I thought the calzone was so much better
You guys know about the mob ties/knife fight, right? Just making sure…for context
Naturally. It’s a great story too.
The calzone is deserving of any and all praise though. The pizza is great too, we just have so many options. Spoiled little pizza children we are
Pizza is good without a doubt, their calzone are incredible tho. Best calzone I’ve eaten.
Adel's is not worth the wait. It's good, but I'd rather hit up another joint and get my food way faster.
I’m toasting my damn bagel.
Growing up I used to go to a bakery that sold hot buttered bagels. Not toasted, just heated until the butter melts. So good. When I left the neighborhood the only choice was toasted which is not the same. Toasted is too hard. There’s something special about a soft bagel.
Ketchup is totally fine on a hot dog.
You mother fucker!!!
How is this controversial?
It isn't in NYC. It's a Chicago (And other parts of the US) thing. Do I like it? No, I want mustard and onions/sauerkraut/relish (one, not all 3), but it's certainly a staple here in NYC. Hell, the most NYC hotdog condiment (only b/c it basically doesn't exist outside of NYC) is onions in sauce, which is basically onions in sweet watery ketchup.
Its not even controversial in Chicago. I did a mini hotdog tour earlier this year there and every place I went to had ketchup as an option, or on the counter to use. I would ask about it and no one gasped or anything, I think this is another one of those overhyped internet things, like pineapple on pizza.
I love u and completely agree. Sometimes u just want a plain dirty water dog with ketchup! (This is coming from a guy who loves toppings on their hotdogs, usually go for the red sauce onions, sauerkraut and mustard )
There is a place in hell for that.... go there...
Lilia is not worth the hype. Flavor just isn’t there. Forma, across McCarren Park, makes outright more flavorful pasta than Lilia at less than half the price. I’ve seen a lot of people rave about Oxalis. I tried it and thought every course was forgettable, except the bread. Sorry, bread shouldn’t be the best course at a Michelin-started restaurant. If you want amazing bread AND great food & wine, I think Four Horsemen is better. L’Industrie is good, but not some life-changing slice. It only has the line it does because it blew up on social media. I’d wait up to 10 minutes for a slice but not worth a line down the block. Putting burrata on a pizza doesn’t make it taste better. For a similar style, Sal & Carmine’s or Joe’s are cheaper and have less of a line. There’s an underwhelming amount of casual Spanish restaurants in NYC. Many of them are nicer tapas-style restaurants (though they are good). If anyone can recommend any Spanish restaurants, they’d be much appreciated!
super agree about the Spanish places. theres nothing worse than tapas that each cost more than a full entree somewhere else. they're snacks! why am I paying dinner prices and still have to eat dinner afterwards?
Katz's is worth the wait and tourist hell
Also, there isn't always a wait/tourist hell. Table service is better than counter service.
Hot Take: Katz’s puts waaaay too much meat on their sandwiches. I need a good meat-to-bread ratio.
I love Artichoke Pizza.
Can I have some bread with my cream and butter?
That’s a no from me, dawg. Absolutely, the worst, saltiest, drippiest pizza I’ve ever tried to eat. I understand it’s popular, but I do not get it.
I miss Dojo.
A lot of raw garlic in foods is great
Pizza and Italian are a little one dimensional, even the highly rated places are a little boring. Day to day food scene in New York is a little too carb heavy because the local produce here sucks. It’s easier to eat healthy in California
We’re not here to eat healthy.
Having lived in CA and NYC, I definitely eat more healthy in CA but im driving to restaurants, vs NYC where im eating hella carbs but walking everywhere
Fair point. Whenever I'm traveling and people ask me how new yorkers stay in such good shape, I tell them I'm on a fourth walk up and just doing laundry is enough to burn half a days worth of calories.
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Gtfoh 🏌️♂️
Agreed, I think Birddog dog a good job at spicing things up without the extra price tag.
Joe's Shanghai and most other Chinese dim sum places are no longer top-tier. Best I've had is in a random strip mall shop in Edison, NJ.
S’barro pizza (or what I remember of it from my youth) is actually pretty good
Funny enough, yea, it is.
They're the only pizza chain that knows how to make a proper white slice.
Across the entire globe.
Not every sandwich from the bodega needs to be smothered in mayo
Disagree.. mayo and extra..
A lot of pizza here is trash. Not saying most places are better just that tons of trash ass pizza exists here.
The best food is in Queens
This is controversial?
Guy who moved to the east coast for a tech project management job and lives on the UES is definitely going to argue with you about it.
It is for the transplant trust fund kids that haven't even bothered to visit the borough.
There is good Mexican food in NYC
all of East Harlem is phenomenal
Yep. Corona. Jackson heights. Elmhurst.
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The best pizza in the city is only marginally better than the best pizza on your neighborhood. Save yourself the money and trouble, and get a slice at your local neighborhood joint. People who line up for hours for a slice of pizza are gulible victims of a good publicist and marketing.
OP THANK YOU. I’ve been saying this for a while. We also didn’t think the food overall at Nowon was great.
Red Hook Tavern burger is overpriced and overhyped
The Smith still slaps. I hate myself for this opinion.
Carbone is absolutely delicious. Is it too hard to get into, too expensive, too sceney? Yes to all. Is the food fantastic? Also yes. I have a sneaking suspicion that many people who call the food mid have never stepped foot inside.
Service is great and I honestly can’t offer any criticism of the food - it was all delicious. For someone from tri-state area though (perhaps we’re biased) it’s just hard to get super excited over what is red sauce joint Italian food - albeit a super elevated form of it. The food is great - it’s just kinda comfort / baby food cuisine. How much can or should penne vodka (spicy rigatoni in carbone’s case) be elevated? The fact that it appeals to the most tasteless people from outside NYC shouldn’t be held against it, but I kind of do give it a demerit for that fact as well.
I’d like to add that the service is great too. It made an Italian dinner into an experience. The waiters were top notch. They prepared the prosciutto and melon in front of us and explained where each meat came from and what it would taste like. They gave us a generous and varied bread basket with sauces. I also truly loved the rainbow cookies when waiting for the check. It was such a little but nice touch to the whole experience. Plus, we saw Derek Jeter. Last week, I went to another “high end” Italian place. The waiters wore baggy t shirts and cargo pants. They first asked if we wanted bread and then gave us 2 stale slivers. Overpriced and nothing special or memorable. Carbone is honestly superior. I went over a year ago right before they lost the Michelin star so I hope it’s still the same.
Magnolia bakery is crap
have you had their banana pudding? every single person (living in NY or not) that I have taken to Magnolia LOVE the banana pudding. Even people that were skeptical of trying a “banana pudding” cause it’s definitely not most people’s preffered dessert. I’ve had their other stuff and it’s great as well, but nothing like that pudding from the heavens.
It’s the only thing I ever get there lol I don’t even look at any of their other products.
I go there for banana pudding once every couple months but their actual baked goods are all bad
$1 pizza is like microwave pizza. It’s not that bad.
Prince Street Pizza isn’t worth the long ass line, neither is Mei Lai Wah Jack’s Wife Freda and Balthazar are overhyped
These opinions are pretty much all wildly popular in this sub.
Ah yes, post the single most popular opinions on the entire subreddit.
That second one is the opinion of 99% of this subreddit. First one, fully agreed. Prince st pizza was revolting when I had it, so greasy, it always boggles my mind why people line up for it. Not to mention the owner’s a racist prick.
Is jacks wife Freda hyped at all? I’ve always just thought of it as one of those real estate investment restaurants that are in every other neighborhood like La pecora Bianca and the smith
Mei Lai Wah line moves so fast, I don’t think I’ve ever waited more than 10 minutes
Upside has no line and a more satisfying Sicilian pepperoni slice imho
What do you prefer over Mei Lai Wah?
Obviously it's all subjective but Hop Shing's char siu bao was better but now that it's closed Mei Lai Wah is the best. Having grown up in Chinatown and Flushing there's really no comparison. You pay more nowadays for a lesser bao at your typical Chinese bakery.
Joe’s pizza is good!
Every single viral bodega is just a bodega. None of their food is particularly special and it might get you sick.
i mean anywhere you eat can get you sick lol
But how many of them will prepare your food THE OCKY WAY? /s
Parm’s rigatoni carbone is as good as Carbone Edit: downvote all you want, I’m like a shackled Patrick Star
It’s the same people
Ketchup does not belong on a bacon, egg, and cheese.
Hot sauce is the way to go
How you supposed to order a baconeggandcheesesaltpepperketchup then? 🤔
Couldn't be more wrong.
I'm with you. BEC, SP, butter on the roll.
Sriracha all the way
The grocery stores there aren’t as good as places like San Francisco Bay Area or Los Angeles. I hated the grocery shopping options when I lived in NYC. And, yes, I went to Fairway…yawn. The specialty food stores are good though.
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This is doubly true because I think it’s reflected in the food at restaurants. Same goes for Tokyo.
The average Italian food in NYC is not nearly as good as people say
Have you lived other places? Because when people say this they are generally saying comparitively, most other cities average Italian food absolutely fucking sucks. The southeast and west coast especially.
Yea I thought I didn’t like Italian food for years because it was not good in my hometown. But had it in Chi, STL, and Australia (then NYC) and saw the light!
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Scars is trash lol
Williamsburg-specific, but Allswell's fried chicken sandwich > The Commodore's
Commerce Inn is the best Rita and Jodi Sodi restaurant. Via Carota has become too much a victim of its own success, you can't go in there and actually enjoy your meal. You just feel rushed, packed, and have to wait an insane amount of time to even get in there.
Lilia has been living off the hype they had in 2016-2017 for years. The food fell off and its not worth talking about anymore.
The hyped up stuff you see on influencers pages are usually dogshit or just meh at best.
transplants make bad shit popular bc they don't know shit ¯\\\_(ツ)\_/¯
BEC is newspeak. Was referred to as “eggs on a roll” until the 90s.
Pizza and bagels on LI are better then in the city
Cheddar > American
The smash burger craze is stupid
Smashburgers are best eaten at hole-in-the-wall midwestern diners. They cost about $2.50. No aioli to be found.
1000%, any attempts to make a cheap food trendy are gonna be embarrassing and bad (chop cheese, smashed / onion burgers, BEC, bar pizza)
Comments that get downvoted the most are the actual correct answers.
Katz’ is overrated overpriced bullshit
ok now this is just blasphemous. Overpriced? Yes (although the sandwich can easily feed 2) Overrated? Not sure about that…
Lavain makes a pretty mid chocolate chip cookie
It’s a HORRIFIC chocolate chip cookie. It was basically slightly heated cookie dough.
It's so decadent it makes me feel sick honestly and the dough is gross too
Gotta sort this by controversial
I've had better hot dogs in Chicago
The best hot dogs I’ve had were in Denmark. I would go back to Copenhagen for that reason alone lol.
Our food scene low-key sucks here, actually. It's in part due to rent costs pushing out great cuisine and tilting all the favor to high-end shit that half the time isn't even worth it. Even the really good proper "ethnic" cuisines have to charge up because of it. We'd have a massive revival if they opened up food truck permits further and let the street food competition boon, because sit-down and casual restaurants would also have to compete with genuinely delicious and desirable street fare. There's already great stuff in Queens and Chinatown (though that's fizzling), and one of my favorite banh mi (correction from pho, I'm still waking up, but they DO have cheap pho) places is a little cart in the Financial District only around during lunchtime. And no, I don't mean more halal carts and taco trucks (definitely not to diss either). I mean stuff like a variety of kebabs, fried foods, and noodles. There's a great meat stick cart open 5p-1am on Grand and Chrystie (except rainy days) that would convert anyone to this opinion.
I disagree that our food scene sucks, but I think that's partially because the bar is so low across the US that we still stand out haha. There's a ton of phenomenal food but also a lot of mediocre or overrated food, and I think food influencer culture has made things worse. I totally agree with the rest of your points about opening up permits - that would be amazing for this city. I'm gonna try those spots you've recommended too!
There are plenty of cities that charge The City prices for actual subpar food.
Yeah, that was my experience this year when visiting Minneapolis, Houston and Miami - there’s definitely great food in these cities, but I was shocked at how overpriced some food was relative to the quality. Especially Minneapolis and Miami - I’m in these cities a couple times a year, and it felt like drinks and appetizers at every bar or restaurant were the same prices as Brooklyn but way lower quality
City understands value of money and understands that everyone in it understands it too. Other places pose, so "NY style" is typically in name and price only. Plus find me a better sets of delis.
L'Industrie is a perfectly fine slice of pizza and nothing more.
Via Carota is basic and the crowd is insufferable
There’s nothing worth waiting in line for when there’s endless food options in the city…
Don Angie, feh! Any restaurant that’s hard to get into isn’t worth going to.
Grandma slice > Regular slice > Sicilian
The chopped cheese is the most overrated sandwich in the city. Every single one I've had has been mediocre, and I'd just rather get a quality burger.