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It's a surprisingly informal restaurant meant to evoke old New York. It's certainly not fancy or pretentious (the OPs original criteria).
while the style and decor of the restaurant is clearly meant to evoke the setting of NYC in centuries past, the prices on the menu clearly cater to an upscale crowd. I think the OP is looking for something, to put it bluntly, cheaper.
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"The man who sleeps on the floor, can never fall out of bed." -Martin Lawrence
and how could i forget gray's papaya....hot dog king...72nd and columbus.....get yourself a couple hot dogs and you must have a banana daiquiri (they're non-alcoholic).
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"The man who sleeps on the floor, can never fall out of bed." -Martin Lawrence
So I'm going to be in NYC Saturday and Sunday for a buddy's bachelor party.
Can anyone give me 3 places that I absolutely MUST eat at in NYC? Not looking for fancy, pretentious restaurants....I'm talking hole in the wall, family owned, non touristy, classic NYC tradition type places....
Thanks!
1. If you enjoy Sushi try Amber used to be called Aja in the village by West 4th Street area. Their cocktail drinnks are very delicious as well.
2. 24hr spot on the East side by Park Avenue South called L'Express have some great steaks and daily specials very yummy and the Chocolate Martini is to die for.
3. If your in Queens and like Spanish food , by Austin Street Spanish place called Cabanas their specialty drink is Mojito's so they do them soooooo good there.
If you are staying strictly within the confines of Manhattan:
Pete's Tavern - 18th St. and Irving Pl...one of the oldest bar's in the city if not the oldest. Has an old town feel and charm to it, good food at reasonable prices. Nice place to get a booth and have a few beers as well.
Carnegie Deli - 7th Ave and 55th St...NYC landmark, order a hot pastrami sandwich...warning, you won't be able to get your mouth around it without breaking your jaw, sandwiches are HUGE!
Ferrara's Bakery - Grand St. lower Manhattan...great cannoli and excellent coffee. Been there for over 100 years, one of the last of the original "joints" in Little Italy.
DeRobertis Cafe - 1st Ave and 10th St...another old time original Italian pastry cafe. Lucky Luciano was a regular there back in the 50's. Great cannoli, cookies, and coffee. Still has the old fashioned tiles and ceilings. Nice place to go after lunch or dinner at Lanza's just down the street.
Lanza's...been there forever, great Italian food at very reasonable prices. The place has a small cozy feel to it, and it's another former mob hangout with that old school charm. Lunch prices are a great value for what you're getting and it's in the heart of East Village, great place to walk around and take in the neighborhood.
If you are looking to spend a $100 on a steak, go to the Old Homestead restaurant on 9th Ave and 14th St. Or you can try Sparks on 46th St. Anyone going to Peter Luger's better bring cash, because that's all they accept.
Be sure and get yourself a hot dog from a vendor on the street while you are there. Mustard, kraut and sauteed onions!
If you are venturing outside of Manhattan...
Rosa's Pizza locations in Middle Village/Maspeth/Ridgewood in Queens. Best sicilian pizza anywhere!
Villabate Pastry on 18th Ave in Brooklyn is the BEST Italian bakery in the city! Nowhere to sit though, you have to take it on the go. Great homemade ice cream too.
If you are staying strictly within the confines of Manhattan:
Pete's Tavern - 18th St. and Irving Pl...one of the oldest bar's in the city if not the oldest. Has an old town feel and charm to it, good food at reasonable prices. Nice place to get a booth and have a few beers as well.
Carnegie Deli - 7th Ave and 55th St...NYC landmark, order a hot pastrami sandwich...warning, you won't be able to get your mouth around it without breaking your jaw, sandwiches are HUGE!
Ferrara's Bakery - Grand St. lower Manhattan...great cannoli and excellent coffee. Been there for over 100 years, one of the last of the original "joints" in Little Italy.
DeRobertis Cafe - 1st Ave and 10th St...another old time original Italian pastry cafe. Lucky Luciano was a regular there back in the 50's. Great cannoli, cookies, and coffee. Still has the old fashioned tiles and ceilings. Nice place to go after lunch or dinner at Lanza's just down the street.
Lanza's...been there forever, great Italian food at very reasonable prices. The place has a small cozy feel to it, and it's another former mob hangout with that old school charm. Lunch prices are a great value for what you're getting and it's in the heart of East Village, great place to walk around and take in the neighborhood.
If you are looking to spend a $100 on a steak, go to the Old Homestead restaurant on 9th Ave and 14th St. Or you can try Sparks on 46th St. Anyone going to Peter Luger's better bring cash, because that's all they accept.
Be sure and get yourself a hot dog from a vendor on the street while you are there. Mustard, kraut and sauteed onions!
If you are venturing outside of Manhattan...
Rosa's Pizza locations in Middle Village/Maspeth/Ridgewood in Queens. Best sicilian pizza anywhere!
Villabate Pastry on 18th Ave in Brooklyn is the BEST Italian bakery in the city! Nowhere to sit though, you have to take it on the go. Great homemade ice cream too.
Second on both BullBoxer31 and the Villabate Pastry shoppe. Not easy to get to Rosa's though.
You might want to search Chowhound, because this question gets asked there constantly.
I'd agree about Katz, but not most of the others. Certainly not a cart. Certainly not the Carnegie, which is a tourist trap. There a tons of good holes-in-the-wall, but most of them aren't "musts."
I'd really recommend PJ Clarke's on 55th and 3rd. One of the best burgers I've ever had, plus the restaurant itself is a historic landmark and you really feel you've been transported back into another time.
Difara is good, but who wants to stand around and wait an hour for a pie. Plus I don't he's gonna want to travel into midwood from manhattan.
aw, but half the fun is watching dom make the pies. half the place is full of people from outside of bklyn who drove or took the subway to see what the hype is about and it's well worth it. to me, it's an experience. to each their own, but difara's is two blocks away from the subway and is far and away a better slice than grimaldi's.
You might want to search Chowhound, because this question gets asked there constantly.
I'd agree about Katz, but not most of the others. Certainly not a cart. Certainly not the Carnegie, which is a tourist trap. There a tons of good holes-in-the-wall, but most of them aren't "musts."
Carnegie is no more a tourist trap than Katz. Who do you think lives on the lower east side anyway? There isn't a native New Yorker within a one mile radius of Katz'. Not to take anything away from them, it's a great deli, but the food is six of one, half dozen of the other in comparison to Carnegie.
Nothing wrong with eating something off the carts either.
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