Our Recommendations For A Great Foodie Experience
There are endless restaurants in New York City. You can eat somewhere new everyday for a year and still barely make a dent. With so many options, how do you choose? We’ve shared lots of NYC foodie spots before, but I thought it might be helpful to share our top picks for first timers. We recently had some family visit us in the city, and when planning out where we wanted to take them to eat, we tried to pick a few varieties of food, and some of our tried and true favorite New York City spots that offer a good variety of healthy options for every palette. These are the 10 best NYC restaurants for first timers.
Ellen’s Stardust Diner – There is just something about a classic New York City diner! This one is especially fun, because all of the servers are aspiring Broadway performers, and they all take turns singing serving as your dining entertainment while you enjoy your food. Located in Midtown, it’s ideal for stopping in before or after you see a Broadway show. A word of warning though, it can get VERY busy. We had planned to take our family here recently before seeing The Lion King, but the line to just get in was wrapped around the block!
The Meatball Shop – When we decided to skip Ellen’s Stardust Diner, we headed to The Meatball Shop nearby. This is one of my favorite spots to grab dinner. Anytime I have a friend in town I always suggest we meet here. There are several locations around the city. There is something for everyone on the menu (I love their veggie balls) and they also have really great cocktails. Their moscow mule is my favorite!
Serendipity – If you’ve seen the romantic comedy Serendipity, then you are already familiar with this cute little spot. Or maybe you are familiar with their famous frozen hot chocolate. Their food isn’t anything special, and honestly it’s a little overpriced for what it is, even by New York City price standards, but their desserts are really the star. They accept reservations, but only for dinner, so if you just want to come for dessert (a lot of people do) then I recommend going at an off-peak time or you’ll likely have a long wait.
Pizza Beach – This is a cute and casual spot to grab some unique pizza combinations. It’s one of our go to Friday night pizza spots. They have lots of options, so everyone is sure to find something they like. They don’t sell by the slice, but the pizzas are personal size.
Lombardi’s – Lombardi’s is your classic New York City pizza joint. They claim to be the first pizza place in the city. We recommend the margarita pizza and the white pizza. Just a warning they don’t sell pizza by the slice, and they only accept cash.
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Bluestone Lane – Here you’ll find some of the best avocado toast in the city! There are several locations, but they all have slightly different menus and seating options. Our favorite location is the one on the Upper East Side. It’s located partially inside a church which is cool, but there is also lots of outdoor seating when the weather is nice. They also have a coffee cart outside which we stop by all the time just to grab a coffee before heading across the street to Central Park for a casual walk around the lake.
Sarabeth’s – To me this is such a classically New York spot. There are several locations, but my favorite location to recommend to first time visitors is the Central Park South location. I love to go there for brunch and then head across the street to Central Park after to walk off all the pancakes I just ate.
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Freeman’s – This is a unique spot down a semi-hidden alley. It’s not likely something you would stumble upon, although you’ve probably seen photos of it on Pinterest or Instagram without realizing it. It’s actually an uncharacteristically large space as far as New York City restaurants go. We’ve only ever been for brunch, but their dinner menu looks great too!
Bareburger – We love to recommend this spot because there are TONS of burger options. They have your classic beef, bison, or turkey burgers but our favorite is they offer five different veggie burger patties! Five! No one else ever has that! You can choose a burger combo from the menu or create your own. Their sweet potato fries are also excellent! They are many locations in the city so it’s a really easy lunch or dinner spot as you’re sightseeing.
Shake Shack – The original location in Madison Square Park is our favorite, but over the past several years new locations have popped up everywhere in the city. As a vegetarian, this isn’t my favorite spot, but if you eat meat they do a really great classic burger. By the way they do have a veggie burger, but it’s a portobello mushroom which I hate, so this isn’t my go to spot. They do have excellent cheese fries, and will do a grilled cheese sandwich if you ask. Update: I did just see on their website that they are starting to offer a veggie burger patty at select locations in LA and NYC.
Be sure to check out all of our New York City guides if you’re planning a trip!
-Ash
