New York Best of Edition (Foodies Delight)

OK so I am a big food person, I grew up in New York City so I am going to lay down a few of my places that I love to go for different foods. New York is a cornucopia of foods, you can get just about any kind of food known to man here, from Vietnamese to Chinese, Italian to Greek and anywhere in between. That is one of the things I love most about New York.

Pizza: The City has, in my opinion, the best Pizza in the world and definitely in the United States, this is due to our superior water that we get from the reservoirs in upstate New York. Here's my top three spots for Pizza.

1- Sal and Carmine's (2671 Broadway Between 101st and 102nd Streets)
This to me is the epiphany of pizza, a small pizza place run by two Italians Sal and Carmine, from the old school. They do it right and they do a slice the way it's supposed to be done, thin crust, plenty of creamy cheese and every pie cooked to perfection. Either Sal or Carmine is always there, you know Sal is there if he says "Pizza Time!" As he pulls a perfect pie out of the oven.

2- Original Ray's Pizza (At least in my mind it is) (11th street and Sixth Avenue)
In my mind this is the classic Ray's and the original, super cheesed out slices and always a fresh pie made, it gets crowded here sometimes but it's worth the wait, this is what pizza is supposed to be. Super doughy slice with more cheese than you should eat. Total artery clogging goodness and worth it.

3- Koronet Pizzeria 2848 Broadway (Between 110th and 11th Streets) This is home to the City's largest slice or the "Wagon Wheel Pie." One of these monsters will have you loosening your belt up for sure. I can never eat two of them. They also have regular size slices but one of the giants is a meal in and of itself, truly huge and worth the money. You have to be in the right mindset to attack one of there giant slices and it is worth it to try at least once to say you concquered the largest slice in the city.


Chinese Food: The city is known for it's Chinatown Neighborhood, one of the few areas of the city that hasn't fully gentrified yet. I only go to one restaurant here because it is simply the best I have had.

1- 69 Bayard: (69 Bayard Street at Mott St.) You will know you are in the right spot when you see the red neon lit "69" sign out front and the money plastered all over the walls. This place is a Chinatown Institution, the best dumplings I have ever had period and I've tried many. They also make a mean Chow Fun as well as great sliced pork, this place is priced very well, you can eat like a king for under 15 bucks and that's with two people eating. The sauce they use for the dumplings is a secret dark sauce that truly makes this place epic. They are open until very late or even 24 hours, I am not sure about this so call ahead. It is a great spot to go late at night when your drunk and needing that pig out food. I have spent many a night in this place chowing down on dumplings and chow fun, which is a broad noodle dish. This place is worth a visit.

2- Wo Hop (15 Mott Street) Wo hop is a close second, great food but I am more of a fan of 69 Bayard and not for the name alone.

Steak : There are many great steak houses in New York City, I will skip the obvious choices like Smith and Wollensky's and go with a couple you may not have heard of.

1- BLT Prime (111 E. 22nd Street) I had one of the best steaks of my life in this place, thank god I was taken here for my birthday though and didn't have to pay the tab, this place will suck the cash out of your wallet and in a big way. When I got there I ordered a beer at the bar while waiting for my friend to arrive who was paying and was charged 9 bucks for a bottle of beer! After my sticker shock subsided, we got the porterhouse steak for two, which was one of the best I have had in my life and cost over 80 dollars. They serve the steaks in cast iron skillets and the meat is aged for weeks making it so tender you can almost cut it with your spoon. Truly amazing steaks but you have to really have some major coin to enjoy this place. The service is very attentive, almost too attentive for my taste. I don't need a waiter cruising by my table every five minutes to see if my plate is empty and ready to be taken away, let a guy eat in peace. If you can help it and not drink it will save you quite a bit of cash. This is a once in a while treat for sure due to the prices. If your rich then you won't care but if your on a budget shop around for some cheaper alternatives I felt the steaks were superior however and worth the cash.

2- Churrascaria Plataforma: (316 W. 49th Street) Can you say pig out? If that's your aim this is the spot for you. This place is pig out central. You pay a set price which entitles you to all you can eat meat. I am not just talking steak but meat in every form imaginable. Skirt steaks, Filet Mignon, chicken of all kinds, pork, almost every meat you can imagine, including sausage and more. They also have a full buffet as if the meat isn't enough. Sushi, salad, pasta and all the trimmings. This place will have you feeling like a gluttonous Roman ready to hit the vomitorioum. You are given a card with a red and green side. Red means you don't want any more food and are eating. Once you turn the card over to the green side, magically a man appears with a skewer full of meat and starts to offer you peaces cut right at your table, they keep coming until you turn your card over again to the red side. I would suggest fasting a full day before going to this place. It is also an amazing experience to sit and watch in awe as some truly large people come in and get busy pigging out on enough meats and appetizers to feed a small village for a month in one sitting. If you like meat of all kinds and love to gorge on good food this is the spot to go. Warning, this place is also not very cheap, you can easily drop 150 plus dollars on two or three people especially if you're drinking.

Sushi: New York has more sushi spots than probably any major city besides Tokyo and there are many good ones. Here are two of my favorites.

1- Nobu Next Door (105 Hudson Street Between Franklin and North Moore Streets)
This is right next door to the famous Nobu restaurant, it is a bit cheaper and I think the decor is much nicer. I have eaten in both restaurants and Nobu Next door is just as good as Nobu. Amazingly fresh sushi, with some South American flare. They offer a great saki menu as well and the decor is nice. If your drinking, you can easily drop major bucks up in here too but its worth it if you want to impress a date or just get some great sushi and watch the "beautiful people" chow down. You might catch a star or two eating here, although they tend to want to go to Nobu more for the name recognition. Nobu next door however is easier to get into and you can sometimes get in without a reservation.

2- Takahachi (145 Duane Street) I know I am being partial to the Tribeca area, which I am familiar with, but these are quality spots and all worth a try. This is a new restaurant that just opened up within the past few months. It is very tradtional and everyone working here is Japanese. All the sushi chefs bow to you as you leave which is also very cool. They have some excellent sushi rolls, I reccommend the "Philadelphia Experiment" featuring philadelphia cream cheese and something else I can't recall, which might have been due to the three giant Asahi beers I had while consuming the meal. A bit cheaper than Nobu Next door and the service is excellent, presentation is also amazing as well. Worth a try. Sushi can be found all over the city however and there are many many other amazing spots I have not listed. So check out sites like city search and others for reccomendations.

I think this is enough for now. I might do another "best of" blog later on with some other types of food and other things and where to find them. I hope this gives you some good advice on where to go for some interesting culinary adventures however. More to come.