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From a slice of dollar pizza drunkenly eaten at 1am to a Michelin-starred meal miraculously scored on Resy, the most memorable New York dining experiences stem from an elixir of setting, mood, and what’s on the table.
It doesn’t matter if you’re eating on the street corner in sweatpants or with white tablecloths in an outfit worth an entire paycheck, because every type of New York dining experience, good or bad, has the potential to contribute to a legendary day.
Which of these typical New York dining experiences have you had?
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1. Getting your favorite frozen treat on the first warm day of the year
Nothing beats the first spring day when the sun is shining, you barely need a jacket, and everyone craves to be outside as long as possible. Whether your preferred treat is a Mister Softee soft serve, an artisanal gelato, or a frozen margarita, the perfect way to end this kind of day is by picking up something sweet and finding a spot with a view to enjoy it.
2. Meticulously selecting a Restaurant Week deal
Occurring every winter and summer, Restaurant Week offers everyone from devout foodies to casual samplers prix fixe meals that typically cost less than a place’s usual menu. Making killer Restaurant Week plans requires diligent research on its website and countless comparisons between the deals and dishes’ regular prices. If you search enough, you’ll land a delicious meal at a memorable restaurant that you typically wouldn’t visit.
3. Eating a slice of pizza on the street in the wee hours of the morning
Sometimes you go out for one drink with friends and it inevitably turns into a citywide journey stretching into the early morning. Reaching this stage requires sidewalk sustenance from a quick and cheap place in your immediate eyesight. While burgers, tacos, or falafel can also fit the bill here, nothing tastes better past midnight than a sloppy, cheesy $3 slice eaten in the glow of downtown traffic lights.
4. Visiting a revered restaurant mostly for bragging rights
Have you ever noticed the hush that falls upon a group of New Yorkers when someone utters a restaurant name like Rao’s, JG Melon, or Lucali? These places are some of many New York foodie legends, but between tables that are tough to snag and food that may not reach high expectations, your visit may fall short. Worst case scenario, you’ll have some great food pics for your social media feed.
5. Sampling an international cuisine for the first time
The possibilities are endless in New York, and if your hometown’s takeout options were limited to Chinese and pizza, this is the place to expand your palate and try new things. Maybe you experienced an epiphany thanks to Caribbean cuisine in Crown Heights, Greek platters in Astoria, or Dominican delicacies in Washington Heights. If you’re a picky eater who likes your comfort zone, dim sum in Flushing or Italian food on Arthur Avenue probably had you salivating.
6. Bringing bagels and coffee to the park on a weekend morning
Weekends in New York are never totally lazy and leisurely, but starting the day off with carbs and caffeine on a sun-soaked bench comes close. Does working through a bagel and people-watching ever get old?
7. Eating with out-of-town guests constantly judging New York
When hosting loved ones for their first trip to the city, you’ll inevitably end up at dinner with them and, depending on their personalities, they may not be fond of New York based on their whirlwind visit. If they’re the less adventurous type, you probably picked a subpar restaurant near their midtown hotel for their convenience and will carefully broach the idea of taking them below 34th Street the next day. Your salad is nothing special and you’re definitely picking up food from your favorite hole-in-the-wall on the way home.
8. Booking a once-in-a-lifetime meal that you may never surpass again
A New York City celebration often doesn’t feel complete without a culinary treat. This philosophy warrants an occasional splurge and the anxiety of navigating Resy’s trenches for a dip into the elite restaurant scene. Even if you only manage to book a high-top table at ten o’clock on a Tuesday night, the hefty check following a decadent meal of flambeed oysters or blue cheese-crusted steak is worth every penny.
9. Waiting an embarrassingly long time for a cookie or sandwich from a pop-up event
Good marketing wins over even the most strong-willed consumers. Pop-up events for brands, TV shows, and holidays appear throughout the city at a moment’s notice, and the free treats involved are hard to pass up. But when else would you get a free Levain cookie in a box decorated with the Succession title card?
10. Cooking at home for one solid week and feeling like a professional chef
Saving money trumps dining out every now and then, but throwing together a meal of Trader Joe’s frozen items tossed around with spinach in your bite-sized kitchen creates a strong sense of accomplishment. This may inspire you to finally test out that recipe you saw on Instagram or attempt recreating a dish from your favorite spot later that week. But when that text inviting you out to dinner next week comes in, are you even a New Yorker if you say no?