Last September, I finally went to New York for the first time. One of the first questions I ask myself when booking a new destination is: Where can we eat good - and especially not too expensive - food? (Duh)
After a lot of research and watching videos, I discovered plenty of great food spots - mostly through tiktok. In fact, there were so many that I couldn't try them all. So, great excuse to go back again.
Below I'd like to share all the locations we visited to test - where, of course, we also got to enjoy great food. I grouped them by category: from breakfast to lunch, fast food and snacks.
Breakfast Spots
Gasoline Alley Coffee
Gasoline Alley Coffee is a must-visit for any coffee lover like me. You'll find this small, cozy spot on Lafayette Street. For me, Gasoline tops my list of best coffees I've tasted in New York. My go-to order? A latte with soy milk, simple, but so delicious. I even went back for this the last day of our stay.
Address | 325 Lafayette St, New York, NY 10012
Lafayette Bakery
Lafayette is best known for its famous "Suprême" croissant. A kind of round thick croissant with delicious filling. I took the pistachio suprême and w o w. This one was so delicious! You pay for it too, because for 1 piece (and a croissant on-the-go) you pay €14.50.
I chose to take a croissant with me for the road, but you can also sit inside at Lafayette for a full breakfast or lunch. Definitely a must.
Note: Since they are so well known, you can wait here for a very long time to get a seat. We were ready to pick up at opening time, so it was our turn right away. So an advantage if you are an early bird.
Address | 380 Lafayette St, New York, NY 10003
Butler Bakeshop
Butler Bakeshop can be found at several locations in New York. We went here for breakfast after watching the sunrise on Brooklyn Bridge. Since it was still early, most of the restaurants were still closed. Fortunately, a one-minute walk from the famous DUMBO neighborhood, we came across this cute breakfast spot. I had a yogurt bowl with fresh fruit and granola and a croissant.
A few days later I discovered that there was also a Butler Bakeshop three blocks from our hotel, so I had no choice but to get breakfast on-the-go as well.
Address - Brooklyn | 95 S 5th St, Brooklyn, NY 11249
Maman
From the moment you walk into Maman's, it's like walking into a cute little French bakery. On the counter are many kinds of breakfast pastries to choose from. Our choice was a "Toasted Amaretto Croissant" and a breakfast pastry with hazelnut cream. And, not to mention, the most delicious Chai Latte I have ever tasted!
Although at first glance it seems like there's not much seating, I discovered that if you walk past the counter further back, you'll find yourself in a nice, pretty area with multiple seating spots.
Maman also has multiple locations in New York; the location I visited can be found below.
Address | 239 Centre St, New York, NY 10013
Dominique Ansel Bakery
Dominique Ansel Bakery is world famous for its unique creation: the "Cronut," a fusion of a croissant and a donut. This deliciousness was something I had to try.
A slight misunderstanding was that I thought there were several flavors of Cronuts available to choose from, but that turned out not to be the case. The bakery has a new flavor for their Cronut every month. In September, this was "Homemade apple rhubarb jam paired with creamy mascarpone ganache. A mouthful, but more importantly very delicious.
Besides the famous Cronut, the bakery offers a plenty of other delicious treats. It even gets hard to choose. Fortunately, I had done some research in advance and knew exactly what I wanted: a "cookie shot" with milk. Yep, a shot glass made of cookie dough with a layer of chocolate on the inside, which is warmed up in the bakery before they pour milk into it. Delicious!
Address | 189 Spring St, New York, NY 10012
Lunch Spots
Joe's Pizza
The best pizza slices in New York, you are supposed to get them at Joe's Pizza. Whether they are actually the best, we'll leave in the middle - because we only tried Joe's pizza - , BUT they are really, really good. And cheap. We went here twice, just because we liked them so much. You pay $4 for 1 slice. Joe's Pizza has about 7 locations in New York. Again, people line up in a long queue to get a slice, but don't worry, it goes pretty fast.
Address | Joe's Pizza Broadway, 1435 Broadway, New York, NY 10018
Liberty Bagels
Whoever says New York, basically says Bagels. There are numerous Bagel shops to choose from, but I decided to try out Liberty Bagels.
There are more than 20 types of bagels to choose from , from a plain white to a bagel with the colors of the American flag, to a Rainbow bagel. There is also more than enough choice for toppings. Whether you want to go for cream cheese, butter, meat / fish or a homemade salad, it's all possible. I tried the Rainbow Bagel with cream cheese and salmon. A very tasty combo and a must-try if you are in New York.
Liberty Bagels has several locations, but I went to the shop near Wall Street.
Address | 32 Broadway, New York, NY 10004
Shu Jiao Fu Zhou
Noodles with peanut butter sauce and the best dumplings of my life. That's all I can say about this.
Somewhere half hidden in the streets of China Town, you can find this business on Grand Street. It is not only a discovery for the best noodles/dumplings, but also super cheap. For just $8, you get 6 pieces of Pork and Chive Dumplings ($4) and Noodles with Peanut Butter Sauce ($4).
Address | 295 Grand St, New York, NY 10002
Fast Food Spots
7th Street Burger
The best smash burger in NYC according to TripAdvisor would be right here. We ♥ Burgers, so it was a must to try 7th Street Burger's smash burger. There are several branches of 7th Street Burger in the city, and I think we picked the sketchiest joint of all, but despite the somewhat odd location, this burger was really tasty - and honestly the best burger we tasted during our trip. Definitely worth a visit.
Address | 110 MacDougal St, New York, NY 10012
Shake Shack
Always nice to try out new fast food chains, especially when you're in America. When it comes to fast and tasty food, New York offers a plenty of choices. One of them is Shake Shack. I still dream of the Strawberry Lemonade I drank here. The burgers and fries are also super tasty. We opted for one with chicken and bacon (this one looked a bit like a CBO). Definitely worth a visit when in New York.
Mc Donalds - McGriddle
Also at McDonalds there is something on the breakfast menu that cannot be found in Belgium, but according to many people is worth trying: The McGriddle.
I didn't know what to expect from this, but it turned out to be just a breakfast muffin, with pancakes (filled with maple syrup) as a bun. The McGriddle also contains bacon, cheese and an omelet between the buns. Although I understand why it is so popular, personally it turned out not to be quite my taste. In the photo you can also see a Hash Browns, because that's what I live for. Really.
Snacks
Magnolia Bakery
When walking through the streets of Soho, with any luck you'll stumble past Magnolia Bakery. They are best known for their famous banana pudding. You can also go to Magnolia for delicious cupcakes, cookies, pies, cheesecakes, brownies, .... We chose to try the banana pudding ($4.95) and a chocolate confetti cupcake. Delicious!
Address | 401 Bleecker St, New York, NY 10014
Lexington Candy Shop
For a Coca-Cola the Old Fashioned way, you've come to the right address at Lexington Candy Shop. In this diner, you'll go back in time for a moment and can sit in a cozy booth while enjoying a pancake with strawberry syrup. They make the Coca-Cola here by pumping syrup into a glass and mixing it with sparkling water. Want to go all-the-way with the Olf Fashioned Coca-Cola? Then you can add a scoop of vanilla ice cream! Our opinion? Delicious, but we both had to take some time to recover from the amount of sugar we took in.
Address | 1226 Lexington Ave, New York, NY 10028
The Original Nathan's Famous
A visit to Coney Island could not be left out during our trip to New York. What you really have to try here is a hot dog from The Original Nathan's Famous. In addition to a hot dog, we also tried the Corn Dog Nuggets.
Address | 1205 Riegelmann Boardwalk, Brooklyn, NY 11224
Eileen's Special Cheesecake
Eileen's Cheesecake is said to be the best cheesecake in New York. Therefore, we could not skip this one. On a drizzly day, we decided to each order one. You can choose from a wide range of flavors on Eileen's website. Our choices fell on a Strawberry Cheesecake ($6) and a Chocolate Covered Strawberry Topped Cheesecake ($7.25). So you put down quite a bit of money. In my opinion, it's not quite worth the hype.
Address | 17 Cleveland Pl, New York, NY 10012
Levain Bakery
"Not just a Cookie, but *THE* Cookie." That's the slogan of Levian Bakery. These warm, soft chocolate chip cookies are definitely a must-try. I chose the two chip chocolate chip cookie - a mouthful. You pay $5 for one of these mouthwatering cookies.
Address | 340 Lafayette St, New York, NY 10012
Mei Lah Wah
Looking for something tasty that is also cheap? Then you've come to the right place at Mei Wah Lah in China Town! This hidden treasure is known for its famous "Pork Buns" - a delicious sandwich filled with meat, and the best part? It only costs $2. In addition to the regular Pork Bun, you also have one with pineapple. 10/10 for this tasty, quick bite. Definitely worth it.
Tip: Don't visit too late at night, as chances are the (pineapple) pork buns will be sold out.
Address | 62 Bayard St, New York, NY 10013
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