cheapest ways to live for a week in new york
Jul 22nd, 2015, 08:53 AM
#3
Join Date: Aug 2013
Posts: 6,476
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
You must get a guide to New York. First start for free with Time Out NY.
http://www.timeout.com/newyork
___________________
Here are suggestions for eating cheaply in NY. Most pertain to visitors but there are some that are just for NY'ers as I have listed provision stores as well.
Here is a list of many cheap ways to eat that I have posted before.
How to eat cheaply in NYC
Breakfast
Every, and I do mean every, neighborhood in Manhattan has what are euphemistically called delis. Almost all have some sort of breakfast specials that usually includes eggs, potatoes, toast and coffee. If you are not hungry or are cholesterol adverse, they also usually sell sliced fruit and yogurt. Of course there are bagels and pastries. NEVER EVER order room service.
There are many places that make their bagels. NOT DUNKIN DONUS. Some of the better one’s include Ess-a-Bagel, Murray’s Tal’s, David’s, Black Seed.
Lunch
Part of the NY experience is to avoid chain restaurants. There is an incredible variety of inexpensive foods, among them Chinese and Indian. Quality varies substantially. If you are in or near Chinatown, there are many places including Big Wong’s. If you are near the East Village East 6th Street has literally 10 Indian restaurants to choose from. There are also excellent Indian restaurants on Lexington Avenue in the 20’s. The East Village also offers inexpensive Eastern European cooking at Veselka for example.
No NY’er cannot resist a frank at Gray’s Papaya who also sells fruit drinks including papaya, hence the name. There are now many variations on papaya and dogs all are inexpensive. I do not think the fruit drinks have ever come in contact with real fruit, but that also is part of the charm. Nathan’s are also very good but they are more expensive.
Pizza is a long lunch standby-DO NOT go to ANY chain, the cheese is older than the kids who make it. Look for by the slice places and try a calzone as well, you will not eat for two days.
Sidewalk hot dog venders are always cheap, avoid the guys around Rock Center, you pay a premium. There are those who wonder about the hygiene, the dogs are boiled and the knishes grilled for forever. It must kill anything that lurks
Free samples are available at Dean & Deluca, Sarabeth’s, and Gourmet Garage.
It is the rare independent bakery in NYC that does not have at least one bread or pastry that is enticing.
so keep your eye out., especially pizza places and the Indian places on 6th Street
The following are inexpensive meals and desserts:
Inexpensive Italian- La Marca (3rd Ave. and 22 Street, only opened noon-10 PM, Mon-Fri), Excellent Food Value
Inexpensive Eastern European- Veselka,
Indian Food- East 6th Stret between 1st and 2nd Avenue and Lexington Avenue in the mid to high 20's.
Dessert-Veniero's, Fat Witch Bakery (brownies only) Chelsea Market
Brunches-, Turkish Kitchen, Cafecito (Ave C), Clinton Street Bakery, City Bakery,
Pizza-Motorino, they luncheon special with individual pizza is a great great buy, also Lombardi’s
Ice Cream-Cones on Bleecker, Il Laboratorio de Gelato, Chinatown Ice Cream Factory, Cones and Sundae (East 10th off Third) Ronnybrook at the Chelsea market, Davey’s on First Ave
Chinatown-Big Wong. Joe’s Ginger, NY Noodletown
Dim Sum-Jing Fung, Golden Unicorn, Nom Wah on Doyers Street
Tapas-Despana on Broome Street,
Dinner
When we travel we often buy different foods as we walk around the city and put them in our backpacks and have dinner in the hotel room. In NYC you will probably see foods that are unfamiliar. Bring a knife, forks, and a corkscrew. If you are using a carry on bring plastic utensils with you.
These are most of my favorite food stores. This is as highly subjective and geographically limited list you will find. The majority of stores are below 14th Street.
Stars indicate they are better than the others on the list. There are scores of excellent places that are not on the list, so exclusion is not necessarily condemnation.
Tourists can use this to put together their own food tour, buy stuff during the day for a feast in your hotel room at night or for gifts. One time we were flying back from Milan and we purchased a cake there and shared it with family when we landed.
Bagels and Bialys
Just because it is round, does not make it a bagel. There is a lot of crap being sold. A bagel must be boiled before it is baked. The ones with pimples on the bottom, like those you get at the sidewalk carts, are steamed. The ones you get at Dunkin Donuts are white bread in a circle, Rachel Ray.
*Ess-A-Bagel
My personal favorite. Ess-a bagels are yeasty while others are sweet because they add sugar. Ess-a Bagel is a bit of a play on words and means eat in Yiddish. The stores are crazy busy and there is a wide variety of spreads.
*Kossar’s Bialys (Established 1935)
367 Grand Street
What is a bialy? Originally from Bailystok, Poland and called Bialystoker Kuchen (cake). And yes, Mel Brooks stole the name for Max Bialystock. It is most and doughy, much like the perfect pizza crust but with an indentation in the middle for either bits of garlic or onion. Try their bulkas which are bialy dough in the shape of a hero or an onion wheel also called a pletzel. An onion wheel is round and thin covered with duh onions, or the other version poppy seeds. Toast it, butter it, and keel over dead.
*Murray’s
Various Locations
Murray’s knows how to make bagels, chewy and large. The lines usually move quickly.
Bakeries
Amy’s Bread
Various Locations
The breads are well prepared and my favorite is the black sesame and the potato. I have never seen the same kid behind the counter twice, thus the staff is not knowledgeable and some seem confused by an order.
*Balthazar
80 Spring Street
I guess they could have made the space smaller, but then only your hand would fit through the door. Unlike the restaurant, the bakery deserves the praise for their baguettes and croissants.
Birdbath
Various locations
Yes, it is a stupid name and the place has all the charm of a company store at a gulag but it is a sister to City Bakery. They make fabulous almost everything including a pretzel croissant. They only offer about 10% of what can be had at the City Bakery and there is no place to sit and eat.The staff here and at City Bakery has not been told that space program was discontinued.
*Blue Ribbon Market
14 Bedford Street
There is not a bad bread in the house. They are made across the street at Blue Ribbon Bakery, where you can see the ovens on the basement. (They also have a interesting bathroom.)
Pick anything.
*Clinton Street Bakery
4 Clinton Street
Not only is this bakery but a great place for brunch which is impossible to enter on weekends. They may make the best biscuits in town followed closely by their scones.
*City Bakery
3 West 18th Street
Try the hot chocolate melted from chocolate bars or the pretzel croissants or the baker’s muffins or anything laid out on the counter. Extremely crowded at breakfast and lunch. Celebrities have been spotted but unless they are disguised as spoon I have not seen any.
*Donut Plant
379 Grand Street and Chelsea Hotel
I do not know what they do but the donuts taste so much better than just about any other place. He also makes excellent churros. The valrhona chocolate is a monument to gluttony. Small storefront with bakery in back.
Eileen’s Cheesecake
17 Cleveland Place
That’s all she makes so she better make them well. Not the best but very good.
* Fat Witch Brownies
Chelsea Market
They make the fudgy type and they have a few variations. Staff is pleasant but sloooow. They have tourist buses that stop at Chelsea Market, so the lines may be long at times.
*Financier
Various locations
In the food wasteland that is Wall Street, Financier knows how to make cakes and croissants. They are often crowded but the staff doesn’t know ganache or panache.
Junior’s
Various locations
Stick to the cheesecake.
*La Bergamonte
177 Ninth Avenue and 515 West 52nd Street,
For many years this was in the middle of food nowhere. Now with the Chelsea Market and the fattening of the Meatpacking district is getting its due. Extremely fine croissants and pastries and a place to sit
Le Pain Quotidien
Various locations
A chain from Belgium which makes it Belch. The baguettes are wonderful as are the brownies and raisin whole grain bread. This is probably the best food of any chain. The staff however, is laconic and unknowledgeable and very often there are out of many of the popular items. Nice brunches.
*Little Pie Company
424 West 43 Street
Their sour cream apple walnut pie is akin to crack cocaine but only a little cheaper. The other pies are good but not in the same category. People start lining up for Thanksgiving on 4th of July, so order in advance.
*S & S Cheesecake
222 W 238 St, Bronx
Could be the best cheesecake in the city, creamy but not dense, perfect,
Steve’s Authentic Key Lime Pies
204-207 Van Dyke Street, Red Hook
This is place is hard to find when you are standing in front it. Fortunately the silky pies can be found at Citarella and other self-defined fine stores.
*Sullivan Street Bakery
533 W 47th Street
You have probably eaten there breads many times and didn’t know it. It is offered in scores of restaurants and markets. You can identify many of the breads by sight. They are brown and crusty will the inside is light and airy. A paradigm for carbs.
*Veniero’s
342 East 11th Street
Established in 1894 some of those people are still waiting on line. I love this place, the best inexpensive tiramisu, addictive ricotta cheesecake, moist pignoli cookies, there are scores of offerings and no losers. The take out staff is never the same and the lines are long for the café. For Thanksgiving and Christmas, the café is turned to a waiting room for take out. They use an old fashioned machine to wrap the string around the box, while quaint, adds to the interminable line. You can also call in an order.
N.B. You can take your cupcake fight outside. We have tried many but a winner has yet to be named.
Candy and Chocolates
*Economy Candy (Established 1934)
108 Rivington Street
I am not sure they make anything on premises but they do have every candy still in production at very good prices. If you are a fan of candy stores, you will want to be buried here.
*Jacques Torres Chocolates
Various Locations
For some reason people know the Brooklyn location better than the one on Hudson Street. Their truffles are exquisite as are all the chocolates and the hot chocolate. The lines are extraordinary on Valentine’s Day.
*Kee’s
80 Thompson Street
Kee was a banker or a lawyer before she started making the best truffles in NYC. Some are Asian influenced each variety is better than the next. This is a must stop for chocolate cuckoos. Expensive
*Teuscher
Various locations
Truffles are flown in from Switzerland. I once bought some for a chocolate loving friend who about to get married. While eating the truffles, this modest woman was made sounds that are usually reserved for her husband. Although she was completely embarrassed, I knew I bought the right gift. Expensive
There are many chocolate stores in midtown that make exceptional products but I have not enough experience to add them to the list. These include Richart, Maison du Chocolat, and Pierre Marcolini and Burdick. Just turn your pockets inside out for a taste.
Cheese
Alleva Diary (Established 1892)
188 Grand Street
Not as good as its neighbor DiPalo but extremely offers a fine selection of Italian cheeses.
*DiPalo Dairy (Established 1925)
200 Grand Street
One of NY’s great stores. Not only are the cheeses spectacular but their prosciutti are perfect. Their selections are impeccable. If at all possible avoid the weekend crowds, even though they have adults behind the counter.
East Village Cheese
140 Third Avenue
His cheese must fall off the truck to charge the lowest prices in the city. There is always some $2.99 per pound special. For that price you will not get the best, but at least you will be filled. The staff has become nicer over the years but not much. Cash only.
*Formaggio Essex
Essex Market on Essex Steet.
That should be enough Essexes. This is a tiny outlet from a Boston company. The cheeses are excellent but they have vats where you take a bottle and fill it with a vinegar sherry or olive oil and both are redolent and extremely flavorful. There is some rules about deposits but I am not good at rules. The Essex market is a poured concrete structure with many stalls selling veggies and Hispanic staples with a barber shop in the back. Do not be deterred that it looks like pig farm from the outside.
*Murray’s Cheeese
254 Bleecker Street and another in Grand Central
Best in show. They carefully choose only the finest quality of every variety. The staff is cheesemongers, one is even a gossip monger. The ricotta cheese cake is worth going to jail. This is a must visit for anyone who has the slightest interest in cheese.
*Russo’s Mozzarella (Established 1908)
344 East 11th Street
Cleverly they make fresh and smoked mozzarella which are excellent but they also make pastas, sauces, and there own olive varieties. Cramped but the guys know what they are doing.
Ice Cream
*Cones
272 Bleecker Street
In 1986 an Israeli newspaper sent a reporter to cover the NY Mets in the World Series because they heard there was a David Cone. He isn’t related to this place either. Sweet creamy, fresh ingredients with many varieties. Many tourists happen upon it when eating at John’s Pizzeria.
*Chinatown Ice Cream Factory
65 Bayard Street
Store made ice cream which for wimps offers vanilla and chocolate since they also serve flavors like green tea, lichee nut, and my favorite almond cookie. The kids behind the counter are always nice. There is no better way to end a meal in Chinatown. Inexpensive but cash only.
*Il Laboratorio de Gelato
95 Orchard Street
Everybody claims their gelati is the same as in Italy, blah, blah, blah. Their gelati is like Italy. It is the type you eat four times a day as you walk around Rome or Florence before you realize you have ruined your appetite for dinner. Expensive and cash only.
Sundaes and Cones
95 East 10th Street
They have nothing to do with just Cones and is a shade below, But if you are in the neighborhood, the store made ice cream is creamy and offer interesting flavors.
Grom
Various locations
An Italian gelati chain. The quality is high but so are the prices.
Davey’s
First Ave and St Marks
Ice cream for adults. The flavors are strong and it is not too sweet. Limited selection
Knishes
Yonah Schimmel (Established 1890)
137 East Houston Street
Yonah has been dead for a long time and they have not redecorated or cleaned the windows since. If they made great knishes the owners could be considered knish savants but they are not. The knishes you buy at sidewalk carts, however, are shaped like third base, taste worse, are fried and often a green patina inside. Thy make the baked variety and may or may not have the all types on hand.
Kitchen Supplies
* Broadway Panhandler
65 East 8th Street
They finally moved closer to Broadway. This is good for the semi-serious chef. There is an excellent selection of knives and pans but half the store is dedicated to stuff you use once or cutsey-poo crap.
New York Cake and Baking Distributor
56 W 22
Has what every serious amateur and professional baker needs, flour, pans, cookie cutters, etc. The quarters are Spartan and the staff acts like they just found a cure for cancer.
My favorite store Bridge Cookware has left NYC for the wilds of New Jersey.
Food Markets
Unless otherwise noted these places are expensive or very expensive.
Agatha and Valentina
A large department features hard-core Italian cold cuts like soppressata and hot or sweet cappicola, while the cheese department sports a huge number of offerings and loads of free samples. The prepared foods section also has a thick Italian accent and is among the more interesting in the city.
*Citarella
Various Locations
One of the best spots for fish from standard stuff with gills to razor clams. Knowledgeable fishmongers. Same is true for meats. Their prepared foods are universally good with outstanding soups. They collect bread and cakes from various but good places.
Dean and Deluca
Various Locations
The original food museum. The fruit is laid out to be admired, as are the cheeses, breads, and cakes. The main location on Broadway always a line at the espresso bar. Prices are higher than a stale bagel at the airport.
*Eli’s
*Eli’s Vinegar Factory
31 East 91st Street,
Eli had a fight with his family at Zabar’s and opened up a much more expensive food market. When you look at the prices, you think you are in a foreign country and miscalculated the exchange rate. On the other hand, every thing here is outstanding and it is a bit out of the way.
*Fairway
Various locations
Cheaper than the others
The fruits and veggies are outstanding as are the meats, fish, and store made breads. They also carry reasonably priced groceries. The Brooklyn store has food counters with an outdoor eating area with a view of the Statue of Liberty. But the food choices are not for the huddled masses yearning to breathe free.
Grace’s Marketplace
She is the daughter of old man Balducci, who was such a difficult character and opened her own place. Physically it resembles the long gone Balducci’s on 6th Ave, but retained the good qualities such as the prepared meats and excellent meat, fish, and produce selections.
Manhattan Fruit Exchange
Chelsea Market
Best veggie value in town. Crowded, crowded, crowded. Cash only
*Russ and Daughters (Established 1914)
179 East Houston Street
A new generation has taken over with the same pride and dedication to smoked fish as their aunts, uncles, and grandparents. Sable, white fish, lox, gravlax, it does not matter they are all mouth watering. Try the chopped liver, it is full flavor.
Trader Joe’s
Various Locations
Very good on selected items, while almost everything is reasonably priced. Extremely long lines on weekends and late afternoons.
*Zabar’s (Established 1931)
2245 Broadway
Another NY institution with a well deserved reputation. The prices are cheaper than almost those above but the quality is the same or better. Large cheese selection, fantastic prepared foods, the claim to sell more coffee than anyone in NYC, store made knishes, breads and cakes from the best purveyors, Zabar’s brand spices and olive oil (this is known as one of the best buys anywhere.). The lox slicers reportedly make $85,000 a year. And upstairs is a cookware section. The staff is wonderful but the clientele is often obnoxious and aggressive. Sharpen your elbows and fight for the tri-colored pate.
Meats
*East Village Meat Market
139 Second Avenue
It helps if you speak Polish but you can get by in English. Old fashioned butcher shop where every thing is cut upon request. They also make great, great kielbasa and in many shapes and types and smoked hams. Relatively inexpensive.
*Faicco’s (Established 1900)
260 Bleecker Street
They make their flavorful sausage, rice balls, sauces. You get the old schmooze from the guys behind the counter as well. If you like old fashioned Italian butchers who know what they are doing, this is the joint.
Pasta
*Raffetto’s (Established 1906)
144 W. Houston Street
They cut fresh pasta from sheets to your specification in front of you on a machine that looked obsolete 50 years ago. Not a gimmick just the freshest, tastiest pasta yet. They have many types including saffron. Cash only.
Pickles
*The Pickle Guys
49 Essex Street
Some employee defected from Gus’s, the pickles are perfect as is the spiel. They also offer a free pickle. There are barrels and barrels of sour, new, half sour, pickled peppers just calling your name.
Spanish Provisions
Despana
408 Broome Street (Original at 86-17 Northern Blvd. Queens)
The chorizos and morcilla are incredibly tasy and tangy and are found in many restaurant around town. Their cheeses are also top notch and offer a wide selection. They also offer Serrano ham which is many respects is sweeter and more delicate than porsciutto. They serve tapas as well. There is no table service, the selection is limited as are the hours, but what they serve is excellent.
http://www.timeout.com/newyork
___________________
Here are suggestions for eating cheaply in NY. Most pertain to visitors but there are some that are just for NY'ers as I have listed provision stores as well.
Here is a list of many cheap ways to eat that I have posted before.
How to eat cheaply in NYC
Breakfast
Every, and I do mean every, neighborhood in Manhattan has what are euphemistically called delis. Almost all have some sort of breakfast specials that usually includes eggs, potatoes, toast and coffee. If you are not hungry or are cholesterol adverse, they also usually sell sliced fruit and yogurt. Of course there are bagels and pastries. NEVER EVER order room service.
There are many places that make their bagels. NOT DUNKIN DONUS. Some of the better one’s include Ess-a-Bagel, Murray’s Tal’s, David’s, Black Seed.
Lunch
Part of the NY experience is to avoid chain restaurants. There is an incredible variety of inexpensive foods, among them Chinese and Indian. Quality varies substantially. If you are in or near Chinatown, there are many places including Big Wong’s. If you are near the East Village East 6th Street has literally 10 Indian restaurants to choose from. There are also excellent Indian restaurants on Lexington Avenue in the 20’s. The East Village also offers inexpensive Eastern European cooking at Veselka for example.
No NY’er cannot resist a frank at Gray’s Papaya who also sells fruit drinks including papaya, hence the name. There are now many variations on papaya and dogs all are inexpensive. I do not think the fruit drinks have ever come in contact with real fruit, but that also is part of the charm. Nathan’s are also very good but they are more expensive.
Pizza is a long lunch standby-DO NOT go to ANY chain, the cheese is older than the kids who make it. Look for by the slice places and try a calzone as well, you will not eat for two days.
Sidewalk hot dog venders are always cheap, avoid the guys around Rock Center, you pay a premium. There are those who wonder about the hygiene, the dogs are boiled and the knishes grilled for forever. It must kill anything that lurks
Free samples are available at Dean & Deluca, Sarabeth’s, and Gourmet Garage.
It is the rare independent bakery in NYC that does not have at least one bread or pastry that is enticing.
so keep your eye out., especially pizza places and the Indian places on 6th Street
The following are inexpensive meals and desserts:
Inexpensive Italian- La Marca (3rd Ave. and 22 Street, only opened noon-10 PM, Mon-Fri), Excellent Food Value
Inexpensive Eastern European- Veselka,
Indian Food- East 6th Stret between 1st and 2nd Avenue and Lexington Avenue in the mid to high 20's.
Dessert-Veniero's, Fat Witch Bakery (brownies only) Chelsea Market
Brunches-, Turkish Kitchen, Cafecito (Ave C), Clinton Street Bakery, City Bakery,
Pizza-Motorino, they luncheon special with individual pizza is a great great buy, also Lombardi’s
Ice Cream-Cones on Bleecker, Il Laboratorio de Gelato, Chinatown Ice Cream Factory, Cones and Sundae (East 10th off Third) Ronnybrook at the Chelsea market, Davey’s on First Ave
Chinatown-Big Wong. Joe’s Ginger, NY Noodletown
Dim Sum-Jing Fung, Golden Unicorn, Nom Wah on Doyers Street
Tapas-Despana on Broome Street,
Dinner
When we travel we often buy different foods as we walk around the city and put them in our backpacks and have dinner in the hotel room. In NYC you will probably see foods that are unfamiliar. Bring a knife, forks, and a corkscrew. If you are using a carry on bring plastic utensils with you.
These are most of my favorite food stores. This is as highly subjective and geographically limited list you will find. The majority of stores are below 14th Street.
Stars indicate they are better than the others on the list. There are scores of excellent places that are not on the list, so exclusion is not necessarily condemnation.
Tourists can use this to put together their own food tour, buy stuff during the day for a feast in your hotel room at night or for gifts. One time we were flying back from Milan and we purchased a cake there and shared it with family when we landed.
Bagels and Bialys
Just because it is round, does not make it a bagel. There is a lot of crap being sold. A bagel must be boiled before it is baked. The ones with pimples on the bottom, like those you get at the sidewalk carts, are steamed. The ones you get at Dunkin Donuts are white bread in a circle, Rachel Ray.
*Ess-A-Bagel
My personal favorite. Ess-a bagels are yeasty while others are sweet because they add sugar. Ess-a Bagel is a bit of a play on words and means eat in Yiddish. The stores are crazy busy and there is a wide variety of spreads.
*Kossar’s Bialys (Established 1935)
367 Grand Street
What is a bialy? Originally from Bailystok, Poland and called Bialystoker Kuchen (cake). And yes, Mel Brooks stole the name for Max Bialystock. It is most and doughy, much like the perfect pizza crust but with an indentation in the middle for either bits of garlic or onion. Try their bulkas which are bialy dough in the shape of a hero or an onion wheel also called a pletzel. An onion wheel is round and thin covered with duh onions, or the other version poppy seeds. Toast it, butter it, and keel over dead.
*Murray’s
Various Locations
Murray’s knows how to make bagels, chewy and large. The lines usually move quickly.
Bakeries
Amy’s Bread
Various Locations
The breads are well prepared and my favorite is the black sesame and the potato. I have never seen the same kid behind the counter twice, thus the staff is not knowledgeable and some seem confused by an order.
*Balthazar
80 Spring Street
I guess they could have made the space smaller, but then only your hand would fit through the door. Unlike the restaurant, the bakery deserves the praise for their baguettes and croissants.
Birdbath
Various locations
Yes, it is a stupid name and the place has all the charm of a company store at a gulag but it is a sister to City Bakery. They make fabulous almost everything including a pretzel croissant. They only offer about 10% of what can be had at the City Bakery and there is no place to sit and eat.The staff here and at City Bakery has not been told that space program was discontinued.
*Blue Ribbon Market
14 Bedford Street
There is not a bad bread in the house. They are made across the street at Blue Ribbon Bakery, where you can see the ovens on the basement. (They also have a interesting bathroom.)
Pick anything.
*Clinton Street Bakery
4 Clinton Street
Not only is this bakery but a great place for brunch which is impossible to enter on weekends. They may make the best biscuits in town followed closely by their scones.
*City Bakery
3 West 18th Street
Try the hot chocolate melted from chocolate bars or the pretzel croissants or the baker’s muffins or anything laid out on the counter. Extremely crowded at breakfast and lunch. Celebrities have been spotted but unless they are disguised as spoon I have not seen any.
*Donut Plant
379 Grand Street and Chelsea Hotel
I do not know what they do but the donuts taste so much better than just about any other place. He also makes excellent churros. The valrhona chocolate is a monument to gluttony. Small storefront with bakery in back.
Eileen’s Cheesecake
17 Cleveland Place
That’s all she makes so she better make them well. Not the best but very good.
* Fat Witch Brownies
Chelsea Market
They make the fudgy type and they have a few variations. Staff is pleasant but sloooow. They have tourist buses that stop at Chelsea Market, so the lines may be long at times.
*Financier
Various locations
In the food wasteland that is Wall Street, Financier knows how to make cakes and croissants. They are often crowded but the staff doesn’t know ganache or panache.
Junior’s
Various locations
Stick to the cheesecake.
*La Bergamonte
177 Ninth Avenue and 515 West 52nd Street,
For many years this was in the middle of food nowhere. Now with the Chelsea Market and the fattening of the Meatpacking district is getting its due. Extremely fine croissants and pastries and a place to sit
Le Pain Quotidien
Various locations
A chain from Belgium which makes it Belch. The baguettes are wonderful as are the brownies and raisin whole grain bread. This is probably the best food of any chain. The staff however, is laconic and unknowledgeable and very often there are out of many of the popular items. Nice brunches.
*Little Pie Company
424 West 43 Street
Their sour cream apple walnut pie is akin to crack cocaine but only a little cheaper. The other pies are good but not in the same category. People start lining up for Thanksgiving on 4th of July, so order in advance.
*S & S Cheesecake
222 W 238 St, Bronx
Could be the best cheesecake in the city, creamy but not dense, perfect,
Steve’s Authentic Key Lime Pies
204-207 Van Dyke Street, Red Hook
This is place is hard to find when you are standing in front it. Fortunately the silky pies can be found at Citarella and other self-defined fine stores.
*Sullivan Street Bakery
533 W 47th Street
You have probably eaten there breads many times and didn’t know it. It is offered in scores of restaurants and markets. You can identify many of the breads by sight. They are brown and crusty will the inside is light and airy. A paradigm for carbs.
*Veniero’s
342 East 11th Street
Established in 1894 some of those people are still waiting on line. I love this place, the best inexpensive tiramisu, addictive ricotta cheesecake, moist pignoli cookies, there are scores of offerings and no losers. The take out staff is never the same and the lines are long for the café. For Thanksgiving and Christmas, the café is turned to a waiting room for take out. They use an old fashioned machine to wrap the string around the box, while quaint, adds to the interminable line. You can also call in an order.
N.B. You can take your cupcake fight outside. We have tried many but a winner has yet to be named.
Candy and Chocolates
*Economy Candy (Established 1934)
108 Rivington Street
I am not sure they make anything on premises but they do have every candy still in production at very good prices. If you are a fan of candy stores, you will want to be buried here.
*Jacques Torres Chocolates
Various Locations
For some reason people know the Brooklyn location better than the one on Hudson Street. Their truffles are exquisite as are all the chocolates and the hot chocolate. The lines are extraordinary on Valentine’s Day.
*Kee’s
80 Thompson Street
Kee was a banker or a lawyer before she started making the best truffles in NYC. Some are Asian influenced each variety is better than the next. This is a must stop for chocolate cuckoos. Expensive
*Teuscher
Various locations
Truffles are flown in from Switzerland. I once bought some for a chocolate loving friend who about to get married. While eating the truffles, this modest woman was made sounds that are usually reserved for her husband. Although she was completely embarrassed, I knew I bought the right gift. Expensive
There are many chocolate stores in midtown that make exceptional products but I have not enough experience to add them to the list. These include Richart, Maison du Chocolat, and Pierre Marcolini and Burdick. Just turn your pockets inside out for a taste.
Cheese
Alleva Diary (Established 1892)
188 Grand Street
Not as good as its neighbor DiPalo but extremely offers a fine selection of Italian cheeses.
*DiPalo Dairy (Established 1925)
200 Grand Street
One of NY’s great stores. Not only are the cheeses spectacular but their prosciutti are perfect. Their selections are impeccable. If at all possible avoid the weekend crowds, even though they have adults behind the counter.
East Village Cheese
140 Third Avenue
His cheese must fall off the truck to charge the lowest prices in the city. There is always some $2.99 per pound special. For that price you will not get the best, but at least you will be filled. The staff has become nicer over the years but not much. Cash only.
*Formaggio Essex
Essex Market on Essex Steet.
That should be enough Essexes. This is a tiny outlet from a Boston company. The cheeses are excellent but they have vats where you take a bottle and fill it with a vinegar sherry or olive oil and both are redolent and extremely flavorful. There is some rules about deposits but I am not good at rules. The Essex market is a poured concrete structure with many stalls selling veggies and Hispanic staples with a barber shop in the back. Do not be deterred that it looks like pig farm from the outside.
*Murray’s Cheeese
254 Bleecker Street and another in Grand Central
Best in show. They carefully choose only the finest quality of every variety. The staff is cheesemongers, one is even a gossip monger. The ricotta cheese cake is worth going to jail. This is a must visit for anyone who has the slightest interest in cheese.
*Russo’s Mozzarella (Established 1908)
344 East 11th Street
Cleverly they make fresh and smoked mozzarella which are excellent but they also make pastas, sauces, and there own olive varieties. Cramped but the guys know what they are doing.
Ice Cream
*Cones
272 Bleecker Street
In 1986 an Israeli newspaper sent a reporter to cover the NY Mets in the World Series because they heard there was a David Cone. He isn’t related to this place either. Sweet creamy, fresh ingredients with many varieties. Many tourists happen upon it when eating at John’s Pizzeria.
*Chinatown Ice Cream Factory
65 Bayard Street
Store made ice cream which for wimps offers vanilla and chocolate since they also serve flavors like green tea, lichee nut, and my favorite almond cookie. The kids behind the counter are always nice. There is no better way to end a meal in Chinatown. Inexpensive but cash only.
*Il Laboratorio de Gelato
95 Orchard Street
Everybody claims their gelati is the same as in Italy, blah, blah, blah. Their gelati is like Italy. It is the type you eat four times a day as you walk around Rome or Florence before you realize you have ruined your appetite for dinner. Expensive and cash only.
Sundaes and Cones
95 East 10th Street
They have nothing to do with just Cones and is a shade below, But if you are in the neighborhood, the store made ice cream is creamy and offer interesting flavors.
Grom
Various locations
An Italian gelati chain. The quality is high but so are the prices.
Davey’s
First Ave and St Marks
Ice cream for adults. The flavors are strong and it is not too sweet. Limited selection
Knishes
Yonah Schimmel (Established 1890)
137 East Houston Street
Yonah has been dead for a long time and they have not redecorated or cleaned the windows since. If they made great knishes the owners could be considered knish savants but they are not. The knishes you buy at sidewalk carts, however, are shaped like third base, taste worse, are fried and often a green patina inside. Thy make the baked variety and may or may not have the all types on hand.
Kitchen Supplies
* Broadway Panhandler
65 East 8th Street
They finally moved closer to Broadway. This is good for the semi-serious chef. There is an excellent selection of knives and pans but half the store is dedicated to stuff you use once or cutsey-poo crap.
New York Cake and Baking Distributor
56 W 22
Has what every serious amateur and professional baker needs, flour, pans, cookie cutters, etc. The quarters are Spartan and the staff acts like they just found a cure for cancer.
My favorite store Bridge Cookware has left NYC for the wilds of New Jersey.
Food Markets
Unless otherwise noted these places are expensive or very expensive.
Agatha and Valentina
A large department features hard-core Italian cold cuts like soppressata and hot or sweet cappicola, while the cheese department sports a huge number of offerings and loads of free samples. The prepared foods section also has a thick Italian accent and is among the more interesting in the city.
*Citarella
Various Locations
One of the best spots for fish from standard stuff with gills to razor clams. Knowledgeable fishmongers. Same is true for meats. Their prepared foods are universally good with outstanding soups. They collect bread and cakes from various but good places.
Dean and Deluca
Various Locations
The original food museum. The fruit is laid out to be admired, as are the cheeses, breads, and cakes. The main location on Broadway always a line at the espresso bar. Prices are higher than a stale bagel at the airport.
*Eli’s
*Eli’s Vinegar Factory
31 East 91st Street,
Eli had a fight with his family at Zabar’s and opened up a much more expensive food market. When you look at the prices, you think you are in a foreign country and miscalculated the exchange rate. On the other hand, every thing here is outstanding and it is a bit out of the way.
*Fairway
Various locations
Cheaper than the others
The fruits and veggies are outstanding as are the meats, fish, and store made breads. They also carry reasonably priced groceries. The Brooklyn store has food counters with an outdoor eating area with a view of the Statue of Liberty. But the food choices are not for the huddled masses yearning to breathe free.
Grace’s Marketplace
She is the daughter of old man Balducci, who was such a difficult character and opened her own place. Physically it resembles the long gone Balducci’s on 6th Ave, but retained the good qualities such as the prepared meats and excellent meat, fish, and produce selections.
Manhattan Fruit Exchange
Chelsea Market
Best veggie value in town. Crowded, crowded, crowded. Cash only
*Russ and Daughters (Established 1914)
179 East Houston Street
A new generation has taken over with the same pride and dedication to smoked fish as their aunts, uncles, and grandparents. Sable, white fish, lox, gravlax, it does not matter they are all mouth watering. Try the chopped liver, it is full flavor.
Trader Joe’s
Various Locations
Very good on selected items, while almost everything is reasonably priced. Extremely long lines on weekends and late afternoons.
*Zabar’s (Established 1931)
2245 Broadway
Another NY institution with a well deserved reputation. The prices are cheaper than almost those above but the quality is the same or better. Large cheese selection, fantastic prepared foods, the claim to sell more coffee than anyone in NYC, store made knishes, breads and cakes from the best purveyors, Zabar’s brand spices and olive oil (this is known as one of the best buys anywhere.). The lox slicers reportedly make $85,000 a year. And upstairs is a cookware section. The staff is wonderful but the clientele is often obnoxious and aggressive. Sharpen your elbows and fight for the tri-colored pate.
Meats
*East Village Meat Market
139 Second Avenue
It helps if you speak Polish but you can get by in English. Old fashioned butcher shop where every thing is cut upon request. They also make great, great kielbasa and in many shapes and types and smoked hams. Relatively inexpensive.
*Faicco’s (Established 1900)
260 Bleecker Street
They make their flavorful sausage, rice balls, sauces. You get the old schmooze from the guys behind the counter as well. If you like old fashioned Italian butchers who know what they are doing, this is the joint.
Pasta
*Raffetto’s (Established 1906)
144 W. Houston Street
They cut fresh pasta from sheets to your specification in front of you on a machine that looked obsolete 50 years ago. Not a gimmick just the freshest, tastiest pasta yet. They have many types including saffron. Cash only.
Pickles
*The Pickle Guys
49 Essex Street
Some employee defected from Gus’s, the pickles are perfect as is the spiel. They also offer a free pickle. There are barrels and barrels of sour, new, half sour, pickled peppers just calling your name.
Spanish Provisions
Despana
408 Broome Street (Original at 86-17 Northern Blvd. Queens)
The chorizos and morcilla are incredibly tasy and tangy and are found in many restaurant around town. Their cheeses are also top notch and offer a wide selection. They also offer Serrano ham which is many respects is sweeter and more delicate than porsciutto. They serve tapas as well. There is no table service, the selection is limited as are the hours, but what they serve is excellent.
Jul 22nd, 2015, 09:00 AM
#4
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 57,890
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
You really need to provide a nightly budget so people can make recos that make sense. Also how many of you are there (NYC hotel room standard configuration is one double bed for 2 people). Also, what are your dates - since prices vary a lot by specific time of year.
One place to look is the Jane hotel - usually has about the lowest rates in Manhattan but I believe most rooms have shared baths and the rooms are definitely minute.
If Manhattan is too expensive for you, you might consider looking at some of the budget places in Long Island City - only about 10 minutes from Manhattan by subway. Just make sure that you pick one close to the subway and that gets decent reviews on tripadvisor.
Some condos allow short-term sublets - but these are legal in NYC only if the tenant is still in the apartment - that is- you are just renting a bedroom.
Most apt rentals are not legal - and in any case you can usually get a budget hotel for less than an apt since it is much less space.
One place to look is the Jane hotel - usually has about the lowest rates in Manhattan but I believe most rooms have shared baths and the rooms are definitely minute.
If Manhattan is too expensive for you, you might consider looking at some of the budget places in Long Island City - only about 10 minutes from Manhattan by subway. Just make sure that you pick one close to the subway and that gets decent reviews on tripadvisor.
Some condos allow short-term sublets - but these are legal in NYC only if the tenant is still in the apartment - that is- you are just renting a bedroom.
Most apt rentals are not legal - and in any case you can usually get a budget hotel for less than an apt since it is much less space.
Jul 22nd, 2015, 12:57 PM
#5
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 34,857
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Hostels with dorm rooms would be the cheapest, you can get oe of those beds for less than $100 a night--just checking hostel websites. There are several on the upper west side.
The Royal is pretty cheap also, around $100, it also has shared bathrooms.
http://www.royalparkhotelnyc.com/
The Royal is pretty cheap also, around $100, it also has shared bathrooms.
http://www.royalparkhotelnyc.com/
Jul 22nd, 2015, 04:22 PM
#6
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 57,890
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The Hosteling International on the upper west side near Columbia has a good reputation and is huge - I believe they have their own activities and tours. A bed and locker in a share dorm room is about $50 per night.
Aug 6th, 2015, 12:12 PM
#11
Join Date: Jun 2004
Posts: 10,210
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Eating cheaply in NYC is a lot easier than it sounds. Finding free or cheap things to do is similarly easy. Accommodations are hard. Book something as far in advance as you possibly can and realize that it's very hard to find accommodations for under $100 a night, even in a shared-bath place. It's a LOT easier if you come in January or February, the cheapest two months of the year for NYC tourists. But if you want to come in the prime Fall tourist season, you will certainly pay a lot more for accommodations.
I do not recommend staying in NJ, but if you can get an AirBnB apartment close to a PATH station, that's a reasonable trade-off. But nothing else is (for me, at least). Hotels in Queens are significantly cheaper than hotels in Brooklyn or Manhattan and generally represent the only true bargains in NYC lodging. But they aren't all convenient to subway stations. Look in Long Island City, but please run some specific names by us if you want to stay in a hotel there.
AirBnB apartments in NYC are generally illegal, but it's not illegal to rent a room in an occupied apartment, and a lot of the AirBnB listings are just that. So if you go that route, pick a place that gets good reviews and book early. But beware that "bedrooms" in some of these places aren't always private. And even "two bedroom apartments" are often one bedroom apartments or studios that have been subdivided by cheap partitions.
There are six YMCAs in NYC that offer shared-bath lodging at relatively bargain rates (ok ... not so much the three in Manhattan), but some are not close to convenient transportation.
I do not recommend staying in NJ, but if you can get an AirBnB apartment close to a PATH station, that's a reasonable trade-off. But nothing else is (for me, at least). Hotels in Queens are significantly cheaper than hotels in Brooklyn or Manhattan and generally represent the only true bargains in NYC lodging. But they aren't all convenient to subway stations. Look in Long Island City, but please run some specific names by us if you want to stay in a hotel there.
AirBnB apartments in NYC are generally illegal, but it's not illegal to rent a room in an occupied apartment, and a lot of the AirBnB listings are just that. So if you go that route, pick a place that gets good reviews and book early. But beware that "bedrooms" in some of these places aren't always private. And even "two bedroom apartments" are often one bedroom apartments or studios that have been subdivided by cheap partitions.
There are six YMCAs in NYC that offer shared-bath lodging at relatively bargain rates (ok ... not so much the three in Manhattan), but some are not close to convenient transportation.
Sep 21st, 2015, 02:19 PM
#15
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 2,552
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Strand is a wonderful books store, my husband spends far too much time and money there, if you can ever spend too much time in a bookstore that is 
.
http://www.strandbooks.com
The Metropolitan Museum charges a lot to get in (I think $25) but it is voluntary, you can give whatever you like. MOMA has free entrance on Friday evenings. Many museums in new York are free or "pay what you wish" on certain days.
This site lets you know the details, if you plan ahead you can save a lot of money.
http://www.nyc-arts.org/collections/...-what-you-wish
Many of the museums also offer free tours which are well worth looking into.
Hope this helps!
.http://www.strandbooks.com
The Metropolitan Museum charges a lot to get in (I think $25) but it is voluntary, you can give whatever you like. MOMA has free entrance on Friday evenings. Many museums in new York are free or "pay what you wish" on certain days.
This site lets you know the details, if you plan ahead you can save a lot of money.
http://www.nyc-arts.org/collections/...-what-you-wish
Many of the museums also offer free tours which are well worth looking into.
Hope this helps!
Sep 22nd, 2015, 02:40 PM
#18
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 2,552
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
FYI a friend of ours who is on a tight budget just came through New York where he stayed at the Y in Harlem on 135th Street. He enjoyed the neighborhood and it's certainly on the cheaper end of things though it's pretty far north and I'm sure it's very basic.
