Hi

I will be visiting NYC in November and was wondering whether anyone had any recommendations for the best New York cheesecake please?

Cathy

JR's. It is based out of Brooklyn, but there is a small store in Grand Central - AMAZING!

The full name is Junior's in case you spend hours looking for a sign reading "JR." In Grand Central, they have a sit down restaurant in the bottom level right next to the south ramp that leads to the Oyster Bar. The sign is Orange and White striped. They also have a take out place on the main level of Grand Central on the west side. I don't know if it is the best or not, but everyone seems to like it enough to keep recommending it.

How did you know that the New York Times was doing an article on this very topic today?

http://tinyurl.com/l2jrz

Meanwhile, I think the place is a real "hole-in-the-wall" today, but about a year ago we stopped in at Lindy's right near Times Square to kill some time, and had cheesecake that was as good as I've had.

Veniero's in the East Village gets my vote.

Funny, I was going to say Lindy's because I have their recipe from years ago!!! I didn't offer right away because I haven't been to NY in just years so didn't know if they were still there. That cheese cake is fabulous..have lemon cookie crust rather than the usual graham cracker and has orange and lemon zest..when I make it I need sherpa porters to get it too the frige..it is HUGE!!! Anyway, if you're in the neighbor hood, give it a try.

I would love to try a slice of pineapple cheesecake.....haven't had it in years, but the past memories of it still linger......

This whole thing is making me want cheese cake. I haven't had one in a long time. Maybe I need to head for the store: hmmmmm lets see...5 8oz. cream cheese, a dozen eggs, oranges, lemons............LOL

Veniero's on 10th St. and 1st Ave - one of the best in Manhattan.

Da Roberti's, the much smaller but more neighborhoody-type place on 1st Ave, bet. 10th and 11th (across from Veniero's) - I actually like this one more than Veniero's.

I highly recommend against the cheesecake at Lindy's. In fact, I recommend staying away from that place at any cost. I may not be an expert, but the one and only time I had cheesecake there, it was dry and tasteless. The whole place is grossly overpriced and the quality of food is poor.

travelbear,

You mean all those hordes of hungry tourists who gape mouth wide-open when they enter Lindy's in Broadway or the one in/near the Empire State Building are lying?

bill_boy,

Hordes of hungry tourist are also the reason Times Square has a Red Lobster, Applebees and Olive Garden. If one wants to follow the tourists, then by all means, enjoy the $15 chicken fingers at Lindy's.

crefloors~ you're a riot!!

Also, you people make it very hard to stay focused on healthy eating.. is there such a thing as tapas sized cheesecake bites?.. I used to get a Christmas catalog(Balducci's?) with the multi variety full sized cheesecake. I'd spend hours drooling over the pictures..

well thanks for testing my willpower. I have a fantsatic Bailey's recipe for cheesecake but haven't made it for ages, since I'm the only one who appreciates it. J.

Okay there are lots of different kinds of cheesecake. I like mine very firm. Sometimes I just find it too soft. What do you think? I think real cheesecake should be firm.

jetset1, if you don't want a large slice, Junior's has a cupcake size cheesecake available at both of those Grand Central locations, in many flavors

Barb

I think cheesecake should be firm and thick on the palate, but not too sweet or too soft, like the frozen kind or the kind you get at a drive thru...

I made some very nice minicheesecakes for friends...and since I didn't do a waterbath and the tops cracked, I simply covered the tops with fruit! Yu,!

STOP! Its too late for me to bake and this is making me hungry.
Im agreeing that for me too sweet is not good and the store bought ones are gelatin like.

Anyone willing to bet that those who scream about Lindy's being a tourist trap haven't eaten cheesecake there in years if at all? I thought I made it clear that it is a real hole in the wall, and I would not normally eat there -- in fact I never have, except for that piece of cheesecake. But fair is fair -- their cheesecake was delicious. And yes, I like mine firm and "dry" if you want to call it that.

Sort of like the people who have never eaten french fries at a Paris MacDonalds, yet KNOW that they have to be terrible.

It's called food snobbery.

Actually, I am a snob and I agree with Neo that Lindy's does have good cheesecake.

I can remember as a teenager stopping by Lindy's in Port Authority for a piece of cheesecake to take home with me.

another vote for firm.. nothing sadder than an emergency thawed job with ice crystals in it!!

So for the bakers, do you prefer the oven door open for an hour(doh! after the initial cooking time) or the other method for baking?