Toronto hound looking to eat through NYC in 2.5 days

[Epicure3333]

Hello,

I am coming to NYC with a limited budget and am looking for some suggestions.

This is what I am thinking about so far:

Lunch:
Nicky's vietnamese sandwhich
clinton st bakery
the modern @ moma
DBGB
tasty hand pulled noodle inc.
plaza food hall
xie xie
no 7 submarine

Dinner:
Momufuko - not sure which one we should go to
Stanton social
abc kitchen
the breslin
(i know some of the lunch options are good dinner options)

Obviously I can't do it all. Which ones should I take off my list? What should I add?
What should get priority?

I need your help.

Thanks in advance!!!

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DBGB
299 Bowery, New York, NY 10003

[AubWah]

you have better chinese food in toronto than you will find in nyc

[boredough]

PERRY STREET is a great choice for lunch. Three courses for $26, with lots of options. Have enjoyed everything I've had there.

[selenster]

if you're going to ABC, better make a reso.
same for stanton social & momofuku ko.
however, if you want to do a chang eatery, regular ole momo won't require you to have a res, or you can head over to ma peche in midtown, or ssam bar.

i loved dbgb when i was there - definitely get the boudin sausage over scallion whipped potatoes, and the vermont sausage, stuffed with cheddar cheese & served w/ red onion creme fraiche topped potato pancake.

and because i am obsessed with michael white, osteria morini, marea OR alto. heck, all three! i'm going to the former on sunday, so i don't know really what to expect, but if you love seafood & italian, marea is a must. i pine for that spaghetti w/ sea urchin & crab daily. alto's veal & truffle ravioli in a taleggio fonduta is one of the best bites i've had all year.

on the cheaper side, if you like soba, soba-ya in the e. village is a lovely little place. they also have ankimo (monkfish liver), which is something i enjoy.

for dim sum, my favorite place is oriental garden on elizabeth; it's a bit pricier per small plate than average but everything is of exceptional quality. DEVEINED SHRIMP! yes!!!

i'm sure someone will tell you to try the artichoke slice at artichoke, and if you like creamy spinach/artichoke dip, then you should. it's basically that on dough. not PIZZA by NYC standards, but fairly tasty.

[foodwhisperer]

If you are on a limited budge The Modern will use up your whole budget and then some. 4 of us went the other night and the bill was over $800. Stick to Stanton Social, Momofuko, maybe try the Meatball Shop, Porchetta, Mooncake, Inoteca(ludlow st.), Spitzer's, well Katz's is a must, Big Nick's for a burger, Lombardi's perhaps for pizza,Dim sum at Golden Unicorn , Robataya on E 9th St you can work on a budget there, Veselka for some Ukrainian/Poilish/NYC food, Gray's Papaya or Papaya King,Cafe Sita for some Cuban food, Republic is reasonable, Ramen on University is alot less expensive than Momofuko or Ippudo by the way and its not bad, Ices at Rocco's

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Stanton Social
99 Stanton Street, New York, NY 10002

Veselka
144 2nd Ave, New York, NY 10003

Golden Unicorn
18 E Broadway, New York, NY 10002

Gray's Papaya
539 8th Ave, New York, NY 10018

Ippudo
65 4th Ave, New York, NY 10003

Porchetta
110 E 7th St, New York, NY 10009

Big Nick's
70 W 71st St, New York, NY 10023

[Pan]

There are several places you're recommending that I will disagree with; I'm sure you're not surprised. Lombardi's is inferior to quite a few pizzerias, including the nearby Arturo's and Patsy's in East Harlem, not to mention Neapolitan-style places like Keste'. As for dim sum, I don't think a Torontonian should even consider getting it in Manhattan, probably, but for inexpensive dim sum, Red Egg is best and far better than big Chinatown dim sum houses like Golden Unicorn (Dim Sum Go Go is better, overall, but costs more, and I probably have been away from Chinatown Brasserie too long to be confident of my previous very high opinion of that expensive dim sum house). As for Republic, I honestly have never been there, but what is the draw of the place? It's a "Pan-Asian" noodle shop. Is it better than a good Chinese noodle shop like Bo Ky or Chou Chow - or the hand-pulled noodle shop our original poster mentioned?

[mrnyc]

i am really puzzled by how it matters in the slightest that you are from toronto? umm ok. otherwise, per yr list, which i like you def did yr homework! the modern (i totally agree you should splurge at lunch!) tasty & momo (any). my wildcard is hit up eataly its new. have fun n report back!

[cambridgedoctpr]

i think that toronto has better chinese than NYC especially Cantonese food. So, much as I love chinese food; I would seek other options. I like the idea of Jean-George or perhaps, 11 Madison at lunch. How about smoked fish? I like barney greengrass and russ and daughters; I bet that is better than in Toronto.

[scoopG]

Toronto has better Cantonese and modern Hongkong Cantonese than NYC but not in the many other Chinese cuisines.

[daffyduck]

I would do higher end places that have good lunch deals like Del Posto or Jean Georges and for dinner focus on asian food and pizza (Co, Keste, Motorino, Joe's, Patsy's, Tottono's, etc). My gf is from Toronto and she says the asian good is better there. But asian food is kind Toronto and she says she likes most of the asian food more in Toronto. It might be better to focus on asian foods you can't really get in Toronto. I don't know the asian food scene in Toronto but Korean, Fujianese, Sczechuan, etc are some cuisines that may be hard to find in Toronto. BTW Clinton St Baking Co are famous for their pancakes which you can get for dinner to avoid the breakfast lines.

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Jean Georges
1 Central Park W, New York, NY 10023

Del Posto
85 10th Avenue, New York, NY 10011

Motorino
349 E 12th St, New York, NY 10003

[scoopG]

Does Toronto have plenty Dongbei, Henan, Shandong, Wenzhou or Yanbian cuisine? If not, then it is not as broad as NYC as far as the Chinese cuisines goes.

[daffyduck]

haha, sorry but i dont know wth i typed. but yeah that's what i was trying to get at that nyc has many unique chinese cuisines that are all generally very cheap. the OP should try the ones he\she can't get in Toronto.

[glutton08]

Xie Xie closed, so you can take that off your list.

[kathryn]

> Nicky's vietnamese sandwhich

Nicky's is good but there's probably better/cheaper banh mi in Chinatown.

> clinton st bakery

Love this place, but it's more of a breakfast/brunch place. What day of the week are you looking to go? Weekends are hectic.

> the modern @ moma

I assume you mean the Bar Room at the Modern? It's not a place I'd send someone on a budget though. It's good but pricey for the portion size.

> DBGB

What are you interested in here? Burgers? Sausage? Charcuterie? It's good but pricey for the portion size for the burgers and sausages. I love their charcuterie but it's not cheap either.

> plaza food hall

If you only have 2.5 days in NYC, I wouldn't go to a hotel's upscale food court.

> xie xie

This is closed for the moment.

> Dinner:
> Momufuko - not sure which one we should go to

It's Momofuku and there are several. If you're on a budget, go either to Noodle Bar (ramen is the cheapest and most filling option but not everybody loves the ramen) or go to Ssam Bar for lunch (dinner is more expensive because they have a lunchtime prix fix menu). Ko and Ma Peche are going to be too expensive for you, Ko is impossible to get into, and Milk Bar isn't really suited to a whole meal.

> Stanton social

If you only have 2.5 days in NYC, I wouldn't go here as the food is better at the other places you listed.

Since you're on a budget, I'd also encourage you to include street carts, pizza, or Chinese restaurants on your itinerary.

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DBGB
299 Bowery, New York, NY 10003

Ma Peche
15 W 56th St, New York, NY 10019

[Epicure3333]

I am on a budget, but it isn't so restrictive. I am looking for unique amazing food that has good bang for your buck.
I eat pretty much everything, so i have no restrictions there.
I love burgers, sausage and charcuterie as much as anyone, but It would be nice to have a few lighter options.
Overall i am very flexible. I know I am not giving you much direction, but i appreciate your help.

[kathryn]

OK. Can you maybe ballpark how much you are comfortable spending? $10? $15? $20 for a meal, including tax, tip? Anything you especially like or want to try?

Some of my favorite cheaper places to go: Cafe Katja, Otto, Xian Famous Foods (hand pulled noodles with cumin lamb), Great NY Noodletown, the halal cart on the SW corner of 53rd/6th at night, Luke's Lobster, Szechuan Gourmet, Shake Shack, Motorino (especially for their M-F lunch deal of a single pizza w/ salad or dessert) -- get the brussels sprouts or spicy soppressata.

Here's a recent cheap eats itinerary that might help:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/733896

Here's a list of foods that are considered unique to NYC:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/610739

Pizza in NYC
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/692820#5454962

BTW, I highly recommend RGR's self guided Lower East Side Gustatory tour but sub in Pickle Guys for Guss' Pickles:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/493333

Foreign Street Grub
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/701278

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Pickle Guys
49 Essex St, New York, NY 10002

Cafe Katja
79 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002

Szechuan Gourmet
21 W 39th St, New York, NY 10018

Luke's Lobster
93 E 7th St, New York, NY 10009

Xi'an Famous Foods
88 E Broadway, New York, NY 10002

Motorino
349 E 12th St, New York, NY 10003

[Epicure3333]

For Dinner $40-$65 per person after tax and tip, but not alcohol.
For lunch $10 - $30 per person after tax and tip, but not alcohol.

These would be ideal.

[Pan]

You can easily fit Momofuku Ssam Bar within those parameters. (I haven't been to Noodle Bar, so I can't comment on it.) Many, many other restaurants fit within those parameters, too.

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Momofuku Ssam Bar
207 2nd Ave, New York, NY 10003