What would be on your NYC Restaurant "Bucket List"?

[jocekabobs]

Hello fellow Chowhounders!

In a few months, after more than six years of living here (and eating here) I will be leaving the city I love (and sometimes hate -- but mostly love). It has put me in a reflective mood about those many "only in New York" things I want to do, places to see, and of course, restaurants I want to eat at before I go. This being New York, there are so many terrific options for things to eat, and I've done everything from fancy establishment and Michelin-starred to cash-only holes-in-the-wall. It can be a bit overwhelming to decide what I should spend my time (and money) on.

So I thought I'd ask all of you: if you had to put together a "bucket list" of restaurants to eat at before leaving New York, what would be on it? It can be anything from places you want to try for the first time or old guards that you've enjoyed during your time here.

[grandma Zaza]

My New York City (and Outer Borough) Must Go To List:
In no particular order...
Momofuku Ssam Bar
Szechuan Gourmet- 9th Ave Location
Panama Hatties - Huntington Station
Babbo
Toku - Manhasset
Thomas' Ham & Eggery - for Breakfast -Carle Place
King Umberto's in - Elmont / for Fried Capillini
Scarpetta
Convivio
Hildebrandt's Ice Cream Parlor - Williston Park
Degustation
Lily Flanagan's Pub - Islip
Casa Mono
LL Dent Restaurant- for Soul Food - Carle Place
Blue Ribbon Brasserie
Rothmann's Steakhouse - East Norwich
Smokin' Al's for BBQ
Minetta Tavern
Limani - Roslyn
Motorino
Casa Luis - Latin-Smithtown
Rangmahal -Indian-Hicksville
Big Daddy's Restaurant - for Cajun- Massapequa
La Parma - Williston Park- Calamari
L.L Dent - Fried Chicken-Carle Place
Xian Famous Foods
Broadway Beanery - for Coffee-Lynbrook
Lazar's - Great Neck- for Chocolate
Shake Shack
Waterzooi Belgian Bistro - for Mussels- Garden City
Waterzooi Belgian Bistro - Garden City
Peter Lugar’s
Cheesecake Factory
Panera Bread
Eleven Madison Park
Kyo Ya
Le Bernardin
A Taste Of Home - North Bellmore- for Bagels
Black Forest Brew Haus - Farmingdale
D'Angelo's Sausage & Pepper House - Huntington
Houston's - in Garden City for Baby Back Ribs
Jaiya - Thai- Hicksville

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Eleven Madison Park
11 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10010

Babbo
110 Waverly Pl, New York, NY 10011

Casa Mono
52 Irving Place, New York, NY 10003

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

Minetta Tavern
113 MacDougal St, New York, NY 10012

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

Blue Ribbon Brasserie
97 Sullivan St, New York, NY 10012

Kyo Ya
94 E 7th St, New York, NY 10009

Jaiya
396 3rd Ave, New York, NY 10016

Convivio
45 Tudor City Place, New York, NY 10017

Rothmann's
3 E. 54th Street, New York, NY 10022

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

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

Big Daddy's
2454 Broadway, New York, NY 10024

[LeahBaila]

Pastrami from Katz's
"Everything" bagel from The Corner Cafe
PB&J cupcake from Buttercup Bakeshop's location on the UWS
Tropea sandwich from Salume
Salted-caramel ice cream from Ca Va
Meatballs from Corsino
Spaghetti from Scarpetta

www.thelunchbelle.com

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Scarpetta
355 West 14th Street, New York, NY 10014

Corsino
637 Hudson St, New York, NY 10014

Salume
330 W Broadway, New York, NY 10013

Ca Va
310 W 44th St, New York, NY 10036

[steakrules85]

Here is mine:

Of course the steakhouses:
Peter Luger
Strip House
Old Homestead
Keens
BLT Prime
Quality Meats
Smith and Wollensky

EMP
Gotham Bar and Grill
Craft
Marea
Scarpetta
Maialino
Alto
Daniel
Minetta Tavern
La Grenouille
Di Fara
Babbo
Oceana
Katz
Shopsin's

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Babbo
110 Waverly Pl, New York, NY 10011

Minetta Tavern
113 MacDougal St, New York, NY 10012

BLT Prime
111 East 22nd Street, New York, NY 10010

Gotham Bar and Grill
12 East 12th Street, New York, NY 10003

Quality Meats
57 W 58th St, New York, NY 10019

Old Homestead
56 9th Avenue, New York, NY 10011

La Grenouille
3 East 52nd Street, New York, NY 10022

Oceana
120 W 49th St, New York, NY 10020

Scarpetta
355 West 14th Street, New York, NY 10014

Marea
240 Central Park South, New York, NY 10019

Strip House
13 E 12th St, New York, NY 10003

Maialino
2 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10010

[Phil Ogelos]

I know this is a food thread, but I have to urge the OP to read Russell Shorto's "The Island at the Center of the World" before leaving: the tales you bring from it will amaze your new friends and confound your doubters.

As far as a bucket place, the "River Cafe" seems like a good idea: both for the food and the ambiance.
In terms of the latter, and were I in your position, I'd do a lot of classic NY spaces: Fanelli's or P.J.Clark's (East Side); Four Seasons; the Oak Room at the Plaza or the Algonquin; Daniel (mentioned above, I know); Veselka; Smoke; Convivio -those kinds of places.
Definitely not SShack. [And I love the confusion over WD-40 v. WD-50; hilarious!]

[jocekabobs]

Thanks for all the responses, guys. I definitely like the idea of hitting up as many ethnic places and holes-in-the-wall as possible. I think I'll definitely want to do some of those more cliched things, like walking the Bk Bridge and hitting up Grimaldi's and the Bk Ice Cream Factory or getting late-night shawarma after an epic night out, in addition to the fancier fare. Sometimes it makes me sad that there's so much good food in NY that I have yet to eat!

One thing I have yet to try in NY, and which everyone always ridicules me about, is never having had matzo ball soup. Can anyone suggest a good place to get matzo ball? Maybe that is something I should try before I leave the city....

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Grimaldi's
47 W 20th St, New York, NY 10010

[drumwine]

Cafe Edison (W.47th)...best matzo ball soup in town. Period.

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Cafe Edison
228 W 47th St, New York, NY 10036

[ellenost]

If you like a light fluffy matzoh ball, my favorite matzoh ball soup is at Sarge's Deli (Third Ave. between 36th & 37th Sts.). They have a soup called "Super Soup" that has noodles, matzoh ball and kreplach in chicken soup--very yummy!

[michelleats]

Lucky you! Amsterdam and The Netherlands more generally have awesome Indonesian food and fabulous beer.

But here's what I would do:

Expensive:

- Momofuku Ko for lunch
- Soto for an all-uni meal
- WD-50 tasting menu
- Kanoyama omakase with both sushi and cooked dishes, $300 spending limit
- Yakiniku Takashi for various beef sashimi cuts
- Annisa for uni chawanmushi if Anita Lo ever brings that dish back... I hope she does now that uni is back in season!!!
- Per Se (I've never actually been here)

Inexpensive

- Tamales and fresh tortillas at Tortilleria Nixtamal in Corona
- Paper dosas and vada at Tiffin Wallah
- Kee's Chocolates
- Ice cream from Guerrilla Ice Cream

Ohh... There's probably a lot more, but I'll add to this later.

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Per Se
10 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10019

WD-50
50 Clinton Street, New York, NY 10002

Kee's Chocolates
80 Thompson St, New York, NY 10012

Tiffin Wallah
127 E 28th St, New York, NY 10016

Annisa
13 Barrow Street, New York, NY 10014

Kanoyama
175 2nd Ave, New York, NY 10003

Momofuku Ko
163 1st Ave, New York, NY 10003

[steve h.]

Hmm, I'd take a slightly different tack if I were leaving for an extended period of time.

I'd load up a picnic basket from your favorite neighborhood places, including beer/wine, and take the Circle Line Tour (the long one). I'd sit on the port side. I'd answer every question the tour guide shouts out to the captive audience because I can. Manhattan Island, when seen from the water, makes tremendous sense.

Manhattan has great hotels. Some of the hotels have great bars. Maybe a Bloody Mary at the St. Regis, a martini at the Oak Bar or something else at the Algonquin. Whatever, Manhattan hotel bars are worth visiting before leaving.

Pizza is pretty good here. I'm not trying to start an argument but I will say that walking the Brooklyn Bridge, from the Manhattan side, eating a pie at Grimaldi's, is not the worst way to say goodbye to the city. Bring a camera, maybe shoot the folk on line.

On a related note, the views of Manhattan and the Battery are pretty special if you have a good seat at River Cafe. Take the water taxi.

I'd maybe grab a lunch-time burger (late lunch) at Corner Bistro because I love the neighborhood. I'd bring a friend.

And there you have it.

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Corner Bistro
331 W 4th St, New York, NY 10014

Grimaldi's
47 W 20th St, New York, NY 10010

[MonaNomura]

I'd eat as much ethnic/street food/hole in the walls -- it's what I missed the most when I left Manhattan.

NYC staples i.e. Masa, Per Se, DANIEL, Le Bernardin, Jean Georges, et al. -- I was dating someone with a steep corporate card and was fortunate to dine at all these establishments numerous times -- are wonderful but if it's out of pocket, I say save your $$. You're going to Europe, you'd be able to eat a lot of these foods that are more cost effective...

Foods that are better in The City (and surrounding boroughs) than most:
- Dominican
- Cuban
- Dim Sum, XLB (xiao long bao)
- Ethiopian
- Turkish
- Greek
- Japanese (Aburiya Kinnosuke, Totto, Yasuda, Sugiyama, Rockmeisha, etc., etc.)
- Korean (though LA has better Korean food, it'll be tough finding bassam, soondoobu, or even decent Korean bbq in EU.)
- Italian. I've found the Italian food here to be the best in the U.S., not sure about the EU but 'inoteca, Frankies17 and Il-Postino are three of my favorites
and even Indian.

I even found myself craving halal cart food, hot dogs (not water dogs but Grey's or Crif) and even burgers.

Hope this helps and enjoy Amsterdam; they have awesome cafés, cafe food and a gang load of potato dishes lol.

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Per Se
10 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10019

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

Le Bernardin
155 W. 51st St., New York, NY 10019

Sugiyama
251 W 55th St, New York, NY 10019

Rockmeisha
11 Barrow St, New York, NY 10014

'inoteca
323 3rd Ave, New York, NY 10010

Masa
10 Columbus Cir, New York, NY 10019

[Simon]

i posted a similar post to the OP when i sold my NY place a few years ago...

my favs were a combo of chowish food and nostalgia and subjective comfiness: GCOB, Malatesta, Ushi Wakamaru...(Scarpetta wasn't open at the time but it would make the list now, as would Xian Foods)...

i'll respectfully disagree w/ MonaNomura re: dimsum and XLB...i like the dimsum at Red Egg, but think most Manhattan dim is weak, and XLB is on the atrocious side...also not a fan of any Indian food i've ever had in Manhattan, with the exception of taxi stand takeout which i've then doctored w/ extra garam masala and chilies...

for the OP, i'd say enjoy Manhattan's Italian, Japanese, and Sichuan options...

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Malatesta
649 Washington St, New York, NY 10014

Red Egg
202 Centre Street, New York, NY 10013

[Little Cupcake]

In Amsterdam, there is a great pancake place near Anne Frank's house.

For NY:

Per Se
Jean Georges
Go with some friends & get the Bo Ssam at Momofuku Ssam Bar.
Pizza at Di Fara's.
Blue Hill
WD 50
Shake Shack

I'd get the onion soup dumplings at Stanton Social or go to Chinatown for soup dumplings. There was a really good place I went to months ago, but I can't remember the name.

The Peking Duck at Peking Duck House Midtown.
Doughnut Plant
The Redhead
The Modern
Jimmy's No 43

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Per Se
10 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10019

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

Blue Hill
75 Washington Place, New York, NY 10011

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

Stanton Social
99 Stanton Street, New York, NY 10002

Doughnut Plant
379 Grand St, New York, NY 10002

Peking Duck House
28 Mott St, New York, NY 10013

[gutsofsteel]

I cannot understand why anybody would put Shake Shack on a "must eat" list for New York. There is nothing New York-y about it. And it's a burger place, just a burger place. if I had a limited number of places to eat in NYC, I would never include Shake Shack. I can get a burger anywhere in the whole country whenever I want. The Shake Shack burgers are fine in their category, I like them, but it's a burger, just a burger. Why waste a NY experience on it? It's not like Shake Shack is serving special food - it isn't. And there is nothing particularly New York-y about the food or the experience there.

Boy oh boy they are genius marketeers, that I'll give them.

[shoeman]

The shake shack would not be on my bucket list but it is very New Yorky. Where else would people stand on line for an hour regardless of the weather just to eat a hamburger?

[gutsofsteel]

There are lemmings and marketing victims all over this great country of ours.

[Riverman500]

Shake Shack at least has fairly decent burgers, and only has one other location outside of New York. Much better than the White Castle, which you recommended on another thread.

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/7449...

[gutsofsteel]

Apples vs oranges, come on now. I never said White Castle was a "good burger," but those WC sliders are sure good. I love me a Big Mac sometimes too. That doesn't make them "good."

Yes, Shake Shack has decent burgers. Worth waiting on line for? Hardly.

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White Castle
351 E 103rd St, New York, NY 10029

[Yaxpac]

i think gutsofsteel is on the money here. I too would not put shake shack on a must eat list in NY. It is just a burger...and one that can pretty much be replicated at home.

[SamanthaNYC]

Also assuming unlimited money to spend, my bucket list top five would include:

Per Se
Le Bernardin
Jean Georges
Masa
Alain Ducasse

[fm1963]

Where are you moving to? That might help narrow the bucket list (i.e. no French if you're moving to Continental Europe, or no farm to table if you're moving to California, etc.).

Otherwise my personal bucket list would include:

Le Bernardin
Jean Georges
Corton
The Modern Dining Room
Keens
Momofuku Ssam Bar
Babbo
Alto
Aldea
Perilla
Casa Mono
Kajitsu
Sushi Yasuda
Peking Duck House midtown (just for the duck)
Szechuan Gourmet
Saraavanas

Also my beloved 5 Napkin Burger in my neighborhood :)

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Perilla
9 Jones Street, New York, NY 10014

Babbo
110 Waverly Pl, New York, NY 10011

Casa Mono
52 Irving Place, New York, NY 10003

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

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

Sushi Yasuda
204 E 43rd St, New York, NY 10017

Le Bernardin
155 W. 51st St., New York, NY 10019

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

Peking Duck House
236 E 53rd St, New York, NY 10022

Corton
239 West Broadway, New York, NY 10013

Kajitsu
414 East 9th Street, New York, NY 10009

Aldea
31 West 17th Street, New York, NY 10011

[jocekabobs]

I'm moving to Amsterdam (not exactly a foodie mecca, to my knowledge, but I'm looking forward to trying to uncover some hidden gems)! I don't know that I would necessarily exclude continental fare from my list purely due to the location of my move, since it seems to me that there are just some places in NY that might do it better than anywhere else. That being said though, I don't think I will be going back to places like Le Bernardin, Gotham Bar & Grill or Dovetail, even though they are all lovely and delicious.

Everyone recommends EMP, but for some reason I never felt much of an inclination to eat there. I'm skeptical despite the rave reviews. Is it really that special?

Here is what I'm thinking so far:

One of the Momofukus. Has anyone had the fried chicken dinner or the Beef 7 Ways?
Nobu
Sushi Yasuda
Sake Bar Hagi (I'm obsessed with their spicy kimchi flavored noodles with Japanese mayo)
Alto
Del Posto
Fatty 'Cue
Blue Hill (I have dreams about their farm fresh eggs and duck)
WD-40

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Blue Hill
75 Washington Place, New York, NY 10011

Sushi Yasuda
204 E 43rd St, New York, NY 10017

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

Le Bernardin
155 W. 51st St., New York, NY 10019

Nobu
105 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10013

[ellenost]

I loved my visit to Amsterdam a few years ago, so I'm sure you'll find some very good/great food.

EMP is wonderful, and it is one of my favorite restaurants in NYC.

Also on my restaurant "bucket list":

Fried Chicken at Momofuku Noodle Bar (a ton of delicious fried chicken served in 2 styles);
Beef 7-Ways at Ma Peche (never had it, but it sounds wonderful);
Lunch at Momofuku Ko;
Bouley;
Sarge's Pastrami sandwich and noodle pudding;
Per Se (if you haven't had dinner there yet, it is definitely worth the cost);
Russ & Daughters smoked fish (their gaspe smoked salmon is still my favorite).

Enjoy yourself!

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Per Se
10 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10019

Russ & Daughters
179 E Houston St, New York, NY 10002

Momofuku Noodle Bar
171 1st Ave, New York, NY 10003

Momofuku Ko
163 1st Ave, New York, NY 10003

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

[kathryn]

I've had the fried chicken dinner (loved the Korean version, Southern was only OK, it's a lot of food) and beef 7 ways (way too much beef for me after the 4th course or so).

I think you meant WD-50 not WD-40?

My bucket list:
Momofuku Ssam Bar
Szechuan Gourmet
Babbo
Scarpetta
Degustation
Casa Mono
Blue Ribbon Brasserie for the bone marrow
Prune
Minetta Tavern
Motorino
Halal cart on 53rd and 6th
Russ and Daughters
Xian Famous Foods
Ippudo
Shake Shack
Keens
Kee's Chocolates
Death & Co.
Eleven Madison Park
Kyo Ya

My Outer Boroughs bucket list:
Di Fara
Kabab Cafe
Sripraphai
Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao
Pies 'n' Thighs

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WD-50
50 Clinton Street, New York, NY 10002

Kee's Chocolates
80 Thompson St, New York, NY 10012

Eleven Madison Park
11 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10010

Babbo
110 Waverly Pl, New York, NY 10011

Casa Mono
52 Irving Place, New York, NY 10003

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

Minetta Tavern
113 MacDougal St, New York, NY 10012

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

Blue Ribbon Brasserie
97 Sullivan St, New York, NY 10012

Kyo Ya
94 E 7th St, New York, NY 10009

Ippudo
65 4th Ave, New York, NY 10003

Scarpetta
355 West 14th Street, New York, NY 10014

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

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

[daffyduck]

how is the bone marrow at Blue Ribbon compared with the one at Minetta Tavern?

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Minetta Tavern
113 MacDougal St, New York, NY 10012

[bworm42]

I think Minetta Tavern is better, but for my money the marrow at Crispo is leagues better than either!

[kathryn]

I've not tried the Minetta Tavern or Crispo versions.

What bread and/or sauce/etc. do they serve it with?

For me the Blue Ribbon one is perfection because of the oxtail marmalade and their housemade challah bread. I've had really good bone marrow elsewhere but the toast points were only OK in comparison.

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Minetta Tavern
113 MacDougal St, New York, NY 10012

Crispo
240 W 14th St, New York, NY 10011

[bworm42]

The Minetta Tavern one is served "shallot confit and baguette soldiers." The Crispo is served with what I'm pretty sure is sweet onion marmalade and toasted brioche. The reason why that one stands out to me is because the marrow bones themselves are unbelievably succulent, with a sprinkling of toasted garlic breadcrumbs on top. I also think that's where you get the most marrow for your buck.

[daffyduck]

wow, i have to go to Crispo, Minetta Tavern's bone marrow might just be my favorite appetizer ever.

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Minetta Tavern
113 MacDougal St, New York, NY 10012

Crispo
240 W 14th St, New York, NY 10011

[daffyduck]

I just tried the bone marrow at Blue Ribbon last night. It's hard to say which was a better experience for me. Like at Minetta Tavern I also ordered a fois gras terrine and combined the two to a killer sandwich.
I like the bone marrow and fois gras terrine at Minetta Tavern better than Blue Ribbon. But the bread and butter at Blue Ribbon really beats the Minetta Tavern's. At Blue Ribbon in addition to trying everything seperately I assembled my delicious rich sandwich of awesomeness by combining the bread, butter, fois gras terrine, with the bone marrow and oxtail.
But overall I like my sandwich of awesomenes better at Minetta Tavern because the baoguette soldiers are not that much worse than Blue Ribbon's bread and I like the shallot confit that the bone marrow comes in more than the oxtail marmalade. I also like the fois gras terrine better.
Next time I'll try Crispo's bone marrow. Are their any other dishes worth trying there besides the bone marrow?

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Minetta Tavern
113 MacDougal St, New York, NY 10012

Crispo
240 W 14th St, New York, NY 10011

[steakrules85]

Crispy pork shank at Crispo. Do not miss that dish.

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Crispo
240 W 14th St, New York, NY 10011

[bworm42]

The smoked mozzarella with polenta and prosciutto is spectacular. The carbonara and amatriciana are both very good. I also enjoy the chocolate pot de creme/creme brulee combination when I remember to leave room.

[fm1963]

The duck is great. The carbonara is good but I prefer the version at Lupa. If you like panna cotta, Crispo has one of the best in the city.

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Lupa
170 Thompson Street, New York, NY 10012

Crispo
240 W 14th St, New York, NY 10011

[sgordon]

If I had unlimited money to spend, in the weeks leading up to my exodus...

There'd be a couple of the big fancy names on there: EMP, Babbo or Del Posto, Morimoto (if only for the Oysters Foie Gras)
There'd be a few of my neighborhood favorites: WD-50, Falai, Sachiko's, Frankie's 17
There'd be a couple of my OLD neighborhood favorites: Convivium Osteria and Rosewater in Park Slope
There'd be a couple from Chinatown - one fancy, one cheap: Oriental Garden and Ah Ping Snack Bar
There'd be tacos: Tehuitzingo for sure, and maybe a trip out to Sunset Park as well.
There'd be a Banh Mi, probably from Sau Voi Corp, which I'd take and eat in Columbus Park while watching the old Chinese musicians play.
There'd be a Mets game, if it was baseball season.
For my very last dinner in the city... I'd go to Henry's End in Brooklyn Heights. Because they just make me very happy. Then I'd go take a long, slow walk along the Brooklyn Heights Promenade.

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WD-50
50 Clinton Street, New York, NY 10002

Tehuitzingo
695 10th Ave, New York, NY 10036

Babbo
110 Waverly Pl, New York, NY 10011

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

Sau Voi
101 Lafayette St, New York, NY 10013

Oriental Garden
14 Elizabeth St, New York, NY 10013

Falai
68 Clinton St, New York, NY 10002

Morimoto
88 10th Avenue, New York, NY 10011

Ah Ping Snack Bar
2 E Broadway, New York, NY 10038