What are your cheap must-do's when you go to New York?

[amnesiac]

Originally Posted by poorsod

I stayed at that hostel when I first moved to NYC. It was a cheap place to stay while I was apartment hunting.

Cheap places in the neighborhood I like are the Hungarian Pastry shop (Amsterdam between 110th and 111th) and Saji's (256 W 109th St, New York 10025, btwn Broadway & Amsterdam Ave).

I should add that Saji's is best for their Katsu, mackerel and donburi. They serve sushi, but I've never dared to try it.

Hungarian is where Jack Kerouac used to go to chill so it has a lot of history like that.

Go to 109 Deli on Amsterdam and get a spicy special. The spicy special is the drunkfood of choice at columbia, absolutely epic. Roll, cajun turkey, pepperjack, mayo, lettuce, tomato, all toasted but it's epic and $4. For $7 you've got a sandwich and a 40.

Also, at the 96th street supertacos truck: carnitas, the chicken is pretty good but not the best, barbacoa if they have it, carne asada, lengua (tongue), anything and everything is good. They're the small double corn tortilla types with some onions and a wedge of lime for $1.50 or whatever.

Absolutely go visit St. John the Divine.

Also, around 108 or 107 is Taqueria. They have massive burritos that are huge. Some people say they don't flavor it enough but that's because Chipotle is a flavor-engineered bomb. They have the most perfectly done chicken, in my opinion.

Get your ass to chicken and rice at 53rd and 6th if you haven't already.

And go get the ramen that was mentioned earlier.

 

[patrickBOOTH]

Motorino for pizza.

 

[MrDaniels]

While in Chinatown, try Fried Dumpling, if you can manage to find Mosco Street:


http://newyork.citysearch.com/profil..._dumpling.html

 

[gdl203]

Some of you guys are courageous.

 

[poorsod]

Originally Posted by gdl203

Some of you guys are courageous.
What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

At dubious places I only eat hot food cooked on demand. Nothing raw, iced or premade.

 

[MrDaniels]

Originally Posted by poorsod

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

At dubious places I only eat hot food cooked on demand. Nothing raw, iced or premade.

All greasy Chinese food is cooked at so high a temp that even Bubonic Plague could not survive.

 

[jaychiz]

i've been pretty underwhelmed by the shopping in NY actually, hit most of the SF staples, maybe sticking to BST is the way to go

went to cafe habana today for the cuban sandwich, ******* good, only finished half, the rest will be dinner. also picked up a couple mini cheesecakes from eileen's for dessert tonight. was thinking about fighting through the line for free MoMA but not sure if i'm up for the footwork

 

[feenial]

for the more courageous go to wo hop on mott st in chinatown. every new yorker has their favorite mott st chinese place, that's one of the more popular ones.

and pizza at grimaldi's if you're in brooklyn.

 

[ter1413]

Originally Posted by feenial

for the more courageous go to wo hop on mott st in chinatown. every new yorker has their favorite mott st chinese place, that's one of the more popular ones.

and pizza at grimaldi's if you're in brooklyn.

do NOT do grinaldi's!! it's an overrated tourist location. of you are in bklyn and want some quality brick oven pizza, walk a few blocks from grimaldi's onto court street and find sam's steak/chops/pizza. old school italian spot with MUCH better pizza w/o the half hour wait!

 

[poorsod]

Originally Posted by feenial

for the more courageous go to wo hop on mott st in chinatown. every new yorker has their favorite mott st chinese place, that's one of the more popular ones.

and pizza at grimaldi's if you're in brooklyn.

I don't get the hype for Wo Hop. The food is terrible. I imagine for some it is really more of an adventure to be bowels of Chinatown than for the food. There are better places in chinatown.

 

[jaychiz]

went to flushing for Chinese food today, now that's a Chinatown

soup dumplings (xiao long bao) at Nan Xiang, Lamb Noodle at the Lamb Noodle Shop in Golden Mall (upstairs not basement) and finally chicken & gyro on rice from 53rd cart for dinner, epic food day

 

[juuceman]

Originally Posted by ter1413

do NOT do grinaldi's!! it's an overrated tourist location. of you are in bklyn and want some quality brick oven pizza, walk a few blocks from grimaldi's onto court street and find sam's steak/chops/pizza. old school italian spot with MUCH better pizza w/o the half hour wait!

does Sam's have a brick oven? regardless, they've been my go to for the last year or so since I gave up on dealing with Lucali's crowds..

 

[ter1413]

Originally Posted by juuceman

does Sam's have a brick oven? regardless, they've been my go to for the last year or so since I gave up on dealing with Lucali's crowds..

don't know it's a brick oven....but they do quality pizza and a killer steak in that oven of theirs!

 

[Reggs]

Try to see Dave Letterman.

 

[MrDaniels]

Originally Posted by poorsod

I don't get the hype for Wo Hop. The food is terrible. I imagine for some it is really more of an adventure to be bowels of Chinatown than for the food. There are better places in chinatown.

Agreed. Like Hard Rock Cafe, Wo Hop is better-known for t-shirts than food.