If you’re heading to New York City on vacation, take a look at this list of eateries! These are some of the best prices for quality food in NYC.
We had the best time in New York City last week! It rained pretty hard two of the days we were there, but that didn’t dampen our spirits! We had our umbrellas with us so we didn’t mind the rain one bit. We enjoyed Broadway shows (Newsies and Phantom of the Opera!), shopping, and hit a lot of the touristy spots we hadn’t been to on previous trips to NYC. The trip was a blast!
And one of the best things about our trip was all the amazing food we tried. We visited some new and old favorites while we were there. It turns out New York has a lot of great places to eat! And I was so surprised at the prices where we ate. We ate excellent NYC food for a great price! Here’s a list of some of my favorites:
Breakfast
Our first morning in NYC we had Brooklyn Bagels at Ellen’s Stardust Diner.
New York is known to have fantastic bagels. Now imagine one of those amazing bagels with egg, ham, and cheese for breakfast. Sooooo yummy!
And Ellen’s Stardust Diner is such a fun place to eat. It sits right in the heart of Broadway and the servers are all looking to make it big on stage. They sing while you’re eating and it’s so fun! They’re all so friendly and it’s just a really entertaining place to eat.
1650 Broadway
Price Range: $8 – $30
Price Range: $8 – $30
Lunch/Dinner
On this trip I was able to go to Chelsea Market for the very first time. It was awesome and a total dream come true!!! That place is like its own little world. Food Network headquarters is in the same building and the chefs don’t even need to leave it if they don’t want to. That place has everything they need for any segment. Amazing!!
On one of the days we had lunch in Chelsea Market at a little place called Hale and Hearty Soups. We shared Split Pea with Smoked Turkey Soup and a Grilled Chicken Sandwich with Sundried Tomato Pesto. Yes, that is fresh mozzarella you see on that sandwich! So yummy.
(It was really hard choosing a place to eat lunch at Chelsea Market! Every shop looked so good!)
75 9th Ave. inside Chelsea Market
Price Range: $8 – $10
Price Range: $8 – $10
I am a burger girl through and through! One of my very favorite burgers comes from Shake Shack. We LOVE going to Shake Shack when we visit New York! We each order a cheeseburger, then we share a fry and a chocolate shake. Their chocolate shake tastes like a really good chocolate truffle made into a milkshake. This right here is one of my all-time favorite meals!
Shake Shack has a bunch of different locations in the city, but we always go to the one in the Theater District!
691 8th Ave.
Price Range: $3 – $9
Price Range: $3 – $9
The night we saw Newsies on Broadway we decided to eat somewhere quick and close to the theater. Schnipper’s was right down the street from the Nederlander Theatre so we decided to eat there. We randomly decided on Chicken Tacos, even though this place is known for sloppy joes. (Have you seen the sloppy joe throwdown on Throwdown with Bobbly Flay? Schnipper’s won that throwdown!) At first I regretted not trying the sloppy joe. But I quickly changed my attitude when I tried this taco! LOVED it! And after eating one I was stuffed. We’re fry people and ordered a side to share and each had a taco. I think we ate four fries total. These tacos are filling and oh so delicious.
620 8th Ave.
Price Range: $4 – $10
Price Range: $4 – $10
And I experienced my first gyro this time around as well! My blog buddy, Amber, from Dessert Now, Dinner Later! told me I had to try a gyro from a cart on the street. I ordered this one from a cart in front of Julliard and it was so good! That white sauce they put on there is out of this world and pulls the whole thing together. Why I have never tried one of these before is beyond me. Price Range: $5 – $7
Dessert
I have what some might call a problem when it comes to desserts. When I eat a meal I immediately crave something sweet. On the plane ride home from our trip my husband ate a bag of complimentary cookies all by himself and I had to psych myself out from thinking about those dang cookies after I had just polished off a bag of salty popcorn chips. Makes me cringe just thinking about it.
My life was changed the first night of our trip when I was introduced to California Cheesecake at Cake Boss Cafe (cafe of Buddy Valastro’s from TLC’s Cake Boss). We’re talking individual creamy vanilla cheesecakes topped with all kinds of fruit and a graham cracker crumble. Heaven!! I had two of these on our trip and it was wonderful. We had a refrigerator in our room so we bought a few extra treats each time we went and stored them. You would too! (The lobster tails are also amazing!) Take a look at what this cafe looks like!
See what I mean?? I miss this place so much.
corner of 42nd St. & 8th Ave.
Price Range:
Price Range:
What are some of your favorite places to eat in New York? I want more ideas for the next trip I take out there! Please leave a comment with your favorites!
Alli is the food blogger and photographer behind Cupcake Diaries. Nestled in Northern Utah with her four young boys, hubby, and a full pantry, she loves baking all kinds of treats as well as quick and easy meals for her family. What started out as sharing a few recipes with family members here and there soon turned into a full-functioning recipe blog with readers from all around the world! Alli is a full-time mom who enjoys music, holidays, and spending time with her family.
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Debra Hawkins says
I am SO happy about this post! So happy! We have been trying to decide where to eat. This was perfect, pictures with reviews and LOCATIONS! Perfect!
Allison Miller says
Oh good!! Thanks so much for the comment, Debra! Have so much fun on your trip!
Ashlee @ I'm Topsy Turvy says
Mmmm I miss new york food! I’ll have to look up some of my favorite places to share!
Amber Feller says
Been to NYC once about 7 years ago! I want to go back so bad! Those chicken tacos look tasty! Definitely need to pin this post! Thanks for sharing!
Amber Brady says
I want to go back to NYC!!! There is so much more food for me to explore!!! Jealous of your whole trip 🙂
Unknown says
Did you get the street nuts?? The sweet salty nuts sold from street carts are amazing.
Next time you come please stay in a hotel downtown, it will be a very different experience!
Add to your next trip list:
Buttercup bakery- awesome banana pudding, cupcakes, and such (2nd ave between 51st and 52nd)
Taim (soho/nolita area)- best falafel in nyc, great hummus
Ees-a-bagel (several locations)- ask what is hot, and get it with a schmear. Or same as what you ordered at that diner, only it will be $4 here.
Murray’s cheese (west village)- new cafe next door to retail shop, more cheese than you can imagine. And they are generous with the samples
Helpful websites:
Timeoutny.com (all kinds of info)
Midtownlunch.com (great resource, all meals less than $10)
Chowhound.com, the manhattan board (current restaurant info, search posts for specific categories)
Ttrockwood(at)yahoo(dot)com
Yvonne @ Tried and Tasty says
Alli! This was excellent – thank you so much for sharing!!! I’m SO excited to try the food in NYC! Although, I probably shouldn’t have checked it out while juice fasting and cleansing.. I pretty much wanted to gnaw on my computer screen!!!
Allison Miller says
Haha Yvonne, you’re the best!! I’m so excited for you to go on your trip. You’re going to love it!
peri says
Great advices but you’ve only been to very very touristic places! You can’t find the best food in New York in those places!
Alli says
I agree! These are just the places I visited on this particular visit.
Cato says
That is an amazing share. Thanks, but you did not say prices of food. Give me suggesstions about them pls.
Alli says
Great question! Some of the prices have changed so I will get going on some research and get back to you. Thanks!
Cato says
Why did u delete my comments? I just asked restaurants’ prices. You wrote cheap foods but ı didnt see their prices. Thanks
Alli says
Hi Cato! I didn’t delete your comment. It wasn’t approved so it hadn’t showed up yet. I am in the process of doing research on the prices for these restaurants as they have changed since I wrote the post. I will let you know when I find them. Thank you!
Cato says
Thanks Allie for interest. I hope I will go to new york this summer because of this, I wonder prices of restaurants. I am looking forward to waiting good news, Allie🙂
Alli says
I’ve added prices to everything but the bakery. That was the only one I couldn’t find prices for, but I remember that it was reasonable for what we got. I want to say about $3- $7, depending on what we got? If you get the chance to go there, try a lobster tail or the California cheesecake. My favorite! Hopefully this price list helps in your restaurant decision making. Enjoy your trip!