Best Foods in New York City You Can’t Leave Without Trying

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f you’re looking for the best foods in New York, you’re in the right place. I was born on Long Island and grew up in New Jersey, so I’ve been eating my way through New York for basically my entire life. My dad even owned a bagel shop, so I grew up around some of the foods New York is famous for and have a pretty solid idea of what is actually worth trying, rather than the generic guides written by transplants telling you to eat at a street cart in Times Square.

New York has some foods that we genuinely think are better here than anywhere else, but there are also a few foods that make all the top lists, but aren’t actually worth the hype. We’ve also traveled all over the world and eaten at some incredible places, so we’ll be sharing our favorite NYC foods, local chains, and spots that can actually compare..

In this guide, we’re breaking down what food New York is known for, the best foods to try, where to eat in NYC, a few things we think are overrated, and some of the everyday food experiences you shouldn’t miss while you’re here.

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An Intro to Foods in New York: Cuisine & Dining

Before diving into all of the best foods in New York to try, here’s some info about what the culinary landscape looks like.

🍕 What Food Is New York Known For?

New York is known for foods like bagels, pizza, cheesecake, and breakfast sandwiches, and these are some of the foods we think you genuinely need to try while you’re here. But what makes eating in New York especially exciting to us is the sheer variety of cuisines you can find throughout the city.

New York is known for having the best Italian food in the country, and . We also have large populations of Irish, Dominican, Chinese, and Puerto Rican, which influence a lot of the flavors you’ll encounter, with plenty of restaurants to choose from.

You can find incredible food from all over the world though, including cuisines that you may not expect to find in one city. We’ve found restaurants serving food from places we’ve traveled to like Georgia, Senegal, and Paraguay, as well as countries we haven’t visited yet.

For people who love traveling off the beaten path like we do, New York is almost like being able to travel without leaving the city.

🍽️ Where Are the Best Places to Eat in NYC?

There are so many different ways to eat in New York, from little mom-and-pop cafés and bodegas to food trucks, markets, rooftop restaurants, and even dining on boats.

There is no objectively “best neighborhood” to eat in. There are incredible places to eat spread all around the city, and you can find great food in every single neighborhood. Some are dedicated culinary havens like China Town and Little Italy, while places like the West Village and Upper East Side have cute restaurants that are frequented more by locals.

We have a whole guide dedicated to some of the coolest places we’ve found around the city to eat at:

30 Cool Restaurants in New York City You Need to Try

From chic food trucks to awesome street food, these eateries stick out for their unique concepts and flavorful dishes.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE >

The Best Foods in New York to Try

Ready to try some incredible foods in New York? Here are some of the must-tries.

🥯 Bagels

If there is one food we can confidently say New York does better than anywhere else in the world, it’s bagels. In fact, most New Yorkers won’t eat a bagel outside New York (or New Jersey). My dad actually owned a bagel shop, so I grew up around them, and when I lived in Myrtle Beach, I became the girl who would bring shopping bags full of New York bagels through TSA whenever I flew home. 😂

A big reason New York bagels are so good is the water, and you’ll even find bagel shops in New Jersey that bring the water from New York just to make sure they taste as good.

But that’s not the only thing that makes them special. We also have an insane amount of cream cheese flavors, and you can find everything from rainbow bagels to special colors celebrating local teams after a championship. If you’re visiting NYC, don’t just grab a plain bagel with cream cheese. Try one of the many combinations you’ll find around the city!

🍳 Breakfast Sandwiches

A New York breakfast sandwich is another thing we think you absolutely need to try. Whether you get bacon, egg, and cheese on a roll, bagel, or hero, it’s one of the classic breakfast staples for us that is such a huge part of everyday life around here.

And honestly, the best ones are the ones that don’t come from a fancy place. A good local deli, bodega, or small neighborhood shop is where you’ll find the most delicious and authentic breakfast sandwiches.

🍕 New York Pizza

Pizza is obviously one of the most famous foods in New York, and there’s a reason for it. You can find those classic dollar slices (now $1.50) all over the city, which are perfect when you want something quick and cheap, but you also need to sit down and trying some actual New York pizza.

New York is where pizza slices actually originated, and something that makes pizza in New York so special is the creativity. You can get slices with chicken parmesan, penne alla vodka, and even caesar salad on top!

For something a little different, Unregular Pizza does Italian-style pizza, while L&B Spumoni Gardens is one of our favorites for that iconic Brooklyn-style pizza. My dad actually grew up going to L&B, and they now have a second location near the Brooklyn Bridge, which makes it much easier to get to when you’re exploring Manhattan.

🍔 7th Street Burger

We have a little more of a personal connection to 7th Street Burger, because it’s actually our friend’s chain, and we’re so proud of how much it has grown. The first location opened during COVID, and it has since expanded to locations all over NYC and even other states!

The burgers are seriously good, and apparently we’re not the only ones who think so. Bad Bunny loved the burger enough that he even shot a music video in front of one of their locations!

🥪 Heros

Heros are actually an NYC staple! They became famous in the 1930’s, and are not just a traditional deli sandwich, but they’re known for piling on a variety of cold cuts and cheese. Head to a deli and you’ll be able to enjoy one of their signature creations.

🥙 Gyros

Gyros are another food you’ll find all over New York, and they’re one of our favorite quick meals that are generous in size and a good bang for your buck. We especially love Uncle Gussy’s, and in our opinion, the best gyros come from the Greek food trucks rather than the halal trucks you’ll see all over the city.

🍝 Italian-American Food

Okay, this is a bit controversial, particularly for Italians – but NYC is responsible for a lot of dishes that we call Italian in the US but actually do not exist in Italy!

Italian immigrants actually created new recipes here, and while you can now find them across the entire country, they originated (and have certainly been perfected) here in New York City.

🌈 Rainbow Cookies

Rainbow cookies are another thing I recently learned are a classic Italian-American treat, rather than something found in Italy. You’ll find all over New York, especially in Italian bakeries. They’re made with layers of almond cake, jam, and chocolate, and while they’re technically called cookies, they’re actually more like a tiny layered cake.

🍰 New York Cheesecake

New York cheesecake is VERY important, and we don’t say that lightly. We’ve even traveled to Japan and tried their famous cheesecake, and while we were excited to see what all the hype was about, it couldn’t even remotely compare to a proper New York cheesecake.

New York cheesecake is rich, dense, and creamy, and it’s one of those foods that we think you actually need to try in New York to understand why it’s so loved.

🥐 Cronut

This is one of the newest foods in New York you should try! The Cronut was created in 2013 in SoHo, and can now be found all over the world. Created It’s basically a croissant-doughnut hybrid, and if you’ve never tried one, it’s a fun New York dessert to add to your list.

🍌 Magnolia Bakery Banana Pudding

Another NYC dessert we think is worth trying is Magnolia Bakery’s banana pudding. It’s become one of the bakery’s signature treats, and even if you’re not normally a huge banana pudding person, this is a fun one to add to your NYC food list.

☕ Local Coffee

For the love of god, please skip Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts! New York City has SO many great mom-and-pop cafes, from trendy bakeries to cute flower shops.

If you want to try a coffee chain while you’re in New York though, Gregorys is the one we’d actually recommend instead. It’s a local chain that we genuinely enjoy, and we’d choose it over some of the big national chains any day.

Fun fact: the owners went to the same high school as me!

🍧 Italian Ices

This is another treat with original Italian roots, but something that has actually been recreated into what it is today. What makes our Italian ices special is that we have cream-based ones, instead of juice based ices.

Ralph’s is one of my favorite childhood treats, and it can be found all over New York and New Jersey. The Italian ices are so good, and there’s a large variety of flavors from graham cracker and cannoli to chocolate fudge pretzel.

Especially if you’re visiting during the warmer months, this is perfect when you need something cold while walking around the city.

🍫 Glace Hot Chocolate

If you’re visiting in the winter, add Glace to your list for hot chocolate. It’s much more indulgent than your average cup of hot cocoa and makes for a fun NYC dessert stop.

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🗽 Things You Shouldn’t Miss When Eating in NYC

There are certain things that aren’t necessarily specific foods in New York to try, but are still part of the NYC food experience. If you really want to eat like a local, don’t just make reservations at famous restaurants. Go into the little neighborhood spots too!

🥞 Eat at a Diner

New York diners are an absolute classic, particularly after a long night out. We love diners because you can literally find pretty much anything on the menu, and it’s always really good with relatively affordable pricing.

🥪 Stop at a Bodega

Bodegas are another huge part of everyday New York life. Grab a breakfast sandwich, coffee, snacks, or whatever else you need, and don’t be afraid to step inside the little neighborhood shops you see throughout the city.

Honestly some of the best subs I’ve ever had were from inside bodegas – and they’re a great thing to grab on the go and enjoy in a park or pier.

🤷🏻‍♀️ A Few “Iconic” NYC Foods We Think Are Overrated

We’re going to be honest here because there are plenty of foods in New York that you’ll see on every single “must-eat in NYC” list that we don’t think are actually worth going out of your way for.

🥨 Pretzels

New York pretzels are fine, but we wouldn’t consider them one of the best foods in New York. You’ll see carts selling them all over the city, but they’re honestly nothing we would tell someone they need to try, especially if you’ve had German pretzels before.

🌭 Hot Dogs

Same goes for hot dogs. They’re iconic and definitely part of the NYC street scene, but if you only have a limited amount of time in the city, there are so many better things to eat.

🥪 Katz’s Pastrami Sandwich

And then there’s Katz’s. We know, we know. It’s practically sacrilegious to say that a tourist-famous New York institution isn’t a must, but locals don’t actually eat pastrami sandwiches nearly as much as tourists seem to think we do.

There are so many incredible sandwiches and delis throughout New York that we’d rather have you explore beyond the famous name. We honestly don’t know how it because so famous. Katz’s is definitely an experience if you’ve always wanted to go, but we wouldn’t build your entire NYC food itinerary around getting a pastrami sandwich.

New York Food: Final Thoughts & Tips

New York really is one of those cities where you could eat something different every day and still barely scratch the surface. Of course, you should try the iconic foods that the city is known for, but don’t be afraid to go beyond the famous names and try some smaller neighborhood spots too.

⭐️ Tips for Eating in NYC

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👀 What’s Next?

Now that you know all of the best foods in New York to try, let’s help you enjoy more of the city!

Here are our other New York guides:

So are you ready to enjoy all of the incredible foods in New York City? We hope you have the best time eating and drinking your way around the city.

Looking for more info about visiting NYC? Don’t miss out on our other New York travel guides! Also, don’t forget to join to our newsletter so you can get updates on our most recent articles each week, and exclusive discounts on our shop.

Ready to start planning the most epic trip to New York? We can help! As locals, we design customized New York itineraries and take care of all of the stressful travel arrangements. To learn more just take a look at our travel planning packages.

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