NYC for 52 and 19-year old?

[Chufi]

Not for myself unfortunately. My husband is spending a couple of days in New York with his 19 year old daughter, and I'm not going to be able to join them To live vicariously I promised them I would help them (ask you for help anyway) to eat well. They're looking for informal, casual places where my not that hip husband and my quite hip stepdaughter will feel equally at home.. is it possible?? Oh and I suppose cocktaibars etc are out of the question because of her age? Or could she go there but just not drink alcohol?

They're staying in a hotel near Union Square, so places near there would be good. Although they'll ofcourse be wandering all over the city! They both love food - my husband is an adventurous eater with a passion for offal and spicy food, my stepdaughter has slightly more conservative tastes, she loves Italian and French food and 'good' fast food like great burgers and pizzas. They both love sushi. She would love to get some real 'New York' food experiences although I'm not even sure what that means. Katz's deli?

Ideas for bakeries, breakfast/brunch places near Union Square etc. would also be appreciated.

They're on a bit of a budget, although I suppose they will splurge one time.

I seem to remember posts about a place in a park (?) that has great burgers and milkshakes, but for the life of me I can't remember the name. It seemed like something they both would enjoy very much.

When I was in NY with my husband 5 years ago we very much enjoyed our dinner at Babbo (where we just walked in one night and were seated almost immediately) and pizza at Grimaldi's - I think Dennis will definitely want to go bakc to Grimaldi's!

I will be browsing the forum for tips, hey it's my favorite thing to do even if it's not for myself, but hope to get some ideas on this thread, too. Thanks.

[Rehovot]

I seem to remember posts about a place in a park (?) that has great burgers and milkshakes, but for the life of me I can't remember the name. It seemed like something they both would enjoy very much.

Seems like it could be the Shake Shack in Madison Square Park?

[Chufi]

I seem to remember posts about a place in a park (?) that has great burgers and milkshakes, but for the life of me I can't remember the name. It seemed like something they both would enjoy very much.

Seems like it could be the Shake Shack in Madison Square Park?

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Yes that's the one! Thank you!

[SusanGiff]

My 21-year-old nephew, who just graduated from NYU, chose Il Buco on Bond St. for his graduation dinner. The decor is Italian-country, pretty and comfortable (for dad), but the restaurant was just full of hip and beautiful diners, in a very hip neighborhood (for daughter). The food was terrific. They offer a menu of many, many seasonal appetizers and a smaller number of pastas and entrees; I'm sure a lot of people make a dinner out of a couple of appetizers, which would help keep the cost down. Not cheap, but not over-the-top either.

Edited to add: My nephew is also a big fan of Shake Shack, so you're on the same track there.

Edited May 15, 2008 by SusanGiff (log)

[Nathan]

Either of the Momofukus will work well for both of them.

Lupa.

Bar Room at the Modern.

Perry Street for lunch.

standard picks but they should make both of them happy.

alas, serious cocktail bars are out....(though he can get decent drinks at Grayz after Bar Room at the Modern...its a restaurant so she can come in)

[daisy17]

Spotted Pig might make both happy, and is very ny. I'd say the same about Freeman's.

Good informal (counter service, but lots of seating) breakfast in Union Square - City Bakery on 18th between 5/6th Aves, just off 5th. Everything is delicious. Great pastries (pretzel croissant!), muffins, really freaking good chocolate chip cookies, mac & cheese, other stuff.

For Italian I agree with Lupa, or would recommend Peasant. Hip but not too.

[Nathan]

Peasant is a good idea.

I'd say that the Spotted Pig is very London right now.

[Rebecca263]

Hi! So, you've got the home front all to yourself for a few days, huh? Sounds like illicit meal fun is ahead for you, too!

I go into the city every week, and my daughter and her friends accompany every so often. I send those teens all over the city for mini adventures- I can't stand to have them milling around me all day while I'm being poked and prodded by the medical folks.

I sent them down to alphabet city awhile back, and it was a big hit. The main attraction, food wise, was a bakery called Veniero's(when I used to live in NYC we called it Venereal Disease, but that's just because it was always so crowded, not as a commentary on the food!). It's on 11th Street, between Avenue's A & B. Veniero's in a very old Italian bakery- heavy emphasis on the lovely sweet things that Italians are famous for- fruit tarts with lovely cream centers, sfogliatelle that fall apart in your mouth into bits of cloudy heaven, ricotta cheese cakes that taste so much healthier than they should, cannolis, many, many many cookies of every taste and look, lots of chocolate baked goods. You can order all kinds of mini items, and get bite size tastes of almost everything that they serve. Going there is a great excuse for a meal of sweets.

For a real meal, if they can do both, there is a great little vegetarian pizza place right nearby on 2nd Avenue off of 11th Street called Cafe Viva Pizza. They had more than pizza, and I really liked the veggie options when I ate there a few months ago, it definitely made me feel very worthy of my later bakery gluttony! Anyway, the neighborhood is interesting, and it's not too far from this fun book shop where the 2 of them can linger over the stacks and bring you home some interesting cookbooks! That place is on 12th & Broadway- and there are some great little interesting and cool laces all throughout that area, so they can have a great time, eating and otherwise.

I have lots of other mini NYC adventures- but I don't think that anyone else will point you out to this one, and it really would be fun, as there is so much to do in that area on foot. I think that your step daughter will really enjoy the trendy arty atmosphere, and they can spend as much or as little time there as they want, without feeling that they've missed out on something more "NY".

[Nathan]

of course the DOH shuttering Veniero's for a massive vermin infestation the other week has to add to the adventure.

[kathryn]

Veniero's is on 11th between 1st and 2nd, not Avenue A and B.

Why would you send someone to Cafe Viva Pizza when you can go to Una Pizza Napoletana, Luzzo's, Vinny Vincenz, or Artichoke?

[Rebecca263]

Because I personally liked the veggies and pizza at Cafe Viva. It's very American, and New York IS American. It's true that one can get great pizza in a lot of places, but since no one else was chiming in, I offered my suggestion for a fun afternoon. If I had been told that the afternoon needed to include snobbery as a side dish to all foods, I would have aqdjusted my offer accordingly, but nobody mentioned that.

I didn't realize that we are only alliowed to like certain kinds of pizza on eGullet, I must have missed that in the posting guidelines.

I didn't feel so stuffed after eating there that I couldn't indulge in a sfogliatelle, which is one of my favorite desserts! A 19 year old girl might not have the eating stamina that you folks do, or the haughty attitude, either!

[Nathan]

no one's forcing you to like or dislike everything. we have every right to say it when we think someone's suggestions are misguided.

personally, when I travel a couple thousand miles to eat somewhere I'd prefer to have the best of what they offer

edit: and, generally speaking, the baked goods in the Netherlands blow ours out of the water.

Edited May 17, 2008 by Nathan (log)

[daisy17]

I stumbled into Seymour Burton (E.5th between A/B) late last night, starving, and was richly rewarded for barely recollecting I'd heard good things about the burger. It doesn't have its own thread, but it fits what you're asking for in the inexpensive, casual, hip-ish realm for your burger-loving step-daughter, so here it is. One of the best burgers I've ever had, no exaggeration. The lamb cubano and mac & cheese were also tasty, and I loved the long communal table running the length of the place in the center. (If I can't dine at the bar, give me a communal table.) The place was buzzing with a warm and inviting energy, and the food was really very good.

[ghostrider]

Since they're staying near Union Sq (is it the Hotel W? - I used to work in that building before it became a hotel), if they have a certain level of interest in food, they might enjoy a stroll through the Union Square Greenmarket if they are there on a Mon, Weds, Fri &/or Sat. A great place to pick up some fresh fruit for snacks if nothing else!

[Sneakeater]

Tell Dennis to go to Franny's instead of Grimaldi's (if he's going to cross the bridge for pizza).

[ghostrider]

I just happened to see Eisenberg's Sandwich Shop featured on an NYC food show last night.

If the lines for that burger at Shake Shack are too long, Eisenberg's is right down the street & has considerably more New York history going for it.

[Chufi]

Thank you all for the wonderful suggestions. I'm making lists, arranged by neighborhood, with these recommendations and all the info I'm finding throughout the NY forum.

I won't have any power over how good they will be about following these suggestions but I promise to report back about any place they actually visit!

[WK2]

I'd send them to Otto, for a less expensive pizza and gelato meal.

[Jesikka]

Taralucci e Vino is on 18th St and Broadway near union square. Its a wine and coffee bar with a pretty developed menu. I would highly recommend it for a snack and wine or for a great espresso drink and tasty breakfast. They have good baked goods and nice egg dishes. They also make excellent but simple pastas. The prices are reasonable, though the food portions can be a bit small (they're bizarrely inconsistent).

[Jesikka]

I'd also recommend Ushi Wakamaru on Houston between Sullivan and Macdougal for sushi. It's not cheap, but it's definitely not in the eschalon of the more expensive sushi places in NY. The fish is really excellent.

[Pan]

I got a slice of Sicilian cheesecake from Veniero's to go last week, and I found it rather tasteless, so I'm not in a mood to recommend that place. I would plus and minus the Tarallucci e Vino on 10th St. and 1st Av. (rather good pastries; rotten lettuce in the salad accompanying the panini too often for my liking, especially at their prices); is the Union Square location much better?

In terms of the pizzerie in the East Village that were previously mentioned, I recently went to Luzzo's and was pretty impressed. The crust could have had more char but was good, and the quality of the ingredients was excellent. Nice appetizers, too. I also went to Vinny Vincenz last week and found it to be merely a pretty good slice shop, nothing special. I haven't been to the others.

In terms of places near Union Square, I believe no-one has mentioned Casa Mono yet. It's a place where your husband can drink wine and both of them can eat tapas. The expense may not be much of an issue with the Euro to dollar exchange rate, etc.

[nikkib]

Tell Dennis to go to Franny's instead of Grimaldi's (if he's going to cross the bridge for pizza).

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We really enjoyed our meal at Frannys recently. Clam and chilli pizza was fantastic as was the cannoli! V good wine list and cocktails too - would definitely recommend a visit if you are nearby.

[raji]

I second the Eisenberg's recommendation. That's old NY and the owner intends to keep it that way. Get an egg cream. Wish the automats were still open.

Grimaldi's gets a bad rap on here because of it's popularity but I still get the consistently best margherita there than anywhere else. I haven't been to Difara's lately. Mind you this is a couple decade's sample size. But whatever, even if it was only #3 or #5, it is a must-go because you can enjoy the Brooklyn promenade after that. Every visitor to NYC should walk the brooklyn bridge and end with a Grimaldi's margherita

jesikka you mean "deserves" to be in the upper echelon, right? Ushi's easily in the top 3 in the city, and you can expect a pretty eclectic mix of fish there. Hideo's great, go there.

[Sneakeater]

I'd send them to Otto, for a less expensive pizza and gelato meal.

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Tell Dennis to go to Franny's instead of Otto.

[Sneakeater]

jesikka you mean "deserves" to be in the upper echelon, right?

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No, she was talking about price. She was saying that although it's not inexpensive, it's not in the the top eschelon of expense of New York.

(At least I think that's what she was saying.)

Edited May 20, 2008 by Sneakeater (log)