Manhattan - where to live based on food nearby

[Pan]

Stay away from the Upper West side around the Columbia University area. I was considering moving there, but scrapped the idea due to lack of interesting restaurants.[...]

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Interesting....does this include the Inwood park area or is that further north?[...]

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Columbia University's main campus centers on 116 St. between Broadway and Amsterdam. Dyckmann St. is about 5 miles north of there!

I figure if money is really no object, you can hire a driver or a limo to take you to wherever you want to go and choose your dwelling based purely on aesthetic considerations...

I think if I had unlimited funds, I might choose to live in a beautiful brownstone in the West Village.

[cru]

Upper West Side. No great destination restaurants but some decent neighborhood places like Aix, Nice Matin, La Vela, Cesca, and, of course, Barney Greengrass. And classics like Cafe des Artistes and Picholine. But the real reason to live in 10024\10023 is the proximity to the best grocery stores and delicatessens on the planet. You've got Whole Foods, Zabar's, Murray's, Fairway, HandH bagels all within a mile of each other. Proximity to Upper East Dining a short taxi ride away.

[gini]

So now all I really need to do is rob a bank, buy (that's right, I said BUY) a penthouse, hire a fulltime assistant and a limo driver.

Shuck, you guys are so helpful!!

[Jammin]

  Have you ever rented an apt in Chinatown?  The floors actually slope - sometimes downwards, sometimes in parabolas.  Keeping furniture steady is a challenge. 

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heh, well, based *solely* on food, it's not a bad choice. perhaps it's my asian-american bias talking... i've often mused that if i could consistently pay $4-5 for a *good* lunch and dinner every day, it would easily offset a bi-weekly visit to the per se's of the world... how hot would that be?

[mikeycook]

I personally would go for the West Village, just south of 14th and near 7th. From there you can walk...

- West to Chelsea Market (15th and 9th) and the Meatpacking Restaurants (Pastis, etc.)

- South for nice shops (like Murray's Cheese) on Bleeker

- South and Southeast for the best restaurants of the Village and West Village (Blue Hill, Babbo, Anisa, Cru, Lupa, etc.) and Citarella

- East to Union Square (starting at around 15th and University just east of 5th) for the Greenmarket and more nice restaurants (Union Square Cafe, Tocqueville, etc. and the many nice restaurants just north of there (Gramercy Tavern, Veritas,... I could go on and on).

All of this stuff would be within walking distance, approx. 1/2 mile (3/4 mile max. for most Gramercy restaurants).

To me that gives you the best combination of restaurants and food shopping.

Edited January 20, 2006 by mikeycook (log)

[SuzySushi]

I kinda like my old neighborhood, the 30s near 2nd & Third Avenues, technically Murray Hill. There are still enough quirky small stores and take-out shops to make it a "neighborhood," while it's within walking/busing distance of the Upper West Side (bus on 42nd Street runs up Broadway), Union Square (a nice Saturday morning walk), and Chinatown (bus down 2nd Avenue). The world was my oyster!

My husband if he'd have his druthers, next time we visit NYC, would like to sublet an apartment right across from Zabar's, his pilgrimage of choice.

Living in Hawaii, however, neither of us has ever set foot in a Whole Foods or Trader Joe's, so our neighborhood picks might change...

[Dryden]

If this thread proves anything, it's that no one can agree on anything.

[gini]

Hey all -

I'm overwhelmed by your responses. Thanks for being so thoughful!

[Pan]

If this thread proves anything, it's that no one can agree on anything.

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Of course not! Some of us are New Yorkers.

[JohnL]

Hey all -

I'm overwhelmed by your responses.  Thanks for being so thoughful! 

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I just thought of something!

Ya know what this thread proves?

Most every one of the neighborhoods mentioned in this thread are no more

than twenty minutes (maybe half an hour) from any point in Manhattan.

By subway--cab/car--walking--biking--roller blading--any combination.

not only that-- but throw in the food delivery options and one can see why

New York is such an amazing city for food options!

Every neighborhood is a pretty good place to live here.

[Vadouvan]

Correct, if "money was truly no object"

It removes all qualifiers.

You could live anywhere comfortable, call your car service and be driven anywhere in 25 minutes to eat anything.

All the answers are fine but its the question thats confusing.

The kind of wealth you describe as "money is no object" basically means you can get anything anytime, go anywhere anytime with less effort than if money was an object.

[juuceman]

it's ManhattAn..

food convenience isn't, in my opinion, all about having the top restaurant or grocery store in your neighborhood.. i like having a great local place for the two major meals that i eat in my neighborhood, brunch and late dinner.. those, and a great local pub, make it for me..

i walk to and from work.. it's 8 blocks.. i'm on a never ending quest to find the perfect low key local pub (anywhere in between 22nd and Park-6th and 30th btw. Park and 6th is fine if anyone has suggestions).. so far, Cedar Tavern is leading, although it's out of my direct way home and a solid 15 minute walk..

i like living in the Flatiron.. it's quiet at night and on the weekends (except for the club kids late at night) and it's easily walkable anywhere south of 42nd Street.. chances are if we're going somewhere fancy, we're taking a car, since she doesn't like to walk more than five blocks in heels.. so it's not big deal to have to take a cab to the Time Warner Center.. for a slightly older disposition, i think the Upper West Side is perfect, offers great shopping, lots of locals, and great 24 hour delivery.. the UES has some great shopping, notably Agata, but lacks most everything else i really love..

except for Szechuan Kitchen, which is still open, is on 79th and 1st, and offers some of the most consistently delicious chinese food in NYC takeout currently available..

[gini]

Correct, if    "money was truly no object"

It removes all qualifiers.

You could live anywhere comfortable, call your car service and be driven anywhere in 25 minutes to eat anything.

All the answers are fine but its the question thats confusing.

The kind of wealth you describe as "money is no object" basically means you can get anything anytime, go anywhere anytime with less effort than if money was an object.

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I used the qualifier if money is no object in order to encourage people to recommend neighborhoods that might, for some, be considered expensive to live in. I think that saying that you can take your private car anywhere is not an answer to the original question asking

based on nearby restaurants, grocers, specialty stores, where would you live in the city...?

[Fat Guy]

People for whom money is no object tend to cluster in a few Manhattan neighborhoods: Upper East Side especially along Fifth and Park Avenues in the 70s-90s, Upper West Side especially near Lincoln Center and along West End, Riverside and Central Park West from the 60s-80s, Central Park South, Gramercy Park, Greenwich Village, SoHo. The choice depends on personality. By most any objective measure, as in number of restaurants within walking distance with high star ratings from the local newspapers, you'd have to give it to Central Park South. But the funkier, more diverse local joints are more prevalent downtown. If you factor in shopping, as mentioned above, you want to look at the Upper West Side in the 70s -- a nice apartment in the Dakota is always a good choice, or perhaps the Village or SoHo although SoHo has I think been slipping. For me, however, and I assure you I'm a person who cares a lot about food, none of this is as important as being close to Central Park, especially if you have a dog, a baby or both. I live in a not-great food neighborhood -- Carnegie Hill -- but I'm half a block from the park and I have enough acceptable local options to get by. I use the subways and buses to get where I need to go, and we have a car, so it's no problem to shop at Fairway even though we don't live within walking distance. We just drive over to the one in Harlem -- it has a parking lot and the shopping experience is much more pleasurable than at the one on Broadway and 74-75. And you have to remember that the city is not the best place to get everything -- it's nice to be uptown and have a car because you can so easily get to Yonkers for Costco, Home Depot, Stew Leonard's, etc., to the Bronx for Arthur Avenue shopping, and to Queens for Greek food in Astoria, Flushing Chinatown, Roosevelt Ave., etc. It's also the best neighborhood if you want good access to La Guardia Airport or if you often go to the suburbs northeast of the city (Westchester, Southern Connecticut). Also good access to the GWB, though not to the various tunnels.

[Bux]

People for whom money is no object, often don't care much about good food, though it's true that many expensive restaurants are also good and that expensive markets usually carry quality merchandise, albeit often at poor quality/price point.

What's amazing, is not just that so many people disagree, but that so many consider places I'd avoid as being destination food spots. I'm not looking for a personal fight and will avoid naming those places.

One thing to remember is that things change rapidly in NY. Places open and close all the time. Restaurants that were a reason for me not to move ten years ago, are now closed or no longer worth my money. The "money is no object" factor can be misleading. Chinatown is a beacon for shopping, but not because it's got the best food, but because the value is good. It's hard to find good veal and lamb in Chinatown. It's all relative. In the meantime, Chinatown is one of the prime pluses for where I now live.

I like Union Square, but food is only part of the reason.

[oakapple]

We are planning on moving (AGAIN) this time to Manhattan and an interesting question arises - based on nearby restaurants, grocers, specialty stores, where would you live in the city if price were no object and your decision was purely based on what there was to eat closeby?

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As several folks have noted, once you're in Manhattan, you're never really that far from anything. But if you want great food within walking distance, the two most restaurant-packed neighborhoods that are also great places to live are the Upper East Side and Greenwich Village. Which one to choose is largely a matter of the "vibe" that you prefer. I would personally choose the UES, as it tends to be quieter and more refined.

The Upper West Side comes in a respectable third, but that neighborhood has long been regarded as less interesting from a fine dining point of view.

Fat Guy is certainly correct that there are more ultra-luxe restaurants in the vicinity of Central Park South than anywhere else. But I'm guessing that even those with unlimited resources don't choose to dine that way all the time. Mind you, if money were truly no object, I'd certainly consider it.

[Fat Guy]

I wouldn't be so quick to stereotype the Central Park South area as exclusively the province of grand luxe restaurants. I think you'll find as many or more good moderate and inexpensive restaurants in that area as anywhere else. Let's say you live on Central Park South between Seventh and Eighth Avenues and you take the area from Fifth Avenue to Tenth Avenue and from 49th Street to 69th Street as your walkable neighborhood, in other words where you could walk in 10 minutes. That gives you access not only to 100% of the New York Times four-star restaurant and 100% of the Michelin three-star restaurant in New York City, but also to all the good, cheap ethnic eats on Ninth Avenue in the 50s as well as a ton of assorted stuff in Midtown ranging from great expensive Japanese to great cheap Japanese, tons of steakhouses, the Carnegie deli, good pizza, Grand Sichuan, etc. You get access to everything in the Lincoln Center area. Look in a Zagat guide or any book organized geographically. It's an incredibly dense, diverse, restaurant-rich area.

[NYC Mike]

Interesting....does this include the Inwood park area or is that further north?  Years (YEARS) ago, Inwood had some interesting German/Italian/Eastern European eateries.

The only thing really interesting in Inwood these days is the Dominican food, its really good but the supermarket/butcher/fish market situation is dire. We drive downtown to fulfill those needs.

[Bux]

. . . .more refined.

. . . .

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I like the upper east side as well, but no place is perfect.

[iheartoffal]

One thing is for certain...do NOT move to Washington Heights. There is nothing here. Well, except for this one place that sells good baklava.

[Bux]

. . . . Let's say you live on Central Park South between Seventh and Eighth Avenues and you take the area from Fifth Avenue to Tenth Avenue and from 49th Street to 69th Street as your walkable neighborhood, in other words where you could walk in 10 minutes. That gives you access not only to 100% of the New York Times four-star restaurant . . .

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Daniel would be two avenues east of your walkable neighborhood.

I'm also less inclined to think of that area as a neighborhood, let alone as a walkable neighborhood. I suppose if I lived there, I might have another perspective.

[peter_nyc]

If money, smell, and overcrowding on weekends were no object, I'd live in Chinatown. Pho and bun thit nuong every day!

[daniellewiley]

not only that-- but throw in the food delivery options and one can see why

New York is such an amazing city for food options!

Every neighborhood is a pretty good place to live here.

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What about the suburbs?? If you could pick any suburb (one with an easy commute to Manhattan), which would you pick, based on the food alone?

[Megan Blocker]

not only that-- but throw in the food delivery options and one can see why

New York is such an amazing city for food options!

Every neighborhood is a pretty good place to live here.

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What about the suburbs?? If you could pick any suburb (one with an easy commute to Manhattan), which would you pick, based on the food alone?

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Are we counting outerborough locations as suburbs? Because some of them have some pretty good food in their own right...

[daniellewiley]

not only that-- but throw in the food delivery options and one can see why

New York is such an amazing city for food options!

Every neighborhood is a pretty good place to live here.

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What about the suburbs?? If you could pick any suburb (one with an easy commute to Manhattan), which would you pick, based on the food alone?

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Are we counting outerborough locations as suburbs? Because some of them have some pretty good food in their own right...

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Sure! I won't know all of the details till tomorrow night, but looks like we'll need to be somewhere within an easy commute to midtown. (yay!!!!)

All of my college friends are in Brooklyn, so I'm certainly considering that, but with the kids and the dog, I'm wondering just how much is feasible within the city limits. The food thing is really important to me, obviously. My parents are pushing Long Island HARD, but I didn't like growing up there, so I don't know that I'd like it now. Other people are saying Jersey, or Stamford, CT.

There are so many variables!!