From Michelin-starred restaurants to late night pizza joints, NYC is one of the top cities in the world for delicious food of all varieties. See where we dined on our recent weekend trip to the big apple (and catch the NYC recap here)!
Tanner Smith’s
We headed to Tanner Smith’s in Midtown on Thursday night for a late dinner, and I instantly fell in love with the place. It’s a trendy, local and spacious spot with a bar in the front and food tables in the back. Its exposed brick walls are adored with rustic mirrors, and they didn’t bat an eye when I asked for a fried egg on my tacos (which were delicious, by the way)!
Marea
Where do I begin to describe Marea? Marea has forever spoiled us on mere mortal food. This Columbus Circle venue not only holds two Michelin stars, but they offer gluten-free dishes and specialize in pasta and seafood.
Crudo al Taglio
Top: Passera (Long Island fluke, radish, mint, sea urchin sugo)
Bottom: Branzino (wild striped bass, sturgeon caviar, mussel vinaigrette)
The salty caviar and mussel vinaigrette was so amazing against the perfectly fresh crudo!
The pasta fatta in casa (house-made pastas) were unbelievably good (not to mention gluten-free)!
I ordered the gramigna, with squid ink, housemade pork sausage, and lobster. I’m such a fan of pasta, pork, and lobster, and this was the best of all three ingredients! It was kind of like a gourmet surf & turf, going between the pork and the lobster in alternating bites – or even better to combine them! This is my new answer for when people ask, “If you were stranded on a dessert island and had to eat the same thing for every meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?”
Gluten-free gnocchetti with ruby red shrimp, chilies, and rosemary. This one was so delicious as well. The ingredients were fresh and stood out on their own with nothing fancy, just bold flavor.
Secondi di Pesce
Above is the Spigola Nera, with wild black bass, spinach, black trumpets, potato, and crosnes.
The bass was the best we’ve had of course – completely buttery and perfectly cooked. The spinach was amazing as well and melted in your mouth.
For my secondi di pesce, I ordered the capesante – seared sea scallops, cauliflower, endive, pearl onion, and walnuts. Scallops are one of my favorites, and these were incredible and buttery. The cauliflower was delicious as well, and I normally don’t even like onions but these were like candy!
Speaking of candy, this bring us to dessert. We ordered the semifreddo al torroncino and assiago di tre sorbetti o gelati (3 gelato or sorbets).
The semifreddo was made with espresso, nougat, lemon, hazelut, and dulcey. They poured the sauce on top and it froze almost instantly!
I ordered the bourbon pecan gelati, and two sorbetti: white grape prosecco and pear amaretto. My favorites were the pecan and prosecco, they were so flavorful!
These reminded me of the apple sauce bites at Cafe Art Science in Cambridge!
Freddie & Peppers
Freddie & Peppers is a classic late-night NYC pizza joint in the Upper West Side that has been around for years AND offers gluten-free personal pizzas!
Bea
Bea is a fun, trendy brunch spot in Hell’s Kitchen. They offer live jazz and some of the best small plates I’ve had! Each dish is $10, or you can have unlimited plates brought out for $45. We split 4 plates and were happy campers.
From the top: Bacon, pork, potatoes and eggs. Best tasting pork I’ve ever had, hands down!
The egg boat – with scrambled eggs, red peppers, onions, jalepeno, and gouda.
Potatoes with cheese = best comfort food on a chilly morning!
Best pork ever – it looks oily but the flavor was ridiculous! It came with kidney beans and pineapple sauce.
Candied thick-cut bacon with brown sugar, maple, and chipotle. Yum!
Emporio
Emporio is a rustic Italian spot in Nolita (Northern Little Italy – such a cute area with high-end boutiques), which has gluten-free pizzas and pastas. We met up with my old college roommate from UCLA to catch up here. I’m so proud of her – she’s graduating from Medical School soon and will be a doctor!
Margherita gluten-free pizza – so fresh!
Gluten-free truffle pasta.
Regular truffle pasta. Look at those noodles!
Schmackary’s
Got an almond PSL, some gluten-free cookies and the cutest cookie monster mug at this local bakery! We came at just the right time, because when we were leaving there was a line out the door and around the block!
There you have my roundup for where to eat in NYC on a weekend trip! Don’t forget to check out my full NYC recap, and our summer trip to the big apple as well!
Comment Challenge: Have you been to NYC? What’s your fave restaurant there?
