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A Miami Girl's New York: Where I Actually Go
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items I'm Miami-based but I'm in New York constantly, and I've stopped trying to do the tourist version. These are the places I actually book when I land — the ones I've been back to more than once, which is the only real test in a city with this much comp...
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Book Ahead vs. Just Walk In
Book Ahead vs. Just Walk In
Every note says which one it is. Rule of thumb: if it's on this list and you didn't book it, go at opening or eat at the bar.
BOOK AHEAD — or rather, show up when they open to put your name down, because that's the actual system. Cash, BYOB, candlelit, and worth every bit of the faff. Best pizza I've had in the city and I've tried hard to find better.
Lucali (Carroll Gardens)
WALK IN. Yes it's the touristy one and yes it's still worth it. Take a ticket, go to the counter (not table service), tip the carver and he'll hand you a taste while he works. Pastrami on rye, split it — the portion is absurd.
Katz's Delicatessen (LES)
BOOK AHEAD for dinner. But the real move is breakfast on a weekday — you can usually walk in, the room is just as beautiful with morning light through those windows, and it costs a third as much. Get the pastry basket.
Balthazar (SoHo)
WALK IN, but early. No reservations, so get there right at opening or expect to wait an hour on Grove Street. The green corner is as pretty as everyone says. Order the cacio e pepe and the svizzera burger and don't overthink it.
Via Carota (West Village)
BOOK AHEAD online to skip the ticket queue. Don't try to see it all — pick two wings and actually look. The rooftop bar is only open warm months and the view is worth planning around. Rainy-day plan that never disappoints.
The Met (Upper East Side)
WALK IN. The closest thing NYC has to how I eat in Miami — bright, produce-forward, good bowls, actual vegetables. Whole block is theirs now with the deli and the market. Best solo lunch on this list.
Dimes (Lower East Side)
BOOK AHEAD for the sit-down cafe. Bagel, lox, the works, in a proper soda-fountain room instead of standing on the pavement. If you can't get a table, the original shop is two minutes away — grab it to go and eat in the park.
Russ & Daughters Cafe (LES)
WALK IN, free. Go early morning on a weekday and it's genuinely peaceful; go Saturday afternoon and it's a shuffling queue. Enter at Gansevoort and walk north, then drop into Chelsea Market or keep going to Hudson Yards.
The High Line (Chelsea)
WALK IN, free. Best skyline view in the city and it's not close. Do it at golden hour, walk the bridge back into Manhattan after. The Washington Street shot everyone takes is a block up — go before 9am if you want it empty.
Brooklyn Bridge Park (DUMBO)
WALK IN. Eighteen miles of books and my default when it's raining or I have an hour to kill. The tote is the cheapest good souvenir in New York. Rare book room upstairs is worth a look even if you're not buying.
Strand Bookstore (Union Square)
WALK IN. Moroccan brunch on Wythe with the green awning and pavement tables. Where I send people who want Williamsburg without the two-hour wait everywhere else. Eggs with harissa, and the mint tea is the whole point.
Cafe Mogador (Williamsburg)
WALK IN. Touristy, yes, but it's indoors and it solves the “everyone wants something different” problem. Pairs perfectly with the High Line — walk the park, drop down into the market. Los Tacos No. 1 is the move.
Chelsea Market (Chelsea)