Best family restaurants in New York?????

Question

Hi

I'm spending 5 days in Manhattan, New York with my wife and 2 daughters and I would like some help on where is good to eat out.

Both of my daughters are veggie so it will have to be somewhere that will provide steak etc for me and the missus and a good choice for my daughters.

A variety of locations would be nice so we can see different parts of the city at night. Soho, Greenwich Village, Broadway, Central Park etc. Is there a restaurant under or near Brooklyn Bridge?

I'm guessing with my daughter's fussy eating habits we'll be eating at non-chain, family run pizza & pasta houses which won't be so bad if the food is good and they are in different locations around the city.

All help and suggestions and advice gratefully received.

Regards

Andy

London, UK

Answer 1

Joe's Shanghai in Flushing, NY. They have vegetarian soup dumplings, the most favorite in New York!

Answer 2

Patsy's Italian resturant near time square, it is a family run italian place

Homestead Steakhouse- Best steaks, but also have other stuff

Haru- Good fish, some steak

Answer 3

You can always go to Chinatown, they are able to put together big tables and have food with and without meat.

By the Brooklyn Bridge is the Bridge Cafe, rather expensive, but great food and incredible food.  As it's a truly upclass restaurant I am sure they make a vegetable platter.  Most restaurants in NY will have a veggie platter as one of the offerings.  There is also the Zen Palace, which is vegetarian, but the food is so good that meat eaters usually enjoy eating there,

Or, you can go the other way, for big tables you can try Carmine's a great Italian Restaurant where the veggies can just get some kind of spaghetti  and those that eat meat have their choice of whatever they want.  There is one in the Theater district and one on the Upper West Side in the 80's.

Answer 4

i went to this real authentic italian place off little italy on Mac Dougal St... can't remember the name, but if u do a googles search, im sure it'll come out. its definately a nice family place or place for two. not incredibly fancy, but NOT CASUAL either!

Answer 5

Since you're from London, I want to give you some advice - stay out of all Indian restaurants here - you would be so disappointed.  Most restaurants offer vegetarian choices, so no matter what kind of restaurant you choose, there will probably be things on the menu that appeal to your daughters.

  Try a Korean restaurant - there are more than a dozen of them on West 32nd Street between Broadway and Fifth (a block from Macy's, and right near the Empire State Building, so you'll be in the neighborhood anyway) - most of them have their menus posted in the window, so you can check items and prices.  Oddly, my favorite Korean restaurant (it's a block up on Fifth Avenue) is vegetarian (I'm not).  Hangawi - food's excellent, service is great and its a very pretty comfortable place

http://www.hangawirestaurant.com/

Eat in Chinatown, but I would avoid the vegetarian restaurants there - they serve "shrimp" made of turnips - tastes like turnips, but they charge you shrimp prices.  All the restaurants will have vegetarian choices.  My favorites are Fuleen Seafood at 11 Division Street and Sunrise 27, a few doors away at 27 Division Street.  But, most of the restaurants there are good.

Go to the East Village - there are loads of very good, inexpensive ethnic restaurants - try something you've never had before (again - don't eat the Indian food).  Walk up First Avenue and if you haven't found something that makes your mouth water, come back on Second Avenue.

Try a Cuban sandwich - there's a small restaurant/coffee shop called Havana on Eighth Avenue and 20th Street in Chelsea (or get one to go and split it - it's ham, pork, cheese, pickles grilled and pressed on Cuban bread - delicious.)  

Go to the Chelsea Market on 15th Street and Ninth Avenue - Amy's Bread's a great bakery;  try Fat Witch Brownies - they usually have free samples on the counter.  This huge building once housed Nabiso and it's the home of the Oreo cookie.  There are shops and restaurants.  Upstairs are the studios for the Food Network;  it's not unusual to see these chefs walking around the market.  There are places to snack;  if you are there for a meal, Buddakan is gorgeous - food's excellent.

http://www.buddakannyc.com/buddakan.html

There are tapas bars all over - great variety for carnivores and vegetarians (I love Xunta in the East Village on First Avenue and 10th Street.)

http://www.xuntatapas.com/

Then, if you haven't eaten to saturation, go for dessert - Chik-a-licious is a dessert restaurant - serving a three course meal;  it's very good

http://www.chikalicious.com/

Max Brenner on Broadway and East 13th Street has a lot of vegetarian choices and great desserts

http://www.maxbrenner.com/

- it's a block away from the greatest bookstore I know - The Strand.  If any of you love books and bookstores, you will love this place.

http://www.strandbooks.com/app/www/p/abo...

Try not to eat in the Times Square area.  If that's where you are staying, walk over to Ninth Avenue - there are wonderful restaurants there that don't cater to tourists and they are much less expensive.

Don't forget to try our pizza.  

You're going to have a great trip.

Answer 6

We were there in December - it was wonderful. I'm sure you'll have no problems.

Answer 7

since you're in manhattan, just go to the manhattan branch of Joe Shanghai in chinatown.

Answer 8

l'ecole