Manhattan Breakfast Thread
 

I did a search and found that breakfast recommendations were scatterered around various threads and posts so I thought I would start a new thread to solicit suggestions. The only place I know is Veselka (great if you lik borsht with your pancakes), but would like to diversify, preferably to places where the waitresses call you honey.

In the West Village, I like Pink Teacup, although there's generally a line. In Tribeca, there's Kitchenette (the website is out of date and they've recently moved around the corner to Chambers St. between W. Bway and Greenwich).

For Upper Westside options, there's Good Enough to Eat (site of a previous FT gettogether), Sarabeth's, Popover Cafe, Barney Greengrass...

Have never done Norma's in the Parker Meridien--it's very popular, but it sounds like an overpriced scene to me.

And while it's not in Manhattan, I'm now in love with Egg. It turns into a different restaurant from noon, though, so you have to get there early.

While we're at it, let's cross-reference some relevant threads:

• Harlem Brunch
• Sunday Brunch Suggestions in New York
• Best diner in Manhattan - esp Upper West Side
• Breakfast -- Upper East Side?

I'm with Calcifer on Norma's: Very popular, but I've never been and find it hard to believe that it could possibly be worth both (1) the hassle of getting a seat and (2) the price. But I've never met anyone who ate there and regretted it.

I'm not a huge Sarabeth's fan for much the same reasons. I think it's overpriced and not worth the wait, but some people love it. I'll take the Metro Diner at 100th and Broadway (which has great value pre-brunch breakfast specials) over Sarabeth's any day.

In general you won't be called "honey" in too many Manhattan breakfast joints. In most places you'll be waited on either by immigrant men who work their tails off but don't know much English and don't take much time for courtesy, or by aspiring actors who speak beautiful English and will give you a dashing smile, but who are too formal to dispense terms of endearment.

You may need to go to the outer boroughs to find waitresses who still call the clientele "honey."

Avoid any restaurants in any tour book. Find a nice local coffee shop and have the quintessential breakfast in the city.

I really like Penelope's near Grand Central. It's a very small charming cafe with great brunch options. It is also reasonably priced. ^ Note that there will be a wait on weekends.

In SoHo go for the Cupping Room on West Broadway. Their caviar and sour cream omelette is awesome!

Getting a table at Norma's actually is not that hard with a little planning: they do accept reservations, including on opentable.com. Is it worth the price? Probably not, but it is a fun place to take out-of-towners to. You ought to try it at least once.


Although I agree with your sentiment, sometimes I want a better breakfast than you find in most coffee shops. It's rare to have a bad coffee shop breakfast, but it's also rare to have a really good one, too. (That said, it's very easy to pay a lot of money in this city for a really bad breakfast -- remember Royal Canadian Pancake House? So I certainly agree that a high price and a line down the block does not guarantee a good meal.)

I've never been to the Royal Canadian Pancake House. For me, I think coffee shops offer the best in city breakfasts. Now, note, I am not into pancakes or french toast so if you're looking for authentic maple syrup, you may be on to something. I like eggs. Coffee shops do them great. Plus I can read my paper and be poured the endless cup of coffee. ^

RCPH is long gone (fortunately). They started in the Village or Soho, and then moved to 53rd and 2nd, serving HUGE portions of really bad food. Apparently the huge portions were a sufficient pull to get people to line up around the block for this place, but in addition to the fact that the portions were obscene, the food was just plain bad.

I'm a pancake and omelet guy, and while most diners do both competently (to go with their usually bad coffee!), I occasionally like a more upscale breakfast. I do agree with you, however, that most of the places people flock to are no better, and always more expensive, than the corner diner.

Worth every one of my 2500 pennies. I had the banana pancakes. Fresh orange juice. Coffee.

At one time, many people thought that Norma's was visited only by Eurotrash.
Don't mean to sound harsh. That was the perception at the time.

mcg1000 , you said 'The only place I know is Veselka (great if you like borsht with your pancakes)'.
Many of us have eaten at Veselka over the years at one of the NY get togethers. I can assure you that their breakfast is a little more upscale than you describe.

For a slightly better breakfast, I'd recommend http://www.restaurantflorent.com/florentindex.html

The best kept secret in NYC is:

Shopsin's

Of course many NYers know about it, but I am surprised how many do not. The family that runs it is very eccentric. The food is amazing b/c not only is it quite good, but it's very hard not to find something to eat that you have never even dreamed of. My breakfast of a Bacon, Egg and Cheeseburger with Egg & Cheese French Fries was superlative! (Im at Shopsins about 2x a week now).

The menu must be seen to be believed...even more amazing is how they make everything taste so good with such a wide range of ingredients. I think their small place and strict rules limiting parties to 4 is what makes that work.

http://www.shopsins.com/media/redshops/shopsiemenu.pdf

Thanks, DrivingRain. I'm one of those NYers who know about it but never have been. I've been inimidated by the place ever since I read Calvin Trillin's wonderful piece about the place in the New Yorker a few years ago.

What else do you recommend? My principal anxiety about the place is going in and not knowing what to order!

Give it a try. We may actually run into each other if you go over a weekend...cross-table conversation is common.

I've never had the same thing twice. 70% of what I have ordered I'd order again if it was not against my personal policy. 20% is good & all, just not worth ordering again. The last 10% is what I've not been happy with. But even on the rare occasion that I dont like something, it's fun to try Ropa Huevos Rancheros (brunch combo D) at a place like this.

So I would recommend:
Sneaky Pete (3 poached eggs on jalapeno/jack garlic baguette with bacon crumbles, tomato and scallion)
1/2 stack of Chocolate Coconut pancakes

These are two original dishes, but not too weird for the first time. And it's worth noting that the jalapeno in the Sneaky Pete is very mild.

Note that coffee and seltzer is self-serve. Just grab a mug from the cabinet and pour it yourself.

Don't get me wrong -- I love Veselka, I'm just staying in Midtown this time and don't want to have to get in a cab to get breakfast (even if my favourite borsht is waiting!)

For Midtown:
-I support that Norma's is very good
-I havent been to the new Sarabeth's on CPS,but if its like the UWS...then it should be good too
-Asiate at the Mandarin Oriental offers incredible views and a good, relatively pricey breakfast
-Amy's Bread on 9th Ave.
-Sullivan St Bakery on 47th b/t 10th and 11th. Not many places to sit there.
-Casa (aka Cupcake Cafe) near Port Authority on 9th Ave. Excellent coffee.
-Does anybody know exactly where Artie Lang gets his panckaes every morning? They look incredible on TV. It must be near Rock Center since Sirius' studio is there.

Better get your fill now. Might not be there for long:

http://www.curbed.com/archives/2006/...p_for_sale.php

My steady fav for more than 5 years is Comfort Diner. There are a couple of them, one on 45th bet 2nd and 3rd, and one on 23 and Broadway (?).

FANTASTIC french toast. Huge thick slabs of Challa bread, but each one is really fairly light, real maple syrup. Their omlettes are great, too. Friendly, efficient service.

Comfort diner is very resonably priced.

Avoid Frontier Diner, 39th and 3rd. AWFUL pancakes.

There's no news on this yet.

But Blumie, if you want to try it keep in mind that they go on vacation for a month after this Sunday!

I was looking for a place near the Natural History Museum a couple months ago and posted on FT about. Good Enough to Eat was suggested at it was fantastic.

The best pancakes I've had in Manhattan are the peach pancakes at the Little Place, which is across the street from Kitchenette (the downtown one). Interestingly, both the Little Place and Kitchenetts share a former address, that being the tiny catering place next to the little place.

Your mention of the article jogged my memory - I too, read the article and had intended on going there, but it slipped my mind.

The article is linked below, and I hope it is still open when I make my next trip to NYC:


http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/?020415fa_FACT

Now that Kitchenette has moved around the corner into Taylors' old space, I'm wondering how the restaurants will shuffle this time... ;)

The obscure documentary, "I Like Killing Flies" will finally be released in theaters next week. From what I understand, it is a very rough-around-the-edges documentary about Shopsin's. It was made before Kenny's wife & only waitress, Eve, died and it was shot in their previous building. The film's rare viewings had only occured around the time of its screening at Sundance a few years ago. Of course now Minda (one of Kenny's twin daughters) is running the front of the house and doing a splendid job. Her and Zach (Kenny's son) have done a lot to usher in a new generation of kids...who inevitably bring their own new kids to eat there too.

Another menu hint: for lunch, go with the taco fried chicken...the ultimate in comfort food imo.

La Bonbonniere, 8th Avenue just south of 14th St (moments from the subway). Old School doesn't begin to sum it up. It's great.

With Shopsin's on vacation I contemplated not eating breakfast or lunch anymore...but instead went with trying some of my fellow FTers recs.

-Went to La Bonbonniere (La Bon) yesterday. Very nice french toast. Omlettes looked good.

-Off to Pink Tea Cup now

Thanks for the update. Keep 'em coming.

Ues
 

Eli's Vinegar Factory is excellent and popular. Better to try a weekend breakfast as the weekend brunch can involve a bit of a wait. Like the phoenix, it has (thankfully) risen from the ashes!

DrivingRain, did you go see the film yet? I saw it last night (even though I've never been to Shopsin's) and enjoyed it--gave a pretty good view into Kenny's head. Impressed by how versatile his use of the f-bomb is, too! ;)

Where exactly is the old space--is it where Snack Taverna is now?

also tea and sympathy does a fantastic english breakfast every day til about 130 pm in the west village (greenwich between 7th and 8th aves)

Norma's - it is possible to reserve on OpenTable.com. On weekdays you can reserve easily. Pricey? In absolute terms, yes. But if you consider that many of the menu items you can't get anywhere else (or at least don't have a choice among them unless you go to Shopsin's ;) ) and you get high quality ingredients, extreme volume, and attentive service in an upscale setting and an expensive neighborhood, it may be worth it. Yes, it's $7 for fresh-squeezed orange juice. But it's a *bottomless* glass of fresh squeezed orange juice. Coffee is likeqise around $7 but you get your own French press pot full, and it is some of the best coffee in the city. Especially if you like it hi-octane.

Another place worth the trek - "Burgers and Cupcakes", formerly mitchell London foods. Mitchell London recently "renovated" the space (they painted, put up some pictures and changed their awning and name) to make it have a little more atmosphere. It is still bare bones and is all about the food. Service is haphazard, but it is relatively cheap and it serves, hands down, THE BEST PANCAKES IN TOWN. A bottomless stack of pancakes is about $7. Mitchell London is at heart a caterer, not a restauranteur, and his French crullers sell out by 11am on a weekend morning. They can also be found at Murray's cheese shop in the village, and the pancakes can also be found at Zabar's upstairs restaurant. It's on 9th Ave around 35th St. (1-2 blocks north of 34th).

(not really breakfast, but funny: they close early, around 9pm. Lately they have been putting cupcakes outside around closing time with a sign that says "FREE cupcake if you tell us you hate Bush," sometimes the sign just says "FREE CUPCAKES.")

I did see the film and, as I expected, I enjoyed it. I'm not sure what is in the old space. I never seem to walk by that particular corner. Maybe I will tomorrow after I eat there tomorrow after their way-too-long vacation.

Pink Tea Cup gets a thumbs up IMO. Their Strawberry panckaes and fried chicken is a very good dish.

Eli's Vinegar gets a very light thumbs down. It's not that it is not good or anything...I think if I lived in the neighborhood, I'd go there often. It just does not have anything that would make me purposely return. It is very much like the Fairway Market's cafe...only a 1/2 notch lower in overall quality.

Of course Bouchon is good as always for a quick pastry and coffee in the Time Warner Center. Look out for some strange hours though. Try the sticky buns. They also have a very good bran muffin. Actually...just about everything is good, albeit overpriced.

I'll have to check this place out. I tried calling once a few weeks ago to see if they delivered to me, but I was out of range. Maybe next weekend after my Shopsin's gorge this weekend (likely 3 visits in 3 days) plus a dinner at Stanton Social.

The whole political thing is certainly enough to give me pause. Reps or Dems, it doesnt matter (I hang out and contribute to both)...anyone that closed minded to literally write the word "hate", and to also incorporate it into their business like that, is probably someone I never want to do business with...but that's just me. It makes me want to walk in there and say...just for the hell of it, "I F'ing love Bush, F-you, and here is double the price in cash for my F-ing cupcake" (perhaps Kenny Shopsin's sharp tongue & temper is rubbing off on me :D )

kboo, do you mean Fairway's upstairs restaurant? Read in the Times yesterday that Mitchell London was back there again. I haven't tried the crullers but have admired them at Murray's--will have to pick one up next time.

DrivingRain, glad you liked Pink Tea Cup!

My current pastry fave is Bouley Bakery (helps that I live nearby). Some stuff is just overpriced (had a lemon poppy muffin I didn't care for, and their white breads are bland to me), but I think their croissants are excellent, and I unfortunately discovered the other day how good their chocolate chip cookies are. They've got tables out on the sidewalk which are nice in the current weather, but I always take stuff home to where my beloved espresso machine is waiting.