I haven't been back since the pandemic, when I lost my mind over Very Fresh Noodles and because we…read morehad to eat outside, I didn't even get to explore much of anything. I visited right after opening, a little after 10 am (many businesses do not open until 11am, like my beloved Seed+Mill). My first impression was that it reminded me of a food hall similar to what I experienced in various cities in Japan. The variety of foods available is impressive and you really can find it all here, from an Italian grocer to Japanese to the various food stands offering everything from BBQ to the best halvah I've ever had. And there's a Pearl River Mart and other places to find gifts and souvenirs. My favorite of this ilk is Muji Market, which has all the Japanese amazing things! Also of note: very clean bathrooms. It reminds me of the bathrooms at Grand Central, a lot of stalls, sinks in the center, only much, much more pleasant. I'll be back as soon as I can. It's silly that I didn't come here when I actually lived in New York.

Swung by on a Saturday evening at 9pm for about 30 minutes while waiting for a late dinner…read morereservation. The physical location is open to 10pm though most shops and restaurants inside are closed by 8-9pm, only a handful of places like Chote Miya, Miznon, and La Devocione were still open though also wrapping up business for the evening. Wanted to highlight a few more stores here for this review: - Moon Man Foods: a Brooklyn-based company, they have a small stand about a third of the way thru the market (walking east to west), selling southeast Asian kaya jam, which is coconut-based and contain eggs, coconut milk, sugar, starch, and salt. They come in pandan, ube, and Java palm sugar (aka gula melaka) flavors. - Pearl River Mart and Pearl River Mart Foods: back in the day they used to be located in SoHo on Broadway, though rising rents made them relocate, and I'm glad they're still around! They carry all sorts of Asian-inspired decor, serving ware, stationery, and their "Foods" location downstairs is combination of Asian grocery, bubble tea (Milk & Tea), and Korean and Chinese snack/takeout stands (Kimbap Lab and Mao's Bao's). - Muji Market: this is a smaller location that carries a narrower assortment than your average Muji (house wares, basic apparel, accessories, kitchenware, snacks), though they have a full cafe serving coffee and matcha, simple Japanese lunch items like bowls, sandwiches and bento. Cafe prices seem a little higher probably due to the location. - gallery art: there is a small whitewashed hallway gallery of maybe a couple dozen small pieces by local artists, featuring NYC-centric photos, sketches, paintings, multi-media. Found this fun and entertaining!

Amazing cheesesteak. Best in the city. Rivals the best cheesesteaks in Philly…read more Danny (owner of Philly's Angelos) teaming up with Bradley, the story has been told multiple times this year - but damn does it deserve the recognition. Danny brings back the same identical cheesesteak he perfected at Angelo's. The cooper sharp melts in your mouth, the steak seasoned so well - salty and savory, the onions, the sesame bun. It's incredible. Service was great; even on suboptimal weather days it's busy. Inside the music is loud and no seats available, only a plain narrow shop with counters on the wall. It's hot and humid from the heat of the kitchen, it's compact and simple. The whole shop screams perfection at its core, and I'm listening... you should too.

Is it worth the hype! Absof*#@ing-lutely! Could it be one of the best sandwiches I've ever…read morehad...yes it's on that list. Is it just a cheesesteak sandwich...maybe BUT...they bake their own bread which pairs perfectly, it's soft, with a perfect chew and the sesame is really toasty. Also from what I can tell, they mix the steak with the cheesesauce before adding to the sandwich, so EVERY bite is cheese-filled. It sounds like a small thing, but it makes every bite amazing! Option of either adding sweet, hot or mixed peppers. Definitely recommend to add one of those as the acidity adds a nice brightness to the sandwich. They open at noon and I went a little after and it was ~10 min wait to order and ~15 min wait for the food, so plan accordingly.

There was this guy named Cõme and he was really nice and funny. Il aime la crème. He was making the…read morecheese samples really quick

I love Zabar's market! They have a lot of speciality items that I can't find at home. I purchased…read moresome goodies and some merch and just had a fun time looking around the store. They have a little bit of everything from prepared foods, a bakery, deli counter, caviar, coffee, tea, and so much more. I also stopped into the cafe to get a bagel with butter. It was late morning so the shop wasn't very busy. However, it took a long time to get my bagel and I couldn't figure out why. Some of the staff were just waiting around and it seemed like one guy was making all of the orders. Anyways, my bagel was great.

Isaac as our server was the best! Great service, the ambiance was super nice as well & the food was…read morephenomenal I definitely recommend!

Came in for dinner at Da Andrea while visiting from LA and left thinking about the service as much…read moreas the food. Yanny took care of my table and he was excellent! genuinely one of the best servers I've had in the city. Everything moved at the right pace. Courses came out exactly when they should have, nothing sat waiting, and my water and drink were never empty. He checked in at the right moments and then let me enjoy the meal instead of hovering. Every question I had about the menu got a real answer, and anything I asked for showed up quickly. What stood out most was the attention to detail! he noticed the small things before I had to ask, and it made the whole meal feel effortless. That kind of service is a skill, and Yanny clearly has it. If you're eating here, ask for him.

There are a number of similar names for this small, but mighty, establishment floating around on…read morethe internet: Ninth Avenue International Foods, Ninth Avenue International Market, International Grocery & International Food, Ninth Avenue International Grocery, or just what's written on the sign: International Grocery. Whatever the actual name, it seems that this Mediterranean specialty store has been open since 1947, run first by the Smitsis Family, and then the Karamouzis (including brothers Sotiris, Dinos, and Panayiotis). The Karamouzis moved it a few doors north to its present location in 1983. The neighborhood around the store has evolved a great deal over the years, but inside, old world charm persists. Everywhere you look there are bulk bins, barrels, and sacks brimming with: - Spices: all the staples needed for Mediterranean, Indian and North African cuisines, including za'atar, dried tamarind, cloves, allspice, rock salt, cumin, coriander, turmeric, paprika, red pepper, black mustard seed, etc... - Dried fruits: pineapple, apricots, raisins, figs, diced orange peel, dates, etc... - Dried nuts: cashews, macadamias, almonds in every form, walnuts, pistachios, etc.. - Grains, beans, lentils, and flours - Coffee I love that International Grocery has stuck with bins and barrels for all these years. Bulk bins were the norm when the store first opened and are so much more environmentally friendly than the ubiquitous single use plastic packaging we see nowadays. Environmentally conscious folks are increasingly coming around to appreciate bulk bins and I wouldn't be surprised if they became the hot "new" trend in coming years. If you stick with something for long enough, it comes back into fashion, right? The wonders don't end with all those glorious bins, however. Far from it. Improbably, all of the following (and more) also neatly fit into a store the size of a suburbanite's two-car garage: - Olives -- about 10-15 kinds by my last count, but I've seen even more varieties at times. I love my crisp, green Castelvetranos and black Kalamatas; the Progeny loves her pimento-stuffed Manzanillas. - Antipasti (mushrooms, artichokes, giardiniera, gigantes plaki) and preserved lemon peel - Feta (Bulgarian, Greek) and other cheeses - Tzatziki and other spreads - A variety of fresh and packaged pastries (baklava, kourabiedes, koulourakia) and halvas - Olive oils, pomegranate molasses, carob molasses - Pita breads and pasta - Rose water - Amardeen (an apricot leather used to make a Syrian drink of the same name) Prices are quite fair and the owners + staff are kind, generous, gentle and gracious. When my 10-year old privately expressed interest in the orange peel to me, one of the owners overheard and offered her some to try. They didn't look at all askance when she delightedly opened various bins to sniff the beautiful aromas within. (I did teach her to waft the smells to her nose by hand a la chemistry lab, instead of sticking her head into each bin.) As much as I detest the areas around Port Authority -- it's one of the dirtiest, smelliest parts of NYC -- I do go out of my way for International Grocery and will for as long as we're both around.

Absolutely love this place! First found it when looking for some spices I'd never heard of before…read morefor a Palestinian dessert. International Grocery had these and many other spices, grains, nuts, flours, everything you can think of, from multiple cuisines from many cultures around the Mediterranean. They also have fresh halvah, and delicious spanakopita, freshly made! I got into the habit of buying several generous servings-- one for now, several for my freezer. What a great find!

Delicious and healthy food and a cinch to work with for a catering order that was delivered…read more Thank you, Locanut; we'll gladly seek your catering out again for our next company event!

TLDR: Came for healthy food. Decent but a bit expensive for what it is. Probably won't come back…read moreanytime soon. FOOD: My partner and I were craving something on the healthier side so we came here. Good number of options for multiple diets, which I can appreciate. I was satisfied but wasn't all that excited. SERVICE: Fine, no complaints. AMBIANCE: A little odd. It's a small place and feels a bit crammed. it's more of a takeout spot is what I gathered. VALUE: Meh. They don't skimp on meat which is nice but I wasn't super impressed with the taste of my food.

If you are obsessed with just about any type of market then you need to stop by. The place is OCD…read morefriendly and smoothies are good but not life changing. I do feel that you need to dress up yourself and blend yourself right into that center table where everyone seems to be having a good time with the smoothies or low carb salad.

Happier Grocer left me a bit confused after my visit. I ordered the matcha latte with Okinawan…read moreblack sugar, and while it sounded great on paper, I genuinely could not taste the matcha at all. Even visually, it did not really look like matcha, which made me double check with the staff to see if I had been given a hojicha latte by mistake. It was a bit of a letdown, but I am open to giving it another shot and trying something else on the menu next time.

This was the best part of walking through SoHo. Rice pudding why not? I love rice pudding, so…read moreimagine my excitement when I saw all the flavors they had. I must say that the guy behind the counter was annoyed with us because I wanted to sample them all. They were all good so I couldn't decide.

Maybe a bit expensive for rice pudding but it was yummy. Love the vibe and decor. Despite the sassy…read moresignage, employees were welcoming and nice. They limit samples to 3 flavors. The classic creamy flavors were the best (coconut was delicious with coconut flakes).

Dinner | $40-50 We walked in last night without a…read morereservation. The owner/chef was extremely friendly and helpful and made sure that we were happy with everything we ordered and with the service. The cocktails were lovely and I enjoyed the vegan.bulgogi bibimbop quite a lot and my friend really liked her cheesecake. The restaurant is beautiful and the live music added a special touch. I'll be back!

SO many vegan & gluten free restaurants in NYC... so glad that I circled back to give it a try. The…read moreBLT with gluten free bread- spectacular! Look how sweet the place setting is UT47 Kitchen Great service too Little Gluten free cake just because... Not thrilled with paying almost $7 for a black brewed plain iced tea....

Teary-eyed and mouth watering at the abundance of deliciousness in Murray's! I went in early so I…read morecould enjoy this without a crowd. Elijah, behind the counter, helped me with my selection. I'd tell him my favorites and he offered up a variety of other cheeses that were similar but expanded the flavors. Go early to beat the crowd! Thanks Elijah!

As a past recipient of Murray's cheese gifts via mail, I was super excited to be in the area where…read morethe actual Murray's cheese shop is located. We were in the area doing our own mini pizza tour, and I had to ensure that our route took us by Murray's. I was hoping to get to try some of their in-house made charcuterie or mac & cheese bar, but our indulgence in nearby pizza places unfortunately left us too full to take on anymore. The shop itself is very well laid out with more options than you could ever imagine. The shop stretches back down a few steps and around the corner where they have much more than cheese. They have excellent options to put together at your whole charcuterie of any size here. They even have some premade options in their cold case if you're looking just for a quick snack for one or two people in a nearby park. I did pick up two options when I was in the store and I will say that both were exactly what I had come to expect for Murray's- delicious. Luckily, or unluckily, I'm not in the area otherwise I think a high amount of my money would be going to the shop.