Local Faves
Specialty Food Shops
Caputo’s Fine Foods
Fresh frozen pasta, imported grocery items, fresh mozzarella
Court Pastry Shop
Italian ices and cheesecake are the jam (Willie Nelson gets cookies from there while he’s in town)
Esposito’s Pork Store
Sandwiches, sausages, rice balls, fresh mozzarella
Paisano’s Butcher Shop
Thee best
Sahadi’s
Classic; get the white bean salad
Shelsky’s
The vincente!
Ten-ichi Mart
Japanese grocery opened during the pandemic and saved our lives
Yunhai Taiwanese Pantry
Taiwanese snacks, drinks, and more! (further afoot in Williamsburg but worth the trek!)
Bars and Restaurants
As You AreAs expected, in the Ace
Chez Moi
Probably “better” than Tabac but the same idea
Clover Club/Leyenda
Sister cocktail bars
Dinosaur BBQ
Iykyk
Ferdinando’s Foccaceria
Get the chickpea fritter and fresh ricotta sammich
French Louie
Solid staples, great garden in back
Gowanus Yacht Club
Seasonal outdoor bar; beers are the only thing worthwhile
HiHi Room
Makes a pretty mean cocktail
Popina
Pasta bros make Italian in their giant backyard
Hadramout
Yemeni food open 24 hours for the cabbies
Mile End
Poutine!
Rice & Miso
Possibly the best local onigiri around
Sam’s Italian Restaurant
Owner/waiter/chef; red sauce joint—stealth good pizza but get a gaggle of friends and order one of everything
Taiki
Wonderful sashimi/sushi with often unusual selections; some of their fish comes direct from Tsukiji Market
Ugly Baby
Widely considered to be some of the better thai food in nyc. EXTREMELY SPICY; take many people for a better experience
Other places to know
Books are MagicMcNally Jackson
Yoseka Stationery