As 2024 reaches its end, I can’t help but reflect on this year’s most enchanting memories. Naturally, mine primarily revolve around the best things I ate. So, without further ado, here’s a trip down memory lane, featuring some of my favorite hidden dining gems I’ve covered this year, along with some I’ve been keeping to myself.
Favorite overall gems
Out of all of the places I’ve covered this year, these are some of my favorites:
Bolivian Llama Party
In reflecting on my best eats for 2024, I quickly transport to the many days I spent strolling the streets of Sunnyside. I’ve covered Mexican breakfasts, Salvadorian pupusas and innovative pizzerias, yet no eatery quite stole my heart the way Bolivian Llama Party did.
Known for their salteñas — the official “dumpling” of Bolivia, resembling an empanada filled with a soupy, meaty filling — it surprisingly wasn’t these tasty handheld treats that left the biggest mark on me. It was the sopa de mani, or peanut soup. It’s nutty, velvety and creamy (despite being dairy-free), with a slight crunch thanks to a topping of truffled potato sticks. I also loved the fried chicken sandwich, which is best with dollops of llajua, their official hot sauce. I try not to pick favorites, but when I think back on all of the incredible things I ate this year, Bolivian Llama Party immediately comes to the forefront of my mind as the best.
Address: 44-14 48th Ave, Sunnyside, NY 11377
The Lonesome Club
I love when a place can challenge my misconceptions about a cuisine, and when it comes to stereotypical “bland” food, British or Irish comes to mind. However, when I saw on Google Maps a restaurant that serves true Irish cooking instead of the drunken pub fare I’ve been exposed to, I made the trek out to Windsor Terrace to try The Lonesome Club for myself.
The Irish soda bread was my first bite there. After shamelessly dunking the fluffy bread into butter, I realized I was in for typical Irish fare prepared in a way I had never experienced: soupy chicken pot pie, creamy shepherd’s pie and crispy fish and chips, but the standout was the cucumber salad, with thick hunks of both cucumber and sharp cheddar swimming in a minty, herbaceous dressing.
Address: 1674 10th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Pavé
The Irish soda bread from The Lonesome Club isn’t the only bread that blew my mind this year. I stumbled into Pavé, a small French bakery with a minty blue exterior, by happenstance during a disgruntled visit to Times Square. Entering the unassuming French bakery reminded me there are great hidden gems even in the busiest and most oversaturated parts of the city.
This small French bakery serves up simple but flawlessly executed French bread, and the jambon beurre sandwich here, served with a thick slathering of butter, grainy mustard and ham on a crusty baguette, reigns as my favorite sandwich of the year.
Address: 20 W 46th St, New York, NY 10036
Favorite new gems
There have been plenty of restaurant openings this year, but here are the ones that stood out to me:
NoMad Diner
Located in the back of the Arlo NoMad hotel, NoMad Diner, which opened in May, takes elements of a classic diner and gives them an elevated twist. For example, why eat plain old scrambled or sunny-side-up eggs when you could have green shakshuka steeped in a spicy, vibrant zhoug-based sauce?
While the spicy shakshuka did steal my heart, it was edged out by NoMad Diner’s disco fries. Completely covered in chicken gravy, thin cut fries are dolloped with creamy Gournay herb cheese, making for a messy but seriously delicious plate of potatoes. If you want to take the cheese factor a step further, take my advice and order a Parmigiano Reggiano martini.
Address: 11 E 31st St, New York, NY 10016 (inside the Arlo NoMad)
PB Brasserie Steak House
I didn’t tell you about this one yet, but my favorite new opening this year has to go to PB Brasserie Steak House, which opened in September. Run by Chef Elhadji Cisse of Ponty Bistro, this sprawling space on 125th Street is like a traditional French brasserie with some Senegalese spice.
I would be a happy camper with just their fries dipped in their Senegalese hot sauce, but a visit here deserves much more love than that. The moules Africana is like a Thai curry with an extra kick. Mussels swim in a rich coconut milk sauce with chunks of red onions, garlic and lemongrass, creating an aromatic and sinus-cleansing dish that’s ideal for winter. The mac and cheese is coated with buttery bubbly cheese and is just as comforting for these colder months.
Address: 60 W 125th St, New York, NY 10027
Tucci
As an avid fan of Delmonico’s, I was excited when the steakhouse’s owner, Max Tucci, announced he’d given his name to a new project in March 2024. An entirely different experience from Delmonico’s (while still holding onto that classy, old school charm), Tucci is an Italian restaurant in NoHo with a brightly lit upstairs dining space and a moody, sexy downstairs with decorative nods to Tuscany.
I ordered baked clams oreganata, cacio e pepe tartufi, casarecce alla boscaiola and chicken parmesan with smoked vodka sauce. My Tucci date and I agreed the two standouts were the casarecce, with perfectly chewy pasta and hot Italian sausage swimming throughout, along with the massive chicken parmesan, which was pounded thin with a nice ratio of smokey sauce and stringy mozz.
It might be a bold move to open an Italian restaurant in 2024 when the city is overflooded with them, but Tucci holds its own among some of New York’s finest, proving there’s still space for newcomers when done right.
Address: 643 Broadway, New York, NY 10012
Favorite classic gems
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. These are the classic gems I’ve finally dined at this year, that are simply timeless.
Eddie’s Sweet Shop
The only thing I love more than a hidden dining gem is a hidden dining gem with a good backstory. Fewer establishments in New York hold history quite as rich as Eddie’s Sweet Shop. I finally made my way to the old school Forest Hills ice cream shop this year, which just so happens to be the oldest ice cream parlor in the city of New York.
Even if you stepped inside without knowing this, there’s something naturally nostalgic about Eddie’s, with its rickety barstools, tiled floors and bustling employees. Their menu is as straightforward as it gets, with a rotation of classic ice cream flavors. I went for a chocolate and mint sundae, and felt like a kid again as I ate the sweet treat while spinning on my barstool.
Address: 105-29 Metropolitan Ave #1, Forest Hills, NY 11375
Rocco Steakhouse
When it comes to special occasions, there’s no better place than a New York steakhouse. On one celebratory night this year, I made my way to Rocco Steakhouse at their OG location on Madison Ave. Rocco Steakhouse has all of that classic steakhouse charm, with white tablecloths, martinis and bottles of wine found on nearly every table, the natural sounds of silverware clinking and people laughing over loud conversation and old school waiters running around with a playful yet slightly sassy attitude.
I started with the clams on the half shell and some sizzling Canadian bacon. While I’m happy I ordered more (like the porterhouse for two and nearly every dessert), if I had stopped at the clams, bacon and my glass of Sauvignon Blanc, it would have been enough of a reason for me to return. The clams are meaty, drowning in garlicky breadcrumbs and so much butter it feels naughty, and the extra thick-cut bacon’s char adds the right amount of texture to the fatty cut of meat.
Address: 72 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016
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