My Top 5 Bites from New York

New York is a city of plenty. There are plenty of people, plenty of cabs, and plenty of fantastic places to eat. It would be physically impossible to eat everywhere or everything in New York, even for those as calorifically inclined as us. Thankfully, on our most recent visit we were located in Soho, with an absolute bounty of tasty treats to get our hands on. We struggled, frequently, with what the most acceptable number of meals in a single day was. But I'm happy to report that in amongst what seemed like endless feasts, we uncovered some truly wonderful bites that I'd like to share with you.

It's worth prefacing this with a sincere admission that pretty much any of these choices may be fervently, if not violently, argued by New York locals. There's always somewhere better, newer, more authentic, or god help us, more difficult to get into. There are defintely cheaper places too, because wow does eating in New York get expensive fast. At no point did we ever feel like the best things we ate weren't worth the price, but when you start averaging $60 a meal, you look forward to cooking at home again. That said, even I wouldn't attempt to recreate the best items on this list, because there are years and years of skill, practice and wisdom woven into every bite.

5. Cheese Slice, Joe's Pizza

There are few things more joyous in New York than embracing the wonder of pizza by the slice. Slices which more often than not resemble molten star destroyers, but still enjoy the pricing that a 'slice' suggests. Coming from a city where such things don't really exist, we took full advantage of this. After one night out, we had three slices as a nightcap. That's as amazing as it sounds.

Joe's Pizza, on Carmine & Bleeker is as much of an institution as a pizza purveyor can get. It is literally busy at every single hour of the day (and peaks at 3am, tellingly). I have no shame in saying I visited at 4:30pm, because there is never a bad time for a slice of pizza.

Joe's offers three options: a cheese slice, a fresh mozzarella slice, and a sicilian which is basically a massive brick-sized slab of deep dish. You can add a single topping if you wish, but then you're messing with a perfect formula. I opted for a cheese slice because you always start with the classics.

Plenty has been written about how pizza crusts (and bagels) taste different in New York because of the water. It's just as likely that one of the secret ingredients is sweat (or maybe swearing), because it really does taste different. The thing to note is that a New York slice is nothing like proper Italian pizza, so throw that comparison out immediately. This is an entirely different beast - greasy, chewy, crispy, light but strong enough to fold in half and probably fly if you asked it to. The cheese and tomato are deceptively well balanced, with both giving you a luxurious mouthful before you get to the edges and tear your way through the crust.

At any time of day, no matter what state you might be in, a cheese slice in New York is probably the best answer you can find.

4. Hot Fried Chicken & Honey Biscuits, The Dutch

Oh my word. If you like fried chicken, and the idea of eating it with scones makes you giggle, you need to try this.

The Dutch is a bright, bustling and fairly pricey venue that specialises in American fare (witness the utter might and supremacy on display in their double cheeseburger). I am a complete sucker for fried chicken, particularly because very good versions are notoriously tough to find. The fact that it came with a glistening pair of biscuits that looked like golden nuggets from sugar mountain meant there was basically no hesitation on my part.

Two things immediately leap out at you with this dish: first, the unbelievably crispy batter on the chicken, encasing perfectly cooked meat. Second, the hilariously spicy coleslaw! Yep, that little bowl in the corner supplied a ferocious hit of chilli that was both unexpected and the perfect companion to the honey biscuits. Biscuits have always been a fun little curio for me, feeling like the raucous, sugar-charged cousins of our stoic and far more serious scones. These were much softer, sweeter and lighter, with a wonderfully moist texture that never had me reaching for my drink after a bite. All three worked perfectly together, and I was overjoyed with the generous number of pieces of chicken. More pieces = more batter.

Should I return to The Dutch, I'd make it a point to get the aforementioned cheeseburger, because honestly it looked ridiculous. But I had no regrets with my dish, and if you're able to, just order both.

3. Mexican Street Corn, El Toro Blanco

This one was a complete surprise. For starters, this was a restaurant that we were recommended at the very last minute by our host, and one we'd never heard of. Furthermore, this dish was the very last thing I snuck onto the order, after ordering a frankly silly number of tacos and fresh guac. Lo and behold, however, this plucky little side strolled on to the table and blew everything else away. All of the dishes were good (the fried cod tacos were particularly on point), but the Street Corn took absolutely no prisoners.

See, take a look at that. Of everything on that table, who would have thought the simple looking bowl of corn would have left such an impression? But man, the flavours hiding in there. Smoky chargrilled corn, off the cob and mixed with a creamy, buttery, cheesy sauce topped with queso, chilli, spices and a perfectly sized whack of pepper. This is one of the only dishes here I'd even contemplate trying at home because it was just so damn good, but I'd be amazed if I got anything like these results. It's so rare to find a side in Mexican food that's this good, I'd recommend going just to try it.

2. Maine Blueberry Pancakes, Clinton St. Baking Company

It says a lot about Clinton St. that this is only place on this list that we had visited before. Discovered on our last visit, it was an absolute certainty that we'd return, and for the exact same dish. Admittedly no breakfast in the US can really fulfil its destiny without a side of bacon, but the pancakes are the unrivalled star of the show.

Three ludicrously fluffy pancakes, perfectly browned, laden with juicy blueberries and more piled on top for good measure. The unassuming dish on the left is a perfect blend of butter and maple syrup, so you don't even need to fuss with any obstacles between you and breakfast nirvana. You can pour or you can dunk, but I guarantee you will use every drop of it and then start eyeing up your partner's.

Here's the other thing: for people outside of the US, pancakes are one of those things you hear about in films or TV shows that almost never live up to the hype. They're stodgy, too dry or too wet, and virtually impossible to finish. Clinton St's pancakes are in every way the opposite of that. Not only will you love every bite, and eagerly finish (irrespective of the pain you may be in), but you will come back for them again. We did, and we always will.

1. DKA / Cronut, Dominique Ansel Bakery

The weight of expectation on this venue is pretty extraordinary. You hear whispers of people queuing at 5am for the latest monthly Cronut flavour. You hear about the limited numbers available, and the queue etiquette, with Dominique himself greeting shoppers when they open at 8am. You expect that it's impossible to hold up to these standards forever, and whether it's recession, complacency or just distractions, that somehow, standards must slip.

Nope. You walk in, you quietly gaze at the wonders under the glass, and then you receive perfection in pastry form. Now I can only comment on a couple of their offerings, but I vow to work my way through the rest of the menu on future visits. This is one of those destinations that you build into a trip from the start.

On this inaugural visit, I had two specific targets. The Cronut, and the DKA. One was very well known, the other was a local recommendation. Both were astonishing.

The Cronut was officially invented by Dominique Ansel, so the guy knows what he's doing. The original Cronut takes, as if by magic, a croissant and turns it into a donut. Many, many people have imitated it, but this is the real mccoy. And it shows. Aside from making 350 of them every single day, every month they also inject a new creamy concoction inside of it. This month the flavour is Pear, Honey and Thyme (the eagle-eyed among you will recognise the leaves). I'm not exaggerating when I say that the complexity and confidence in this flavour combination blew my mind. On the face of it this is a deep fried thing covered in sugar and icing, so of course it's going to taste great, right? But to orchestrate savoury and sweet in such perfect balance without any of it being too much: this is artistry at work. I absolutely hate the way "artisanal" is being thrown around like candy nowadays, but this warrants that title in every respect.

It would be easy to leave things on such a high note, but I can't separate the Cronut from my new favourite pastry:

The DKA is the best thing I have ever put in my face for breakfast. It is honestly a last supper kind of bite. I'd probably have one for the starter and one as a nightcap (with a slice of pizza). 

It's gloriously uncomplicated - caramelised, crispy pastry on the outside, and cloud-like buttery fluffiness on the inside. You can (and should) pull it apart with your hands and revel at the texture of it all. I always like to think that ultimate craftsmanship truly emerges when you can do something simple perfectly. It's hard to decide between this and the Cronut, so you can happily order both like I did and know that you are definitely in the hands of a master. 

I don't think I'll ever end up in New York again without visiting this place, and neither should you.