Nearly 50 days ago marked the beginning of one of our most ambitious projects yet: Over the course of six weeks, editors at New York Magazine and Grub Street, along with a roster of highly knowledgeable contributors, would seek out — and rank — the most excellent things to eat, drink, or just do in all of New York City.
At the time, the idea was to track down winners in 101 different topics. In the end, there were many amazing things, and we ended up slightly over that tally, eventually landing on 112 different subjects, finding the best nachos, hookup bar, piña colada, movie theater, and even the absolute best slice of pizza in all of New York City. Honestly, it was a good gig, though it was also a ton of work, and an unfathomable number of calories. (You’ve got to eat a lot of bad slices of pizza to find the city’s five best.) Now the time has come to take a break. In the meantime, here are all of the topics we covered over the course of this extensive undertaking. Think of it as a kind of ultimate summer to-do list:
• The Absolute Best 30th-Birthday Bar
• The Absolute Best After-Hours Party
• The Absolute Best Alcohol Delivery
• The Absolute Best Bar in the East Village
• The Absolute Best Bar in the Theater District
• The Absolute Best Bar in Williamsburg
• The Absolute Best Bars Featuring Live Music
• The Absolute Best Beer Store
• The Absolute Best Birthday Cake
• The Absolute Best Birthday Party for DIY Kids
• The Absolute Best Birthday Party for Hyperactive Kids
• The Absolute Best Bloody Mary
• The Absolute Best Bowling Alley
• The Absolute Best Brunch in Brooklyn
• The Absolute Best Brunch in Manhattan
• The Absolute Best Budget-Friendly Seafood
• The Absolute Best Cacio e Pepe
• The Absolute Best Cheesecake
• The Absolute Best Chicken Soup
• The Absolute Best Chinese Restaurant in Chinatown
• The Absolute Best Chinese Restaurant in Sunset Park
• The Absolute Best Chocolate-Chip Cookie
• The Absolute Best Classic Bar
• The Absolute Best Cocktail Bar
• The Absolute Best Comedy Club
• The Absolute Best Comedy Show
• The Absolute Best Concert Venue
• The Absolute Best Cuban Sandwich
• The Absolute Best Dan Dan Noodles
• The Absolute Best Dance Club
• The Absolute Best Downtown Date Bar
• The Absolute Best Downtown-Hotel Bar
• The Absolute Best Food-Court Stall in Flushing
• The Absolute Best French Fries
• The Absolute Best Fried Chicken
• The Absolute Best Fried-Chicken Sandwich
• The Absolute Best Gay Bar in Brooklyn
• The Absolute Best Gay Bar in Manhattan
• The Absolute Best Gay Dance Party
• The Absolute Best Grain Bowl
• The Absolute Best Hookup Bar
• The Absolute Best Ice-Cream Sundae
• The Absolute Best Iced Coffee
• The Absolute Best Indian Restaurant in Curry Hill
• The Absolute Best Italian Hero
• The Absolute Best Karaoke Bar
• The Absolute Best Korean Barbecue
• The Absolute Best Last-Minute Birthday Bar
• The Absolute Best Late-Night Restaurant
• The Absolute Best Latin Food in the Bronx
• The Absolute Best Lobster Roll
• The Absolute Best Midtown Bar for After-Work Drinks
• The Absolute Best Movie Theater
• The Absolute Best Neapolitan Pizza
• The Absolute Best Old-Fashioned
• The Absolute Best Peking Duck
• The Absolute Best Piña Colada
• The Absolute Best Place to Drink Wine
• The Absolute Best Polish Restaurant in Greenpoint
• The Absolute Best Pop-up Party
• The Absolute Best Queer Night
• The Absolute Best Red-Sauce Italian Restaurant
• The Absolute Best Restaurant in New York
• The Absolute Best Restaurant in Bushwick
• The Absolute Best Restaurant in Carroll Gardens
• The Absolute Best Restaurant in Park Slope
• The Absolute Best Restaurant in Red Hook
• The Absolute Best Restaurant in the West Village
• The Absolute Best Restaurant in Williamsburg
• The Absolute Best Restaurant on the Upper West Side
• The Absolute Best Reuben Sandwich
• The Absolute Best Roast Chicken
• The Absolute Best Rooftop Bar
• The Absolute Best Slice of Pizza
• The Absolute Best Soup Dumplings
• The Absolute Best Sushi Omakase
• The Absolute Best Tasting Menu
• The Absolute Best Thai Food in Elmhurst
• The Absolute Best Upscale Seafood Restaurant
• The Absolute Best Uptown Date Bar
• The Absolute Best Uptown-Hotel Bar
• The Absolute Best Veggie Burger