NEW YORK CITY FOOD NEWS 1/19/26
+NYC FOOD NEWS+
- NYC slices now far more expensive than subway fare as ‘pizza principle’ disappears: As the MTA prepares to increase the transit fare to $3 on Jan. 4, pizza prices across town are substantially higher than the cost to ride the train. The typical price of a plain slice of pizza in New York City now approaches $4, according to a decade long survey of hundreds of slice joints conducted by this reporter across the city.
- NYC Farmers Market Staple’s Barn Gets Damaged in a Major Fire: Norwich Meadows Farm, an organic farm based in Norwich, New York, reported on Instagram that a major fire destroyed its main barn and packing shed overnight on Thursday, December 11, wiping out its packhouse, refrigeration, machinery, scales, and other essential equipment.
- How Katz’s Deli serves 70,000 pounds of meat a week: Eating at Katz’s Delicatessen, which has been on the Lower East Side since 1888, is basically a New York rite of passage. Best known for its pastrami sandwich, the deli goes through 70,000 pounds of meat a week and serves up to 4,000 people on its busiest day. You’re going to see everything it takes to prep and deliver a flawless service during the lunch rush at this iconic Jewish deli.
- The Biggest Food Stories on Eater NY in 2025: This recap of the goings-on in the food, restaurant, and chef scenes of New York City this year includes a sudden shutter of the short-lived restaurant from an acclaimed chef, the Manhattan debut of a Brighton Beach favorite grocery store, all of the British Indian restaurants coming to NYC, an award-winning actor opening a cheesesteak shop, and more.
- How Veganism Got Cooked Plant-based eating was supposed to be the future: Then meat came roaring back.
- Dark moments, harrowing journeys: New book chronicles migrants’ path to NYC kitchens.
- 11 New York Slice Counters That Never Stop Moving After 5 PM: Joe’s is the dependable friend you call when the night refuses to slow down. The slice lands hot, thin, and lightly blistered, with that classic fold that catches every droplet of orange tinged bliss.
+RESTAURANT OPENINGS/CLOSINGS+
- Once an Arbiter of Cool, a 30-Year-Old Nolita Icon Has Closed: Manhattan’s Cafe Gitane has apparently shuttered without fanfare.
- Carta, in the West Village, Keeps the Wine Flowing at Aperitivo: This spinoff from Carta, a wine bar also in the West Village where Europe dominates in the glass and the food is tapas-style, takes a very different approach. Here, France and Greece are poured, joined by other destinations with bottles starting at $68, glasses at $14. The food menu offers copious raw bar selections and simple crowd-pleasers like lobster mac and cheese, braised short ribs and roast chicken. The space opens in the morning with breakfast items, moves into lunch, serving sandwiches, soups and salads, and then, after 5 p.m., becomes the wine bar.
- Gusi to Open January 2026 in Greenwich Village: Gusi will introduce a refined interpretation of Eastern European cuisine to the heart of Greenwich Village. Named after the Slavic word for “geese,” GUSI draws inspiration from the journeys of migratory birds. Founded by husband-and-wife team Boris Artemyev and Elena Melnikova, both longtime veterans of New York’s restaurant scene, Gusi is a deeply personal project and the realization of their American dream.
+NEIGHBORHOOD TOURS NEWS+
DOWNTOWN MANHATTAN
- Homegrown Indie Spot Hamburger America Is About to Serve Its Millionth Burger: Restaurateur George Motz is about to hit a milestone. The filmmaker-turned-burger historian behind Hamburger America — the retro diner and living archive of regional American burger styles that opened in Soho in 2023.
- Biryani is bountiful in NYC. Here are 12 places to enjoy the South Asian dish: Vegetable biryani at Masala Times. This brightly decorated Greenwich Village stalwart is Bollywood-themed and offers fast food from Mumbai. The street-style vegetable biryani is spicy, dominated by onions and cardamom, and arrives in a vast heap — not for dainty eaters. It comes with a large quantity of thick, vegetable-shot raita, which should be spooned over the top.
- Union Square Hasn’t Seen Hand-Pulled Noodles Quite Like This: A sibling to Noodle Lane, Rulin will also serve Lanzhou, Sichuan, and Cantonese fare.
- Alleva Dairy, the oldest cheese shop in the U.S., is reopening inside Chelsea Market: Alleva Dairy was forced to shut down its original location after over 130 years in business.
- The 38 Best Restaurants in New York City: Burger scholar George Motz opened an ode to the hamburger of yore through this Soho restaurant partnership with Andrew and Jonathan Schnipper (behind the small chain of Schnipper’s burger spots).
- Where To Find The 14 Best Italian Subs In The US, According To Reviews: Faicco’s Italian Specialties has an old-school vibe for a very good reason: It’s legit old-school, and opened as a pork store in 1900. It’s been through a few different incarnations, but it’s still known for traditional meats, imports, and an outstanding, fan-favorite Italian sandwich.
- The Spots Of The Winter, NYC Edition: Bar Pisellino makes some of the city’s best hot chocolate, but so do Hani’s and Rigor Hill. But you know what those two don’t have? A Negroni for afterwards.
- Meet the Old and New Chinatown on One Menu: Lei, a warmly welcoming wine bar in Manhattan, manages to both honor tradition and bend it.
THE BORO’S
- Where NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani Is Eating in New York: The Queens-forever politician is fond of supporting local restaurants.
- The Best New Restaurants in Brooklyn, According to Eater Editors: From a new Malaysian restaurant in Greenpoint to the return of a Jewish deli.