Historic New York City Dishes You Can Still Order Today
New York City has fed hungry people for centuries, and some of those old recipes never went away. From pushcart snacks to fancy restaurant creations, certain dishes have survived decades or even a hundred years.
I want to show you where to find these tasty pieces of history that you can still eat right now.
1. Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog
Back in 1916, a Polish immigrant named Nathan Handwerker started selling hot dogs for a nickel at Coney Island. His recipe beat all the competition because he used better beef and a secret spice blend that people couldn’t resist.
You can still grab one at the original corner in Brooklyn. The snappy casing and juicy inside taste exactly like they did generations ago, making every bite a connection to old New York summers by the beach.
2. Eggs Benedict at Delmonico’s
Legend says a hungover Wall Street broker walked into Delmonico’s one morning in the 1860s asking for a cure. The chef whipped up poached eggs over ham with a rich, buttery hollandaise sauce, and breakfast history was born.
Delmonico’s still serves this luxurious dish in their elegant dining room. The velvety sauce drapes over perfectly cooked eggs, creating that same indulgent experience that New Yorkers have loved for over 150 years.
3. Pastrami on Rye at Katz’s Delicatessen
Since 1888, Katz’s has been hand-carving pastrami that’s been cured, smoked, and steamed for days until it melts in your mouth. Every sandwich comes piled impossibly high with peppery, tender meat that drips with flavor.
When you order, a cutter slices it right in front of you and hands you samples to taste. Grab some mustard and rye bread, and you’re eating the same sandwich that soldiers, actors, and regular New Yorkers have devoured for generations.
4. Black and White Cookie
These aren’t really cookies at all but soft, cakey rounds topped with vanilla fondant on one side and chocolate on the other. Bakeries across the city have been making them since the early 1900s, and they became a symbol of New York harmony.
You’ll find them at Zabar’s, bakeries in every neighborhood, and even some delis. The sweet icing and tender cake underneath create a simple pleasure that hasn’t changed in over a century of New York life.
5. Oysters at Grand Central Oyster Bar
When Grand Central Terminal opened in 1913, the Oyster Bar opened right along with it in the basement level. New York used to be oyster heaven, with harbor beds feeding the whole city before pollution took over.
Today, this restaurant still serves dozens of oyster varieties at its long marble counter. Slurp them raw with mignonette sauce or try them in a classic oyster stew, tasting the briny tradition that built this city’s appetite for seafood.
6. Cheesecake at Junior’s
Junior’s in Brooklyn has been baking their towering cheesecake since 1950, though the recipe comes from even older family traditions. The secret lies in the pure cream cheese filling that’s impossibly smooth and sits on a thin sponge cake base instead of regular crust.
One forkful reveals why this dessert won every competition it entered. Rich but not heavy, sweet but not cloying, it represents everything a New York cheesecake should be and has for decades.
7. Lobster Newberg
A sea captain named Ben Wenberg brought this recipe to Delmonico’s in the 1870s, and the chef created a rich, brandy-spiked cream sauce to showcase sweet lobster meat. After a falling out, they scrambled the captain’s name to Newberg, and the dish stuck around anyway.
Several old-school restaurants still prepare it tableside with dramatic flair. The cognac flames, the butter bubbles, and the lobster bathes in that decadent sauce that tastes like pure luxury from another era.
8. New York-Style Pizza Slice
Italian immigrants brought pizza to New York in the early 1900s, but the city transformed it into something unique. The thin, foldable crust, the balance of sweet tomato sauce and stretchy mozzarella, and the ability to grab a slice on the go became purely New York.
Places like Lombardi’s, which opened in 1905, still serve pies from coal-fired ovens. That charred, crispy bottom and droopy, cheesy top represent over a century of perfected pizza-making.
9. Manhattan Clam Chowder
While Boston gets famous for its creamy clam chowder, New York created a completely different version with tomatoes, vegetables, and a clear broth. Italian and Portuguese immigrants influenced this lighter, tangier soup that appeared in the early 1900s.
Old seafood spots and diners still ladle it out steaming hot. The briny clams, acidic tomatoes, and chunks of potato create a warming bowl that connects you to the working-class neighborhoods where this soup fed hungry dockworkers and factory employees.
10. Reuben Sandwich
Arguments rage about whether this sandwich was invented at Reuben’s Delicatessen in the 1920s or by a grocer in Omaha, but New York claimed it and made it famous. Corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing get grilled together until everything melts into perfection.
Delis across the city still press these sandwiches on their griddles. The tangy kraut cuts through rich meat and cheese, creating a flavor combination that’s stood the test of nearly a hundred years.
11. Egg Cream
Despite its name, this drink contains neither eggs nor cream, just chocolate syrup, milk, and fizzy seltzer mixed until a foamy head forms on top. Jewish candy stores in Brooklyn invented it in the late 1800s as an affordable treat for kids and adults alike.
A few old soda fountains and diners still make them the proper way. The key is vigorous stirring that creates that signature foam, giving you a sweet, fizzy drink that tastes like childhood in old New York.
12. Baked Alaska at Delmonico’s
When Alaska became a U.S. territory in 1867, Delmonico’s celebrated by creating this showstopping dessert. Ice cream gets covered in cake, then wrapped in meringue and briefly torched, creating something impossibly hot and cold at the same time.
The restaurant still sets these ablaze at tables, creating theater along with dessert. Watching the flames dance over meringue before digging into frozen and warm layers connects you to over 150 years of New York celebrating with food.
