Food in Upper West Side

Smoked fish sliced to order at a counter that has been on Amsterdam Avenue since 1929, under a business that started in Harlem in 1908. The dining area behind the counter kept its old wallpaper and formica tables. Order eggs and onions with lox and pay cash.

Restaurant Tue to Fri, 8:30am to 4pm. Sat and Sun, 8:30am to 5pm. Retail counter Tue to Sun, 8am to 5pm. Closed Monday

Charles Gabriel has been cooking this chicken in Harlem since the 1990s, and it is pan-fried in a cast-iron skillet rather than dropped in a fryer. The 72nd Street store opened in 2022. You order at the counter, there are no reservations, and it runs to 10pm on a weeknight.

Sunday to Thursday 11am to 10pm, Friday and Saturday 11am to 11pm

A standing counter on the corner of 72nd and Broadway selling a recession special of two dogs and a drink. Nicholas Gray opened it in 1973 after leaving Papaya King, and this is the last of the shops he ran. You eat at the window shelf looking out at the street.

The shop's own site posts open 24 hours. Current third-party listings instead post 8am to 10pm Sunday to Wednesday and 8am to 11pm Thursday to Saturday, so treat very late as unconfirmed

A narrow slice counter that has been on the same Broadway corner since the late 1950s, run by the Mangano family. The pizza is thin and heavy on the cheese, sold across a counter with a few stools against the wall. There is no table service and no menu beyond what is in the window.

Mon and Sun, noon to 9pm. Tue to Sat, noon to 10pm