Revisit the NYC hotspots featured on Guy Fieri’s famous show “Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives” and see if they live up to the hype.
New York City—it’s the backdrop to thousands of TV shows and movies. From “Sex and the City” to “When Harry Met Sally,” it’s a timeless setting that often shapes the cultural zeitgeist. The metropolis is also home to nearly 8.5 million people and roughly 18,000 restaurants.
TripAdvisor deemed New York City the best city in the U.S. for dining, and 14th in the world. The food scene is arguably one of the most attractive facets of the city, luring in tourists and transplants from around the world who all aspire to take a big bite into the Big Apple. That’s why it has also been featured in several Food Network series, including Guy Fieri’s “Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives.”
The network describes the beloved show as an ode to the “greasy spoons,” or small, cheap restaurants, that “make America great.” Speaking of that catchphrase, the Mayor of Flavortown caused a stir when he was spotted hanging out with President Donald Trump at a UFC event in 2023. Most recently, he jumped from the frying pan and into the fire at a recent UFC fight on April 11 when he shook hands with the Tate brothers, who face human trafficking and sexual assault charges.
He has since tried to explain that he didn’t know who the Tates were, which resulted in Andrew retaliating and calling him a racial slur.
As a resident foodie myself, I was curious if his taste in food was any better than the men he hangs around. So I decided to hop onto the next subway and try three restaurants that were featured on his show to see if they were truly worth the hype—and who better to join me on my eating escapades than my good girlfriends who also have the perfect names if they ever wanted to be contestants on “The Bachelor”: Liz B., Michelle M., and Amanda D.
A little disclaimer: I didn’t watch any of the episodes prior to eating at any of these restaurants, in order to avoid any biases.
Brindle Room is a gastropub with a dive bar atmosphere in Alphabet City
Alphabet City is a hidden gem among NYC neighborhoods. While it can be hard to get to via public transportation, the food scene is full of well-kept secrets and hole-in-the-wall spots. In his hit show, Fieri featured an Alphabet City restaurant called Brindle Room, and when I saw the brunch menu, I had to see if this was one of those restaurants that was worth the arduous commute.
When I arrived on that Sunday afternoon, it was clear that neither my friends nor I understood the dress code assignment from the pictures of the restaurant we saw online. And looking around at the ambiance, it looked like the restaurant didn’t understand either.
On one side of the restaurant, you have a classical painting, and on the other, a sign that reminds you to keep your shoes on at all times. So my friend Liz dressed in her Sunday best, Michelle showed up in a cozy hoodie, and I was somewhere in the middle with a sweater. We all made sure to keep our shoes on, though.
Liz and Michelle decided to start off with some alcoholic drinks—a “Father’s Mimosa” that had gin in it, and a red wine. I decided to keep my dry run going and stuck to water, which apparently was the right call, as my friends said their drinks were basically overpriced water.
I ordered the Pandan French Toast ($18), which consisted of fluffy brioche bread topped with pure maple syrup, fresh berries, and caramelized bananas that rivaled candy. It was a perfectly good French Toast, but I didn’t get the “earthy vanilla” undertones that you would expect from a dish that is labeled as Pandan-flavored.
Liz ordered the Shakshuka ($20), which she said was “sloppily thrown together in an iron skillet.” She added, “The eggs were buried, and I had to dig for them.” Michelle, who tried a bite of the Shakshuka, felt like the eggs were overcooked and that the flavor of the tomato sauce lacked complexity.
While Liz and I finished our meals, Michelle took two bites of her Barbacoa Tacos and gave up on them. “The meat tasted mostly like salt water, and the tortillas had the texture of paper.” Out of the dishes we sampled, it seems like the few vegetarian options outweighed the one meat dish, but it wasn’t a spot that we would repeat.
Fieri had boasted about Brindle’s burger being the best in the city. Upon checking Google reviews, it seems like there are mixed reviews with some like Adam Gilaldi saying the $22 burger can “impress a date who loves burgers,” and others like K. Shearon critiquing the $27 blue cheese version, stating, “Burgers were tasteless, textureless mush. Soggy, greasy lump of slop on a plate. Not sure where the ‘blue’ in the blue cheese variation was.”
While I can’t comment on the burger, I will say Gilaldi has a point that a date paying for a $22 burger is impressive in this economy.
Verdict: 3 stars—hopefully not as lackluster as your last Hinge date.
Don Antonio offers a diverse pizza menu in Hell’s Kitchen
Don Antonio is a Neapolitan pizza shop located in Hell’s Kitchen, the neighborhood known for “Restaurant Row”—a block packed with one of the most diverse concentrations of cuisines in the world. Being a pizza shop in the city arguably known for the best pizzas in the U.S., and within one of the most esteemed neighborhoods in the culinary world, sets the expectations really high. Amanda and I decided to try the pizza shop as an after-work spot before heading out to a networking event.
We walked into the after-work crowd but were seated within three minutes, and our pizzas came out hot and fast. There were even two vegan options, which made my friend Amanda, our resident vegan expert, pleased. She ordered the Vegana pizza ($24), which came with many vegetable toppings; I kept it simple with a classic Margherita ($18).
While the crust was airy and you could tell the dough was perfectly proofed, it was so soggy that the sauce and toppings were falling off. It reminds me of the one lesson I took away from my days of binge-watching “The Great British Bake-Off”: Blind-bake your crust to avoid a soggy bottom. It’s worth the slightly extra wait time.
The Margherita pizza was otherwise decent, but the cooks could’ve been more generous with the basil. Both Amanda and I were super hungry as we had worked through our lunch hours and subsequently inhaled our perfectly portioned pizzas, though neither of us found it to be near the top 10 best pizzas in NYC.
“The dough could have been more flavorful,” Amanda said, adding that she wishes there was more seasoning to add flavor to the vegetable toppings. While neither of us felt like it was the “best Neapolitan pizza in Midtown Manhattan,” as stated on their website, it was the best out of the three Guy Fieri-approved restaurants we got to try.
The restaurant is most known for its deep-fried pizzas, though. So I would be willing to give Don Antonio another chance on a cheat day to see if the deep-fried crust will make a difference. Another factor to consider: The show featured Don Antonio back in 2013, but the chef left the restaurant in his daughter Giorgia Caporuscio’s capable hands in 2020 while he shifted focus to Keste Pizza & Vino.
The service was excellent and professional, but the tight fit in between the tables brought down the ambiance. “The walking aisle was so small that at one point a server trying to walk behind me accidentally bumped the back of my head,” recalled Amanda.
We were talking about our busy work schedules, and the guys who are busy fumbling the most amazing girls. Unfortunately, the romantic couple inches away from us had to hear our rants, and in turn, we heard other people’s conversations. We felt like we never got off the subway train that we were on to get there.
Verdict: 4 stars—at least your Hinge match didn’t take you on a walking date to the $1 pizza slice shop (although that might have been more bang for your buck).
John’s of 12th Street is an Italian restaurant that has been open for over a century in the East Village
John’s of 12th Street is not just an Italian restaurant in the East Village, but it’s also an iconic spot that has been used as a setting for several films and TV shows, including season 6, episode 19 of HBO’s “The Sopranos.” The restaurant has been open for over a century and is known for its Tuscan Ragu and Homemade Pappardelle.
Something Guy Fieri and I actually have in common is that we both consider Italian food as one of our favorite cuisines. So I figured I had to round up the girls for a night of carb-loading.
I had called ahead to set a reservation for 7:45 p.m. on a Saturday night for Liz, Amanda, and me. I was running late, but my friends were already there. Unfortunately, the host said everyone had to be present to be seated, even though I was only a block away.
Once I got there, the host said we had to wait for a table. As a response to someone else’s Google review, the owner replied, “If a party’s table is ready, we always seat them whether all their guests have arrived or not. When a table is not ready, folks often wait near the bar, or some wait outside.”
Regardless, there was a crowd of people waiting for tables, all being shuffled around from being told to wait right outside the men’s room to the entrance of the inner dining room. While moving around, we noticed a cute guy looking over. At one point, I was right next to him—when he smiled—and I decided to break the tension.
I asked how long he had been waiting and found out it had been a while, but he didn’t have a reservation. We got to talking about my assignment, and I plugged Courier New York. Initially, I saw him with another couple and assumed he was third-wheeling.
His group got a table, and then five minutes later, we were seated right next to the group, which actually turned out to be a double date situation. The seating was tight with the back of my chair being right behind the back of his, and he turned around to chat a bit more.
A guy talking to another girl in front of his date was a new one for me. We quickly moved on to perusing the menu, though, and finally got to appreciate the old-world Italian atmosphere with candles and white tablecloths.
We were impressed that John’s of 12th had an extensive vegan menu with several desserts, a rarity for Italian restaurants. Since Amanda is vegan, we decided to share an order of Vegan Garlic Bread ($5) for the table, which ended up being a decent starter.
Amanda didn’t want to spoil anything beforehand, but after we placed our order, she revealed that she had been to the restaurant previously. She had the Vegan Alfredo Pasta ($22.95) and didn’t recommend it. This time around, she ordered the Broccoli Rabe with Fire-Roasted Cherry Tomatoes ($23.95).
I decided to see how well John’s could do the basics and ordered the Marinara Penne ($14.95). Call me basic, but you truly can judge a lot by the marinara sauce. Liz ordered the Linguini with White Clam Sauce ($27.95), which she described as a dish that belonged in a neighborhood pizzeria and not valued at the price listed on the menu.
While Amanda’s dish was better this time around, she said it ultimately was average at best. I turned around to Amanda after my first very chewy bite and said, “This pasta is mid.” Liz, who has part-Italian heritage, agreed, and we had a girls’ night consensus.
The marinara sauce tasted like a base of canned tomatoes that was underseasoned, while the pasta was too firm. The garlic wasn’t minced, and the chunks tasted rather raw. We were all taking turns with the salt and pepper shakers.
Amanda said, “My food was just a little bland, and I was expecting more flavor, not just vegetables over penne.” She did say she was happy to have a real vegan option at an Italian restaurant, though, and felt filled with the big portion size.
Luckily, we had a positive plot twist in the form of the dessert menu. Liz and I shared the Tiramisu ($12.95), which was delightfully loaded with rum.
Amanda ordered a Vegan Cannoli ($12.95) and called it a “standout for sure.” “The cinnamon chocolate filling was heavenly and was a nice contrast to the crispy outer shell,” she added.
I took a bite and couldn’t even tell that it was vegan. The touch of cinnamon made it feel like I was eating an ice cream cone, ending the chaotic night on a high note.
I would go back just for the dessert menu, and would even argue that those desserts were the best dishes I ate from all three restaurants.
Verdict: 3.5 stars—hopefully your Hinge date doesn’t bring you here and start talking to some other girl while waiting to be seated.
Honorable mention to some of the other restaurants featured in “Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives”
“Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives” covered a total of 22 restaurants across four of the five NYC boroughs (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and The Bronx), with only seven of them still open today. MoGridder’s BBQ, the one restaurant in The Bronx that the show featured, was known for its beef brisket and ribs before permanently closing.
All six of the Queens’ dives have permanently closed, with Cuban restaurant Rincon Criollo shutting its doors in late 2023. There are two Brooklyn restaurants that remain open: Defonte’s Sandwich Shop and Pie’s n Thighs. If you’re from the South like myself, then you can check out the latter for Southern comfort food when you’re feeling nostalgic for home.
Fieri also covered the aforementioned Keste Pizza & Vino after the original chef at Don Antonio left to work there.
All in all, it seems like Flavortown didn’t deliver on the flavor, with some of the featured restaurants feeling more like tourist traps than hidden gems. Considering the price of the average entree out of all the main dishes we tried at these restaurants was slightly over $20, none of them seem to be “greasy spoons,” either, and seem to be more for those who were born with silver spoons. It made me question his judgment with restaurants and UFC fights.
Regardless, there’s no value that can be placed on getting to make plans with your good friends and catch up with each other’s lives. It’s like the Mastercard commercial slogan from the late 90s. French toast: $18, burger: $22, friend circle: priceless, dignity after your latest crashout: card read error.
And just like that, I couldn’t help but wonder if the true allure of New York City actually lies in the dynamic people you meet here. While you may initially come for the adventurous food scene, you ultimately stay for the ride-or-die friends who join you on your every adventure and listen to tea about all of the “guys” in your life—whether it’s laughing about that time you had feelings for the guy friend who gave mixed signals or commiserating over Guy Fieri giving restaurant recommendations that leave you with mixed feelings.
