Pho and more: What's trending on New York City's food scene?

Pho and more: What's trending on New York City's food scene?Just Pho | Photo: Jennifer C./Yelp
Hoodline
Published on September 16, 2019

Food trends come and go. So how can you tell which tastes are trending today?

We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp to uncover which eateries have been in the limelight this month.

To find out who made the list, we looked at New York City businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month, and tracked businesses that consistently increased their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance.

Read on to see which spots are worth exploring, right now.

Chairman Sun

photo: william z./yelp

Open since August, this Sichuan spot, which offers dim sum, seafood and more, is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Seafood" on Yelp.

Citywide, seafood spots saw a median 2% increase in new reviews over the past month, but Chairman Sun saw an impressive 685.7% increase, with an upward trend from a three-star rating a month ago to four stars today.

Located at 47-30 Vernon Blvd. in Long Island City, Chairman Sun offers a variety of Sichuan-style seafood specials, such as steamed whole fish with chopped chili, braised fish fillet with pickled mustard and sautéed frog. Other options on the menu include traditional pork, beef, poultry and lamb dishes, as well as dim sum favorites like pork buns and chicken feet.

Chairman Sun is open from 11 a.m.–10:30 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, 11 a.m.–11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m.-10:30 p.m. on Sunday.

Tara Rose

Photo: Tara Rose/Yelp

Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Tara Rose, the Kips Bay cocktail bar and New American spot is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.

While businesses categorized as "American (New)" on Yelp saw a median 1.5% increase in new reviews over the past month, Tara Rose bagged a considerable 315.4% increase in new reviews within that time frame, maintaining a convincing 4.5-star rating. It significantly outperformed the previous month by gaining 4.6 times more reviews than expected based on its past performance.

Open at 384 Third Ave. (between 27th and 28th streets) since July, Tara Rose serves a menu of contemporary comfort food. Check out the gastropub-style small plates, like the tempura cauliflower and falafel bites and heartier dishes like the pot of mussels with white beans and chorizo. There are also salads and ice cream sandwiches for dessert. To drink, Tara Rose's bar mixes up nine signature cocktails.

Tara Rose is open from 3 p.m.–4 a.m. on weekdays and 11 a.m.–4 a.m. on weekends.

Roasted Masala

photo: roasted masala/yelp

The Upper West Side's Roasted Masala is also making waves. Open since January at 914 Columbus Ave. (between 104th and 105th streets), the Indian spot has seen an imposing 181.8% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 2% for all businesses tagged "Indian" on Yelp. Moreover, on a month-to-month basis, Roasted Masala's review count increased by more than 1,000%.

Roasted Masala offers a full menu of traditional Indian meat, seafood and veggie dishes, from curries to biryanis and tandoori. The menu also includes a wide selection of vegetarian and vegan-friendly dishes. The restaurant is currently BYOB, and over the past month, it's seen its Yelp rating improve from 3.5 stars to 4.5 stars.

Roasted Masala is open for lunch from 11:30 a.m.–3 p.m. on weekdays and for dinner from 5–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday and 5 p.m.–10:30 p.m. on Friday. On Saturday, its open from 11:30 a.m.–10:30 p.m., and on Sunday, from 11:30 a.m.–10 p.m.

Just Pho

Photo: Andie N./Yelp

Chelsea's Just Pho is the city's buzziest Vietnamese spot by the numbers.

The Vietnamese spot, which opened at 252 W. 31st St. in August, increased its new review count by a notable 231.6% over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 1.5% for the Yelp category "Vietnamese."

Just Pho serves a concise, pho-focused menu, featuring three beef varieties and one chicken variety of the noodle soup. For appetizers, there are crab spring rolls and the house "One and Only" rolls. To drink, Just Pho offers watermelon juice, green tea lemonade and Vietnamese iced coffee.

Just Pho is open from 11 a.m.–10 p.m. on weekdays, 4–10 p.m. on Saturday and 4–9 p.m. on Sunday.


This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.