Want the intel on New York City's most happening local spots?
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp to analyze which local businesses have been seeing especially high review volumes 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 extra cool this autumn.
Haidilao Hotpot
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Flushing's Haidilao Hotpot, the Chinese spot is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Chinese" on Yelp saw a median 3.2% increase in new reviews over the past month, Haidilao Hotpot bagged a remarkable 535.3% increase in new reviews within that time frame, with a slight upward trend from a 4.5-star rating a month ago to its current five stars.
Open at 138-23 39th Ave. since July, this location of the Chinese hot pot chain, which has restaurants around the world, offers authentic hot pot prepared table side. Choose from ten different soup bases (up to four per table) and from ingredients like diced wagyu beef, marinated lamb, seafood, crispy tofu skin, lotus root, mushrooms and more. There's also a self-serve sauce bar.
Haidilao Hotpot is open from 11:30 a.m.–11:30 p.m. on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Thursday and from 11:30 a.m.–midnight on Friday and Saturday. (It's closed on Wednesday.)
Tap Haus 33
Midtown's Tap Haus 33 is also making waves. Open since July at 14 E. 33rd St. (between Fifth and and Madison avenues), the sports bar and gastropub has seen a staggering 150% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 1.5% for all businesses tagged "Sports Bars" on Yelp.
At Tap Haus 33, you can pour your own beers from 40 self-serve taps. The draft list features craft beers from across the country and you are charged by the ounce to make for easy sampling. Tap Haus 33 also offers pub grub like wings, flatbreads and burgers, as well as large TV screens for watching the game. Over the past month, it's seen its Yelp rating tick down from five stars to 4.5 stars.
Tap Haus 33 is open from 5 p.m.–midnight on Monday-Wednesday, 5 p.m.–1 a.m. on Thursday-Saturday and 5–11 p.m. on Sunday.
Madre
Greenpoint's Madre is the city's buzziest New American spot by the numbers.
The New American spot, which opened at 214 Franklin St. (between Green and Huron streets) in June, increased its new review count by a substantial 257.1% over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 1.6% for the Yelp category "American (New)." It outperformed the previous month by gaining 3.0 times more reviews than expected based on past performance.
It's not the only trending outlier in the New American category: Tara Rose has seen a 250% increase in reviews.
Madre serves a concise, seafood-focused menu of small and large plates. Try the oysters with pickled rhubarb mignonette, the hamachi crudo and the charred octopus with romesco. There are large plates with chicken and ribeye, too. Madre's bar offers beer, wine and specialty cocktails.
Madre is open from 5:30–10:30 p.m. on Sunday, Wednesday and Thursday and 5:30–11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. (It's closed on Monday and Tuesday.)
Omakase Room by Maaser
The West Village's Omakase Room by Maaser is currently on the upswing in the sushi bar category on Yelp.
While businesses categorized as "Sushi Bars" on Yelp saw a median 2% increase in new reviews over the past month, this sushi bar increased its new reviews by an impressive 271.4% — with its Yelp rating declining from five stars to four stars.
Open for business at 321 Bleecker St. (between Grove and Christopher streets) since July, Omakase Room by Maaser features an open kitchen and an intimate dining room. Guests sit at the counter and watch as chefs prepare 12 and 17-piece sushi tasting menus with fish imported from Japan. The restaurant is currently BYOB.
Omakase Room by Maaser is open from noon–3 p.m. and 5–10 p.m. on Tuesday-Thursday and noon–3 p.m. and 5–11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. (It's closed on Sunday and Monday.)
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.
