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 and SafeGraph, a dataset of commercial points of interest and their visitor patterns, to deduce which local businesses have been in the spotlight this month.
To find out who made the list, we first 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. Then we analyzed foot traffic data from SafeGraph to validate the trends.
Read on to see which spots are worth exploring this autumn.
Jajaja
Open since September, this bar and Mexican spot is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Bars" on Yelp.
Citywide, bars saw a median 1.3% increase in new reviews over the past month, but Jajaja saw an imposing 300% increase, with a slight upward trend from a four-star rating a month ago to 4.5 stars today.
Located at 63 Carmine St. (near the intersection of Carmine Street and Seventh Avenue South), this is Jajaja's third location, following its flagship Lower East Side restaurant and a stand in Williamsburg's North Third Street Market. This West Village spot offers tacos, nachos, bowls and more (vegan and gluten-free options are available), as well as a drink list featuring nearly 70 tequilas and mezcals. Check out one of Jajaja's signature cocktails, like the Pineapple y Mezcal with cilantro and jalapeño or the Frozen Mexican Aperol Spritz.
Jajaja is open from 11 a.m.–midnight daily.
Douzo
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about the Lower East Side's Douzo, the sushi bar is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Sushi Bars" on Yelp saw a median 1.9% increase in new reviews over the past month, Douzo bagged a noteworthy 333.3% increase in new reviews within that time frame, maintaining a sterling five-star rating.
Open at 63 Delancey St. (at the corner of Delancey and Allen streets) since September, Douzo specializes in temaki sushi (hand rolls) and gunkan sushi (boat-shaped sushi). Stop in for sushi combos or for a make-your-own hand roll platter. To drink, Douzu offers beer, sake and wine.
Douzo is open from 5 p.m.–midnight on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday and 5 p.m.–1 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. (It's closed on Monday.)
Gayle's Broadway Rose
The Theater District's Gayle's Broadway Rose is also making waves. Open since May at 694 Eighth Ave. (between 43rd and 44th streets), this Broadway-themed pop-up, located inside the Roxy Diner, has seen a 94.1% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 1.5% for all businesses tagged "American (New)" on Yelp. Moreover, on a month-to-month basis, Gayle's Broadway Rose's review count increased by more than 270%.
Gayle's Broadway Rose offers diner favorites — like sandwiches, salads and loaded ice cream drinks — all served by a waitstaff singing songs from hit Broadway musicals. Over the past month, it's seen its Yelp rating improve from four stars to 4.5 stars.
Gayle's Broadway Rose's hours of operation change from week to week. See the business's website for more information.
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.
