Unsure where New York City's in-the-know crowd is eating and drinking? It's easy to spot lines out the door, but some underlying trends are harder to see.
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 uncover which eateries have been in the limelight 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 riding a trend, right now.
Red Hook Lobster Pound
Open since October 2015, this Midtown outpost of the Brooklyn seafood restaurant is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Seafood" on Yelp.
Citywide, seafood spots saw a median 1.6% increase in new reviews over the past month, but Red Hook Lobster Pound saw a 2.1% increase, maintaining a mixed 3.5-star rating throughout. According to SafeGraph foot traffic data, the number of visitors to Red Hook Lobster Pound more than tripled over the past month.
Located inside the Urbanspace Vanderbilt food hall at 230 Park Ave., this kiosk offers an abbreviated version of Red Hook's original menu, with a focus on the restaurant's specialty — lobster rolls. Other options include tuna melts and lobster grilled cheese sandwiches, sides of mac and cheese, Caesar salads and cups of seafood chowder.
Red Hook Lobster Pound is open from 11 a.m.–9 p.m. on weekdays and 11 a.m.–5 p.m. on weekends. According to SafeGraph, foot traffic is heaviest at 11 a.m., 4 p.m. and 5 p.m., and on Thursdays and Mondays, with a slowdown on Sundays.
Kung Fu Tea
The Financial District's Kung Fu Tea is also making waves. Open since December 2014 at 9 Broadway (near Battery Place), this location of the bubble tea franchise, which has shops across North America, Australia and Asia, has seen a 2.9% increase in new reviews over the last month, matching that of all businesses tagged "Coffee & Tea" on Yelp. But the number of visitors to Kung Fu Tea more than tripled over the same time frame, according to SafeGraph's foot traffic data.
In addition to bubble tea staples, Kung Fu Tea offers seasonal and signature creations, like pumpkin oolong milk tea, Caribbean Breeze slush and Milk Strike tea with toppings like Oreos, pudding, nata jelly and more. Over the past month, it's maintained a healthy four-star rating among Yelpers.
Kung Fu Tea is open from 11 a.m.–7:30 p.m. daily. According to SafeGraph, it's usually busiest at 11 a.m., noon and 1 p.m., and people visit Kung Fu Tea most on Tuesdays and Mondays, with a slowdown on Saturdays.
Dynasty Dim Sum
Kips Bay's Dynasty Dim Sum is the city's buzziest dim sum spot by the numbers.
The popular dim sum spot, which opened at 381 Third Ave. (between 27th and 28th streets) in late 2017, increased its new review count by 4.7% over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 2.2% for the Yelp category "Dim Sum." As for foot traffic, Dynasty Dim Sum saw visits more than triple over the past month, according to SafeGraph data.
Here's more about the business, from its history section on Yelp: "Using time-honored techniques passed down from generation to generation, our team has cultivated a refined menu of dishes, incorporating rich flavors from the outer regions of China. Dynasty presents a home-cooking tradition coupled with an elevated experience presented to China's elite royalty throughout the ages. Each handmade dumpling is prepared daily with choice ingredients thoughtfully selected by our chefs."
Dynasty Dim Sum serves up dim sum favorites like shumai, soup dumplings, turnip cakes, chicken feet and more, as well as stir-fry wok platters and hibachi entrees featuring meat, seafood and veggies. Lunch specials and prix-fixe menus are also available.
Dynasty Dim Sum is open from noon–10 p.m. daily. According to SafeGraph, it's usually busiest at 7 p.m., 8 p.m. and 9 p.m., and people visit Dynasty Dim Sum most on Saturdays and Mondays. If you’re planning your visit, you may want to try its slower periods on Thursdays.
Le Sia
The Hell's Kitchen location of Le Sia is currently on the upswing in the Asian fusion category on Yelp.
While businesses categorized as "Asian Fusion" on Yelp saw a median 1.9% increase in new reviews over the past month, this spot saw a surge in new reviews despite being relatively new to Yelp.
Open for business at 651 Ninth Ave. (between 45th and 46th streets) since December, this second location of the East Village restaurant offers Le Sia's signature Cajun-Chinese seafood boils with choice of seafood, seasoning, spice level and extras like corn, fish cakes, mini sausages and more. Check out the crawfish and snow crab combo with kimchi lime sauce or a lobster and shrimp combo with pickled pepper seasoning. Or try the Chinese-style étouffée, a twist on the classic Cajun rice dish.
Le Sia is open from 4:30 p.m.–1 a.m. on Monday-Thursday, 4:30 p.m.–2 a.m. on Friday, noon–2 a.m. on Saturday and noon–midnight 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.
