As fans of cronuts and cake pops can attest, food trends come and go. So how can you tell which tastes are trending at this very moment?
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 getting a notable increase in attention 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 on a hot streak, right now.
Atla
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Noho's Atla, the well-established Mexican "all-day eatery" is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Breakfast & Brunch" on Yelp saw a median 1.2% increase in new reviews over the past month, Atla experienced a 1.4% increase in new reviews within that time frame, maintaining a mixed 3.5-star rating. Moreover, according to SafeGraph foot traffic data, Atla saw visits more than triple in the past month.
There's more that's trending on New York City's breakfast and brunch scene: Chela Modern Mexican has seen a 2.1% bump in reviews.
Opened in the spring of 2017 by the team behind contemporary Mexican concept Cosme, Atla, located at 372 Lafayette St. (between Bond and Great Jones streets), serves up Mexican-inspired daytime fare, including signature takes on Mexican brunch staples like chilaquiles and huevos rancheros. This spot also boasts a wide selection of coffee and tea drinks, as well as a full bar serving up agave-forward cocktails.
According to SafeGraph, foot traffic at Atla is heaviest at 8 p.m., 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. Go on Mondays if you want to avoid the rush.
Taco Dumbo
The Garment District location of Taco Dumbo is also making waves.
Open since December 2018 at 1385 Broadway (between 37th and 38th streets), this outpost of the local Southern California-inspired taqueria has seen a 2% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 1.4% for all businesses tagged "Latin American" on Yelp. As for foot traffic, Taco Dumbo saw visits more than triple over the past month, according to SafeGraph data.
Taco Dumbo — which has four other restaurants around Manhattan and several more in the works — specializes in health-conscious tacos (with a number of gluten-free and vegan options) and cold-pressed juice margaritas in flavors like pineapple turmeric and watermelon basil. Over the past month, this location has maintained a sound four-star rating among Yelpers.
Taco Dumbo is open seven days a week. According to SafeGraph, it usually gets busy at noon, 1 p.m. and 2 p.m., and on Wednesdays and Fridays. If you’re planning your visit, you may want to try its slower periods on Sundays.
Cecconi's Dumbo
Cecconi's Dumbo is the city's buzziest Italian spot by the numbers.
This popular outpost of the London-based Italian restaurant — which opened at 55 Water St. in 2017, steps from Brooklyn Bridge Park — increased its new review count by only 0.3% over the past month, below the median new review count of 1.1% for the Yelp category "Italian." However, according to SafeGraph foot traffic data, Cecconi's Dumbo saw visits more than triple over the past month.
Cecconi's Dumbo offers guests refined Italian favorites, like antipasti, pizzas topped with truffles, homemade pasta dishes and meat and seafood entrees — not to mention views of the East River and the Manhattan skyline. Be sure to check out the extensive wine list and signature cocktails such as the Classic Negroni on tap.
According to SafeGraph, Cecconi's Dumbo is usually busiest at 1 p.m., 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., and people visit this spot most on Saturdays and Sundays, so go on Tuesdays if you want to avoid the rush.
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.
