Paleo Restaurants in New York
Goodbye New York!
I’m leaving New York after 6 long years here. It’s been full of fun, excitement, and hard work.
I have to admit that being Paleo here wasn’t easy despite the abundance of restaurants. And so, as I say my farewells to this fast-paced city, I thought I would memorialize some of my favorite Paleo(ish) restaurants. Hopefully you will find this list helpful when you come to visit this concrete jungle!
How to Eat Like a Caveman in a Concrete Jungle
A few general tips about eating Paleo in NYC before going to the restaurants:
1.Plan Where To Eat
With sooooo many tempting restaurants (and a ton of great look dessert places), it can be really easy to lose your way when visiting New York. Make reservations ahead of time (many restaurants get full quickly, especially during the weekends), and stick to it.
2.Load Up On Snacks
Walking around the city can be pretty exhausting if you’re not used to walking all the time. I’ve definitely clocked 6+ miles just walking around the city. There’s a pizza restaurant or a halal or pretzel street cart at pretty much every corner, so you should keep some healthy Paleo snacks with you to avoid the pitfalls of hunger. There are several Whole Foods around the city where you can load up every day before starting your sight-seeing.
3.Beware of Bad Restaurants!
Always check out the yelp reviews before going to a restaurant because some of them are truly awful! Or better still, stick to the list of restaurants below.
Where to Eat Paleo in NYC?
Location: 78 5th Ave (at 14th St).
Telephone: 212-510-8919
What To Eat EVERYTHING! The bowls are great with a root veg mash and some grass-fed beef topping. But basically, everything here is canola and seed oil free, and pretty much completely Paleo (although you might see the occasional quinoa popping up).
Price Good price for amazing quality food in NYC! A 2 course dinner (entree and dessert) will run you around $15-20 per person.
Atmosphere It’s a casual, self-serve place with lots of seating and really great decor (lots of wood and glass).
Locations: Too many to list (7 locations in Manhattan, plus more in Queens, Brooklyn, and Long Island). See here.
What To Eat Design your own burger (including wild boar, elk, bison, and ostrich patties!). I really liked the elk. You can have it in an iceberg lettuce wrap, and there’s a ton of different toppings and options. All their meat is free-range, pasture-raised, humanely raised, antibiotic, gluten and hormone free. They’ve also got some tasty sweet potato croqs (but I was told that they’re fried in peanut oil).
Price Starts at $8.45 for a beef patty with some toppings. You can generally get out under $15 for an interesting bunless burger.
Atmosphere Casual, but you do sit down and order at most locations.
Locations: 287 7th Ave (between 26th and 27th St) and 1026 3rd Ave (between 60th and 61st St).
Telephone: 212-488-7500 or 212-588-0080
What To Eat Burger or hot dog without the bun. Everything is grassfed, and you can order everything customized (including no bun).
Price Starts at $6.95 for a grass-fed beef patty.
Atmosphere Casual – great place to pick up a quick snack.
Locations: 5 locations in NYC (check here)
What To Eat This is a Japanese Yakitori BBQ place. So, you can pick various meats (including a ton of organ meats) to grill. Unfortunately, some of the meats are marinated.
Price Each portion of meat is pretty small, so if you’re just eating BBQ meat from their a la carte menu, then you might find yourself spending $40+ for a meal.
Atmosphere A bit loud and crowded, but they can often accommodate larger parties. It’s also nice to get to pick a variety of different meats that you might not otherwise get to try.
Locations: 37-08 30th Avenue, Astoria (Not in Manhattan, but only 15 minutes away from Midtown East by subway and definitely worth the trip).
What To Eat Pick your own meats from the carvery. This is an actual butcher (yep, you can buy your raw meat there too) and restaurant. I’ve definitely left after having a nice meal with several pounds of raw meat in a bag 🙂 “Locally sourced 100% grass-fed and grass-fed/organic grain finished beef, organic chicken, heritage breed pigs and more traditional meat products- always feed lot free and raised without hormones, antibiotics or animal by-products.” I recommend the double smoked burnt ends (a bit of sugar in the marinade) and the smoked pork belly.
Price I’m pretty full with 1/2 lb of meat from the carvery and maybe some sweet potato wedges as a side (I think these are just boiled and not fried in any oils), and that runs you around $20.
Atmosphere A homey place with a nice outdoor seating area.