The 50 best coffee shops, bakeries and breakfast counters in NYC

15 of the 50

East Village 2

1. V

   Veselka

   East VillageUkrainian diner$

   Pierogi, blintzes and borscht at any hour — the counter is back to 24 hours on Fridays and Saturdays.

   Map
2. V

   Veniero's

   East VillageItalian pastry$

   An 1894 pasticceria with marble counters and a case that runs the length of the room. Cannoli filled to order, espresso standing up.

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Lower East Side 2

1. R

   Russ & Daughters

   Lower East SideAppetizing & smoked fish$$

   The appetizing counter since 1914 — hand-sliced lox, whitefish salad, a number in your hand. Take it to the café on Orchard if you want a table.

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2. K

   Kossar's Bagels & Bialys

   Lower East SideBagels & bialys$

   The country's oldest bialy bakery, hand-rolled and kettle-boiled on Grand Street since 1936. Open at six; get the bialy, not the bagel.

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Alphabet City 1

1. N

   Ninth Street Espresso

   Alphabet City$

   One of the counters that brought third-wave coffee to New York in 2001, still on the Avenue C corner. No syrups, no flavors — order a cappuccino.

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Belmont 1

1. M

   Madonia Brothers Bakery

   Belmont$

   Three generations on Arthur Avenue, baking since 1918. Prosciutto bread in the morning and a cannoli filled while you wait.

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Bushwick 1

1. S

   Sey Coffee

   Bushwick$$

   Light-roast single origins in a white-walled Bushwick roastery — as serious as coffee gets in this city. No laptops at weekends.

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Downtown Brooklyn 1

1. J

   Junior's Restaurant

   Downtown Brooklyn$$

   Breakfast from seven at the DeKalb Avenue original, since 1950. Eggs in a booth, then the cheesecake to take home.

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Greenwich Village 1

1. C

   Caffè Reggio

   Greenwich Village$

   The 1927 room that claims America's first cappuccino, and the original machine is still on the wall. Open till 3am.

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Long Island City 1

1. C

   Court Square Diner

   Long Island City$

   A stainless-steel diner under the 7 train, open 24 hours since 1946. Three eggs any hour of the night.

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Morningside Heights 1

1. H

   Hungarian Pastry Shop

   Morningside Heights$

   Cash only, no wifi, free refills, and the Cathedral out the window. Generations of Columbia dissertations were written at these tables.

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SoHo 1

1. D

   Dominique Ansel Bakery

   SoHo$$

   The Spring Street bakery that invented the Cronut and never coasted on it. The DKA and the frozen s'more are the reason to come back.

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Upper West Side 1

1. B

   Barney Greengrass

   Upper West Side$$

   The Sturgeon King since 1908 — eggs scrambled with lox and onions, at a table that hasn't changed. Closed Monday; cash is easiest.

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West Village 1

1. B

   Buvette

   West Village$$

   A tiny Parisian counter on Grove Street from dawn to candlelight. Waffle sandwich, steamed eggs, an espresso at the zinc.

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Williamsburg 1

1. D

   Devoción

   Williamsburg$$

   Colombian beans roasted within days of harvest, in a room built around a skylight and a wall of living coffee plants. The flagship, on Grand.

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The other 35

The 50 are spread across 34 neighborhoods. East Village (5), Lower East Side (4), Greenpoint (3), Williamsburg (3), Belmont (2) and Long Island City (2) have the most; the other 28 have 1 to 2 each.

All 50, on your own map

This page is 15 of them. The NYC Cafés & Breakfast pack in Whosly has all 50 — add it and every one drops onto your map, ready to save, rate and turn into a plan your friends RSVP to from a text, no app needed to answer. The pack is included with Planner Pro.

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