No matter how popular kale becomes, there’s still nothing that can replace a New York City diner.
That classic, ‘take a load off and stuff yourself in a comfy booth’ sentiment is more than present at the newly opened Carnegie Diner on 57th Street in Midtown.
Perched right across from the famous Carnegie Hall, this diner is filled with paintings of those special enough to perform at the famed venue. Guests view these images while similar music echoes throughout the diner.
As for the menu, Carnegie Diner puts a trendy, NYC twist on some classic offerings like chocolate and bananas on its all day pancakes while featuring upscale entrees that are less common to diners like fettuccine Alfredo, shrimp scampi and more
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For many, the truly traditional diner meal seems the most natural path to wander — starting with a bowl of chicken noodle soup.
The chicken is more savory than the average cut for soup while a mellow broth readies your palate to take on a main course, however big or small it may be.
This meal, though incorporated a gargantuan main course by the name of the Five Hills double decker, bacon cheeseburger, served with a generous amount of crispy fries.
The juiciness of the burger is complimented by a zesty seasoning that’s also enhanced by the bacon’s crunch.
As many diner lovers do similar, I paired this burger with an Oreo milkshake that, like Hercules, proved to have stature that was less than a god but more than a man, as it’s served with a slice of cake atop.
Cautious to not entirely spoil the meal, I found that removing and saving the cake for a true dessert is the best way to have the shake and burger in unison.
From start to finish, it was a fulfilling (emphasis on the filling) meal that isn’t so easy to find in midtown anymore.
As more trendsetting restaurants occupy ground-floor retail throughout the city, escaping crowded bustle in a diner that overlooks an illuminated Carnegie Hall is a one of a kind experience on Seventh Avenue.
If a taste of old New York with a modern flavor is what you seek, the Carnegie Diner seems to be the ideal answer to your culinary prayers.
