Are you searching for the best restaurants in Long Island, New York? Are you bored with eating at chain restaurants when you travel? Do you enjoy venturing out, eating local foods and taking advantage of experiences you can’t have at home? Do you want incredible food without spending a lot of money? I’ve got some hidden gems for you to try!
I’ve been traveling to Long Island almost annually since I was a born. I will leave out exactly how many years that’s been. 😂 I’ve tried so many different places over the years and here are my top picks for off the beaten path places on Long Island.
Best Restaurants in Long Island, New York for Breakfast
One of the best restaurants in Long Island, New York for breakfast is Calvert Manor Bagels in Seaford, NY. No visit to New York would be complete without some amazing bagels. These bagels are the best because they have a thin, hard and crunchy outer layer and are soft and chewy on the inside.
Some places make bagels that are just too chewy and tough to eat. Not this place! I’ve been going to this place for years and it never disappoints.
Another reason this is my favorite breakfast spot is they are the only place I’ve found anywhere that sells rye bagels. I just love rye bread and rye bagels are even better!
You can get bagels with butter, plain cream cheese, 18 different kinds of specialty cream cheese or made into a delectable sandwich.
I always choose the vegetable cream cheese to go with my rye bagel. However, low fat vegetable is also available if you are trying to save a few calories and tastes almost as good.
They put the cream cheese on with a cake icing spatula and spread it on thick. No disappointing thin layers of cream cheese you can barely taste on these bagels.
My family all have their favorites. My mom’s is the Asiago bagel with vegetable cream cheese. She tried the Egg Asiago below this time and said it was tasty.
My uncle’s is either the sesame bagel with strawberry cream cheese or his new favorite the “Healthy man” sandwich with 3 egg whites, turkey and Alpine lace swiss on your choice of bagel. Divine even if you are not trying to eat healthy!
Calvert Manor Bagels also has an amazing raspberry coffee cake. They have chocolate and apple, but the raspberry is the best in my opinion. That’s really saying something because chocolate is always my first choice!
Buy a whole cake to share with your traveling companions for breakfast. This way you can skip the sad hotel buffet breakfast and have breakfast in your PJs. Calvert Manor Bagels also sells it by the slice. The slices are big! Share with a friend. 😉
There is a whole wall of cold drink options as well as coffee and tea at the counter. When in New York I go for the Snapple which started in New York (many more varieties then I can find at home in Denver) or a hot cup of coffee.
Calvert Manor Bagels also offers a variety of other grab and go items. I like to grab a snack for later while I’m there. Try the New York brand, Hal’s kettle potato chips or choose a healthier salad or yogurt parfait.
Grab what you want, order your bagels and pay at the counter. Here’s a tip from your best friend. Pay with cash. Most small places on Long Island charge a fee for using a credit card, about 3-4%.
This place moves quick, so be ready! Sunday mornings have a line out the door, but it moves fast. Sit inside, outside or take your bagels to go for an impromptu picnic.
Skip the bakery goods, besides the coffee cake. I’ve got the best bakery on Long Island coming up!
Best Restaurants in Long Island, New York for Lunch
Next let’s move on to lunch. One of the best restaurants in Long Island, New York for lunch is the Hidden Oak Cafe at the Bayard Cutting Arboretum. This is truly a unique and classy experience if you want to live for a day like Long Island’s former gold coast elite. Fan of the HBO Show, The Gilded Age? The Bayard Cutting Arboretum was one of their filming locations!
Dine inside the manor house or on a nice day sit on the covered veranda at the back of the house, overlooking the great lawn and the Connetquot River. I always choose the veranda if the weather is decent. Absolutely blissful!
I’ve been coming to Bayard Cutting Arboretum since I was a kid to stroll the beautiful grounds. Recently they have refurbished the manor house and now offer tours on select days. Call and make reservations in advance.
As I got older my family and I would stop for a spot of tea and a sweet treat at the Hidden Oak Cafe. Peruse the bakery counter as you walk in.
The Hidden Oak Cafe also has a high tea, which they call the Victorian Tea, and requires 24 hours advance notice, but you can get a 2 cup pot of tea with no reservations like I did above.
There are a wide variety of teas to choose from. However, I usually go with the peach apricot and order a scone with Devonshire cream to go with my tea. The English Breakfast is also a good choice if you need a caffeine boost.
This restaurant is also a great place for soups, salads, sandwiches and quiche. Usually the food at attractions is mediocre at best, but The Hidden Oak Cafe uses high quality ingredients and makes delicious food.
I highly recommend the vegetable soup or the grilled cheese. I asked to have my grilled cheese with Swiss and it was gooey, crunchy and delicious!
After lunch, stroll the peaceful trail along the river and watch the swans, geese and ducks go by or sit in an adirondack chair and listen to the wind and the birds.
Admire the stunning homes on the other side of the river and watch the boats and kayakers float by. Very relaxing!
Bayard Cutting Arboretum is also home to a family of Ospreys which have a nest way atop one of the red brick chimneys above the veranda. Watch them swish and swoop into the river to catch fish. A birdwatchers delight!
Lastly after lunch head to one of my favorite beaches nearby, Fire Island National Seashore and the adjacent Robert Moses State Park. It makes for a very fun and relaxing day. Climb the lighthouse at Fire Island if you aren’t afraid of heights.
Best Restaurants for Dinner
My recommendation for the best restaurant in Long Island, New York for dinner is Frantoni’s Pizzeria in East Meadow, NY. You will find the best pizza outside of Italy in this spot!
Get a whole fresh grandma’s pizza. Trust me, you won’t regret it. I had never had grandma’s pizza before my uncle discovered this place and introduced me to it. Not in New York City or even in Italy itself. (If you are ordering pizza it’s always best to get a fresh pizza pie or look for a pizza pie that’s fresh out of the oven. Otherwise they can be burnt and dry when they are reheated.)
It’s a thin Sicilian (square) pizza. Most Sicilian pizzas are thick. It has a buttery crust and an amazing chunky tomato sauce that sits in delicious dollops on top of the pizza instead of underneath the cheese.
My uncle once described that you could just picture the old grandma in the back stirring the cauldron of amazing sauce with an oar.
The cheese is of high quality and is baked to the point of absolute perfection where the cheese turns from hot and gooey to bubbly and golden brown with just the right amount of chewiness. Then it’s topped with shreds of fresh basil. It’s almost orgasmic! Even the cold leftovers are delicious.
Be patient and let it cool a little. Remember this is sea level and things have to boil at a higher temperature than at a higher altitude like my home back in Denver. I always get too excited, don’t wait and burn my mouth the first day. Never fun.
Frantoni’s is also the classiest pizza joint I have ever been in. It’s light and bright with modern light fixtures, sparkly white quartz table tops and subtle damask wallpaper.
The walls are lined with dark wood, lighted mirrors and old-timey sepia prints of Italy. One even has the gentleman with a thought bubble dreaming that he wished he was at Frantoni’s…wait isn’t he already there? 😂
There is a large area in the front with booths, tables and chairs where you order your pizza and pay at the counter or a lovely back restaurant area where you can order a sit down meal and be served.
They also have a full bar which you can order from whether you dine in the casual front or more formal back. I get my pizza with a nice chianti or cabernet, but they also have beer, and a variety of fountain and bottled drinks.
I can tell this is a local place. You see everything from kids sports teams coming in for a celebratory pizza or the girls catching up after work with a glass of wine and a slice in the front, to the old white haired married couple sitting side by side in the back booth for their weekly date night in the restaurant.
If you opt for a sit down dinner in the back try a big salad or the baked ziti. It comes with the most amazing crescent rolls served with soft creamy butter. Heavenly!
Best Restaurant in Long Island, New York for Dessert
While technically not a restaurant, Dortoni’s Bakery is my favorite place for dessert on Long Island and possibly the world.
I have never seen so many intricately made cookies, pastries and cakes all in one place. They must have a small army of people working all night to prepare these decadent desserts.
While Dortoni’s has several locations I visit the one in Levittown, NY in the town of Hempstead. Fun fact about Levittown. It was the first American suburb and was built for veterans returning home from World War II.
This bakery which started in 1976 has been in business longer than I’ve been alive and it shows. They make every bakery item under the sun. Everything from fresh breads, cookies, pastries and even wedding cakes. If I lived in New York I would be here every week and probably weigh 300 pounds.
Are you overwhelmed with sugary deliciousness? Don’t fret. Below are some of my favorites to start with.
One of my all time favorites is the magnificent Almond Horn cookie. It has a soft and chewy inside of almond cakey marzipan with a crunchy outside of slivered almonds and is dipped in chocolate. Scrumptious!
I also love this cookie because it travels so well. I always try to take a box home when I return to Denver. If fits perfectly in my carry on bag and they are great to take along on picnics since they don’t melt too much.
The Cannoli of course! I like the chocolate dipped shell with either the traditional or the chocolate filling. The ricotta is smooth and creamy with little bursts of mini chocolate chips.
If you are looking for something extra decadent try this chocolate mousse pastry. It has layers of chocolate cake, chocolate mouse and a chocolate ganache frosting. I’m thinking I may have a chocolate addiction. Is there a rehab for that?
I hope you’ve enjoyed my post about the best restaurants in Long Island, New York. If you liked this post and want other recommendations of places to go and food to try check out this post.
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