By Marco Shalma

Community Kitchen is serving Michelin-trained monkfish and butter-glazed lamb to anyone who walks through the door-broke college kid or hedge fund bro, doesn't matter. Chef Mavis-Jay Sanders isn't running a charity. She's making a point.

While 96% of operators are watching labor costs explode and 34% are getting crushed by inventory prices, she's out here saying, "Actually, good food should be accessible to everyone."

Here's the thing: NYC's got 17,000+ food establishments, but how many are actually for New Yorkers anymore? When did eating in your own city become a luxury sport? We've watched rents skyrocket, ghost kitchens multiply, and somehow a slice now costs what your MetroCard used to. But then you get moments like this. A restaurant that refuses to play the same game. Where dignity isn't a premium add-on and a proper meal isn't gatekept by your bank account. It's not charity, it's a middle finger to the idea that fine dining and community have to be separate universes.

This is what we're here for at New York Eats Here. The spots that remember feeding people isn't just business, it's culture, it's resistance, it's New York at its grittiest and most generous. One-third of restaurants don't make it past year three in this town. The average employee ghosts after 110 days. Menu prices are up 25-30% in four years. The model's breaking. But every so often, someone like Chef Sanders reminds us what we're actually fighting for.

The city eats when we all eat.

When the city stays awake, these spots keep you fed.

NYC’s pizza hierarchy is a contact sport, and today’s headline bout pits two heavyweights: Prince Street Pizza and Scarr’s. One’s a red-sauce runway for influencers snapping that thick Sicilian square. The other? A Lower East Side temple where locals whisper about perfect crust hydration and real-deal flour blends.

Let’s be honest: Prince Street isn’t bad, it’s just crowded with… Watch More.

📍Cuts & Slices, Bed-Stuy

When Cuts & Slices opened on Howard Ave, it wasn’t about going viral, it was about feeding the block. Oxtail pies, honey jerk shrimp slices, and a “pay-what-you-can” wall for anyone low on cash.

Owner Randy Mclaren didn’t open a shop, he sparked a shift. He hired locals. He let artists paint the walls. The vibe changed. The line started wrapping the block — not just for food, but for something that felt like ours. This isn’t a food trend. It’s a community flex. A reminder that real flavor starts with real people.

Cuts & Slices didn’t go viral. It went vital.

We’re partnering with NMDP (National Marrow Donor Program), the global leader in bone marrow and blood stem cell transplants. Their mission connects patients battling life-threatening blood cancers with their life-saving matches.

Like us, NMDP believes in the power of community, because saving lives starts with showing up. Join us in supporting their work to expand the donor registry and bring hope to more families.

Learn more or join the registry: nmdp.org

Things we're chewing on this week

Saul Zabar, 1927-2025

The man who turned Zabar's into a 20,000-square-foot temple of smoked fish and arguments over babka died Tuesday at 97. He once said "a little controversy adds spice to our lives," which is the most New York thing anyone's ever said about running a deli. Rest in pastrami, king.

C's New Sugar Shame Campaign

Fast-food chains must now put tiny sugar spoon icons next to high-sugar drinks because apparently we need visual aids to understand a 32oz Sprite is liquid diabetes. Will it work? New Yorkers ignored calorie counts for years. Public health theatre at its finest—coming soon to a menu you'll completely ignore.

St Vendors Finally Win One

The City Council overrode Adams' veto and passed three bills protecting street vendors and delivery workers. The woman selling churros outside your subway might actually feed her family without criminalization now. If you've grabbed a $2 breakfast or late-night tamale, you owe these workers. Tip better.