Where to Eat Mushrooms in NYC

An open thread, because I need more suggestions!

I started this post to guide you to the best places to eat mushrooms in NYC, but then I realized that I actually need your help. I guess I primarily eat mushrooms at home and my list came up surprisingly short. My favorite mushroom sandwich at Foster Sundry got taken off the menu* and a few cafes where I used to order mushroom dishes have closed. So I’d love some help pointing me toward your favorite mushroom dishes in the comments! If you don’t live in NYC, I’d still love to know where you go for delicious mushrooms, for our collective inspiration or travel.

The spots here all have at least one really good mushroom dish that I think is worth making the trip for. They’re all relatively pricey though and I’d like to have more affordable options on the list. There are also surprisingly few vegan options here — most of these are served with cheese or eggs. Let me know what I’m missing!

Di An Di - Greenpoint

I was concerned when I ordered the Bánh Tráng Nướng Nấm (grilled rice paper with mushrooms) as an appetizer and the Nấm Cuốn (sizzling 5-spice mushrooms) as entrée that the two mushroom dishes would be basically the same, but the server assured me that they had different taste profiles, and she was right. The black garlic aioli on the rice paper made a very rich savory treat and the entrée had Asian fajita-vibes, served on a hot cast iron pan with bell peppers. I’ve put Di An Di at the top of the list both because the dishes so good and because the mushrooms are front and center, not hidden among a bunch of other ingredients. I also appreciate that you can get pretty good sized bowl of grilled mushrooms as a side with any dish.

Shake Shack - Flatiron

It doesn’t take a molecular gastronomist to figure out that a deep fried portobello filled with cheese is going to taste good, but I appreciate that Shake Shack has had their decadent vegetarian option long before all the the other burger places decided to add beyond-impossibly-processed meat to their menus. I don’t eat at Shake Shack that often (the Williamsburg location depresses me) but it feels like a necessary rite of summer to go to the Madison Square location at some point and the Shroom Burger never disappoints.

Edith’s Eatery & Grocery - East Williamsburg

Every brunch should offer mushrooms as an alternative to sausage, and I was so happy to see that proposed on Edith’s menu. The Kahvalti is a full Turkish breakfast of eggs, pickles, olives, ackawi cheese, and just savory enough with a small pile of Smallhold mushrooms (I’d be happier with a bigger pile, but I know those mushrooms cost money).

Hupo - Long Island City

Everything at Hupo is excellent: tasty but with delicate flavors, which I think is unusual for Chinese restaurants in America, especially Sichuan ones. The wood ear salad with pickled peppers is something you might skip over if all you want from Sichuan food is dan dan noodles and scallion pancakes, but it’s the best preparation of the slippery crunchy fungus I’ve had. If you go there, the egg and tomato soup is also very good.

Dirt Candy - Lower East Side

I’m not neutral here, but probably in a good way. You get tired of the food you’re making hundreds of times a night, but I have to say that the mushroom dishes we served were usually still appetizing after smelling them for hours. Dirt Candy’s menu changes seasonally, but there’s frequently a mushroom pâté which is impressively creamy and rich (even the vegan version). Right now I believe it features a mushroom crêpe cake that I’m sure is great.

Rule of Thirds - Greenpoint

A restaurant that I’d recommend in general, for special occasions. The kasujiru is a stew made from sake lees, a by-product of sake making, that usually has fish but here is just butter beans and lots of mushrooms. It’s incredibly warming and comforting; I think I’d ordered it to share but ended up stealing most of it myself.

Málà Project - East Village

Another Sichuan restaurant where basically everything is good, but spicier/saltier/less delicate than Hupo. You can pick and choose what you want in the dry pot (like hot pot but not a soup), which means you could have 4 types of mushroom if you want. Get some málà peanuts while you’re there.

Fiat Cafe - SoHo

“The veggie panini is probably the only veg sandwich I’ve been eating for 10+ years and is consistently good,” according to a friend whose taste I trust, and who’s worked in the neighborhood for years. Besides roasted mushrooms, it’s got caramelized onions, zucchini, red pepper, pesto, and goat cheese, which sounds killer. Why can’t more places put together roasted mushrooms and caramelized onions?

*Then I got into a whole thing with them over Instagram about how few vegetarian sandwiches they offer. “We love veggies and encourage ppl to eat small amounts of meat ethically,” they said to me over DM, but honestly one veggie versus seven sandwiches piled high with multiple types of meat doesn’t convey that message.

What I’m Cooking

Hippie Mushroom Salad (v)

I think this salad is pretty funny, aside from being delicious. You can add any hippie-crunchy ingredients you want, like sunflower or hemp seeds, carrots or sprouts. The dried mushroom powder in the dressing is pretty interesting, and not something I’ve really seen anywhere else.

Recipes like this on Fridays for paid subscribers:

Hippie mushroom salad (v)