NYCGuide

The NYC TV & Takeout Guide

Where to order from, and what to watch: 15 ways to do dinner and TV right.
The NYC TV & Takeout Guide image

photo credit: Emily Schindler

If you’re like us, your nights currently revolve around three main questions: what to eat, what to watch, and what time to change into evening leisurewear. Because let’s face it, there isn’t much else to do and your ex still hasn’t changed their Hulu password. So we’re here to make sure you’re doing dinner and TV right. Below, you’ll find our picks for great delivery, and a new or classic show to pair with it. We’ll be updating this regularly, and if you want to tell us about the exciting things you’re eating or watching right now, you can send us an email to newsletter@theinfatuation.com.

The Spots

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Analogue

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TV Pairing:High Fidelity (Hulu)

“The new High Fidelity TV series is the ultimate breakup saga. Each episode follows Rob, played by Zoe Kravitz, through a series of run-ins with her exes who either broke her heart, confused her, or in some cases, both. It’s also about how music helps her cope. But unlike most of us who use Spotify to stream the songs that our exes once played from the speakers of a white Honda Accord, Rob owns a record store in Brooklyn. She also pulls off the combination of breaking the fourth wall, wearing a leather trench coat, and drinking alone at a bar better than anyone I know. You’ll feel like you’re cool enough to do all of these things right along with her if you sip whiskey from Analogue while you watch.” - ND


Pizza

Soho

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TV Pairing:The Last Dance (ESPN App)

“I miss sports. I miss them so much that I watched 10 episodes of a rival team stress about winning six championships, while the Knicks haven’t sniffed hardware since the Nixon administration. And I’m very happy I did because The Last Dance isn’t just about MJ and The Bulls. It’s about heroes and villains, perfection, and the glory of ’90s fashion. While watching it, I recommend putting another bias aside, and ordering a Chicago-style pizza from Emmett’s. Feel free to call it a tomato, mozzarella, and buttery bread casserole if you want, because you’ll enjoy it no matter what.” -MT


TV Pairing:The Big Flower Fight (Netflix)

“When you eventually run out of King Arthur flour and British Bake Off reruns, this new Netflix reality show will work as the next best thing. The Big Flower Fight has practically the same set-up as Bake Off, only the contestants are tasked with making complicated floral designs, and their pieces get brutally composted upon elimination. Pair this new, sedative show with a sedative spicy chicken sandwich and tater tots from the relatively-new Saigon Social.” - HA


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TV Pairing:Deadwood (HBO)

“Like Bjorn Borg at 26 or an ex who’s afraid of commitment, Deadwood called it quits in its prime back in 2006. I would’ve loved to see more Timothy Olyphant and Ian McShane or Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane, but I also appreciate that there were never any lulls during its three phenomenal seasons. The takeout menu at Reverence in Harlem is similarly concise, and while you might wish it had more than just a fish and a meat-focused tasting menu, you should also appreciate that there are no weak spots.” -MT


TV Pairing:Community (Netflix)

“I keep coming back to Community during quarantine. It’s objectively entertaining to live vicariously through the witty banter between a college study group turned best friend circle - especially while we’re missing that in-person connection with our own close friends right now. This show actually makes me laugh out loud (rare) and has even reminded me of a few of my brightest moments from college in Berkeley. Community is sort of like a hyperbolic yearbook, but without the embarrassing photos or meaningless quotes - and with more Donald Glover. The Spanish class that brings the cast together is more like a series of bite-sized lessons in authoritarianism, led by comedian and actor Ken Jeong. So it only makes sense that you’d order some tapas to go along with it.” -ND


TV Pairing:Daria (Hulu)

“When I first saw the logo for Sick Sad World, a tabloid TV news show that Daria Morgendorffer regularly watched in this ’90s animated comedy series, it was just a screenshot circulating on Tumblr. I was a freshman in high school at the time - complete with low self-esteem, black sheep syndrome, and a suburban wonderland to console me. The show follows Daria as she deals with the same kinds of things, and naturally, I was sold. 20-ish years later, her sarcastic criticisms and witty banter still hold up. Strangely, my life continues to mirror Daria’s in some ways. I like hanging at Paulie Gee’s Slice Shop just like Daria and her best friend Jane Lane like to hang at their neighborhood pizza parlor. We both love a good combat boot. And sometimes sensationalist news stories sound like something from an episode of Sick Sad World.” -ND


TV Pairing:Insecure (HBO)

Insecure is a show about good people who tend to make bad decisions, mostly because they get a little horny or hangry or concerned about their career paths. We can all relate. I can, especially, because it takes place in LA where I’m from and, like its leading lady Issa, I also have a boundless appetite for Mexican food as well as an alter ego who gives herself mirror pep talks. Flaming margaritas and/or tacos make a cameo in just about every other episode, so order something from our Mexican Delivery Guide (I’d go with a combo plate from Taqueria El Patron), and queue up Insecure. Also, I’d be doing you dirty if I didn’t tell you that someone nice put all of the music from the show in this Spotify playlist. You’re going to want it.” -AS


TV Pairing:The Wire (HBO)

“I started The Wire in college after some brooding sophomore told me I’d like it, and then stopped because the season about the Baltimore school system left me hopeless. Quarantine has reunited me with my pals Bunk, Lester, and Omar, and I’m appreciating the show’s character complexities way more now than I did when I was in the “do whatever a guy in your film class tells you to” phase of life. I’ve also noticed how much David Simon loves to show people eating on TV. Every time the Baltimore police use McDonald’s to bribe someone, I feel the urgent need to find a juicy burger and spill all my secrets. Be proactive and order one from BK Jani while you re-watch your favorite episodes or (dramatic gasp) start the show for the very first time.” -HA


TV Pairing:Friday Night Lights (Prime or Hulu)

“I have a hoodie that says ‘Texas Forever.’ I’ve never been to Texas. That’s the power of Big Tim Riggins, Lyla Garrity, and Tyra Collette. The show is centered around a high school football team, but you don’t need to know a nickleback from Nickleback to enjoy FNL. Along with small-town high school football, nothing says Texas like brisket, and no place in the city does brisket as well as Hometown.” -MT


TV Pairing:Never Have I Ever (Netflix)

“As a long time swooner of shows with quirky female protagonists, I’m here to report that Never Have I Ever is a marvel, and possibly the best teen sitcom since My So Called Life. It’s written by Mindy Kaling (starts checking boxes), and follows the trials and tribulations of Devi, a dorky high schooler who lies about boning the hottest guy at Sherman Oaks high (check). And in case you’re still not sold, you should know that all of Devi’s inner thoughts are narrated by former tennis superstar John McEnroe (unexpected but delightful, check). There’s a wonderful scene where Devi, her mom, her cousin, and her arch-nemesis eat tacos together in Devi’s house - and if you order tacos from the Los Tacos No. 1, you can pretend you’re at the table too.” - HA


TV Pairing:Twin Peaks (Netflix)

“It feels disrespectful to skip the intro of Twin Peaks on Netflix. The show’s slow and eerie opening prepares you for the nostalgic and suspenseful journey ahead. One of the best TV series of all time, Twin Peaks is a surrealist crime drama that takes place in a small logging town where one should expect the unexpected. Whether the whole thing is Laura Palmer’s dream following her mysterious death, I’m not sure. You’d have to ask David Lynch about that. What I can tell you is that there’s no better takeout option to enjoy while watching than the tavern burger - a masterpiece in its own right.” -ND


TV Pairing:Too Hot To Handle (Netflix)

“Watching Too Hot To Handle requires profound courage and hopefully weed. But once you’re locked in, Netflix’s dumbest reality show will fill a hole in your heart you didn’t know you had. Here’s the premise: a group of hot people get shipped off to an island bungalow to flirt and cohabitate, only to be informed that their $100,000 winnings will dwindle incrementally with each sexual encounter. That’s it. That’s really the whole show. And considering Golden Diner can turn ingredients like cabbage and white bread into sex symbols, their chicken katsu club is really the only thing you should be ordering while you hate/love watch this horrific spectacle of human life.” - HA


photo credit: Emily Schindler

TV Pairing:The Sopranos (HBO)

“It was recently brought to my attention that I have a tendency to begin TV show recommendations with, “It’s not The Sopranos, but...” and it occurred to me that I hadn’t actually watched the series cover-to-cover in years. So I changed that, and I highly recommend you do the same. For a delivery pairing, you could order from any of the red sauce spots on our Italian Delivery Guide, or you could go with T’s go-to, a “gabagool” sandwich. “Gabagool” is just slang for capicola, so the capicola-heavy Italian sub from Faicco’s would be a good choice (like it always is).” -MT


Martha's Country Bakery

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TV Pairing:I Think You Should Leave (Netflix)

“It’s possible you’re uninterested in winding plotlines right now, well, because this season of your life’s television show has enough drama already. If that’s the case, watch I Think You Should Leave, a comedy sketch show I revisit every few weeks to remind myself that life is kind of stupid. In nearly every sketch, a mild-mannered and uncomfortable man (his name is Tim Robinson, and you should google him) has a full-on breakdown. Then, just when you think the dust has settled, things get even more unhinged. The most logical dinner pairing for this show isn’t dinner food at all. So order something from our dessert guide, like half a cheesecake from Martha’s Country Bakery in Astoria.” - HA


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