Veg restaurants vicinity Penn, MOMA, Central Park? Lunch tomorrow

June 21, 2018 8:12 PM

NYC centric: So my niece who is 20ish just texted (!) and she and 2 friends are arriving in town tomorrow (!!) and I would like to take them to lunch. Vegetarian (consume eggs/cheese). Arriving Penn Station AM, headed to MOMA, Central Park, maybe a Bway show? Search here yielded Penelope's at Lex and 30th. Any other suggestions nearer stated destinations? Bonus: where to meet inside Penn?? Bonus 2: where to stash luggage near Penn for day? Thx!
posted by alwayson_slightlyoff to Food & Drink (8 answers total)

Best answer: I used Vertoe last month to store luggage near Penn and it worked great. It was about a 10 minute walk but reasonably priced and my stuff was fine. I wouldn't leave a laptop or anything valuable though.

Beyond Sushi was interesting and good; the most convenient one to your plans would be the 56th street (one block from the N).
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 8:20 PM on June 21, 2018

As long as you don't take them to a steakhouse, they should be able to order of the menu in most NYC restaurants. Take them somewhere you like! As a vegetarian myself, I try to avoid being dragged to a meat-eaters idea of a good vegetarian restaurant. But if you don't mind cheap and cheerful counter service then the Cinnamon Snail is right above Penn Station in "The Pennsy" and makes extremely tasty, rich vegan comfort food (and sweet pastries).

The best place to meet inside Penn depends on what train they're arriving on (NJ, Amtrak, etc.) It's kind of a maze. One option that has worked for me is at (well, outside, since they're under 21) Tracks.

If they're traveling on Amtrak then I believe Amtrak will store their luggage for a small fee. I did this a few years ago, and this 2016 TripAdvisor thread suggests it's still an option.
posted by caek at 8:29 PM on June 21, 2018 [4 favorites]

Best answer: The Pennsy is an upscale food hall attached to Penn Station and features Cinnamon Snail, a great vegan place. You could definitely meet there (there are tables etc and other good food and drink options).
posted by cushie at 8:29 PM on June 21, 2018 [5 favorites]

Best answer: I was also going to recommend Cinnamon Snail, so I’ll add that the Pennsy also features The Little Beet, which is mostly vegan.
posted by ejs at 8:32 PM on June 21, 2018

Penelope is a great option!
posted by blaneyphoto at 8:45 PM on June 21, 2018

Since I'm the person who recommended Penelope last month, I feel compelled to say that while I obviously agree it's great, I think it's not necessarily special enough to go over/down there from midtown/westside given the bounty of NYC. I'd look for Indian, Asian, and good pizza like Pizzarte near MOMA. (There is a good restaurant in MOMA but it's not vegetarian). People like Danji, a Korean place with good veg options, not far from where you might see a show. If you're coming out of Central Park and want an inventive vegetarian/vegan place, I like Peace Cafe on the UWS. If you did feel like making a special trip to the East 20s/30s, Vatan (Indian - vegetarian) is a bit more memorable (or was when I was last there years ago now, so I would let others weigh in here and verify first!)
posted by velveeta underground at 10:45 PM on June 21, 2018

Cinnamon Snail Cinnamon Snail Cinnamon Snail. Never have I ever before felt like vegetarianism isn't just an option but the best way.
posted by quadrilaterals at 6:10 AM on June 22, 2018 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Update:

You folks are, as always, great. Personally I wanted to try Penelope (although I must say, terrible recent reviews on Yelp, but is Yelp at all reliable? I dunno. It just popped up, I read it.) But they are now running late, time is short, and you are right: good option is food court, Pennsy. Thanks also for both tips about luggage stashing!
posted by alwayson_slightlyoff at 7:35 AM on June 22, 2018