New York is a thousand cities at once—steam rising from street grates at sunrise, gallery lights flicking on at dusk, sirens and saxophones sharing the night. It’s bodega coffee, park benches and penthouse views, a subway map that somehow leads to everything. This guide is for slipping between the obvious and the unforgettable: neighborhood by neighborhood, slice by slice, finding the small moments that make the big apple feel personal.
This week, KHAMSA takes you to NYC with Mina Hasan (@minahasan on Instagram) a 23 years old, Boston transplant since August 2025, and a longtime NYC regular who used to pop down two or three times a month. She’s a five-hustle force: creating on her own page, running The Kismet Reserve (vintage watches), leading partnerships at SSQRD.CO, heading marketing at Mango People Cosmetics, and making content for Ruhani Cafe. Call it a full-time creative trying to make it in New York—and loving it. Mina’s POV is hustle-tested and joy-forward: stylish but practical, downtown-to-uptown, with an eye for good design, great food, and time well spent (literally).
Top must visit food spots?
Breakfast:
Atelier December (all time favorite, halal) – Flatbush, Brooklyn
Get the buffalo chicken toastie, pastrami bowl, breakfast taco, and matcha.
Tompkins square bagels (best bagels in nyc, multiple locations)
Get a sourdough bagel with tofu scallion spread, and tuna salad.
Lunch
Birria LES – (halal mexican, multiple locations).
Pi Bakerie FiDi – Financial District, Manhattan: “Amazing fresh Greek food”.
Pause Cafe – Lower East Side, Manhattan: “amazing shakshouka, moroccan, halal”
Dinner
Nur Thai (halal, thai) – Astoria, Queens
Get the bam bam chicken, ribeye steak, and mango sticky rice.
Junoon (halal, indian) – Flatiron, Manhattan
Get the eggplant chaat.
Hen House (Halal, lebanese) – East Village, Manhattan
“Get the fattoush salad and knafeh pancake”
Pizza Loves Sauce (halal) – Bowery, Manhattan.
“Get the buffalo chicken and vodka sauce slices”
Pastries & Sweets
La Farine Patisserie – Upper West Side, manhattan
Get the tomato tart and caprese sandwich.
Coffee
Ruhani Cafe – Downtown Brooklyn
Best Karak Chai.
Rhythm Zero (multiple locations) – Insane matcha.
Matcha house (East village, Manhattan) – Get the matcha cortado.
12matcha – NOHO, Manhattan.
Manjul – Soho, Manhattan.
Yafa Cafe – Sunset park, Brooklyn: “Amazing adeni chai”
Best Solo Date Spots in NYC?
Elevated acre park – Manhattan
Domino park – Brooklyn
Brooklyn bridge park – Brooklyn
Silence please – Chinatown
Best Photobooths in NYC?
Bubbys (Manhattan)
Old Friend Photobooth (Manhattan)
New York Memento (Manhattan)
Best Places For Shopping?
Manjul (Soho, Manhattan)
Printemps (Financial District, Manhattan)
Roome (lower East Side, Manhattan)
Reservations Only Vintage (Chinatown, Manhattan)
Society of Cloth (Lower East Side, Manhattan)
Must-visit cultural spots?
Noguchi Museum (Queens)
The high line (Chelsea, Manhattan)
MOMA (Manhattan)
Steinway Street and jackson heights (if you know, you know).
The MET (Manhattan)
What should you avoid?
- 125th Street, Harlem
- Manhattan during UN Week
Must-pack items?
- Extra clothes. Youre not going to want to rewear your clothes.
- The most comfortable walking shoes
- Umbrella- there’s always unexpected rain
- Travel size perfume, you’ll need to freshen up in a dirty city
- Sunglasses
- Headphones
- Pimple patches and any skincare, the city air will do numbers to your skin
- PORTABLE CHARGER!!!
Any tips and tricks to tackle the city?
- Don’t take Ubers (unless super late at night), the subway is the fastest and most efficient form of transportation.
- Make sure you are constantly aware of your surroundings, there’s a lot to see in NYC but the dangers are very real
- Seriously, don’t bring uncomfortable shoes
- Those tiktok-hyped restaurants are usually not that good. NYC has a multitude of beautiful and yummy restaurants that deserve more recognition
- Also, do not drink coffee from chains like Starbucks or blue bottle. Support the local businesses!
- Explore queens and brooklyn! Much more to see in nyc than just Manhattan
- Vintage stores in williamsburg SUCK, dont bother going
- Follow @chatprojectpal on instagram for pop-ups and events in nyc
- I recommend checking @halalnyc for the best halal restaurant/cafe recommendations
