New York City known as one of the capital cities of the world and it is also the hometown of the U.S. President Donald Trump.

Every year, New York City gets over 50 million foreign and American tourists. The city is famous for its cuisine, with something for everyone’s taste.

Here are some of the famous dishes popular in the Big Apple.

Manhattan clam chowder

Clam chowder is a traditional soup popular from New York to New England. The meal, which is composed of clams, potatoes, onion and milk, originated from the French and Nova Scotians in 18th century. Manhattan clam chowder is more like a vegetable soup compared with cream style New England clam chowder.  The Manhattan recipe uses tomatoes instead of milk.

Manhattan clam chowder
Photo from flickr by Benny’s Chop House

New York-style cheesecake

A popular dessert around the world, cheesecake is made from cream cheese, eggs and sugar, with a bottom layer made from crushed cookies. Immigrants brought the dish to the U.S. in the 19th century.

In 1929, the Turf restaurant in New York City cooked the first cheesecake made from cream cheese, developing their own recipe and served in the restaurant. The classic New York style consists of a heavy cream cheese and doesn’t have fruit or chocolate on the top.

New York-style cheesecake
Photo from flickr by alh1

New York-style pizza

Pizza is a baked pie made from a bread flour crust and usually topped with tomato sauce and cheese. Italy gets credit for the invention and pizza became popular in America after World War II. New York’s pizza made its way to the U.S. through immigrants from Italy, and developed quickly.

New York pizza is known for thin, crisp crust, wide slices and faster cooking for eating on the go. Today, pizzerias can be found on almost every corner in New York.  

New York-style pizza
Photo from flickr by Garrett Ziegler

New York style hot dog

Hot dogs are a popular fast food in the States. There are several claims about the invention of the hot dog. One legend says it derived from a mistake. During a 1906 rugby match, vendors sold German sausages and rolls to spectators, calling out, “Hot Dachshund sandwiches!”

Inspired by the shouts, New York Post cartoonist Tad Dorgan drew a cartoon and called them “hot dogs”, as he avoided spelling the German word Dachshund (which is a long-bodied dog breed, also called a sausage dog). Interestingly, the mistaken name became quite popular and took root.

Americans eat 20 billion hot dogs a year. You can find New York style hot dogs everywhere in the city, including restaurants, food trucks and street carts. It is served with chopped onions, sauerkraut and spicy brown mustard.

New York style hotdog
Photo from flickr by Dennis Harper 

Italian Ice

Italian ice , also known water ice, is made from freezing water, fruits or juices and sugar. There are many flavors including, lemon, mango, strawberry. New Yorkers love the tasty snacks during the summer time.

Italian Ice
Photo from flickr by Rusty Gillespie