Illustration by Peter Mendelsund

• You don’t have to be a Volcker or Stiglitz to know that people value value. That doesn’t mean a purchase has to be expensive. It means it has to be worth it. That’s always been the spirit behind our annual “Best of New York” issue, and never more so than now. On the following pages you’ll find an up-to-the-moment compendium of the finest eating, shopping, drinking, and other forms of consuming in town. As always, our choices were made only after a rigorous vetting process and one or two good old-fashioned office shouting matches. We scarfed down New York strip steaks and meatloaf sandwiches, quaffed boutique bourbons and $1 PBRs, and scouted bespoke suits and simple sneakers. We tested spas, hair salons, and yoga studios, bike shops, storage spaces, and dog trainers. There’s a great place to buy new jeans, and a great place to get your favorite pair of old ones fixed. If you care to take exception to any of our choices, or offer some of your own, you can do so at nymag.com. We always value a strong opinion.

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  Contributors: Alec Appelbaum, Liz Armstrong, Grace Bastidas, Sarah Bernard, Joshua M. Bernstein, Ann Clarke, Sharon Clott, Catherine Coreno, Sam Dangremond, Joe DeLessio, Charlotte Druckman, Gillian Duffy, Julie Earle-Levine, Rachel Felder, Aileen Gallagher, Wendy Goodman, Adam H. Graham, Kaija Helmetag, Cemile Kavountzis, Sean Kennedy, Aja Mangum, Lauren Murrow, Rob Patronite, Adam Platt, Robin Raisfeld, Christine Richmond, S. Jhoanna Robledo, Josh Sanburn, Beth Shapouri, Joshua David Stein, Jean Tang, and Fiorella Valdesolo.

From the 2010 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine