Bunnies
Call 800-286-6437 for store locations.
bunnies.com
This baby-gear emporium carries everything sleep-deprived parents need to get through those rough first few years: diaper pails ($12.99–$33.99), strollers ($39.99-$129.99), bouncers ($19.99–$59.99), and swings ($79.99–$119.99), from all the major labels—Combi, Graco, and Kolcraft. Lots of infantwear, too.

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buybuyBABY
270 Seventh Ave., at 26th St.
917-344-1555
buybuybaby.com
This regional chain, which opened its Manhattan outpost last October, aims to put a friendly face on the big-box store, offering one-stop shopping for clothing, cribs, car seats, and practically everything else. The lower levelhas an impressive display of foreign strollers (the U.K.’s Maclaren and Italy’s Peg Perego, Inglesina, and Chicco; prices range from $50 to $450) and adult rockers (Dutailier and Best Chairs, $300 to $1,000), ready to test out.

Happy Days Children’s Wear
4802 Fifth Ave., at 48th St., Sunset Park, Brooklyn
718-567-3900; 718-768-1433
50 Belmont Ave., at Osborn St., Brownsville, Brooklyn
718-495-4795
56-52 Myrtle Ave., near Catalpa Ave., Ridgewood
718-456-5422
These massive stores carry all your child’s basic needs. While the Belmont and Myrtle Avenue locations offer larger furniture selections, the Fifth Avenue store is loaded with clothing and accessories for newborns to teens, from Polo, French Toast, and Phat Farm (from $7.99). There’s also a large selection of high-chairs, strollers, and car seats from Maclaren, Greico, and Delta on the lower level (from $29.99).

Heights Kids
85 Pineapple Walk, near Henry St., Brooklyn Heights
718-222-4271
Tucked away off of one of downtown Brooklyn’s main drags, this seven-year-old boutique offers specialty European brands like Playmobile (no Fisher-Price here) for newborns to 8-year-olds. Playmobile’s popular Viking series of boats and dragons go for $14.95 to $39.95; you’ll also find accessories like breast pumps (Pump-in-Style by Medela, $300), Maclaren strollers ($99–$299), and that new Dutch sensation, the Bugaboo USA stroller ($649).

Hoofbeats, Ltd.
232 E. 78th St., near Third Ave.
212-517-2633
A charming, homey little store, Hoofbeats has developed an impressive following among Upper East Siders who are looking for sweet, out-of-the-ordinary baby gifts—personalized hooded bath towels (from $29) and robes (from $53), for instance. Burp pads are $12.95. Bibs with embroidered animals are $25. North American Bear mobiles are around $45.

Ikea
1100 Broadway Mall, Hicksville, N.Y.
516-681-4532
1000 Ikea Dr., Elizabeth, New Jersey (tpk. exit 13A)
908-289-4488
ikea.com
At the Jersey store, older siblings can watch planes land at Newark and dig into Swedish meatballs at the cafeteria while parents stock up on frugally priced cribs and beds ($79–$199), lamps ($9.95–$24.95), changing tables ($99–$199), and simple Scandinavian toys (the Måla paint set, $4.95). Hop the free shuttle bus from Port Authority on weekends, every 30 minutes from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.; return trips noon to 6 p.m. (call 800-BUS-IKEA for details).

Just for Tykes
83 Mercer St., near Broome St.
212-274-9121
info@justfortykes.com
This full-service high-end children’s store in Soho, complete with a play space, carries clothing up to size 4, bedding, furniture, specialty wooden and cloth toys (hardly any plastic), and techno gifts like Neurosmith’s Musini, a musical toy that responds to vibrations as kids dance next to it ($74). The hot Bugaboo stroller from the Netherlands ($699) is most popular right now, and the bedding department gets raves for carrying hard-to-find brands like Nilaya (bumpers are $375), Susan Turner (a crib skirt goes for about $300; a complete set from $1,000), and Judi Boisson (quilts start at $230).

Kid’s Supply Co., Jr. Homestore
1343 Madison Ave., at 94th St.
212-426-1200
kidssupplyco.com
On the second floor of this high-end kids’ furniture shop—a cross between a design studio, a showroom, and a retail store—are the infant supplies: You’ll find, among other offerings, around ten different cribs ($700–$1,900) and several dressers that convert to changing tables ($1,350–$2,000).

La Layette et Plus . . .
170 E. 61st St., near Third Ave.
212-688-7072
lalayette@lalayette.com
This very French service-oriented salon gets its share of the well-heeled and famous. Moms (or those who want to buy for them) sit down, put their feet up, and are shown set after set of European gowns with matching receiving blankets, burp cloths, socks, bibs, and hats. It’s also got more whimsical gifts, such as a porcelain piggy bank with baby’s name and birth date ($75), monogrammed robe and matching towel ($110), and a baby book with monogrammed silver plaque ($135).

Little Folks
123 E. 23rd St., near Park Ave.
212-982-9669
This place has everything your little folks need: cribs, high chairs, and car seats from reputable brands (strollers by Combi and Perego, $30–$500), as well as Avent bottles and pumps, bibs, pacifiers, and baby-proofing gadgets ($3–$12).

MZ WALLACE
93 Crosby St., near Prince St.
212-431-8252
mzwallace.com
Best known for sharp, practical, leather-trimmed canvas totes, this shop is a great place to find a stylish diaper bag (from $165). Hip moms love the groovy leopard or psychedelic prints, while simpler options include the signature quilted style in coffee, plum, or ruby. Dads can store baby stuff in multi-pocketed canvas messenger bags ($150).

Planet Kids
2688 Broadway, near 102nd St.
212-864-8705
247 E. 86th St., near Second Ave.
212-426-2040
A bit more upscale than buybuyBaby or Babies ”R” Us, but still a big-box infant-goods store, Planet Kids has cribs (Ragazzy’s start at $340; Pali’s from $300), strollers (Maclaren, from $100 to $300), high chairs (Peg Perego, $150–$200), car seats ($60–$260), and infant clothing (brands include OshKosh and Zutano).

Schneider’s Juvenile
20 Ave. A, at 2nd St.
212-228-3540
schneidersbaby.com
This 53-year-old shop supplied city parents with infant essentials long before the East Village was a chic place to raise a baby. Stock includes all the basics, plus cool strollers from companies like Perego and Inglesina ($40–$700) to roll around Tompkins Square.

Shabby Chic
83 Wooster St., near Spring St.
212-274-9842
shabbychic.com
Don’t let the name fool you—this bright, cheery shop is anything but shabby. Check out the beautiful vintage furniture (from $400 for a chair to $650 for a wicker crib), plus a full line of baby bedding ($36 to $150), bibs ($18), and hooded towel sets ($92).

Toys ”R” Us
Call 800-869-7787 for store locations.
toysrus.com
The international flagship store (located at 1514 Broadway) with its big indoor Ferris wheel has a fairly comprehensive baby area on the second level, offering basics like onesies, shampoos, powders, and tubs. There’s also enough space to display a variety of car seats (including Graco, Evenflo, Peg Perego, and Eddie Bauer, priced from $80 to $250), pack-and-plays (the Graco Pack-n-Play for $59.99), and strollers (from the Kolcraft umbrella stroller, for $21.99, to the Maclaren double-wide stroller, $299), ready to test out.

Urban Monster
396 Atlantic Ave., near Bond St., Boerum Hill, Brooklyn
718-855-6400
urbanmonster.com
Part store, part community resource, Urban Monster hosts free new-parent support groups, plus baby Pilates and yoga classes and workshops on infant safety. Oh, and it sells stuff, too: clothes, toys (a Mr. Whoozit bumper activity book, which hangs on a crib, $25), and baby essentials. Petunia Pickle Bottom diaper bags are $138; strollers by Bugaboo ($699) and Maclaren (the Volo for $99 and the Mac 3 jogger for $299) and Baby Björns sit side by side with products made only in Brooklyn.

The Upper Breast Side
220 W. 71st St., near Broadway, Ste. 1
212-873-2653
upperbreastside.com
Owner Felina Rakowski-Gallagher is not kidding when she says, “You bring your breast, we’ve got the rest.” Her store carries everything a nursing mother could need, from pumps to infant-size GOT BREAST MILK? T-shirts ($12). She stocks top products like the Medela and Ameda pump($250–$281), and the Avent Isis manual pump ($50). Pump rentals start at $55 per month.