You have one day in New York and you don't know what and where to eat. Too many Michelin stars? Too many queues? Too many amuse-bouches?

I've put together some of the highlights in a route that allows you to see the city in its best light, inside restaurants, cafes and holes in the wall. Forget about the latest fad or the scene, these places give you a sense of immigration, history, austerity, grandeur, wealth, poverty and most of all love. The love of food and a full stomach. If you can get through this day you will not need to eat again for a very long time.

Enjoy Eating New York.

Soho 7.00am

First stop Cafe Gitane.

You're here to check out the tourist scene. The French, Germans, Australians, British, Greeks and everybody else who comes to Gitane to hang out. Grab a coffee and have the fantastic avocado on toast. You can save a trip to Balthazaar and order one of their incredible almond croissants, the second best in the city, as well.

Half an hour is all you should need. A quick walk and its pancake time.

Lower East Side 8.00am

Walk along Prince St and then take Stanton St taking your time until you reach Clinton St. Then duck into the Clinton St Baking Co for pancakes or waffles. There's something about the booths, the Mexican staff and the attitude here. It's a bit of broader America in New York and its an awesome way to get your day going. Everything is good so don't fill up too much, there's a lot of eating to come.

Lower East Side 8.45am

Leaving Clinton St walk back towards Soho along Houston St until you come to the holy grail of New York appetizers, Ruzz & Daughters. This is the place. You may even be early enough for a pumpernickel bagel. Don't lose your head, its every man for himself in Russ & Daughters, and you need your wits about you to make sure you don't freeze when its your turn. I'll give you a couple of tips. Calvin Trillin made this place famous for its bagels but when you add some salmon and cream cheese Russ & Daughters is in another realm. You will dream of New York for years to come I guarantee. Order the pumpernickel with Norwegian or Scottish salmon and whatever cheese you prefer. Or if you are wild at heart go for the Fancy Delancy. It is out of this world. Wasabi fish roe, horseradish cream cheese and smoked tuna. Pickled herring, rollmops, blintzes - all great. But stick with a bagel and then buy a large chocolate babka and stick it in whatever bag you have. Done. Grab a bench outside and bite into heaven.

East Village 9.10am

It's time for a palate cleanser and to get in touch with another side of New York, so cross Houston and check out JuicyLucy. I recommend celery, kale and ginger. It's 9.10am and you've had three meals already so you need to get rid of all that avocado, pancakes, cream cheese and salmon and trick your body into starting again. Hopefully you bought some pumpernickel bagels to go from Russ & Daughters, you may you to get stuck into one of those as well right now, or you could grab a fantastic borscht from the little cafe in the park between JuicyLucy and the subway.

It's time for a 20 minute walk through East Village. Walk along East 4th to Waverly Place. You're going to be hungry soon, and if the dosai man has arrived (you'll know because there is a queue forming around a man moving very, very quickly next to a cart) then stop off and chow down. If you are keeping to time he will be nowhere to be seen and you need to keep walking along to Patisserie Claude for the best almond croissant and pain au chocolat in New York.

West Village 9.40am

You've also made it to the West Village. Be careful, you've still got one more round of pastries today so back off slightly, or share if you have a friend. I'd suggest one croissant, one almond croissant and if you're lucky or you beg you might score a pain au chocolat fresh out of the oven.

I'm tipping you're pretty full by now. You've also seen Lower East Side, East Village and the West Village. It's time for some culture. Jump on the underground from W4th St station along the V line to W53rd St. Get off and its a short walk to Moma.

Midtown 10.30am

Here you can view food related artworks. But that's not what you're reading this for. Go there, walk around and I bet you'll work up an appetite. You'll need to. You've only got 80 minutes so walk quickly.

Midtown 12.00pm

Walk along W53rd St and then take Broadway to Central Park where you'll find Jean-Georges. Two course lunch at a 2 Michelin Star restaurant for $25. Make sure you've booked. And just luxuriate in the room, the service and the incredible, incredible food. There are plenty of great top end places in New York but I love the location and style of Jean Georges. You'll want to savour this so take a couple of hours. There's a lot of travel and plenty of eating to go. You might even want to splash out on dessert if you haven't yet had enough sweets, or my choice; enjoy the free sweets that follow your meal at Jean Georges and then sneak over the road to Columbus Circle. If I had the money maybe I would recommend Per Se for this evening but I don't so I'll settle for taking the escalator above a huge Wholefoods to the Bouchon Bakery. Don't worry about the cafe, you're after the sticky bun or the donuts or something else incredibly delicious. Just grab a sticky bun to go if you're not hungry. It will go well with your chocolate babka tomorrow.

If you like to waste your hard earned on coffee have one to go and take a turn through Central Park. You only have half an hour so be quick.

Midtown 2.30pm

It's a 45 minute trip to get into the Bronx along the D line from 59th St - Columbus Circle Station to Fordham Rd Station and then 20 minute walk to Little Italy. And you thought this was only about the food. You're about to enter the second borough of the day, Yankee stadium passes above you and there's the entirely new but oh so familiar experience of the Bronx coming right up.

Little Italy - The Bronx 3.15pm

I know you're hungry, so before you arrive at the final destination it's time for a little snack.At Madonia Brothers Bakery, on Arthur Avenue, Little Italy, the Bronx. It would really help to have a friend help you share a fresh, fresh canoli and put away a couple of biscotti. Order a kilo of biscotti to go and add it to your babka and sticky bun. To get to Arthur Ave you see plenty of the Bronx. It's the same but different but Arthur Ave is another world. Unlike the Manhattan version of Little Italy (increasingly overrun by Chinatown) it's no tourist trap. Just awesome food and a great vibe. Eat a biscotti and move on down the road.

To Mike's Deli. They branch out and sell heroes and subs in Yankee stadium but this location is the real deal. The meats and cheeses are so good, it is amazing. Get the antipasti platter and a hero as well. You deserve it for getting this far. My mouth is salivating as I write this the antipasto platter is so good. And you'll need to finish it because there isn't that much eating left today. The owners will come and chat. They might even offer to send you some parma ham express international. Do it, or buy some to go and stuff it in that trusty bag.

And then make the long walk back to Fordham St Station and head back to Manhattan.

Chinatown 6pm

You'll want the D line all the way to the end of Manhattan where you hit Grand St station. Exit here for Chinatown. This is too much. I know you'll be hungry after the train ride. If you can find them there are $1 dumplings nearby, I'll leave the real hounds amongst you to dig them up. There's fresh bean curd around the corner from Grand St station and so much great fruit and veg. Walk around and head towards Mott St. There's great fish, great smells and a lot of action. It's the perfect time for a visit to Chinatown. If there were more hours in a day I'd say head out to Queens but you're not going to have time if you are planning to dine tonight so give that a miss.

A round trip is fine because you're going to need the B line from Grand St again, but in my one day in New York I would not want to miss spending part of my evening in Chinatown as people do their nightly shopping. Grand St is the most exciting part of it, things get a little bit seedy along W Broadway although there is an incredible hand tossed noodle man along there. Forget the sweets here and please try things you have never seen before. There are plenty of people selling hot food by the side of the road. Order something, enjoy the fact that the person selling it to you cannot explain what it is and then devour it. If you want to buy lovely gift on Mott St there is a great mooncake store (and opposite the mooncake store is a lovely little place that serves excellent hot beancurd, just down the road from a great banh mi place - you get the drift).

But you've run out of time so jump on the B from Grand St to Newkirk Ave Station and then change for the Q line to Ave J station.

Midwood - Brooklyn 7.30pm

The queue should be out there door already, but there may still be time to order. We're at Di Fara. You've all heard the stories but I'll tell one really quickly. This is such a famous place, so many blog entries, so much PR, but the one guy makes every pizza. Four staff. Him, his wife and two kids, but only he can touch the pizza. Be prepared to wait two hours or more. But wait. Get the whole square pie. It's double baked with three kinds of cheese. While you're waiting send your friend down the road. There's a Ukrainian deli with phenomenal home made blintzes. Secure a table in Di Fara, eat your blintzes - if you're really hungry maybe some biscotti or sticky bun or order a slice from the window outside, no please save them for tomorrow and just buy more at the Ukrainian deli its really awesome - and wait. The pie is worth it. It's been baked twice (did I mention that already). It has at least three types of cheese. It will burn your mouth so many times. It is huge.

Midwood - Brooklyn 10pm

If you're lucky you've just finished your square pie and are planning to head back to Manhattan. If you're still hungry you can stop off in Park Slope for a meal on the way home, or to L'il Frankies in the East Village, or one of thousands of places for a drink. But I only do food, and by now you've had enough.

Eat New York

Cafe Gitane
242 Mott St

Clinton St. Baking Co. & Restaurant
4 Clinton Street

Russ & Daughters
179 East Houston Street

Juicy Lucy Juice Bar
2nd Avenue/Houston St

Patisserie Claude
187 W 4th St

Jean Georges Restaurant
1 Central Park W

Bouchon Bakery
10 Columbus Circle

Madonia Brothers Bakery
2348 Arthur Ave, Bronx

Mike's Deli
2344 Arthur Ave, Bronx

Di Fara
424 Avenue J, Brooklyn