Nathan’s

I came here a few years ago before traveling. I was absolutely famished. A friend highly recommended Nathan’s for their burgers. I was passing by and decided to break my gluten-​free diet. It may have been the combination of being hungry and not having had real bread in months, but I fell in love with their burger buns. They were slightly sweet, soft, and fluffy. The actual burger patty didn’t leave much of an impression. The buns made the burger memorable. I didn’t like the fries. They were too greasy and not crispy. The atmosphere left much to be desired, but what do you expect from a fast food restaurant?

In 2014, my brother and I stopped by Nathan’s Famous on Penn Plz, for a quick bite before heading downtown. We shared a traditional dog and a chili dog, which were both fine. Nathan’s is a bit overrated in my opinion; the food is good, but nothing to write home about — I prefer Papaya King, hands down.
Verdict:
Unfortunately, I won’t be returning

A little while ago I stopped here to get a couple of hot dogs for me and my wife on our way to the train. It’d be quick, I thought, as there was only one other customer who was talking to the employees, two young guys who looked Pakistani to me. I stood in front of the first cash register, the first and only customer in line. The clerk, before only looking and listening to the conversation his coworker was having with the customer about some subject which was of no interest to me, now suddenly became hotly interested in it. Ignoring me (you know that look — they see you but pretend they don’t) he slid over to the other cash register and the conversation became louder, more intense and animated. I stood there for about 10 minutes. Both of those employees ignored me the whole time, not even once looked in my direction, even though they could see me clearly. Finally I turned around and left. I must have missed the «We don’t serve whites» sign hanging at the entrance. Even if it wasn’t up at the time, I’m sure it must be there now. I have no intention of checking as I’ll never go near this place again.

Coming out of Penn Station, there is was!
Hot dog heaven!
Helpful service, fresh hot food, great prices.
Enjoy!

For what and where it is, really not bad. All of the regular employees behind the counter were professional, courteous (using Sir and Ma’am with every customer), handled obnoxious customers well, turned the products well, attempted upselling without being pushy, weren’t having inappropriate personal conversations, and pumped out some decent fast food eats. The manager wasn’t mean to them, but definitely made them work efficiently.
Solid burger. Greasy but still somewhat crispy fries.
Works for me.

C’est bien le pire endroit ou j’ai jamais mis les pieds! Endroit sale (SDF, mouches, des fous!). On a du repasser commande plusieurs fois car il n’y avait jamais ce qu’on voulait. Les distributeurs de sauces étaient tous vides. La nourriture infâme (j’avais malgré moi des nuggets mais limite pas cuit et une sensation de manger de la farine aux pépites goût poulet). Le pain du Burger s’effrite, c’est ignoble. Bref, impossible de donner tout les détails.

Not as good as the Coney Island version Nathan’s but a good effort! I loved going to the one in brooklyn w my family! Good memories all around. I’ll be back!

Right across from MSG, nice change of pace from the other fast food joints.
Limited seating on main floor so go up to the 2^nd floor.
Unlimited sauerkraut/​onions for your dogs, dogs nicely grilled instead of steamed
Beware of the sketchy people loitering inside, sometimes asking for money

This location was terrible! The service was very bad. The food was worse. I was there with my son and daughter-​in-​law and we were so disappointed. Apparently the original Nathan’s we went to in Coney Island has the only fresh food. This location had frozen fries that were overcooked and the hot dog tasted nothing like the Coney Island location. If this is a franchise, Nathan’s needs to get on the ball in checking out their franchise locations because this one takes them down. Recommend eating only at the one in Coney Island.

I hardly ever write a review, but felt that I would be doing Unilocalers a disservice it I didn’t. This Nathan’s is terrible. Terrible food and terrible customer service. Fries are overcooked and the hot dogs are dry. They really couldn’t do any worse. I asked for no bun when I initially placed my order (gluten-​intolerant), yet received it with a bun. As soon as she put it on my tray, I said «No bun please.» She said she gave it to me with no bun. Hmm… I must be blind then, because I see a bun right in front of me. Apparently she thought that «no bun» meant «plain.» Instead of recognizing her mistake, she instead gave me attitude and looked at me like I was an idiot. Maybe if I spoke Spanish she would have understood me though, so I guess it’s my fault.
Bottom line, if you want Nathan’s for what it’s supposed to be, don’t eat here and instead make the trip out to Coney Island. It’s 1000x better and you feel like the employees actually care about the quality of the food.

I came in here after my hour and half long commute from New Jersey to satisfy a random craving for corn dog, but was left disappointed and frankly, pissed. The corn dog came really fast, I have to give them props for that but the size was just not worth $ 3. On top of that their register was not working some reason and I literally stood there and finished my corn dog while I waited for them to give me a receipt. I ended up paying cash and then leaving without a receipt because I was long done with my corn dog and didn’t want to have anything to do with this place again.

Good — NATHAN’S it’s delicious. The orange drink is out of this world. The hot dog nuggets are super tasty and their hotdogs are all around great.
Bad — PRICE is insane, but that’s to be expected in Penn.
If you REALLY want a hot dog and don’t want to pay outrageous prices, go to the beer vendors along the concourse. You can get a standard, grilled hot dog from them for MUCH cheaper. If you want Nathan’s, you can pay the price to come here.

I was convinced to try Nathan’s hot dogs as they’re famous in NY. Conveniently located inside Penn Station, so let’s give this a go?
I thought the hot dog was good, but not great. Definitely tasted better than ones found on the street carts. But for the price??? Not sure if it’s worth it. The cheese fries were pretty good as well.

Why does Nathan’s get my $$$ when I’ve got to wait for a connecting train at Penn Station? Because they have CHAIRS. Nothing else particularly distinguishes them from their neighbors — prices aren’t awful, food is pretty good (and I appreciate that there are some almost-​healthy offerings!), the place is clean … nothing to call home about. But in a station that is seemingly designed to make the waiting experience maximally uncomfortable, it is awesome to be able to sit down and put down my suitcase while grabbing some lunch.

I live in the Midtown so I’ve had Nathan’s from a few location, this review is specifically for the one conveniently located in MSG.
While the hot dogs are generally consistent, it’s what the staff has control over that ruins everything. Fries always greasy and soggy, cheese tastes old. I love the lemonade but the last visit I had the cashier served it warm with basically no ice. Also buns are notoriously dry and hard at this location.
Overall bad experience

J’avais entendu parler de cette chaîné de restauration rapide, j’y suis donc aller par curiosité. Eh bien je né suis pas prêt d’y retourner. Pour à peine moins de 20 $ à deux on a tout juste eu droit à 3 hot-​dog minables (franchement je fais mieux à la maison), quelques frites avec une sauce au fromage plutôt mauvaise et une petite boisson chacun.
Le restaurant était quasiment vide (pourtant dans un quartier très fréquenté), il aurait bien besoin d’une décoration un peu rafraîchie. Heureusement, les serveuses au comptoir étaient bien sympathiques …
Pour les toilettes il faut demander la clé au comptoir, elles vous seront gentiment prêtées avec un porte-​clé en ferraille de 1 kg et de 40 cm (au cas où on aurait envie de partir avec).

While opinions will vary widely among New Yorkers (as it does with pizza) as to who offers the best hotdog in the City, few would argue as to whose is the most iconic.
The casing of a Nathan’s hotdog offers a crisp bite, and its contents are smooth and even, but they lack flavorful seasoning. This is probably why competitive eaters can polish these off by the dozen in the annual Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest. There is nothing offensive about a Nathan’s hot dog, but also, nothing exciting. In my book, New York offers many which are much better.
The crinkle-​cut fries are soggy with oil, but actually taste pretty good. I’m not sure whether she still works at this location, but for years they have had a woman working here who is as sweet as she can be– but moves with the speed of someone with their ankles tied together.

I’ve had my share of hot dogs here in the west coast and the east coast, but for all of the hype that surrounds Nathan’s, I am quite disappointed. Many people know Nathan’s Hot Dogs from the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, which is great and all — but that definitely sets up a standard that the masses might get disappointed at.
When I had the hot dogs here, I expected something that can rival Pink’s in Los Angeles or Crif’s NYC, but sadly, it was just so plain (especially for a chili dog). The only thing that I can say about the hot dog itself is that it has a very good texture, but as for the rest, it is just average. Especially with Nathan’s Hot Dogs (the franks) can be bought at your local grocer now, you can make the equivalent at home.
For those who are coming to NYC, I would recommend that if you want to try it, to go out to the one in Brooklyn, as this particular location seems like a franchise. Nonetheless, I probably wouldn’t come back to this location the next time I’m in NYC.

My Husband and I were pretty bummed that we didn’t get to try any hot dog joints in NY. What we really wanted to try was Papaya King, but didn’t get a chance to.
We were at the Madison Square Garden to catch the Amtrak to PA. As we walked around the Penn Station, we were super excited to see Nathan’s Famous. We’d both got a number 1. It was close to $ 10 per each meal. The hot dog was tiny. To be quite frank, Costco’s dogs tasted a lot better. So disappointed that this place wasn’t worth the hype. It was also super expensive for a tiny little thing. Bleh, at least we can say we tried it.

Nathans all other hotdog joints pale in comparison. You had me at my first bite of salty goodness! Nathans has been a NY staple for generations. One thing I do enjoy about this chain in the consistency of all the chain Nathans I have visited. Have yet to eat a bad meal at any of them. Nathans makes their own hot dogs (which are available at the grocery store if you don’t live in NYC). That’s what sets them apart from the rest. The hot dog is perfectly seasoned with just the right amount of snap from the natural casing. They use fresh not frozen steak cut fries. Which taste even more sinful with a topping of cheese sauce. I also enjoy their homemade lemonade (puts Aunt Annie’s to shame). To sum up my Nathan’s experience great place to grab a quick bite in NYC and try one of it’s most famous hot dog instuitions.

We were in NYC mid December for my mother in law’s birthday celebration.
It included a train ride from Newark to Penn Station, Elf the Musical, dinner at DanielaTratttoria… and hot dogs at Nathan’s Penn Station.
That was one classy day. :o)
Hot dogs always taste great. We had a matinée show to catch at 2:00 so the quickest lunch available was Nathan’s. Great idea, Hubbie.
We had hot dogs, corn dog, fries and soda. It was perfect. It tied us over until dinner time. We skipped going to our local county fair (OC Fair, Costa Mesa CA) this past year, so I had to order the corn dog — one of my favorite things to have at the fair… Anyway, it was crunchy fried good. Really tastes great with a squirt of yellow mustard — wouldn’t like it any other way.
Good times.

I love Nathan’s hot dogs!
Very juicy inside and so tasty.
The bun is very good and fresh too.
I tried Nathan’s in LA (I believe that was around pico&robertson area??) but tasted so different and it was not good at all.
While in NY, these are my «must“s: Nathan’s hot dog, pizza, and philly cheese stake!