Gridskipper

Chat n Chew!

The mac & cheese at City Bakery is unparalleled. Salty, crusty goodness composed of definitely more than one type of cheese. Will most likely result in heart attack if consumed in great quantities.

Northeast Kingdom, off the Jefferson L stop in Bushwick

Westville

@Sally Tomato: Oh yes, almost forgot about theirs. Shame on me.

Pies and Thighs in Williamsburg.

Mohney, I literally work next door. You come, I'll buy it for you.

Schiller's Liquor Bar has unreasonably good mac 'n' cheese. Big hunks of lardon. Stupendous.

Delta Grill. My left arm gets all tingly just thinking about it.

It almost pains me to say this (for some reason) but the Mac at Roebling Tea Room verges on foodgasmic. Big pieces of thick cut bacon suspended in a mire of various cheeses... mmmm.

This list cannot exists without Chelsea's Cafeteria (7th/17th) Mac n Cheese.

Um, Boston Market. :-)

Mama's, in the E Village (3rd St between Ave A and B).

As much as I hate the term "comfort food" Mayrose on 21st and Broadway has some pretty killer Mac & Cheese.

The Bar@Etats Unis (across the street from the resto Etats Unis on 81st) -- it's perfect and unrivalled (as is their guacamole -- no one believes this either until I make the go above 14th to taste it).

Mac and Cheese at Hill Country BBQ on 26th between Broadway and 6th Ave is amazing as well.

The Mac n Cheese at Cafeteria on 17th and 7th is baked just right. It's that and the occasional celeb spotting that keeps me coming back, despite the service.

Dumont in Williamsburg. So good and artery-clogging you can almost forgive them for calling it DuMac & Cheese.

The mac and cheese at Chat n Chew isn't crusty enough for me, but Cafeteria - hipster mecca of the universe - is delish.

S'Mac's mac and cheese as a whole doesn't blow me away, but the Buffalo Chicken variety is addictive.

Union Picnic - of blessed memory - should at least get a nod.

Also, Amy Ruth's has super cheesy and gooey mac and cheese if you feel like venturing above the Mason Dixon line...and then waiting in line (outside) to be seated.

You people are killing me! with goodness. Keep 'em coming. A nice list is already shaping up, just like my soon-to-be-deformed descending colon.

My own recipe is pretty damn tasty, but The Smoke Joint's in Fort Greene is my favorite so far in the city. It's got a kick to it; much what you would expect from a bbq place!

The Eatery on 52nd and 9th Ave, I believe? Crock pot and sizzled onions on top...mmmm...

i smack on mac at freemans. hands down the best mac and cheese you're likely to find at the end of a dark alley.

lobster mac + cheese @ the google cafeteria. one of the most delicious things i've ever had.

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The Lobster Mac and Cheese at Norma's is unbelievable. Its the kind of dish that is so rich you don't think you can eat more than 3 bites, but so delicious you never want your bowl to empty.

leMaldeTete, I second Roebling Tea's Mac & Cheese (they're very generous with the bacon... mmmmm) but I think on a good night Dumont's Mac & cheese is a bit better... they have that really nice pasta and the cheese combo that they use is a hair less oily than at Roebling.

I have a soft spot for the one at Blue Smoke. It's only a side dish and it's often overlooked for the other sides, but for me it's amazing.

Uptown, it's Dive Bar at 96 and Amsterdam. It's not officially on the menu, but they always have it and it's insanely good.

    I like the humongous commercial-sized Stouffer's, myself. Preheat that oven to 400, and put that frozen thing in there on a big cookie sheet. After an hour and a half, carefully pull it out and remove the foil top. Another half hour of baking will nicely crisp the top of it. After cooking, sprinkle individual servings with chopped onion, tomato, bacon and garlic salt to taste.

Agreed with jadedperson above re: Dumont. Perfect crispy crust. They once threw away my mac and cheese leftovers by accident but made up for it with free beer.

WARNING: do not eat the M&C at "Good" restaurant. Not 'good'- it gave me volcano trips (green chilies inside and tortilla crumbles on top - looks like a bowl of moldy Special K). Also beware the M&C at Bar Tabac - boring, expands in your stomach Chipotle-style

@SteveSantangelo: no.

artisinal's is good, though kind of heavy.

milady's!

bee smith's.

West/ Eastville! Their smoked Gouda Mac & Cheese begs me to return home from the carb-concious lettuce trap that is Los Angeles. Someone enjoy it on my behalf, Please!!!!!!

Who could ever forget the smoky mac at Westville?? I'll meet you there.

I am going to have to second (third?) Dumont. Nothing is better on a shitty rainy day than their macncheese.

I also like the one at SMAC with the grueyere and slab bacon. That's good ish too.

Norma's at Le Parker Merdian-- OMG best Lobster Mac N Cheese ever!! I know I know...it may sound weird, but most amazing combo ever, delicious!

Norma's at Le Parker Merdian= Best Lobster Mac N Cheese ever

Smoke Joint, Fort Greene, BK -- it's baked and crunchy on top, warm and gooey in the middle, but still not so heavy that you want to puke afterward.

@Imipolex_G-Unit: A cardiac event never tasted so good.

Delta Grill. All the way.

City Bakery. Especially if Maury himself is dishing out the aged-cheesy goodness. When he isn't checking on his new place in LA, he's known for moving casually through the restaurant, serving, wiping crumbs from countertops, and probably overhearing your glowing remarks about his mac & cheese.

Like Mariallena said, I have to go with Mama's Food Bar too.

Forget Stouffers for home consumption. The old-school Howard Johnson's version is better and cheaper.

Without question it's Lure in Soho. Locals cried out when they couldn't get their Canteen Mac and Cheese anymore (me included), so chef Josh Capon resurrected for the weekend brunch menu.

If you're lucky, you might even get it on a weekday too.

I second City Bakery (there's a reason why it's $10 a pound), and I also crave the mac at Florent in the Meatpacking District - again, worth the $12. If you want a cheap but amazingly delish version, try Acme's on Great Jones - $5 and I could not finish the bowl, but you better believe I took a doggie bag! I'm jealous of your mission, but not of your future waistline on this one.

yo, why hasn't anyone said MOTO in Williamsburg? gawd. take JM to Hewes stop (one after Marcy). It's directly under the stairs.

comes with a side of homemade apple sauce to dip each bite in too...need i say more?

@HLeigh: Seconded! I'm not in love with the spiral pasta, but the cheese combo?! And crispy top? OMG.

Marco and Pepe on Grove Street in Jersey City... I know it's not exactly NYC but it's right off the PATH and close enough... oh, and it's the best Mac n Cheese I've ever had, with a mix of gruyere, goat cheese, mushrooms and thick cut apple wood smoked bacon.

Mac N'Cheese at the Eatery in Hell's Kitchen or the Mac and Cheese egg rolls at the Cafeteria in Chelsea! Yummy!

I was just eating dinner at a soul food buffet down my block in Bushwick thinking, 'my god, this might be the best mac and cheese I have ever tasted.'
It's on Broadway in Brooklyn a few bocks west of the Mrtyle stop on the J-Z line. 4.75 a pound.

hope & anchor in red hook (van brunt street).

love cafeteria and freeman's varieties, but my favorite is ACME Bar & Grill's version, made even better with a hurricane or two on the side!

Try the mac n cheese at Manna's hot and cold buffet East 125th St and Madison. Nice brown top.