Gray's Papaya

I've been coming to Gray's Papaya and other Papaya rip-offs in NYC for years.  Gray's Papaya rises above the rest, and the rest of the bunch include Papaya Dog, Chelsea Papaya, Mike's Papaya, Papaya King, Seventh Ave Papaya, and... well you get the idea.

Honestly, wherever you go you're going to get a tasty hot dog.  But in my opinion Gray's, which is the original, does it best.  Over here, it's all about the snappy texture.  Cooked on a plancha (think flattop) it gives every dog a crunchy exterior.  Compare these dogs to the soggy, limp, disgusting dogs swimming in dirty water inside hot dog carts across the city and it just seems like a no-brainer to make a trip out to Gray's.

Gray's serves $1.50 hot dogs, $1 pizza, and several flavors of fruit drinks.  The hot dogs come with warmed buns, and pretty much any topping you desire.  The pizza comes with many toppings, but I've never tried it (I'm not into $1 convenience pizza, call me crazy).  The fruit drinks come in the original namesake Papaya, Orange, Grape, Pina Colada, Coconut Champagne, and Banana Daiquiri.  The fruit drinks are all non-alcoholic, which is too bad for the NYU students living on a budget a few blocks away.


The Papaya rip-offs expand their menus to serve items such as cheeseburgers, fries, cheesesteaks, more toppings for hot dogs such as chili and cheese (see a pattern here?).  People love cheese.

On this visit, I got their recession special.  Two hot dogs, and in this case, topped with sweet onions, and a papaya juice drink.  $4.95.  Not bad for a quick meal at midnight after a few drinks.

Gray's Papaya Hot Dogs with Sweet Onions

Don't let the prices here fool you.  Gray's serves a tasty hot dog.  The juice drinks, no matter what flavor you get, are incredibly refreshing.  You can go spend $300 on a meal at Jean-Georges or Eleven Madison Park, or you can come to a place like this and spend $3.  Cheap eats in NYC, can't beat it.

Gray's Papaya

402 6th Avenue

New York, NY 10011