3 Chelsea Spots Were Among Most Instagrammed Restaurants of 2016

CHELSEA, NY — Three Chelsea hotspots placed in the top-ten most Instagrammed restaurants in the U.S. this year, according to data published by CNN. New York City is Instagram's most geotagged city worldwide on the social media platform this year, so it only makes sense that these popular city restaurants are considered "Instagram famous."

Sugar Factory at 835 Washington St. snags the number one spot for most instagrammed restaurant in the U.S. Known as the "sweetest place on earth" for their sugary alcoholic drinks, this restaurant is a tourist favorite that many New Yorkers steer clear of. Diners love the lollipop-shaped fried mac-n'-cheese bites, the burgers, and the 24-scoop ice-cream sundae called "the King Kong."

"It's simply a fact, you can't dine at #SugarFactory without posting at least one picture," Sugar Factory tweeted.

Cocktails run for $36 a pop. Sugar Factory favorites include : Lollipop Passion, a goblet of sugar garnished with lollipops; White Gummi, a fruity cocktail with gummy worms; and Cotton Candy Cosmopolitan, with Pinnacle Cotton Candy Vodka and a puff of cotton candy. You'll leave with a full stomach and wake up with a pounding head.

As Roy P. said in his Yelp review, "Go once for your snapchat or instagram stories. Never go back."

Tao Downtown at 92 9th Ave. gets the third spot. One of the most expensive restaurants in Chelsea, Tao is a trendy spot known for it's lavish crowd and extraordinary Pan-Asian food. After dinner, the restaurant turns into a popular club. Diners and partygoers love taking pictures with the huge Buddha centerpiece projected with transformative colors, shapes and patterns.

Tao features sushi, barbecue options and dim-sum-style plates. The chicken-wing lollipops, five-spice short ribs and the Chilean sea bass are popular choices. The desserts are a must try, like the fortune cookies with chocolate and vanilla mousse or the molten chocolate cake.

Eboni D. said on Yelp, "I've had such an amazing time that I simply feel like I need to take EVERYONE I KNOW HERE. So trendy, so sexy, and so unique!"

Another Chelsea favorite, Black Tap Craft Burgers & Beer at 248 W. 14th St., was named the fifth most Instagrammed restaurant in the U.S. this year. Black Tap specializes in gourmet burgers, but the most well-known and frequently Instagrammed menu items are the "crazy shakes."

Priced at $15, the 1,600 calorie shakes don't come cheap. They were added to the menu in Jan. 2015, and became very hyped up on Instagram and other social media platforms.

Black Tap looks like a club from the outside with it's long line, roped-off waiting area and a host out front. It's not unusual for people to wait outside in any weather for over an hour just to get their hands on a Sweet N’ Salty or Oreo Cookies & Cream shake.

Neek C. said in her Yelp review, "I was on Instagram. Saw the milkshakes. I had to go. And it was amazing. I had the cookie milkshake. No burger. No fries. No food. Just a milkshake of greatness."

Three other NYC restaurants—Katz's Delicatessen, LAVO and La Marina—made the top-ten most Instagrammed list this year.

Photo by Jason Howie/Flickr