New York's queues grow as social media hype turns waiting into a social ritual

New York’s queue culture is expanding, driven by social media hype and turning waiting in line into a social ritual and a deliberate slowdown against the city’s fast pace. TikTok recommendations send crowds to pizza shops, gelato stands, and bakeries. Customers often queue to judge whether viral items live up to the hype or from fear of missing out. High rents limit seating, pushing queues onto sidewalks. Critics dismiss the trend as herd behavior, while supporters see queuing as a third place for connection. Earlier queue waves involved Shake Shack and cronuts; one reporter found the viral gelato disappointing.