The best days in New York are the ones spent almost exclusively out of the apartment. Especially in the warmer months, we’re going from workout class to park hang to museum exhibit to shopping to dinner and a show. Thus, it’s important for any New Yorker, or New York visitor, to be acquainted with the city’s lavatory landscape, if you will.

While most of the city’s public restrooms are, for lack of a better word, foul, there are a few hidden gems that most people would rather I gatekeep. Before I reveal them, I need to specify that underneath the headline of “best bathrooms” are two subcategories: best bathroom experiences and best bathrooms in a pinch.

The former is pretty self-explanatory. I’m referring to the public-ish (meaning not in your home) restrooms you’ll find at hotels, restaurants, clubs, and establishments with some sort of barrier to entry. Like their encompassing interiors, these Michelin-starred bathrooms have a strong sense of design, perhaps some mood lighting, and ideally a fancy candle. I’d like for them to offer some high status hand soap, and certainly a toilet paper of greater constitution than 2-ply.

The latter refer to bathrooms that are properly public. These are matters of convenience, the bathrooms that need to be on your radar for emergency purposes. Cleanliness is key (ahem, unlike the bathrooms in Washington Square Park which are essentially glorified porta-potties) and ease of access is imperative. While not an overwhelmingly lavish experience, these bathrooms offer what many people would describe as life-saving relief.

So now, without further ado, the greatest bathrooms in the greatest city in the world.

THE BEST-IN-CLASS BATHROOMS

New York’s most fabulous public-ish powder rooms.

Bonnie’s: Ideal for keeping the party going even while you take a bathroom break. The mood lighting and bumping music make this a lively experience.

Soba Ulala: Japanese design means Japanese bathroom technology. Walk into the minimalist, earthy restroom and find a Toto toilet greeting you.

Crosby Street Hotel: Enter the foyer, and you’ll find this bathroom down the stairs, around the corner, through a tunnel, and across the river. Its location at the end of a circuitous maze through this hotel lends itself to—and this is underrated—immense privacy.

San Sabino: Special points for their proprietary candle in partnership with SIDIA.

New York Pilates (on Houston Street): As you’d expect from a tranquil fitness environment, the bathroom features soft lighting and elevated hygiene product offerings.

THE BATHROOMS YOU NEED THE MOST

The best bathrooms are there when you need them most.

Saks: When in doubt, department stores are going to be your friend. If you’re uptown, head to Saks for the cleanest option of the bunch.

The New York Public Library: Don’t even try waiting for the (scary) toilet in Bryant Park, go to the NYPL instead.

Apple Stores: Always a safe bet, in my experience. The one in Meatpacking and Soho have both proven helpful in moments of crisis for me.

Domino Park: The Brooklyn running community has a lot to say about the Domino Park bathrooms, particularly that they are cleaner than expected, and the water fountain out front is equally as life-saving.

Brookfield Place: A lower Manhattan safe haven both for heavy air conditioning and relatively clean public restrooms. The mall at Hudson Yards feels like a close relative, too.

Now that you’re armed with NYC bathroom knowledge, feel free to fibermaxx freely. Build your routine in The Fiber Shop .