I went to New York as Zagat, which 30 years ago started a restaurant guide, has branched out into shopping and has produced a guide for the city. It is now available to buy in this country for the first time.

My shopping basket consisted of: perfume for my wife and work colleague, jeans for a friend, ipod for my daughter, a specific pair of trainers (friend), a black baseball cap with NY on the front and a Nike hoody (another daughter) and a T-shirt from Abercrombie and Fitch. For me.

There was also a request for a Bushnell V2 Tour (with pin seeker technology) - a gadget that allows golfers to see how far away the flag is from a golfing buddy.

All very different shops and, I thought, probably miles apart.

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But not only does the guide show you shops in sections (eg sports or lingerie stores), but gives a review and categorises them as medium priced, expensive or very expensive.

The stores are voted for by shoppers and boss Tim Zagat told me that 100 votes would earn inclusion in the guide. Fewer may still merit inclusion but not a full rating.

Having plotted all the shops I wanted onto the map in the guide, I got most of the goods within three hours. The next day all I had left to get was the golf gizmo and the Nike top.

I headed west to Niketown, described in the guide as “like an amusement park for the feet” where you can “make a day event out of browsing”. I figured 10 minutes, but after being directed to all sorts of different departments I left after 20 having been unable to find the top I wanted.

Next was the golf gizmo which involved a walk of several blocks to Sports Authority, but alas they never had it and this remained elusive. Although when I got back home it was ordered over the internet and delivered within 24 hours, but it was £70 more expensive than if I had been able to get it in New York.

The shopping guide features 2,463 stores and was put together with the help of 7,500 shoppers. It is available to buy for £9.99 from WHSmiths and most bookstores or online at www.zagat.com.

NEED TO KNOW

Adam Fresco travelled with Virgin Atlantic and stayed at the Four Seasons Hotel NYC, New York. One night’s accommodation at the hotel starts from £437. Virgin flies from Heathrow to New York six times daily - economy fares start from £384.60 and premium economy fares from £794.

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