We stayed here for our first staycation after moving to Las Vegas. I chose NYNY having never been to the strip, but I love NY so I figured the theme was enough. Thankfully, my systems for choosing hotels and restaurants has improved over time.
I called ahead the day of check-in to make sure we'd be able to get a non-smoking room and was told that it couldn't be guaranteed. Fortunately, at check-in it didn't prove to be a problem and we were given a perfectly smoke free room. The room wasn't fancy, but just what we needed for our strip experience.
NYNY in my opinion is probably the most convenient casino on the strip for locals. The parking lot is rarely full and easy to access and exit. They probably have one of the shortest walks from parking garage to casino as well. For hotel guests it is also very convenient because the front desk is close to the parking garage entrance. The entire casino and restaurant layout is much less spread out than other casinos.
NYNY didn't have the best restaurants when I stayed, but the new additions are great. Now they have Tom's Urban and Shake Shack plus some shops. They are also right next door to the Monte Carlo which just added some good quick-serve food places. Across the walkway is MGM which has a nice selection of higher end restaurants like Craftsteak and Shibuya.