Sent you a PM. Its true, a lot of the games around NYC just arent worth playing in due to being poorly run, shady, or having a high rake.
There are well run, safe games with a fair chop that are worth playing in, as well as more sporadic home games which play smaller. But its hard to figure out whats what without actually going and playing, unless you knew a guy who had been playing around the city for years and had done the work for you...