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NYC for the weekend


TexasIsBetter

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Wife and I are going to NYC towards the end of March for a medical conference. We're staying at a hotel in lower Manhattan. I need some ideas for must see, do, eat,  tips for getting around, etc.

Flying in on Friday and thinking of a Broadway show and dinner. Saturday I'll be exploring by myself until 2ish pm.

Thanks ya'll 

 

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If changing hotels is an option, stay at Park Lane. You will be in reasonable walking distance of more than you can see in three days, so transportation won't be an issue. Just try to avoid Leona. 

If art deco architecture is of interest take a tour of Rockefeller Plaza.

If opera is of any interest, The Metropolitan Opera is as good as it gets. Even if you have only a minimal interest in opera, the Met is so good with sets, lighting, etc., not to mention the actual singing, that it is worth the evening. Also you can get reservations to have dinner at the theater before the opera and mark two things off the wish list. The food is good, and it's "moderately fancy", but not world class if that is what you are looking for.   The Met is a 10-15 minute walk from Park Lane, so this is the one event you might want to take a cab for. I am not good at hailing a cab, so I give the bellman a 5 to do it for me. I probably tip too heavily, but I find that if I have a pocket full of 5's and give out one or two as appropriate, I can get willing help as opposed to people treating me like I'm a pain in the ass. Planning ahead for  $100 in fivers,  added to the cost of the trip makes my time much more pleasant.  

I'd take good shoes, rather than roller skates, to Guggenheim. If you decide to go there, watch any documentary on the building itself and/or Frank Lloyd Wright to pique your interest. 

Check weather.com and pack accordingly. Last time I went there was a freak blizzard and I was happy I took long undies. 

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14 hours ago, TexasIsBetter said:

Wife and I are going to NYC towards the end of March for a medical conference. We're staying at a hotel in lower Manhattan. I need some ideas for must see, do, eat,  tips for getting around, etc.

Flying in on Friday and thinking of a Broadway show and dinner. Saturday I'll be exploring by myself until 2ish pm.

Thanks ya'll 

 

Serious answer...there’s a a NYC thread you should check out.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Alright folks, I need some recs for a lively and fun dinner and drinks on one night in NYC  (Day 3 below) in late March, which also happens to be my wife's 40th.  It is a Saturday, so many places are already booked up.  I lived in the city about 20 years ago, but now find that I just don't know it nearly as well as I used to.  Here's what I currently have booked:

Day 1:    dinner at Gabriel Kreuther, after catching Network w/ Bryan Cranston at the Belasco theatre

Day 2:   dinner at Eleven Madison

Day 3:   Bday night - need recs for dinner and drinks

Day 4:  Lunch at Carbone; dinner open

Day 5: Lunch at Frenchette; fly out in the evening

 

For Day 3, I was thinking about Shoku for sushi.  Any thoughts?

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14 hours ago, Doug E. Fresh said:

Alright folks, I need some recs for a lively and fun dinner and drinks on one night in NYC  (Day 3 below) in late March, which also happens to be my wife's 40th.  It is a Saturday, so many places are already booked up.  I lived in the city about 20 years ago, but now find that I just don't know it nearly as well as I used to.  Here's what I currently have booked:

Day 1:    dinner at Gabriel Kreuther, after catching Network w/ Bryan Cranston at the Belasco theatre

Day 2:   dinner at Eleven Madison

Day 3:   Bday night - need recs for dinner and drinks

Day 4:  Lunch at Carbone; dinner open

Day 5: Lunch at Frenchette; fly out in the evening

 

For Day 3, I was thinking about Shoku for sushi.  Any thoughts?

Based on your list you like high end food, I went to L’ATELIER de Joël Robuchon last weekend and it was pretty phenomenal. 

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You are doing some upscale shit, how about casual and comfort food for the birthday?
 
Emmy Squared for Detroit Pie?
 
 


Casual is more the scene we are looking for coming off the previous dinners. Not looking for the stuffy, white table cloth meal for a 40th dinner. I was thinking sushi since something a bit lighter may also be in order and will also check out .Emmy Squared.

What about a good place for drinks after? Something nice but not too exclusive and no $1000 bottle service places. Definitely open to locations from the Village up to NoMad would work.


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2 minutes ago, Doug E. Fresh said:

 


Casual is more the scene we are looking for coming off the previous dinners. Not looking for the stuffy, white table cloth meal for a 40th dinner. I was thinking sushi since something a bit lighter may also be in order and will also check out .Emmy Squared.

What about a good place for drinks after? Something nice but not too exclusive and no $1000 bottle service places. Definitely open to locations from the Village up to NoMad would work.


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since money clearly isn't an issue and you mentioned sushi, you might see if you can get a counter seat at nakazawa in the west village. the omakase there is really excellent.   Going a totally different direction, 4 Charles Prime Rib is one of my favorite restaurants in town and would be nice for a birthday. Probably too late to get a reservation but you can set an alert for cancellations.  Neither of those is "casual", but they are a totally different atmosphere from the fancy midtown places you have booked. 

 

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Based on your list you like high end food, I went to L’ATELIER de Joël Robuchon last weekend and it was pretty phenomenal. 


Love l’Atelier and a great recommendation. It’s always consistent and well done no matter which city you’re in. We’ve hit it several times over the years (used to live in London) so will keep that one on the list if nothing else pans out.


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5 hours ago, Doug E. Fresh said:

 


Casual is more the scene we are looking for coming off the previous dinners. Not looking for the stuffy, white table cloth meal for a 40th dinner. I was thinking sushi since something a bit lighter may also be in order and will also check out .Emmy Squared.

What about a good place for drinks after? Something nice but not too exclusive and no $1000 bottle service places. Definitely open to locations from the Village up to NoMad would work.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Bemelmans for drinks.  One of our favorite places in the City...would be perfect end to a night after birthday dinner.

I’d suggest Babbo for dinner as I think it would be perfect too, but you’re already doing Italian another night.  And we haven’t done sushi, or any Asian really, in the City, which sounds like what you’re shooting for, so I can’t help you much there.

Babbo for dinner and drinks after at Bemelmans would be my wife’s ideal 40th birthday.

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On 3/9/2019 at 4:03 PM, billfromlaketravis said:

Try to block out some time to walk in Central Park. Spending more time in the Park is probably my only regret from my trip in December. 

I'd dress nicer than normal, most New Yorkers, especially women, dress to the nines. 

please don't talk about how "most New Yorkers" dress unless you are expert on this subject

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On 3/9/2019 at 4:03 PM, billfromlaketravis said:

Try to block out some time to walk in Central Park. Spending more time in the Park is probably my only regret from my trip in December. 

I'd dress nicer than normal, most New Yorkers, especially women, dress to the nines. 

Pro Tip: if you don't have any 9s, go down to Canal around W. Broadway and you get some 7s or 8s.... you can hardly tell the difference. Bring cash. 

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On 3/9/2019 at 3:03 PM, billfromlaketravis said:

Try to block out some time to walk in Central Park. Spending more time in the Park is probably my only regret from my trip in December. 

I'd dress nicer than normal, most New Yorkers, especially women, dress to the nines. 

I had a lovely stroll in Central Park wearing my top hat and tails. 

I flipped a silver dollar to a park bench bum and told him "Sorry about your bad luck" 

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 3/7/2019 at 6:14 PM, Doug E. Fresh said:

Alright folks, I need some recs for a lively and fun dinner and drinks on one night in NYC  (Day 3 below) in late March, which also happens to be my wife's 40th.  It is a Saturday, so many places are already booked up.  I lived in the city about 20 years ago, but now find that I just don't know it nearly as well as I used to.  Here's what I currently have booked:

Day 1:    dinner at Gabriel Kreuther, after catching Network w/ Bryan Cranston at the Belasco theatre

Day 2:   dinner at Eleven Madison

Day 3:   Bday night - need recs for dinner and drinks

Day 4:  Lunch at Carbone; dinner open

Day 5: Lunch at Frenchette; fly out in the evening

 

For Day 3, I was thinking about Shoku for sushi.  Any thoughts?

Just a follow up on this after getting back on Monday night.  Had a great trip and reminded me of why I love the city so much.  One of the coolest things we did was head up to Arthur Ave in the Bronx for a food tour with https://arthuravenuefoodtours.com/, which I would highly recommend.  We sampled more than enough pizza, bread, cannoli, oysters, salumi, cheese, etc and the couple that runs it do a fantastic job.  Christian was a former somm at some of the Bastianich restaurants.  Now on to the dining:

-  had a pre-theatre dinner at the bar at Gabriel Kreuther, which I thought was very good.  The restaurant is French/Alsatian and we had the mushroom tartes flambee, a sausage with sauerkraut and the pork schnitzel.  All very well done and an enjoyable meal, if a bit pricey for what it was.

- Eleven Madison was a huge disappointment, and a complete waste.  Most overrated restaurant I have ever been to.  I found the food to be average and while some dishes hit (seared foie gras with brussel sprouts, cheese, mushrooms, etc.) many of them flat out missed.  The main course was a piece of veal that was so tough that I stopped after a couple of bites, and it had a very sour sauce.  On the bright side, the wine pairing was nice and included some vino with a bit of age on it like the 2004 Pegau Chateauneuf du Pape.  For some context, I lived in the UK for about 8 years and have travelled Europe extensively so have dined at many Michelin starred restaurants.  One thing I noticed with EMP is how large the restaurant is compared to other three star establishments.  Perhaps that impacts the kitchen when having to handle that much food going out.

- Had the Omakase at Shuko, which was the highlight of the trip.  Run by a couple of guys that worked at Masa, it is a very cool place that mainly seats about 20 at the bar and only does Omakase with R&B/hip hop playing while you eat.  The fish was fantastic and we couldn't have asked for a better meal.

- Also had lunch at both Babbo and Del Posto, two NYC institutions that while a bit dated, still delivered well.  Never made the Carbone lunch do to an 11:45am reservation and a brutal hangover.

 

 

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8 hours ago, Doug E. Fresh said:

Just a follow up on this after getting back on Monday night.  Had a great trip and reminded me of why I love the city so much.  One of the coolest things we did was head up to Arthur Ave in the Bronx for a food tour with https://arthuravenuefoodtours.com/, which I would highly recommend.  We sampled more than enough pizza, bread, cannoli, oysters, salumi, cheese, etc and the couple that runs it do a fantastic job.  Christian was a former somm at some of the Bastianich restaurants.  Now on to the dining:

-  had a pre-theatre dinner at the bar at Gabriel Kreuther, which I thought was very good.  The restaurant is French/Alsatian and we had the mushroom tartes flambee, a sausage with sauerkraut and the pork schnitzel.  All very well done and an enjoyable meal, if a bit pricey for what it was.

- Eleven Madison was a huge disappointment, and a complete waste.  Most overrated restaurant I have ever been to.  I found the food to be average and while some dishes hit (seared foie gras with brussel sprouts, cheese, mushrooms, etc.) many of them flat out missed.  The main course was a piece of veal that was so tough that I stopped after a couple of bites, and it had a very sour sauce.  On the bright side, the wine pairing was nice and included some vino with a bit of age on it like the 2004 Pegau Chateauneuf du Pape.  For some context, I lived in the UK for about 8 years and have travelled Europe extensively so have dined at many Michelin starred restaurants.  One thing I noticed with EMP is how large the restaurant is compared to other three star establishments.  Perhaps that impacts the kitchen when having to handle that much food going out.

- Had the Omakase at Shuko, which was the highlight of the trip.  Run by a couple of guys that worked at Masa, it is a very cool place that mainly seats about 20 at the bar and only does Omakase with R&B/hip hop playing while you eat.  The fish was fantastic and we couldn't have asked for a better meal.

- Also had lunch at both Babbo and Del Posto, two NYC institutions that while a bit dated, still delivered well.  Never made the Carbone lunch do to an 11:45am reservation and a brutal hangover.

 

 

Sounds awesome.  What was the biggest difference between Babbo and Del Posto?  Love Babbo.  Still haven’t made it to Del Posto.  I know Del Posto is fancier.  Food comparable?

Went last week and haven’t gotten around to posting my review yet.  I’ll get on it when I have some time.

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On 3/28/2019 at 7:45 PM, Landomatic said:

Sounds awesome.  What was the biggest difference between Babbo and Del Posto?  Love Babbo.  Still haven’t made it to Del Posto.  I know Del Posto is fancier.  Food comparable?

Went last week and haven’t gotten around to posting my review yet.  I’ll get on it when I have some time.

We ate at the bar at both places, but Del Posto is certainly a bit more formal, in both the the look of the restaurant and service.  Both have fantastic and deep heavy Italian wine lists.  We did a 2009 Biondi Santi and Babbo and a 2007 Cerbaiona at Del Posto.  I thought the pasta at Del Posto was slightly better - we had a spaghetti with sea urchin and their ragu.

 

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2 hours ago, gecko said:

For frequent NYC travelers....United is moving to new gates at LGA (in the renovated area) in early June.  United Club is moving as well and will be on the "gate side" of security.

Finally.....

Given the limited routes United flies from LGA, I'm envious of the seating you'll have at the lounge. 

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3 hours ago, gecko said:

For frequent NYC travelers....United is moving to new gates at LGA (in the renovated area) in early June.  United Club is moving as well and will be on the "gate side" of security.

Finally.....

Got to see the renovated part last time I flew in there.  Holy christ what a breath of fresh air.  I felt like I'd gone to the wrong place when I got off the plane.  Then I turned a corner into the (not renovated) baggage claim area and I realized that I was, in fact, in the proper third world country airport.

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