Things to do in New York City
-
A
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Just two short hours outside of NYC sits one of the most historic cities on the eastern seaboard, fairly overflowing with important sites from America’s colonial days and its fight for independence. But for most people, Philly is famous for one thing and one thing only: it was the gritty city that served as a backdrop for fictional underdog boxer Rocky Balboa. Who can resist temptation to shadow-box at the top of the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, just like Rocky did?
reviewed
-
B
American Museum of Natural History
Founded in 1869, this classic museum contains a veritable wonderland of more 30 million artifacts, including lots of menacing dinosaur skeletons, as well as the Rose Center for Earth & Space, with its cutting-edge planetarium. From October through May, the museum is home to the Butterfly Conservatory, a glass-house featuring 500-plus butterflies from all over the world.
On the natural history side, the museum is perhaps best known for its Fossil Halls, containing nearly 600 specimens on view, including the skeletons of a massive mammoth and a fearsome Tyrannosaurus Rex.
There are also plentiful animal exhibits (the stuffed Alaskan brown bear is popular), galleries devoted…
reviewed
-
C
Evolution
A great cabinet of curiosities, this old-fashioned storefront sells natural-history collectibles of the sort usually seen in museums. This is the place to buy – or just gawk at – framed beetles and butterflies, bugs frozen in amber-resin cubes, stuffed parrots, zebra hides and shark teeth, as well as stony wonders, including meteorites, fragments from Mars and 100-million-year-old fossils.
reviewed
-
D
'Cesca
Though it’s renowned for its upscale Italian fare, the cozy front lounge and bar area here are also worth a trek. With lots of dark wood, some romantic tables and a large free-floating bar in the center of the room, the front area of ’Cesca is handsome in a gentlemen’s smoking lounge sort of way. There’s an impressive list of wines by the glass, plus great bar food.
reviewed
-
E
Cho Dang Goi
Right in the heart of Koreatown, Cho Dang Goi does a brisk business in traditional bibimbops (vegetables with rice and spicy sauce), sticky-rice dishes and pork stews, which are all among the best in the area. You'll also get the tiny plates of kimchi surprises (including a pile of teensy dried fish, eyes intact) right before your meal begins.
reviewed
-
F
Carnegie Hall
This legendary music hall may not be the world's biggest, nor grandest, but it's definitely one of the most acoustically blessed venues around. Opera, jazz and folk greats feature in the Isaac Stern Auditorium, with edgier jazz, pop, classical and world music in the hugely popular Zankel Hall.
reviewed
-
G
Brooklyn Flea Market (Fort Greene)
On the grounds of a school in Fort Greene, some 200 vendors sell their wares, ranging from antiques, records, vintage clothes, craft items and enticing food stalls stuffed with a smorgasbord of tasty treats. In winter, the market moves indoors to a gorgeous art deco space in the former Williamsburgh Savings Bank building at Flatbush near Atlantic Ave.
reviewed
-
H
Daniel
This chichi French palace features floral arrangements and wide-eyed foodies who gawk over plates of peekytoe crab and celery-root salad, foie gras terrine with gala apples and black truffle-crusted lobster - and that's just the first course. There's an all-veggie menu, too.
reviewed
-
I
S’Mac
If you're only going to do one thing, you've got to do it well – and S'Mac hits the spot with mac 'n' cheese lovers. The all-American has cheddar and Vermont jack cheese, with bacon if you like. Or, try the Gruyère mac 'n' cheese and the Manchego cheese and Cajun macs.
reviewed
-
J
Rodeo Bar & Grill
New York’s best Texas-style honkytonk is in Murray Hill? Good shows of country, bluegrass and rockabilly are staged nightly for a foot-tappin’ Manhattan crowd. There are creative margaritas and plenty of steaks, fajitas, burgers and veggie dishes, too.
reviewed
Advertisement
-
K
Grimaldi’s
Legendary lines and pizzas are still dished up daily at this touristy pizza mecca. Thankfully, they live up to the hype: thin-crust pies are dabbed with San Marzano tomato sauce and topped with fresh mozzarella, and delivered bubbling to your table. They also make gooey calzones that could make a pacemaker skip a beat. Be prepared for long lines. Whole pies only.
The restaurant is in a new multilevel location after losing its former lease. Interestingly, a new pizza joint, Juliana’s (www.julianaspizza.com) is scheduled to open next door sometime in 2012. And it will be run by Patsy and Carol Grimaldi, the original owners of Grimaldi’s (they sold the business to Frank…
reviewed
-
L
Beyoglu
Best in the summer when you can sit outside, Beyoglu's fresh Turkish cuisine is light and enticing, from the feta-laden salads to the grilled fish and ample meze.
reviewed
-
Strayboots
Self-guided hybrid tours that fuse interesting urban info and a scavenger-hunt element to help New York neophytes find their way around the neighborhood of their choice. Go at your own pace as you text in your answers to central command to receive your next clue. At the time of research a savvy, tailor-made app was in the works.
reviewed
-
Manhattan Sky Tour: New York Helicopter Flight
12 minutes (Departs New York City, New York)
by Viator
lt;!-- --gt; Take to the Manhattan skies for an exciting helicopter tour of New York City! Enjoy spectacular aerial views of Manhattan on this memorable…Not LP reviewed
-
M
Green-Wood Cemetery
reviewed
-
N
Brooklyn Academy of Music
Founded in 1861, BAM is the country’s oldest performing arts center and supplies New York City with its edgier works of modern dance, music and theater. The complex contains a 2109-seat opera house, an 874-seat theater and the four-screen Rose Cinemas. Its stage has showcased Mercer Cunningham retrospectives, contemporary African dance and avant-garde interpretations of Shakespeare.
Every fall, BAM hosts the Next Wave Festival, which presents an array of avant-garde works and artists talks. The on-site bar and restaurant, BAMcafé, stages free jazz, R&B and pop performances on weekends.
reviewed
-
O
South Street Seaport Museum
Recently renovated, this museum offers a glimpse of the seaport’s history and a survey of the world’s great ocean liners, with permanent exhibits and various other sites dotted around the 11-block area. Spanning three floors, the museum's new galleries include a battalion of model ships, antique shipping tools, and left-of-center shows covering anything from New York fashion to contemporary photography. The museum's booty also extends to a group of tall-masted sailing ships just south of Pier 17, including the Ambrose and Pioneer. Off-limits for restoration during research, access to their windswept decks and intimate interiors are normally included in the admission…
reviewed
-
New York Helicopter Flight: Grand Island
25 minutes (Departs New York City, New York)
by Viator
lt;!-- --gt; See the entire City of New York on a comprehensive 25-minute helicopter tour of the Big Apple! As well as the most popular sights, such as the…Not LP reviewed
from USD$270.00 -
P
African Burial Ground
In 1991, construction workers here uncovered over 400 stacked wooden caskets, just 16ft to 28ft below street level. The boxes contained the remains of enslaved Africans (nearby Trinity Church graveyard had banned the burial of Africans at the time). Today, a memorial and visitors center honors an estimated 15,000 Africans buried here during the 17th and 18th centuries.
The site is permanently protected as a National Historic Landmark, and today it’s part of the National Parks Service. The visitors center requires airportlike security screenings, so leave your nail files in the hotel.
reviewed
-
Q
Candle Cafe
The moneyed, yoga set piles into this attractive vegan cafe serving a long list of sandwiches, salads, comfort food and market-driven specials. The specialty here is the house-made seitan. (Try it crusted with porcini and served with mashed potatoes and gravy – the perfect cold-day dish.) There is a juice bar and a gluten-free menu.
For a more upscale take on the subject, check out its sister restaurant, Candle 79, two blocks away.
reviewed
Advertisement
-
New York Pizza Tour to Brooklyn and Coney Island
4 hours 30 minutes (Departs New York City, New York)
by Viator
Craving authentic New York pizza? Look no further than this New York Pizza Tour, which includes a lunch stop at First Lady Michelle Obama's favorite pizzeria,…Not LP reviewed
from USD$80.00 -
R
Yankee Stadium
The Boston Red Sox like to talk about their record of two World Series championships in the last 80 years, but the Yankees have won a mere 27 in that period. The team’s magic appears to have moved with them across 161st St to the new Yankee Stadium, where they played their first season in 2009 – winning the World Series there in a six-game slugfest against the Phillies. The Yankees play from April to October.
The new stadium offers hour-long guided tours of the on-site museum, the dugout, press box, clubhouse, field and Monument Park (with plaques commemorating greats like Babe Ruth and Joe DiMaggio). You can purchase tickets in advance through Ticketmaster.
reviewed
-
S
Jo Jo
Part of the ever-thriving Jean-Georges empire, here is a place where you really can’t go wrong. French standards get the Midas touch with the addition of a little something special. Foie gras is fashioned into crème brûlée, venison cubes are tossed with pomegranate seeds, striped bass gets simply pan roasted with fennel and lemon. The warm and gooey chocolate Valrhona cake is widely praised as the best in the city – if not the world. And it’s all turned out into a dining room that, following a recent renovation, feels so hushed, lush and intimate, you feel as if you’ve been invited into an old-school, squeaky-clean bordello.
reviewed
-
T
Les Halles
Vegetarians need not apply at this packed and serious brasserie, owned by celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain. Among the elegant light-fixture balls, dark wood paneling and stiff white tablecloths you’ll find a buttoned-up, meat-lovin’ crowd who've come for rich and decadent favorites like cote de boeuf and steak au poivre.
Standards like French onion soup, moules frites, and salade Niçoise are equally sublime, while the lists of wine, single-malt scotches and other liquors are impressive. From the crème brûlée to the tarte tatin, sweet tooths won't be disappointed.
reviewed
-
U
’Inoteca
It's worth joining the crowd waiting at the cramped bar of this airy, dark-wood-paneled corner haven to choose from tramezzini (small sandwiches on white or whole-wheat bread), panini (pressed sandwiches) and bruschetta options, all delicious and moderately priced. The truffled egg toast, a square of bread hollowed out in its center and filled with egg, truffles and fontina cheese, is a signature favorite.
But you can’t go wrong, whether you choose the beet-orange-mint salad, vegetable lasagna built with layers of eggplant rather than pasta, or a plate of garlicky mussels. There’s also a list of 200 wines, 25 of them available by the glass. The West Village post is…
reviewed