City Spotlight: A Perfect Day in New York City
Let’s Explore!
Ashley knows the best spots
Editors note: Ashley E. and i are friends from college and are essentially the same person. that’s how our mutual friend introduced us to one another. we love pretty things, fancy coffee shops, pop culture, and all things current. ashley is the kind of friend that you will always get a great recommendation from. she’s fearless and feminine and even though she’s newer to new york city, she takes her recommendations seriously so buckle up and take notes!
8:00 am- wake up
Hop out of bed (jk give me 5) and the best thing to do is head to a Saturday morning farmers market to get goodies for the week (ideally Inwood or Union Square).
10:00 AM: back from the farmers market, pick a brunch spot with pals (tip: try and convince your friends for any early-ish brunch - it gets to be pretty bonkers at 1:00PM). Some favs -
Upper Manhattan: Community, Bluestone Lane (Locations all throughout the city, though - my favorite locations are UWS and EUS), Jacobs Pickles, The Penrose
Midtown: Marta (Not hating on midtown, but I just avoid it as much as possible)
Downtown: Jack’s Wife Freda (2 locations - Carmine Street may be my favorite brunch spot in the entire city), Clover Grocery, Barrio Chino, West~Bourne, and Banter, Wilfie & Nell
2:00 pm- grab a coffee (or bottle of wine) and hop over to a park
Here are my favorite coffee shops and parks (below)
First, drinks:
Coffee: La Colombe, Blue Bottle, Gotham Coffee Roasters, Joe Coffee, Happy Bones, Laughing Man, Maman (Lavender hot chocolate!)
Wine: Any bodega and wine shop will do! They’re all over and have a big selection of cheap-ish wine that doesn’t remind you of bad boxed wine from college.
pups!
always necessary to point out
Brooklyn:
Queens:
Astoria Park (Bonus - in the summer, Astoria Pool is the best public pool, IMHO and Man Repeller’s opinion)
Then, Parks:
UP UPtown:
Upper Manhattan:
Downtown:
4PM- Museums!
Favorite way to see the city - located all over and you can find the right museum to suit your mood. Here are some of my favorites
cooper hewitt
Tenament
Guggenheim
Met
Cooper Hewitt
MoMA ps1
The Whitney
7PM- Dinnertime!
Or 6PM if you’re trying to catch a show
Mermaid Inn (dollar oysters 5-7 and 3 locations!)
Vic’s (All you ever need in life is their corn appetizer and cacio e pepe)
While We Were Young (Truly an aesthetic dream)
Ippudo Ramen (be ready to wait for this one but so worth it)
Uncle Boons (Michellin Star Thai)
8PM: Show or live music
There is so much art in this city - hop over to midtown to see a Broadway show or head downtown for a plethora of Off-Broadway options. My other favorite thing to do is see live music or search for a secret show in the city.
IF UPTOWN
Take the trek on the 1 train to the 145th stop and walk up a few blocks to The Honeywell - the 70s inspired bar is intimate but still fun and they have every drink you could ever want, including a drink in a lava lamp (!!!). Still don’t see what you want? The bartenders will mix something for you if you tell them what you like. After that, there’s the bar At the Wallace that is like an adult playground - pinball, life-size Jenga, shuffleboard...and dirt cheap drinks.
IF DOWNTOWN
All you need to do is go to Mother’s Ruin - fried chicken sandwich and a Tecate with the works. Trust me on this one.
WHEREVER YOU ARE
Dollar pizza is always a good idea
misc. things to plug into your day
because there’s always more
Walk around downtown (specifically West Village, East Village, Soho, Lower East Side)
Go see the Freedom Tower
Check out an art gallery
Go to a monologue rehearsal for a late-night show (tickets same day from the NBC store)
Look for sample sales or pop-up shops
If it’s summer, you can go to the beach! (Jacob Riis and Rockaway are favs)
Vintage stores are all over the city! Great guide here
Walk the Brooklyn Bridge (sunset is an amazing time to do so!)
SPORTS! (Yankees, Mets, Rangers, Knicks, Nets are the best to go to)