Annnnd cue Frank Sinatraâs, âNew York, New York! đ¶
Oh boy, do I love New York City. Growing up, my mom, my sister and I would take the train in from Baltimore. We wouldnât do anything fancy, just enjoy each other and the spirit of the city; my favorite memory from growing up is us eating cheap slices & NY cheesecake on the rocks in Central Park on a sunny day.
Itâs just that the city has always inspired meâas if anything was possible.
Years had gone by, we moved to North Carolina, and I had not been back to the city as an adult, so last year I was determined to make my way back to the big đ.
I say this was a romantic trip to NYC, because it was, but it was also a trip to see our best friend, Chris & my cousin, Jessica. đ
So, you can follow this itinerary with anyone you plan to travel with!
Iâm really only interested in going to the city when itâs chilly because, to me it actually feels like Iâm in NYC. I want to be bundled up in an oversized coat & scarf bopping around town seeking warmth & food. The cold just adds to the NY charm in my opinion. âïž
And of course, so many people are attracted to going during the holidays, which drives the prices of travel & stay way up. And ya know, traveling to NYC is already expensive as it is! SO, I am going to let you in on a little secret of mine on how to travel to NYC during the holiday season & cut the costs.
Go right after New Yearâs.
Thatâs right, go the weekend right after the holiday. Last year we went the weekend after New Yearâs (Jan 6-9) and it was so ideal.
At the time, I was slightly nervous they would have taken all the Christmas dĂ©cor down by the time that we arrived, but the Rockefeller Center tree was still up & lit, the ice skating rinks were still in swing, & the Christmas markets were still going on, all while there were less people everywhere & we spent half the money, whatâs not to love!!?
We stayed at The Ridge Hotel through Airbnb. After taxes & fees we only paid $330 for 3 nights. It looks like itâs $168 a night for the same weekend this year, but I still highly recommend this place for the price. The location is so fire!
Located in the Lower East Village, we basically walked everywhere on our trip. At least I can say, it was the perfect location for 2 twenty year olds who like to have a good time! If you can find something in your price range in the same area, book it! Â
We flew into LaGuardia & took an Uber to our hotel, which we got lucky somehow & spent less than $40 on that Uber.
We went out that night to meet Chris for drinks and dinner. For drinks we went to Motherâs Ruin, an intimate cocktail bar, serving great drinks.
For dinner, I made a reservation at LaoJie HotPot, located in Chinatown in Manhattan. And Omg guysss I was determined to get a hot pot dinner while I was in the city and boy, did we get a hawt pawt dinner!! đ„
It was such an amazing experience. I mean first off, I think we were the only people dining in that were not speaking Chinese, great sign. Second off, we ate all you can eat hot pot for less than $40 a person. Third off, the ambiance & service were also fab.
We drank & ate a lot at dinner lol so we went straight home after this.
A jam-packed day! Garrett had never been to NYC before this trip, so I was happy to make this our touristy day.
Next on the NYC food bucket list: a New York bagel.
So, we started out at Russ & Daughters for lox bagelsâmy favorite breakfast ever. And WOWZA, I was in lox heaven here (literally, ha)! You walk in to see the counter just lined with all varieties of smoked fish & schmearsâmy favorite part, but also bagels, baked goods, & ready-made salads. *Drooling over here.*
Check out the history of the place on their website. In short, they are a four-generation family owned business that has been operating in NYC for over 100 yearsâwell deserved! We went to âthe shopâ location on E Houston St, which opened in 1920, but they have a few locations now, one being a cafĂ© that looks so cute. I plan to go next time Iâm in the city because theyâre serving smoked fish boards & dranks!
Okay back on track! We stopped for a coffee at La Colombe to warm up & have a drink for our subway trip up to Grand Central Terminal. We got off here, ya know, for the tourist vibes & then we basically just walked around midtown all day!
We were originally going to do an observatory, but never ended up pulling the trigger on that, and it honestly worked out for the best, because I just showed Garrett around on foot & we can hit an observatory next time. In my research looking for observatories, Summit One Vanderbilt looked like the coolest option in my opinion.
Our foot tour began by braving Times Square, so Garrett could see the madness lol.
Then, we went to the Rockefeller Center to see the giant Christmas tree, obviously a must during the holidays. & Way less crowded in January!
Along the way to Central Park, we went into a beautiful art gallery and pretended we were fancy, a favorite pastime of ours.
We then went into the Plaza Hotel because I loved Eloise growing up. We just walked around (honestly loitered lol) because itâs so pretty, but next time Iâm definitely going to stay for a drink or do the teatime here.
Finally, we made it to Central Park, got another coffee, & just walked around for an hour or so.
We headed back in the direction of home & went to Mr. Purple for sunset, where we took the cover photo for this blog post– it legit looks like a fake background! You basically get 360 views from the rooftop & itâs just a vibe here in general, so check it out on your trip!
We went back to The Ridge & got ready for dinner. We met Chris in his hood of the East Village for dinner at Gnocco, because next on the New York City food tour was a sit-down Italian feast!
We ordered so many thingsâthe charcuterie, apps, salads, pizzas, pastas, and ofc espresso tinis! YUM!! I felt like I was being served in Italy! Worth the trip!
After dinner, we went to the Comedy Cellar, and I would put this high up on your list of to-dos in NYC. You buy a ticket to a showtime (in advance!) & a surprise comedic line up comes out one by one.
All the comedians that perform here are top notch! A few from the line-up we saw are in movies weâve seen, and some super famous comedians make guest appearances too, so sometimes you get extra lucky. Itâs in an intimate club & the whole experience is such a New York City vibe. We went to the Village Underground location and I laughed the entire time.
We then got a night cap & picked up some street slices (NYC food bucket list item #4) & churros & headed up to our hotel.
Looking back, I really have no idea how we fit all of that in a day, while taking our time everywhere.
Honestly, another jam-packed day!! We started our morning at Shuka, because next on the NYC food bucket list: a BANGIN brunch! Shuka is a fabulous Mediterranean restaurant located in Soho. To start, we got the labne & whipppped fetaaaa, both non-negotiables if you go, get them. We also got the Shakshuka to split. YUM!
Now we were ready to shop!! The shopping đ I mean obviously we all know that NYC has great shopping, but going back as an adult with a paycheck, I was in heaven! Of course Carrie Bradshaw always came home with something new for her closet!!
I tried for weeks to find the perfect oversized wool dad coat to bring to NYC and couldnât, and of course it was awaiting me in SOHO! Maybe pack light & go shopping on your first day. đ
Once we were ready to drop from the shop, we got a drink at the Spring Lounge, a localâs favorite!
We went home, dropped off our shopping bags, changed & got on the subway to head to Brooklyn, just because we wanted to fit it in. This is an optional stop in your trip, but we heard that Brooklyn is really cool, and it’s just a quick subway from the East side, so we said why not!
We got off on the Dumbo stop & went to Pebble Beach, where you can see both the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges. We enjoyed the sunset here & got some good pictures. We ate dinner at Seamoreâsâfood and drink were delicious! Â
From here, we took the subway back up north to Time’s Square and got off on the Bryant Park stop along the way, and I am so glad we did this! They have a ski rink, a Christmas market, and a bar. We got a few beers & people-watched as they fell in the rink lol, but next time I’m going to skate & be one of those people!
Then we headed up to Times Square to the Gershwin Theater where we saw Wicked!!
Sorry to brag, but my cousin, Jessica, dresses Glinda, âthe good witch.â Thatâs right, sheâs a rock star! đ Sooo she hooked us up with some awesome tickets. If you’ve ever thought of seeing this show, you have to go!! It’s INCREDIBLE– seriously, it lives up to every hype!! Right now they are celebrated their 20 year anniversary of defying gravity!
After we saw Jess rock her job, we all grabbed great cocktails at Dolly Vardenâ highly recommend if youâre in Midtown area.
Then we were hungry, so we wound up at Empanada Mama in Hellâs Kitchen, and yâall I need every city to have an Empanada Mama. Theyâre open 24/7, serving the best empanadas (& drunk food) Iâve ever had.
With full bellies, we caught the subway home at some absurd hour. Safe to say just like the city, we did not sleep!
We flew out later on Monday, so we met Chris for lunch at Katz Deli for the dare I say, BEST pastrami sandwich there is!! We even sat at the table from the scene in When Harry Met Sally. đ
If you eat meat, this stop is a must!! You can def split a sandwich.
I canât wait for my next time to NYC! I would run all of this back plus more!
