where to – nyc
where to – nyc
my go-tos in the city + thoughts on frog club
team ny or team la:
we don’t need to be team new york or team la. just because you love one city doesn’t mean you have to hate the other. what if i told you i’m equally team ny team la! why can’t we be both?! i love la and hope to be a lifer here, but i’ve also spent some of my best years in new york city. both are in my blood (my mom + i are both born in la), but my parents met and grew up in jersey, just outside of the city. i find the north eastern accent sooo comforting. i think that’s why i’m hyper fixated with the sopranos (i’m watching for the first time and wondering what took me so long). i could talk about tony and dr. melfi all day – really though, hit me up if you want to chat sopranos (i’m on season four). but you’re here to read about the best spots in ny, not newark, so let me get to it.
i’m writing this on my flight back to lax so you know my levi’s are tight, my wallet’s light and my gazelles took far too many steps (28,283 steps on sunday!). this list will include my go-tos from my 5+ years living in the city, coming right out of south carolina like a bat out of (literal) hell. i first lived on extended family’s couches in the heart of east village and later moved to south / east-ish williamsburg, where i’d walk across the williamsburg bridge daily (even in the snow) to my job in soho. i was in ny this past weekend for a shoot and stayed at an apartment in brown-stone lined clinton hill brooklyn via kindred. kindred’s, like the movie the holiday irl, a house swapping app, or you can book a place with credits you earn by having people stay at yours. it was my first stay on kindred and all you pay is the cleaning fee and service fee so my total was $80/night (!), which is a steal anywhere, let alone ny. here’s my kindred invite code for five free nights, but act quick because i think i have like two invites left.
i flew in and directly took the train to my res at frog club. icymi, la’s buzzy restaurant horses (+ cats) controversy (worth the jaw dropping read) chef opened an exclusive (almost impossible to get a res) west village restaurant with a strict no camera policy. i mean literally a bouncer puts little branded frog club stickers covering your phone’s (front + back) cameras so that you aren’t snapping shots of the wildly kitschy interiors. there’s plates hanging by chains from the ceilings and walls covered by frog murals. after hearing to pass on the food (mediocre carrot sticks + dip), we got martinis and fries. prices were steep (there was a $26 take on a bloody mary...). it took a while to get seated so they gave us some party mix on the house that was literally warm (!) popcorn + seeds, and i of course, asked for seconds, thirds, to go with our tinis and fries. the party mix was worth the res alone. frog club did not make it to my list, but it was an ideal way to kick off my few days back in the city.
the city is literally crawling in establishments so narrowing it down is a sport, but here’s some of my personal go-tos that i hit up on repeat:
where to stay:
kindred or airbnb (my favorite neighborhood is greenpoint bk), or if you want the hotel route: wythe hotel, the ludlow, standard east village
where to coffee + pastry:
cafe integral - soho - all about the coffee moreso than the pastry
variety coffee - williamsburg + multiple locations - again, all about the coffee rather than the pastry
librae - east village - order the salted tahini chocolate chip
l'appartement 4f - brooklyn heights - order the salted tahini chocolate chip (i know, i have a type…)
marlow & sons - williamsburg - order the sesame choc chip oatmeal
ovenly - greenpoint + cobble hill - order the gf df salted peanut butter
smile to go - soho + flatiron - (old client! i miss the og smile though) order the gf vegan peanut butter jelly
where to eat:
dimes - lower east side / dimes square - i’d take myself to breakfast here before dimes square was dimes square since i love healthyish la-y food and the ambiance. you can’t go wrong with anything here but i love their salmon power bowl with housemade hot sauce + a glass of natural wine or a wheatgrass marg
diner - south williamsburg - in an old diner airstream near williamsburg bridge’s entrance. they write their rotating menu down on the paper lining the table. always order the fries and a glass of nat wine or a well made tini
bonnie’s - east williamsburg - cantonese - order the xo cheung fung + msg martini in what feels like a party
cervo’s - lower east side / dimes square - order the manilla clams, olives + martini + sit outside in the square people watching
thai diner - noho - order the shiitake kaho soi curry + nat wine in what’s probably my favorite thai in the city by the people behind uncle boons (rip)
roberta's - bushwick + multiple locations - all these second locations are fine but go to the original in bushwick for the real feel of roberta’s circa girls hbo era. order a pizza (bee sting if you eat meats) + nat wine at the tiki bar
win son - east williamsburg - taiwanese + natural wine. used to walk here from my last apt. win son walked so bonnie’s could run
joe’s pizza - union square + multiple locations - i don’t eat much dairy now but i made up for it in all the slices consumed at joe’s at all hours of the day / night over the years. i loved their white pie with spinach or their classic plain / cheese. a real new york institution and best slice if you ask me. if you’re dairy free though, go to scarr’s (coming to la soon!) or i really liked fini’s tomato slice this time around
superiority burger - east village - order the og veggie superiority burger or any tofu / yuba menu item (tbt the new creation) + a vegan date shake. their new-ish sit down location has a nice bev menu too
where to drink:
achilles heel - greenpoint - at the edge of bk, go in the heart of winter and sit by the fire with the smell of cauli roasting and order nat wine or a tini
honey’s - bushwick - order a mezcal topo chico (topo bottle topped off with yola) + handfuls of popcorn
the commodore - williamsburg + east village - the commodore was my go-to walking from my old place. piña coladas, nachos, modelos + fried chicken were the move then, and now ev has a spot
frog - bedstuy - (not to be confused with wv’s frog club!) dark + moody neighborhood natural wine bar with pool table and large strung light patio. feels like a gem and probably my favorite spot from this past weekend. oh, and they serve their wine in THE glass. you know i had to bring a pair back to la with me
cherry on top - bushwick - glass of happy hour natty. love the lowkey roof and cozy downstairs
public records - gowanus - vegan vinyl bar to hang at all hours over a glass of natural wine or cocktail + rotating veggie dish
le dive - lower east side / dimes square - order a martini / nat wine + fries if you can snag a table overflowing or go next door to clandestino and save a few bucks on your tini
also all amazing: hart’s, wildair, golden diner, souen, russ & daughters, tompkins square bagels, gertie, frankel's, cafe altro paradiso, holiday cocktail lounge, four horsemen, twins lounge, happy fun hideaway, 169 bar
where to do everything else:
walk the williamsburg bridge - (or you can opt for the more tourist-y brooklyn bridge) walk across for the steps + sights and save the $2.90 subway swipe to / from the heart of manhattan and brooklyn
aura photo at magic jewelry - chinatown - get your aura photo taken with a reading interpreting your color + energy
see a show at elsewhere in bushwick or baby’s all right in williamsburg
metrograph - lower east side - indie movie theater with a good concessions + bar / cafe playing interesting 35mm and digital movies. also recommend nitehawk cinema in brooklyn
new museum - lower east side - contemporary museum, but also rec the whitney in meatpacking
beach at the rockaways - take the train (or ferry) out to the rockaways for a day at the beach. must hit up tacoway beach for fish tacos + watermelon juice (bring your own to spike)
acupuncture at moxi - soho - lisa sumption has treated and healed some crazy ailments of mine over the years and felt like a therapist and friend to me
where to shop:
coming soon - lower east side / dimes square - design gift shop with indie brands
colbo - lower east side / dimes square - specializes in menswear but a lot of unisex / womens stuff too. grab a coffee (canyon!) while you shop
big night - greenpoint + west village - a truly perfect shoppy shop by an og alum of the infatuation
the frankie shop - lower east side - clothing / fashion known for the iconic oversized blazer
happier grocery - soho - erewhon but new york. download their app + create a login for $5 credit (used my fiver for a pretty decent gf cashew butter cookie)
assembly new york - lower east side - very ny-y clothing / fashion for mens / womens / unisex
mcnally jackson books - soho + multiple locations - books + indie zines. used to walk in on lunch breaks and stare at the cover designs for inspo / dissociation
now playing:
new york i love you, but you’re bringing me down by lcd soundsystem
lcd soundsystem frontman james murphy’s four horsemen in williamsburg’s one of the most iconic nat wine bars
okay now i’m going to lay horizontal, rest my tired feet, drink water + eat greens and above all, get back on the sopranos train (season four baby!).
love,
a la girlie who’s gone soft
paid subscribers, the full nyc guide link + google map bookmarks are all below <3