So I just returned from an amazing 12 day trip to NYC with my sister, NYC, and I thought I would give you a very brief day by day re-cap of everything we did and all of the places we went. I’ll let NYC do the reviews.
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NYC Skyline (the brightly lit building is the
World Trade Center Building 1) |
Day 1
Satis Bistro - Jersey City, NJ – very cute little BYOB bistro with a great cheese and salumi selection. They even have a display of cured meats hanging near the kitchen! www.satisbistro.com
Trailer Park Lounge – NYC (Chelsea) - this place had a strange crowd, but the decor did make you think you were in a trailer park, so we had a few laughs while sipping on a very festive Hawaiian Paradise drink that was served in a real pineapple. www.trailerparklounge.com
The Green Table - NYC (Chelsea Market) - it looked cute inside and they had a wine special for $6/glass, so we stopped in and had one…..it wasn’t good. www.chelseamarket.com/thegreentable
Terroir Wine Bar - NYC (TriBeCa) – it’s a trendy place that has been in Food and Wine magazine; we met a couple of girls here for some wine and a few munchies before dinner. The menu is a bit odd, and I didn’t really understand all of the hype about it. www.wineisterroir.com Honshu Sushi – Jersey City, NJ – lovely little sushi restaurant; we shared some great Gyoza, the Honshu Roll and Noruto Roll. www.honshulounge.com
Day 2
Marco and Pepes – Jersey City, NJ – great little patio outside; for brunch we split the Artisan Salad and their famous Mac and Cheese, which we thought was a bit too greasy from the bacon, while drinking a pitcher of Sangria. www.marcoandpepe.com
Zeppelin Hall Biergarten – Jersey City, NJ – we came here to celebrate NYC’s husband’s birthday and had a blast; fantastic outdoor patio, great selection of beer, but the food is par…..it’s a biergarten. www.zeppelinhall.com
Day 3
Went to one of those fancy boutique shops with nothing but bridesmaids dresses, which I never knew existed, called Bella Bridesmaid, to help one of NYC’s friends pick out dresses for her wedding.
Bone Lick Park BBQ – NYC (West Village) – had brunch here because they have a special of endless mimosas, bloody marys or sangria and an entrée for $14.95! The food was decent, but the price was better! www.bonelickparkbbq.com
Cooked some pizza at NYC’s home for dinner.
Day 4
Hill Country BBQ – NYC (Chelsea) – I was amazed by this place simply because I felt as if I were in Gruene, TX and because the BBQ is up to par with Texas BBQ. Very impressive. www.hillcountryny.com
Day 5
Got my H&M shopping fix in.
Cava Wine Bar - NYC (Flat Iron District) - very cool place in the Limelight Market, which used to be a church, then a night club, and now a market.
Madison Square Market - NYC (Flat Iron District) - we stumbled upon this outdoor market on our way to Eataly and had to stop for a glass of wine because it was so neat with the actual Flat Iron as your backdrop.
Il Pesce in Eataly – NYC (Flat Iron District) – I had to do my Eataly market shopping and then we enjoyed some great seafood for dinner. www.eatalyny.com
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| Madison Square Market |
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| Flat Iron |
Day 6
Fleet Week begins!! We had a great view of the Parade of the Ships coming in on the Hudson, as well as a few military planes and helicopters flying above.
The Frying Pan – NYC (Chelsea) – very cool outdoor bar on a barge on the Hudson river. www.thefryingpan.com Co. – NYC (Chelsea) – NYC chose her supper club at this place, and I was so excited to come here because it’s a Jim Lahey (the bread baker) restaurant. The food was fantastic, but the service was horrible. One of the girls had her card charged 3 times. www.co-pane.com The Half Pint – NYC (West Village) - cool little place with tons of beer on tap. www.thehalfpint.com
Wilfie and Nell – NYC (West Village) – a small trendier spot www.wilfieandnell.com
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| Iwo Jima ship going down the Hudson |
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| Military planes going by |
Day 7
Now that Fleet Week had begun, NYC and I really wanted to do the tour of the Iwo Jima, while it was parked at Pier 88, so this day was our first attempt. It closed early because they had too many people trying to do the tour. Boo…..we wanted to see some men in uniform. On our way to Pier 88 though, we actually spotted the Naked Cowboy! That was a first!
Rink Bar – NYC (Rockefeller Center) – I love this place because in the summer they turn the ice skating rink here into an outdoor bar. Very cool! www.patinagroup.com
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| The Naked Cowboy |
Day 8
Another attempt to tour the Iwo Jima. We waited in one line for over an hour to wait in another line. I had had enough because A) I hate lines and B) I was starving.
Room Service – NYC (Hells Kitchen) – very cool inside, thai food with a great lunch special, $6.90 for an appetizer and entrée. www.roomservicerestaurant.com Hofbrau Bierhaus – NYC (Murray Hill) – on our way to find some cool bars to kill time before dinner, we stumbled upon this place. Cool sunroom inside, good draft beer, fun shot board, outdoor patio overlooking 3rd Ave, but you can’t drink out there….bummer. www.bierhausnyc.com Rodeo Bar – NYC (Kips Bay) – fun Texas bar, but the drinks aren’t really that great. I had the margarita and it was terrible. www.rodeobar.com Pala – NYC (East Village) – we needed a quick appetizer to tie us over while waiting for our table at Meatball shop. We even had a real Italian, who was sitting next to me at the bar, let us taste his pizza. www.palapizza.com
Day 9
Sky Thai – Jersey City, NJ – the Drunken Noodle (Pad Kee Mow) and Yellow Curry are fantastic! www.skythaijc.com We took the Statue of Liberty ride aboard The Clipper sailboat. This is a definite must during the summer in NYC because you get an up close look of the Statue of Liberty without having to wait in the lines for Ellis Island. Also, they have a bar! Go to goldstar.com to get discounted tickets and do the 2:15 tour because it’s a bit warmer than the evening one. During this particular boat ride we were lucky enough to see 2 of the Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey's (the helicopter/plane combo flying machine) fly around and land at the heliport near Battery Park. Very cool!!
Pacific Grill – NYC (Seaport) – great people watching place, but the food and drinks are mediocre at best. www.pacificgrillnyc.com Next, we walked across the Brooklyn Bridge. Another definite must in NYC and it’s free!
Ignazio’s Pizzeria – NYC (Brooklyn) – best pizza in NYC (that we’ve tried) and you can drink out of some cool wine goblets. www.ignaziospizza.com After dinner, the guys were on a mission to drink a glass of Johnny Walker Blue…..yes, it was one of those nights, and we tried 3 places in Brooklyn with no luck, so we took a subway back to Manhattan to meet up with some friends.
Soho Grand – NYC (SoHo) – very posh place and yes, they had Johnny Walker Blue (for $8 a sip!). It also has a really great outdoor area. www.sohogrand.com
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| Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey landing |
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| Lady Liberty |
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| Brooklyn Bridge |
Day 10
Hungover……got a pedicure and watched Bridesmaids, which was absolutely hilarious! Guys went golfing in Jersey.
Cooked Mexican food at home.
Day 11 (Memorial Day)
I was supposed to leave this day, but extended my trip 2 more days because I wanted to join in on the picnic that NYC’s friends were having, and I ‘m so glad that I did. Great crowd, great food and great drinks.
Honshu Sushi – Jersey City, NJ – Yep….we ate there again because MT and I were too lazy to make the trip back into the city, so we opted to stick around Jersey City after returning from the picnic. It’s good sushi!!
Day 12
Finally, we were able to tour the Iwo Jima ship without waiting in long lines and it was incredible!
PD O’Hurley’s – NYC (Pier 84) – fun outdoor place with mostly soccer playing Irishmen as the wait staff www.pdohurleys.com
Hogs and Heifers – NYC (Meatpacking) – we promptly left after one drink because of prostitutes and very drunken marines and sailors
Standard Grill Biergarten - NYC (Meatpacking) – great outdoor place with beer and a full bar. Also, we finally got to have a few drinks with some amazing and fun Marines and Sailors. Great times!! www.thestandardgrill.com
Day 13
Uggg…..my final day, but I couldn’t have thought of a better way to end this trip than seeing Sarah Palin up close at the Hyatt in Jersey City. Many people don’t agree with her politics, but I do, so it was an awe moment for me. I highly respect her. She is even more gorgeous in person, and really nice to the reporters, by the way
Markers – Jersey City, NJ – a great little spot to sit outside and people watch everyone coming and going from the Path. www.markersrestaurant.com
