I flew to NY for a client trip and decided to turn it into a fun weekend get-a-way with Tom. The Tuesday prior to leaving, I took a pregnancy test which came back negative. As anyone who has ever actively tried for a baby knows, the two-week wait can be killer and once I got the results, I resigned myself to the fact that we were gonna have to wait an additional month for good news. I decided not to take any tests with me on the trip, because those things are spendy and I was obsessively going through them. I'm putting that disclaimer here for a reason :)
Once Tom got there, we had an awesome night on the town. Early the next morning, I saw he had packed the pregnancy tests so I took one - it was a sickness, if I saw a pregnancy test, I HAD to take it! - and what do you know?! It was positive! It was incredibly happy news and definitely changed some of our plans.
Prior to going, I reached out to Gluten Free Blondie who always seems to post the yummiest food on instagram. I reached out to her for recommendations and she did not disappoint!
Here's the rundown of our trip!
Where we stayed: SoHo/Tribeca While the hotel wasn't anything super special (definitely small as it's NYC) it was clean and in a great location. (and free as I used SPG points!). I tend to not worry so much about staying in super unique hotels when in a big city because I know that most of the time I'll be out and about. For this trip, I wanted to stay away from the super touristy areas because I have done a lot of the "touristy" NYC things on a previous trip and Tom said he really just wanted to explore the neighborhoods and hang out more than anything else. Seeing Times Square is fun and a must do for anyone's first trip, but we knew that if we went there, we wouldn't be staying long - therefore it made more sense for us to keep our base somewhere else. Being able to easily walk through SoHo - a neighborhood where I'd love to live! - and having Chinatown right there was exactly what we wanted. For what it's worth, my cousin used to live in NYC and she has recommended that no one go past Midtown when visiting or risk being on tourist overload. Just FYI for anyone else planning a trip.
What we did: We pretty much just explored and ate and had no real itinerary. The weather was not the best so our plans to go to the "Top of the Rock" fell through (we got to the line and were turned away). We did make time to run through Times Square because Tom had never seen it, but once we took a gander, we were ready to get out of there - definitely sensory overload but fun nonetheless. We had less than 48 hours total so just played it by ear. We knew we couldn't get to everything: shows, Central Park, Statue of Liberty etc, so just made this a relax, eat and explore trip. I had planned to see the World Trade Center Memorial, but it's not the easiest to get to and it was also a bit somber for what we were looking for during our short time there. I have heard great things though and will be sure to see it when we come back! We were able to hit the Natural History Museum with my godson which was a bonus. I am pretty sure NY moms use the lower level as a place to let their kids have free reign to run around in a safe environment. Can't say I blame them!
Where we ate and drank:
Angel's Share: I wish I remember where I first heard of this Japenese Speakeasy, but it was such a blast and I highly recommend it. Hidden in the back of a Japanese restaurant in the East Village, it is cozy and inviting bar with super creative cocktails. I recommend being an early bird to avoid a wait - it got very packed shortly after we arrived. The drinks were outstanding and everyone was super friendly. We made fast friends with the people around us. I had quite a few whiskey cocktails and was feeling no pain at the end of the night! I had never really tried Japanese Whiskeys and while I will always be a bourbon girl, I loved the experience.
Babbo: My cousin once took me to this Greenwich Village Mario Batoli restaurant years ago and said it was her favorite at the time and it still is to this day. As she lived in NYC for years, I take the recommendation seriously :) I wanted to try somewhere new for our "fancy" dinner but couldn't get this place out of my mind. Luckily Tom was game and loved it as much as I did! If you go to NYC for a show and want a nice place to eat beforehand, I recommend this restaurant hands down. It's Italian food in the vein of Anti-Prima for any Chicago Locals (meaning if you are expecting never-ending bowls of pasta, look elsewhere). I also appreciated that while it is a "nice" restaurant you can get away with wearing jeans and a good shirt. I recommend reservations, although if you are early birds you might get lucky!
Balthazar: Another place my cousin took me years ago and I just had to go back. It's a French restaurant with delish oysters and seafood and another great contender for a nicer dinner out. We didn't get reservations in time to have dinner, but made sure to pop in for some cocktails at the bar. At the very least do that so you can experience the unique atmosphere or try grabbing a quick breakfast from their cafe next store.
Keste Pizza: omg Keste - can you please come to Chicago already?! This was one of Gluten Free Blondie's recommendations for hands-down the best gluten free pizza in NY. It's located in the West Village and rivaled the amazing GF pizzas I experienced in Italy. The only negative is that I have not yet found a comparable GF pizza place in Chicago. This pizza was so good, I seriously considered cashing in Southwest points during my pregnancy just to have dinner there again. Tom raved about his non-GF pizza as well and we will be back!
Egg Shop: Another of Gluten Free Blondie's suggestions that I highly recommend. She noted at the time that it was just getting trendy and we immediately saw what she meant when the line ended up out the door. I was surprised that Tom was up for trying it as he is not an Egg fan but he loved it. Inexpensive, quaint, healthy-ish, and delish - it was just what we wanted for breakfast before wandering around the city. As it is small, I only recommend this if you can get there before 10:30 a.m. - otherwise expect a decent wait.
Chelsea Market & The High Line: A really nice way to spend an afternoon or morning is walking through the Meat Packing District to the converted train tracks turned park known as The High Line (only picture I took was at the High Line which is included in this post), followed by exploring Chelsea Market (if you can, plan to grab brunch or lunch there - I am told Friedman's is a great option). If you are not pregnant, I recommend ending the excursion with drinks at the Tippler a subterranean bar located under the Chelsea Market. Have one for me as I missed out while there!
If you have a sweet tooth, try Tu-Lu's Bakery! Located in the East Village, they have a delish assortment of gluten free treats. They are also open late which came in handy after the Japanese Whiskey we took down. I pretty much bought them out and loved everything I tried. I even made a last minute run to stock up on the way to the airport. This is another Gluten Free Blondie recommendation I took to heart. Try the cinnamon sugar donut....yummm
Bareburger (multiple locations): This is a great easy burger place with a ton of meat options (think bison and elk in addition to turkey and beef) in addition to being gluten free friendly. It was a perfect place to go with my godson after hitting up a museum with my cousin during our last day in the City.
If you are into coffee, note that Oregon's Stumpton Roasters has taken over the city and the iced coffee (Nitro) is amazing. I was also a huge fan of Blue Bottle coffee (I believe they are Seattle-based or maybe San Francisco based).
We hit up a few different great bars while there but unfortunately I don't have them bookmarked - we pretty much just wandered around and if it felt like cocktail time stopped somewhere that looked like fun.
Other Suggestions: We didn't make it to the following places, but I have heard good things about these cocktail/bars and restaurants. I have even more saved under my yelp bookmarks so feel free to check them out and add to your list if you have one. I recommend adding places you are interested in trying to your bookmarks so that when you are out exploring and hunger or thirst strikes, you can easily see if any of your bookmarked places are in the area. It has worked like a charm on our trips.
Raines Law Room: Hidden speakeasy type bar. Reviewers recommend eating somewhere in Chelsea if you don't have a reservation so you can put your name down before coming back.
Flatiron Lounge: Seems like a fun place to get a drink - sexy, art deco decor.
Milk & Honey: Speakeasy that is on my list to try.
Otto: Another Mario Botali restaurant that is a bit cheaper and south of Union Sq. They offer Gluten Free pasta for those that need it.
Meatball Shop (lots of locations): Has a decent drink menu and is a fun inexpensive option for dinner. Some of the meatballs are gluten free.
Lilli and Loo: Asian restaurant with Gluten Free options including dumplings which I never see...
Pala: Gluten Free Blondie says it's her second favorite pizza place, but it wins over Keste for nicer atmosphere. They even offer gluten free calamari.
Friedman's: Mentioned in the Chelsea Market section above, it has locations all over the city and is supposedly excellent.
Hope this helps! If anyone has other great recommendation, please share!
xoxo,
Meg
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