SUNDAY, May 20 18, 2012
NOBODY # 879
NOBODY ASKED ME BUT:
Highlights from our trip
to New York City (and there were many).
Vacations give pleasure
three times over – in the planning, the doing and the remembering.
I will start at the
beginning: flying non-stop out of Burbank was a pleasure (except for the
load/unload ramps). Parking is a cinch as is checking in. No long lines. Our
flights went very smoothly – except that our departure was delayed a few
minutes, because the plane had to taxi back to the terminal so that 3 unruly
passengers could be removed.
Staying with the
general, another great pleasure was avoiding NYC taxis. The hotel arranged for
a car to transport us from and to JFK. It was a little more expensive than a
taxi ride but well worth it for the sensible drivers. And before I forget, on
the drive to the airport last Sunday, our driver pointed out the space shuttle
Enterprise parked in an open hanger.
We bought two weekly bus
passes to get us around the city, $29 each, and they were terrific. We rarely
had to wait more than 5 minutes and frequently boarded in two or three. Between
the flexibility of their routes and the fact that we could see things along the
way, we explored Manhattan more thoroughly than on our previous visit. The
result was that places seemed much more accessible, and we feel as if we know
the island much better. So, we ended up taking only 2 taxis as compared to
probably 22 on our last visit.
Before I leave
transportation, I will tell you about our two tour trips. The first was a
Circle Line boat excursion entirely around Manhattan. It started at Hudson
River Pier 83, opposite the spot that Sully landed his jet two years ago and
next to the aircraft carrier Intrepid. We sailed down the Hudson, close by Lady
Liberty, up the East River, through the Harlem River passage separating
Manhattan from The Bronx, seeing Old Yankee Stadium and the land that used to
house the Polo Grounds, back into the Hudson and south to our pier. It was a
three-hour trip filled with great views and sightings.
Our second adventure was
a pizza tour of Brooklyn that provided us not only with very good pizza (not as
good, however as our own Barone’s) but a drive past several famous movie
settings and a walk on the boardwalk at Coney Island. (As an added bonus,
during our first stop, Barb and I slipped off to sample the deservedly famed
ice cream at the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory, in an old, white fire house set at
the base of the Brooklyn Bridge with its great view of southern Manhattan.)
Coffee Break: I had some
excellent coffee drinks in NYC. The best was a Flat White at Laughing Man, Hugh
Jackman’s small coffee place in Tribeca. It is an Australian favorite, made by pouring microfoam
(steamed milk from the bottom of a pitcher) over a single or double shot of espresso. I also had very
good drinks at the Blue Bottle place across from Chelsea Market and at a small
Illy’s inside a Food Emporium.
On our first trip to New York, we stayed at the
Kitano, a Japanese-run hotel on Park Avenue, at 38th Street.
Although we liked it a lot, we wanted to try something different this time. We
chose the Library Hotel on the corner of Madison Avenue and 41st
Street. Although the bathroom was much smaller than at the Kitano, the location
of the Library was slightly better and the complementary breakfasts and evening
wine and cheese tipped the scale towards the new one. (And the espresso machine
which I used every morning but one, was another advantage.)
Note: The only Starbucks I went to on the
entire trip was the morning I returned to the one on Park Avenue where I spent
every morning on our earlier trip – and this with a Starbucks directly across
from out hotel.)
Friends – One of the best parts of the trip was
seeing Gary and Sheena twice. The first time was at the hotel when they brought
their enchanting young daughter, Abby. The second was for dinner at Keen’s,
where we talked of “cabbages and kings” and every other interesting topic. Both
occasions were special times.
High Line – The High Line was once an elevated
freight railroad track. The last trains ran there in 1980. It has since been
converted into an elevated park running along the West Side. We knew about it
but had not included it in our busy agenda. But when we visited Chelsea Market,
there it was. So we walked on it from the Market, north to 23rd St.
It’s great – beautifully landscaped with many places to sit and views of the
Hudson River, a few hundred feet to the west, and the Midtown skyline dominated
by the Empire State Building, to the east.
Mysterious Book Store – Otto Penzler is a very
important name in crime fiction. He sponsors and encourages writers and
occasionally publishes them. We have long wanted to visit his Tribeca
bookstore, but it seemed far out of the way. With our new familiarity with
Manhattan, getting there was almost easy. His store was everything expected
and, yes, we ordered several books to be shipped home.
Department stores – The mystery of Bloomingdales.
On our first trip to New York we missed going to Bloomingdales – or did we?
This time we made the famous department store a priority, and when we wandered
through, we had a strong experience of déjà vu. We have either been to the
story or to one just like it, but, as the song goes, “who knows where or when?”
Department stores, continued – Yes we rode on
the famous wooden escalators at the wonderful and world’s largest store,
Macy’s.
However, our favorite NYC department store is
still Lord and Taylor.
One of our longest walking days was when we
wandered from Tribeca to and through SoHo. The latter, while fascinating, was
also surprising in that everything was so geared to the young that we feared we
would be kicked out of the entire area. That we weren’t was probably due to
their recognition that we are young at heart – that and the fact that my wife
spent long hours debating the purses at Oria Kiely and Frietag.
MOMA – One morning while Barb was resting I
walked a few blocks north to the Museum of Modern Art. I had time for only one
floor, so I chose the Impressionists and was overwhelmed by what I saw,
especially Monet’s Water Lilies and Van Gogh’s Starry, Starry Night.
FOOD
Balthazar – was another place on our “last
time” list that had to wait for until this trip. This French brasserie, one of
the busiest restaurants in the city, is famous for its French fries and their
fame is well deserved. My steak frites were great, as was Barbara’s French
onion soup and their Napoleon rivaled the one we had in Paris.
Cafeteria – Barbara read about this gem, and,
no, it isn’t a cafeteria, but we weren’t sure we would get there. We did.
Twice. Once again, it was an easy
bus ride. It is a fairly small place on 7th Ave. and 17th
street. The staff was very friendly and the food outstanding. I had one of the
best meatloaf dishes ever (covered with their own tomato/onion relish), and if
Barb’s fried chicken was not her all-time favorite, it was close. Our
blackberry lemonade, with fresh blackberries, was delicious.
And then there was dessert. The waiter sold us
on the house specialty, fried Oreo cookies. We tried it for fun and ate it as
if there were no tomorrow. The cookies were delicious by themselves and
incredible when dipped into their house made espresso chip ice cream or the
shot glass espresso drink – almost a mini-shake. (Thinking the whole concept a
bit silly, I promised only one bite but then ate my half and fought Barb for
the crumbs and sips.)
We returned to Cafeteria for our final night
in the city. Not wanting to take a chance with memories of perfection, we tried
different things. I had shrimp and grits (my mouth is watering as I think of
this dish) and Barbara had 2 appetizers – meatballs with bread and the
restaurant’s specialty, mac and cheese. No, they were not as good as our first
night but neither were they very far behind. It also did not hurt that it was a
beautiful afternoon with a full house and the walls pulled back to allow the
outside in.
Eataly – This Italian food super store created
by famed chef, Mario Batali,
is the NYC rage, and deservedly so. At 5th
Ave. and 23St., across from Madison Park, Eataly is a conglomeration of
specialty food shops, and restaurants. I liked my spaghetti with a short rib
ragu a lot. Barbara’s pizza was only OK. And as for their famed gelato, we both
hated it. And it is not easy for either of us to hate ice cream.
Keens – If you think back to the last chapter
of J&B’s thrilling New York Adventure, (2009) you may remember Barbara
eating most of Jim’s prime rib hash at Keens Steak House. Well this time, just
to make sure she had her full share, she ordered it twice. On our first night
we should have been groggy from out all-night flight the night before. But we
still had enough energy to walk to the restaurant, where we both had the hash –
mine with two eggs, one passed to me by my wife. It was as good as remembered.
When we went back with Gary and Sheena, Barb stayed with the hash while I
switched to an excellent short rib dinner. Gary went with the Dover sole, while
Sheena had a filet.
Another memory flash may lead you to my high
praise for the tomato soup at Sarabeth’s in Lord and Taylor. It was so good
that Barbara ordered some shipped to California for one of my Christmas
presents. With its abundance of fresh tomatoes, it was again delicious, as was
her chocolate pudding, seemingly served with a 1/1 ratio of whipped cream.
Last but far from least among our returns was
our journey back to the Doughnut Plant. Actually, it was two journeys. The
first was our stop on the way from JKK to the hotel. Alas, although it opened
at 7 am, the manager was late with the cash register key, so they could not
sell us anything. We cried all the rest of the way to the hotel. But when we
went back a couple of days later, it was open and their blackberry filled
doughnut was everything we remembered – and more. It is still our all-time
favorite.
Our treats at Beard Papa’s (they were part of
our first exploration of the Upper West Side) were a 10 score discovery. We
have been to Beard Papa’s in Hawaii and in Pasadena but never had their Paris
Beard – shaped like a thin doughnut and filled with vanilla or chocolate cream
(vanilla is the best). They were so damn good that I want them again soon. I
only hope they carry these Paris types in Pasadena.
When I wrote about our last NYC trip I
concluded by saying that, as much as we enjoyed it immensely, I was not sure we
would go back again. This time I will close by saying, we enjoyed it immensely,
but I am not sure we will get back before next year. An exaggeration? Maybe. Or maybe not.
