My in-laws were in town this weekend and we celebrated by investing in really great seats to a Broadway show. After some debate about what was appropriate (we didn’t think they would be pleased with American Idiot) we decided to get seats in the third row to A Little Night Music.
A Little Night Music recently went through a cast change and the two big stars, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Angela Lansbury were replaced by Bernadette Peters and Elaine Stritch. I didn’t see the show with the original cast, but after getting to sit a few feet away from Bernadette for over three hours, I was glad I missed it.
Bernadette was nothing short of remarkable. I have loved her ever since I saw her in the movie production of Annie. After the show we all discussed the actors’ many strong points. My father-in-law said that there are some people in the world that are the best at what they do. We agreed that Bernadette Peters is one of the world’s finest stage actors. We were lucky to be close enough to see all of her facial expressions in great detail and it was truly fantastic. We all thought by seeing Bernadette we got the better end of the casting deal.
The other women in the cast were no slouches either. Elaine took her time delivering lines and occasionally stumbled, but the audience was gracious and kind and Elaine made us all laugh. Leigh Ann Larkin played Petra and blew the crowd away with her stage presence. This is a show that has many great roles for women and the actors did not disappoint.
All in all, I highly recommend seeing this show with its new cast. It was funny and fabulous and I think even better than the original.
Last night I stumbled upon a lovely little place in my neighborhood: Radiance Tea House and Books. I am in a great book club that gets together to discuss once a month. In addition to choosing the book, the assigned person also chooses a meeting spot. We have eaten Ethiopian after reading Cutting for Stone, an Ethiopian story, and last night we went to Radiance Tea House & Books to discuss The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet.
Radiance Tea House & Books is on 55th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues. It is up a flight of stairs, which might be why I have never noticed it before. Because it was upstairs, it seemed much calmer than the bustling of midtown outside. After walking in I felt my breath calm. The tables are big and on a Sunday night they seemed happy to let you sit and read or work on a laptop, although the waiter told me that when it was more crowded I would be asked to sit elsewhere if I didn’t order food. The staff was extremely friendly and they chatted with a man working on his laptop in a back corner.
The menu was full of about a hundred different kinds of tea drinks, both hot and iced. The food menu was Asian themed and seemed to change seasonally, but I ordered some delicious pork and veggie dumplings. To drink I got a mint rendevous which was mint tea with Italian espresso and milk over ice. It was wonderful.
I didn’t get a chance to browse the books since we were busy discussing our selection, from afar it seemed like their were Asian cookbooks and of course, lots of books about tea. I am looking forward to visiting this spot again. It would be great after a morning wandered the Museum of Modern Art since it is so close and so reasonably priced.
This past Saturday I found myself at what has been deemed a New York tradition: open mic night at Don’t Tell Mama. I had seen pictures of my favorite Ugly Betty stars outside the midtown establishment many months ago and I have been meaning to check it out ever since. On Saturday I finally got the chance.
Don’t Tell Mama is a small piano bar where the waiters and waitresses belt it out along with anyone else who wants to give it a go. We got there a little after 10 for a 10:30 start time, and initially we were seated behind the stage. I was a little bummed about the placement, but there was a television screen that showed the front of the stage so we wouldn’t miss any of the action. But, before the show even started, the hostess/waitress/singer moved us to a table in front. There seemed to be a consistent table turnaround at this place, so if you don’t like where you are sitting to start, just asked to be moved when a table opens up.
The staff was incredibly friendly and enthusiastic about all of the live music. Most of the waitstaff was clearly not cut out for Broadway. One bartender, however, had an incredible voice. When she started singing the classic Les Miz classic “On My Own” the bar was full of chatter. The bar was completely silent by the time she ended the song though. Everyone had stopped talking to hear this girl belt it. It was pretty impressive.
There was no cover charge for the open mic Saturday, but there was a two drink minimum, still we had an evening full of live entertainment for under $50, which isn’t terrible in New York City. The staff even offered up a free drink. The crowd tended toward the older side, but everyone was enjoying themselves, so we didn’t feel like we stood out too much. All in all, I had a good time, although I am still on a search for the perfect piano bar.
I recently discovered a great new outdoor hotspot. One hot Friday afternoon I was skimming through my Time Out New York magazine looking for a casual place to sit outside and have a drink and a snack. I stumbled across The Frying Pan and decided to head over there and try it out.
Turns out The Frying Pan is awesome! It sits on a boat by the Westside Highway and 26th Street. It is a really, really big boat so the large crowds that turn out don’t crowd you too much if you get a table. We got there a few minutes after 5 and grabbed a small table on the side right next to the water. One of us went up to order, since there isn’t table service. They have buckets of Corona and pitchers of White Wine Sangria along with the typical bar menu items. They also had some delicious clams and fries that looked fabulous! We munched on our seafood and sipped Sangria and watched the boats float by.
As the night progressed the Frying Pan got more and more crowded (mostly by what seemed to be a bridge and tunnel group) but we didn’t notice until we were leaving because our table separated us from the crowd so much. All in all we had a great time and vowed to head back to the Frying Pan soon. What a unique and fun find!
For my 100th post I am listing 50 things I love about this fabulous city.
1. Central Park. They cleared out the prime real estate in Manhattan and made a giant playground!
2. Bumping into celebrities. Where else can you sit next to Britney Spears at a movie one night and eat next to Nicole Kidman the next?
3. The Happy Ending Music and Reading Series. I love books. I love music. I love that they can be combined into one fabulous show.
4. Time Out New York. This magazine is the mother of all lists and it comes out EVERY WEEK!
5. Diners. I can have pancakes at any hour.
6. Being able to see what everyone else is reading on your subway ride.
7. The view. Because walking around the countryside is just plain boring.
8. Broadway shows.
9. It is JetBlue’s hub. I heart JetBlue.
10. Seeing my block on Law & Order and Gossip Girl.
11. The pigeons nesting on my fire escape every spring.
12. The Strand Bookstore. 18 Miles of books.
13. I never have to parallel park. Ever.
14. Getting most of the Sunday NY Times delivered on Saturday.
15. The frozen hot chocolate at Serendipity 3.
16. The bathrooms at Vynl, especially Cher.
17. That I can get from the subway to my apartment mostly under scaffolding for the days when I forget an umbrella.
18. Shopping at 3 a.m. in the Apple store on 5th Avenue.
19. My bedroom has a view of a giant brick wall and a little sliver of Alvin Ailey dancers.
20. That I can get anything delivered up my three flights of stairs.
21. Pat Kiernan.
22. Pierogies at Veselka.
23. Walking through upscale neighborhoods and peeking into the windows to see the fancy apartment decorations.
24. Stumbling across a film set accidentally.
25. David Letterman films here and he is so much cooler than Leno.
26. Street fairs and the $5 Pashmina.
27. Being able to go on the internet in a public park.
28. It is home to multiple dessert trucks.
29. Nellie McKay.
30. The Staten Island Ferry. It is free and gives a great view of the Statue of Liberty!
31. Ricky’s Beauty Supply Store.
32. All the white trees that pop up on the streets in the springtime.
33. It takes three weekly magazines, New York, Time Out and the New Yorker, to cover all the events.
34. Movies get early release here.
35. You can buy anything on the street. Food, clothes, writing materials, anything.
36. The sculpture garden at MoMA.
37. The store windows on 5th Avenue at Christmas time.
38. That I can see SNL stars at the UCB Theater for free.
39. It is where Dance Dance Party Party originated.
40. The Law & Order stairs (which isn’t really the criminal court).
41. Seeing big names at Joe’s Pub.
42. The playgrounds that spray water in the summer.
43. Watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade from my couch even though it is going on a few blocks away.
44. I am not the only one who knows the names of Broadway stars.
45. Bubby’s sourdough pancakes.
46. There never has to be a designated driver because there are always taxis.
47. A different kind of food for everyday of the week.
48. Radio City Music Hall.
49. Vintage Martini Bar. I can read the menu there for hours.
50. 311 is the best non-emergency information hotline.
I would love to hear what everyone else likes about New York!
Summer is definitely my favorite season. I love the heat. I love that businesses often give employees more time off. I love that NYC empties out because so many people go to the Hamptons. It is a win/win situation. We have had some great weather as of late and so I have been doing lots of my favorite activity, namely, reading outside. One of the best places to read outside on a weekday is the Sheep Meadow in Central Park.
Sheep Meadow is on the West side of the park, near where Tavern on the Green used to be (around 65th street). It doesn’t open until 11 am so have a different plan if you are an early riser. Often it can take the guards a good half an hour to an hour to get around to opening all the gates. If you are one of the lucky first people into the Sheep Meadow I recommend running to the middle of it. This is the most space you will ever get to yourself on the Island of Manhattan. It is lovely. Even if you have to share with others, the Sheep Meadow is usually pretty empty on weekdays, so think about calling in sick, bringing a blanket and a book, and enjoying a great day in the park.
Be forewarned that on the weekends the Sheep Meadow can fill up. There will always be some space, but it might not be in the shade. I have even seen P. Diddy play ball with his kid (surrounded by 3 large security guards in suits and earpieces) and for the most part no one noticed. Trust me on this though, this is one New York City landmark that does not disappoint!
