There is so much inspiration in New York City. It’s literally around every corner, on every person and in each bite. I’m already thinking about my next trip. Maybe next time, I’ll have a camera. Below are a few highlights from the trip. I hope you all enjoy your long holiday weekend.
The lobby and rooms of the Ace Hotel are fantastically curated and while not the ideal hotel for everyone due to the oddities, Jevan and I found complete comfort where old and new collide. Drink the Stumptown Coffee, have an Old Fashion in the bar, check out the taxidermy, look for the mummified cat (check the bottom left drawer in the lobby), and cross paths with rent stabilized tenants that wouldn’t budge (good for them) when the hotel took over. Rumor has it they only pay $200 per month. I’m serious on all parts, even the kitty.
Images from top left: The Ace Hotel Lobby, Chinatown Ice Cream Factory , Brooklyn shopping at the Future Perfect, Lower East Side shopping at In God We Trust, soup dumplings at the Shanghai Cafe, beer and brats at the Radegast Hall and Biergarten
We spent little money for food while in the city. Strange but true. Most of our choices were modest but completely delicious. Some highlights were the Soup Dumplings from the Shanghai Cafe, lychee and almond cookie ice cream from Chinatown Ice Cream Factory, a shared bowl of Ramen at a little noodle place on St. Marks, and a Brat and Fries at the Radegast Hall and Biergarten. Our first night in the city we had a tequila at Los Feliz. What seems to be a tiny little Mexican joint in the Lower East Side serving tacos and good tequila. Later we found out there were two levels below us. On the fringe of Chinatown is the East Side Company Bar. It’s a speakeasy of sorts, as the only sign you’ll see is a tiny gold label on the door. It’s dark, intimate and has tin ceilings and candles everywhere. Walking in you get a faint whiff of, get this, honey, it’s part of the bartender’s mise en place. The drinks reminds me of the cocktails of years past. I had a sazerac and it was near perfection.
Images from top left: Tim Burton Sketch, East Side Company signage, Los Feliz Taqueria, Tim Burton sketch.
If you’re like me regardless of how many times you go to NY, a museum trip never disappoints. This time we checked out the Tim Burton exhibit at the MOMA. Little did I know Tim Burton was and is such a prolific artist. There were hundreds if not thousands of sketches chronicling his entire life.
Photos: [Ace Hotel - New York Times; Chinatown Ice Cream Factory via Qype; Radegast Hall and Biergarten - Melissa Hom; Los Feliz - Jim Knapp]
