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January 27, 2004
THE ESSENTIALS #25 - The Essentials of New York by kgbe ROTGUT
NYC favorites by kgbe ROTGUT
Not being a native New Yorker, I am certainly not the most qualified tour guide but I have spent a fair amount of time exploring the city on a limited budget so here are some of my favorite places and things to do.
1. Drinking Part 1
Since Mayor Bloomberg instituted the smoking ban on all restaurants and bars it has forced smokers like me to find alternative ways to drink and smoke simultaneously. My solution is to return to the old standby, drinking on the street. But rather then sit in front of a bodega like the old Puerto-Rican guys, I suggest you walk around and explore while getting soused. One route I recommend is for you to buy some beers on Delancey, walk over the Williamsburg Bridge and then north along the Brooklyn waterfront till you get to those big expensive lofts. Then you wait outside the doors till a resident comes in or out and without looking suspicious go on up to the roof. There you will have a great view of the city and you can shed your brown bags and get drunk and have a good time.
2. Drinking Part 2
If you have no interest in getting ticketed for drinking on the street or its February and its freezing, there are countless bars you can go to but I think its better to go to art openings instead. There's almost always free beer and wine and sometimes cheese and grapes and the like. It's best if its set up so you can serve yourself but usually you have to wait in a long line, especially at popular shows. Resourceful people use gallery shows to "network" and "make connections."
3. Eating
Like most major cosmopolitan cities, New York City has a plethora of culinary options from all sorts of diverse cultures. But if your in the mood for cheap fast food I recommend just going to the Dumpling House at 118A Eldridge and get those 5 for 1 dollar dumplings. They are rather good in the hot sauce and they are ridiculously cheap. If you have lots of money and are not a vegetarian I recommend going to Peter Luger at 178 Broadway in Brooklyn. My girlfriend got a Christmas bonus one year and took me out to eat there. It was very very good. I recommend the steak.
4. Sightseeing
Too many visitors to New York restrict their visit to the island of Manhattan only. I advise you to go explore the outer boroughs. The website, www.forgotten-ny.com really delves in to a lot of the physical characteristics and history which make the outer boroughs so interesting to me. I don't think the guy who runs the sight likes graffiti or street art very much but regardless, I recommend using it as a guide if you have any interest in old railroad tracks, tunnels, signage, or abandoned buildings. But if that stuff is too boring, just stick with the foam statue of liberty hat, a carriage ride around Central Park, and catch a showing of Rent, and then shoot yourself for being a fucker.
5. Shopping
The flea market down at Coney Island has a lot of strange people hanging around piles of crap. Its pretty seedy but its cheaper then the Chelsea flea market and the selection of things for sale is less about antiques and collectibles and more about straight razors and dog collar choke chains. My friend Chris got a crossbow there. They have lots of junk.
Posted by marc at 7:09 AM in City Guides | Recommend this! (1) |
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