Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Weekend Rewind: New York State of Mind


This past weekend was spent in one of my favorite places, Manhattan. My husband and I both had such an amazing time. I wanted to share some of the highlights!

Saturday:

Saturday started with the big drive into the city which only took 4 hours from DC. I have since convinced myself, because it is such a short drive, we can go at least 3 to 4 times a year! (I now need to convince my husband.)

We checked into our hotel, The Eventi, Saturday afternoon after brunch with family on the Upper West Side. We loved the location of the hotel, so convenient for the trip. (Also, they surprised me with a bottle of champagne and a birthday cupcake… so cute!) Saturday night consisted of dinner and a show. 


We dined at Joe Allen on West 47th Street. This restaurant was such find. The décor was simple and elegant, without all the harshness of a modern space. Old theater posters lined the dark wood walls and white tablecloths adorned the tables, packed into the dining room. The place was filled with the voices of other dinners and you could sense everyone was enjoying themselves. With a shrimp cocktail to start, I chose the grilled chicken. Though seemingly a simple dish, this was the best chicken I have ever had. It had a citrus sauce that was amazing.

The show we selected to see was First Date at the Longacre Theater. This show was hilarious! I wanted to select a show that I knew both my husband and I would like. Rather than selecting one of the more well-known ongoing productions (Wicked, Newsies, etc.), I also wanted to see something new and fresh. This show had the audience laughing out loud from the first 5 minutes until the final curtain call and I am still humming the songs to myself. I cannot say enough about this show and the amazing performance by the cast. If you are in New York, see this show! 


Sunday:

Sunday began with more amazing food. (What can I say? I like food. Nay, I love food.) We decided on Perilla at 9 Jones Street. We both started with brunch cocktails (of course). I tried the drink of the day, a cherry lychee mimosa that was delicious. They are known for their spicy duck meatballs which are translated during brunch to a burger, which my husband selected (and thoroughly enjoyed.) I choose lemon ricotta pancakes with a balsamic glaze. Seriously, amazing! We were stuffed the rest of the day! 
After brunch, we strolled through SoHo, where I picked up this new Kate Spade bracelet. Another fun aspect was our first attempt at navigating the subway without a local. All I can say is I actually missed the DC Metro, which is so much easier to navigate!


After a long day of walking around the city, we went back and forth on what to do Sunday night. We finally selected to have dinner in Little Italy. Though touristy, it was such blast to walk down Mulberry Street and see all the signs in Italian. (As my family is Italian, I really enjoyed being so immersed in the Italian American culture.) After dinner and an amazing stuffed artichoke from Benito One, we ended the night with cannoli and espresso. You should always (leave the gun) and take the cannoli.


Monday:

We wrapped up our trip Monday with the drive home, but not before a stroll through Central Park and lunch on a rooftop terrace. We also stopped at Bryant Park and the New York Public Library. I loved the architecture. This will definitely be my first stop our next trip (so I can spend way too much time staring at all the books.)


This trip was such treat and I cannot wait to go back.

Have a great week! 

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