By Carly Bayroff
There is so much to do and see in NYC and deciding how to spend your time can be difficult. Site seeing, eating, drinking the options are never ending. Save yourself from being overwhelmed with planning and use this as a guide to surviving your first summer in the city for what to do, where to go and of course where to eat.
Food/Drink:
For Ice Cream- Cool down in the city with a sweet treat from any of the beloved ice cream shops below:
1. Morgenstern’s Finest Ice Cream – known for its creative flavours you can have a scoop of anything from vanilla to strawberry balsamic.
2. Ice & Vice – create a masterpiece here with waffle cups and cones, wild flavours, and whole doughnuts and marshmallows as toppings.
3. Emack and Bolio’s – known for inventing the flavoured cone in the 80’s, their crazy cones are the perfect accessory to their delicious ice cream (my personal favourite is a Rice Krispie cone with a topping of espresso ice cream!)
4. OddFellows Ice Cream Co. – get a cone with the most perfectly round stack of home-made ice cream scoops, delicious soft served or ice cream cookie sandwiches.
For Breakfast/Brunch- Did you even go to NYC if you left without going to brunch or eating at least one bagel?
1. Murray’s Bagels – expect a line that’s out the door of this little shop with the best bagel sandwiches that make the wait worth it.
2. The Smith – French toast, baked eggs, avocado toast, The Smith has it all. Stop by one of the restaurant’s many locations throughout the city for a young atmosphere and great food. (Don’t panic – if you can’t make it for breakfast/brunch The Smith is a winner for any meal of the day)
3. Sadelle’s – Make a reservation waaaay ahead or you’ll be waiting for hours. This vintage looking spot serves a stack of bagels on a stick at your table and you don’t want to miss out on an order (or two) of the breakfast potatoes.
For NYC Pizza- You can’t come to NYC and leave without indulging in a slice of pizza. Here’s where you can find my favourite slices:
1. Rubirosa Ristorante – A simple menu with thin crust pizza and killer sauce.
2. Lil Frankie’s – The pizza here will be gone from your table in 5 minutes, just like the rest of the food from this little, fan favourite, Italian restaurant that makes it hard (but so worth it) to make a reservation for.
3. Artichoke Basille’s Pizza – Anybody in NYC has had a slice from Artichoke and for good reason. Their slices are HUGE and their speciality pie with its creamy cheese sauce and artichoke pieces may give you a stomach ache, but all for a good cause. Expect a wait and a line out the door, as the tiny spot lacks table space so grab a slice to go and eat it along your travels.
For Drinks- Unwind from a long day of walking or grab one just because you can, whatever your reason is, make drinks from these places a must:
1. Loopy Doopy Rooftop Bar – With unique cocktails, this rooftop bar on top of the Conrad Hotel is most known for their invention of ‘Loopy Pops’, a glass of Rose or Prosecco infused with a ice lolly flavour of your choice.
2. Dos Caminos– Wash down fresh guacamole with frozen margarita’s, speciality cocktails, sangria or something else from the extensive drink list at one of the locations of this popular Mexican restaurant.