Tipsy Scoop at 217 East 26th Street
Inside this playful restaurant
The one thing I suggest getting is the Sprinkle Cookie Cake Batter Vodka Martini infused Ice Cream sandwich. Words can’t describe how good this dessert is and after a long day it will give you a nice buzz.
The Sprinkle Cookie Cake Batter Vodka Martini Ice Cream sandwich I highly recommend
It is delicious
Yum!
It has been a while since I was able to get back into the City to continue my walk around Manhattan. Between work, trips up to the Hudson River Valley and Upstate New York for Fall events and then the Halloween holidays, it has been a busy time and a real balancing act.
I started the walk around Kips Bay, a small Manhattan neighborhood that borders Murray Hill from the North, Peter Cooper Village and Gramercy Park to the South and the Flatiron and Midtown districts to the West. The neighborhood runs from East 34th to East 23rd Streets from Lexington Avenue to the West and FDR Drive and the East River to the East.
Kips Bay has a very interesting history. Kips Bay was once an inlet of the East River running from what is now East 37th to East 32nd Streets and the bay extended into Manhattan Island to just west of what is now First Avenue and had two streams that ran from it. The bay was named after New Netherland Dutch settler, Jacobus Hendrickson Kip, the son of Hendrick Hendrickson Kip, whose farm ran north of present-day East 30th Street along the East River. The bay became reclaimed land, but the name “Kips Bay” still remains in the area (Wiki).
An early British map of Manhattan showing “Kepps Bay”
The Kip family built a large brick and stone house near the modern intersection of Second Avenue and East 35th Street. The house stood from 1655 to 1851 and when it was demolished was the last farmhouse from New Amsterdam remaining in Manhattan. Iron figures fixed into the gable end brickwork commemorated the first year of its construction. Its orchard was famous and when first President George Washington was presented with a sip of Rosa gallica during his first administration when New York City was serving as the first National Capital (Wiki).
Jacobus Kip’s Home in Kips Bay
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kips_Bay,_Manhattan
Kips Bay was the site of the Landing at Kip’s Bay, an episode of the American Revolutionary War (1175-1783) and part of the New York and New Jersey campaign. About 4000 British Army troops under General William Howe landed in Kips Bay on September 15, 1776 near what is now the foot of East 33rd Street off the East River. This was from a Royal Fleet which first landed earlier at Staten Island then Long Island for the pivotal Battle of Brooklyn (also known as the Battle of Long Island).
The previous month General Howe’s troops defeated about 500 American militiamen stationed at Kips Bay but General Washington and commanded by Colonel William Douglas. The American forces immediately retreated and the British occupied New York Town at the south point of the island soon afterward forcing General Washington to retreat northward to the Harlem River (Wiki).
The British Landing at Kips Bay in 1776
The neighborhood now sits just below Murray Hill East 42nd to East 34th Streets) to the north and just south above Peter Cooper Village (East 23rd to East 20th Street). Kips Bay like the rest of this section of the Eastern side of Manhattan is going through a makeover. The small apartment buildings are slowly coming down almost creating a patchwork in the neighborhood between the high rises and office buildings above East 30th Street and the low rises that still dot parts of Lexington, Third and Second Avenues. Little by little everything is giving way as Midtown creeps into these neighborhoods.
Still Kips Bay has loads of charm, a slew of interesting restaurants, beautiful buildings and nice little parks to relax in and a breathtaking view of the East River and Long Island City. There is a online discussion about the eastern border of the neighborhood, Third to Lexington Avenues, which some consider part of the “Rose Hill” neighborhood, which itself labels itself “NoMAD” today (North of Madison Park). Even within the neighborhood there are subsections including “Curry Hill” or “Little India” along Lexington Avenue from East 29th to East 26th Streets which is lined with Southeast Asian provision and retail stores and great Asian restaurants where the scents of curry and cumin are in the air.
This is why I love walking in Manhattan is how you can go from one world to another in just a block. It shows the cultural richness and the diversity that makes Manhattan so complex and interesting. There is always something new to experience from block to block.
I started my walk in my usual headquarters for this part of Manhattan in Bryant Park. The Christmas Village and Skating Rink have been set up way in advance of the holidays and people were out skating, masks and all, and having a wonderful time on the first sunny day in a long time. The village stores are about a third of the amount from previous years but still stocked and ready to go. I think the City in the era of COVID “needs a little Christmas now”.
The Christmas Village got an early start Bryant Park this year
This is something I noticed when I walked down East 42nd Street towards Madison and Park Avenues when I passed office buildings. Christmas Trees and wreaths decorated lobbies all over the avenues much earlier than I have ever seen. Usually, the Christmas decorations don’t come out until after Thanksgiving, but the holidays are getting more rushed this year. Still even in the 60-degree days in November it really does cheer you up.
Park Avenue Office Building Christmas decorations
Arriving at East 34th Street and FDR Drive, I reached the border of Murray Hill and Kips Bay in the mid afternoon and it felt so familiar to me after so many afternoons exploring Murray Hill just that the weather had gotten cooler. There just seemed to be more people out as the City is getting back to normal after a trying summer.
When you do arrive here you are greeted by a playful piece of art just outside NYU Langone Children’s Hospital. “Spot” is a dalmatian balancing a taxi on his nose is located just outside the Children’s Hospital’s doors. “I wanted to make something so astounding to distract to even those arriving with the most serious procedures” (Artist Bio) the artist was quoted as saying when the piece was unveiled. It sits four stories in front of the hospital. It is a very playful piece of art that stopped me in my tracks.
“Spot” by artist Donald Lipski
Artist Donald Lipski is an American born artist who is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Cranbrook Academy of Art. He is best known for his large scale works in public places (Artist’s Bio).
Artist Donald Lipski
It was nice to see most of the restaurants in the area had finally opened up and with the warm weather still holding its grip, there was a lot of outdoor dining to choose from. Even before the pandemic, some parts of the neighborhood were being knocked down for new construction and work continued as I visited taking down many of the smaller buildings that used to house small restaurants. Still there are some great independent restaurants in the area that needed support.
I had lunch at Pizza & Pita at 344 East 34th Street right across the street from the small park that faces the hospital. I just wanted a slice of pizza and when I walked in a fresh pie had just come out. The pizza looked as good as it tasted.
Pizza & Pita at 344 East 34th Street (Renovated and renamed Previti Pizza in 2022)
https://previtipizza.com/pizza-pasta-heros-salads
The sauce has an amazing rich flavor and the loaded with cheese for a gooey consistency. It was so good that I stopped back later for a quick snack of their garlic knots. These pillowy delights came with a side of their delicious marinara sauce that was a pleasure to dunk them into and enjoy each bit.
The pizza here is great!
I just relaxed and ate my lunch in the small public plaza across the street from the hospital and watched as the hospital staff came out from their frustrating days and ate their lunches beside me. It seemed to do them well. The plaza has gotten busier since the late summer and it is nice to see people coming back to work and bring some life to the area.
Even the IPizza mural is around the corner from this spot garnering competition on the corner of First Avenue and East 34th Street
While at lunch I admired another interesting art piece entitled “Stemmer” by New York City born American artist David Fried.
“Stemmer” at the plaza at East 34th Street and First Avenue
The artist grew up in New York City and attended the School of Art & Music and was accepted into the Arts Students League of New York. The “Stemmers” sculptures is one of his trademark pieces.
Artist David Fried
After lunch, I continued my walk down East 34th Street to the border of Kips Bay at Lexington Avenue. The neighborhood is very ‘old New York’ especially between First and Lexington Avenues with the small buildings and high rises from the 1960’s and 70’s. The area is currently going through a makeover with new buildings, but it still has that “Woody Allen” feel of New York. Everything is not gleaming and new.
Tucked here and there by buildings and courtyards on East 34th Street is a bevy of interesting street art. The block is almost an ‘open air museum’ of creativity. The statue “Thinking Big” which was formally in Central Park South on Sixth Avenue last year has found a home in front of 222 East 34th Street.
“Thinking Big” by artist Jim Rennet
Artist Jim Rennert with one of his works
Jim Rennert is an American born artist known for his large bronze sculptures depicting the everyday man. Mostly self-taught, his works are seen all over the country and really do make a statement.
Walking further down East 34th Street just outside a little courtyard of one of the apartment buildings is artist John Sewart Johnson’s II sculpture “The Right Light”, a bronze sculpture of an artist and his easel. The sculpture is located just outside a building between Third and Lexington Avenues at 150 East 34th Street.
‘The Right Light’ by artist John Sewart Johnson II
The sign
Artist John Sewart Johnson II
https://www.groundsforsculpture.org/artists/j-seward-johnson/
Artist John Seward Johnson II was an American artist who attended the University of Maine, and he is known for his ‘familiar man’ sculptures and icons paintings.
Located on the wall near this art piece is an interesting painting on the wall outside another apartment building by artist Colette Miller from her “Global Wings Project” which she created in 2012. She paints these ‘to remind humanity that we are the angels of this earth’. With this graceful painting of giant ‘wings’, the artist hopes that there is a symbol of peace (Colette Miller’s Bio).
Artist Colette Millers “Global Angel Wings Project” 2020 (No longer there in 2024)
Artist Colette Miller
https://colettemiller.com/angelwings
Ms. Miller is a American born artist from Richmond, VA. She is graduate of the Art School at Virginia Commonwealth University and Film Studies at UCLA. As well as an artist, she is a film maker and musician. Her work has been exhibited all over the world.
Turning the corner onto the bustling Lexington Avenue, you see that the border of the neighborhood is a bustling commercial district with a combination of office buildings and apartments and as you cross East 30th Street a restaurant district with an international flair to it. The avenue is also lined with interesting architecture where many buildings stand out.
While walking down East 34th Street was seeing the unique sculptures of artist Linus Coraggio. These interesting sculptures were on the outside of 154 East 34th Street.
154 East 34th Street sculpture
The sculptures by artist Linus Coraggio are at 154 East 34th Street.
Artist Linus Coraggio
Artist Linus Coraggio is an American artist who is a native to New York City. He has a BFA from SUNY Purchase and his known for his unique abstract and figurative sculptures (Artist bio website).
The historic district of Kips Bay near Lexington Avenue.
The urban gardens on West 26th Street.
The New York Design Center Building at 200 Lexington Avenue stands out for its detailed beauty and its embellishments that accent the outside of the building. It was built in 1926 and designed by architect Ely Jacques Khan as the New York Furniture Exchange. The building was to cater to furniture and department store buyers. It now caters to the full interior design experience with furniture, lighting and textiles.
200 Lexington Avenue-The New York Design Center and the beautiful detail work.
Tucked to the residential side of the avenue is 170 Lexington Avenue an Italianate brownstone building that stands out for it yellow exterior. The brownstone was part of three building complex built in the early 1850’s. The house was owned by George and Elizabeth Youle, a wealthy couple with two married daughters. The address was originally 158 Lexington Avenue and then changed to 170 Lexington Avenue in 1866. Sometime in the 1940’s the yellow clapboard veneer was added in a renovation of the building (Daytonian 2020).
170 Lexington Avenue was built in the early 1850’s
http://daytoninmanhattan.blogspot.com/2020/03/the-george-youle-house-170-lexington.html
https://streeteasy.com/building/170-lexington-avenue-new_york
Another building that had beautiful detail work carved into it is 160-164 Lexington Avenue, The Dove Street Marketplace, which offers floor after floor of high-end goods.
The detail work is amazing on 160-164 Lexington Avenue-The Dove Street Market
The building has the most beautiful detail work on all sides. It was built in 1909 as the New York School for Applied Design for Women. It was designed by one of the school’s instructors, architect Wiley Corbett, to resemble a Greek Temple (Forgotten New York).
160-164 Lexington Avenue
https://streeteasy.com/building/160-lexington-avenue-new_york
Across the street from the Dover Street Market at 154 Lexington Avenue is the First Moravian Church. The building was started in 1849 and finished in 1852 at the Rose Hill Baptist Church designed in the Lombardian Romanesque style. In 1869, the church was sold to the First Moravian Church which had been located at Sixth Avenue and 34th Street (Daytonian in Manhattan).
The First Moravian Church at 154 Lexington Avenue was built in 1854
http://www.nycago.org/organs/nyc/html/firstmoravian.html
Our History
As I crossed over East 29th Street, I was greeted by the sights and smells of curry and cumin in restaurants as I entered “Little India” or “Curry Hill” as some locals call it, a stretch of restaurants and stores that cater to the Southeast Asian population as well as locals and tourists alike.
The “Curry Hill” section of Kips Bay
This stretch of businesses extends from East 29th to about East 26th Streets created by the catalyst for the street, Kalustyan’s at 123 Lexington Avenue, a specialty food market specializing in Indian and Middle-Eastern spices and food items.
Kalustyan’s Specialty Market at 123 Lexington Avenue
Kalustyan’s has an interesting history. The market was started in 1944 by Kerope Kalustyan, an Armenian immigrant from Turkey, when his steel importing business failed. He turned to foods and spices that catered to the large Armenian population who lived in the neighborhood in the 1920’s. By the 1960’s and 70’s, are large Indian and Southeastern Asian population started to move to the City and Kalustyan’s was the meeting spot as they started to carry Indian spices as well. “Little India/Curry Hill” grew up around the store as immigrants opened their own businesses around the store (Wiki). Now Kalustyan’s carries foods and spices from all over the world (Kalustyan).
Kalustyan’s has shelves of spices, mixes and sauces.
The baked and prepared goods.
Kalustyans Landing Page
Looking down “Curry Hill” section of Kips Bay on Lexington Avenue
It is really an experience to walk around all the shelves and shelves of spices and see what is available. Then to turn the corner and see all the fresh and frozen foods from all over the world. it can be overwhelming.
Kalustyan’s is located in the historic Chester A. Arthur home
What is interesting about the store is that is was once the home of President Chester A. Arthur, who took office as 21st President of the United States after President James Garfield was shot in 1881. He was sworn in as president here in September 1881. President Arthur moved to New York City in 1848 and lived here for most of his adult life and continued living here after his Presidency. He died in the house in 1886 (Wiki).
President Chester A. Arthur taking oath in his home in 1881
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chester_A._Arthur
The house is a five-story masonry designed in the Romanesque Revival styling and has gone through many renovations over the years. The neighborhood went from a fashionable district to the home of one of the largest Armenian populations in the United States then to a Southeast Asian neighborhood to another gentrifying area of Manhattan.
The Chester A. Arthur house when he lived in it
After a quick tour around Kalustyan’s admiring all the spices and looking over their frozen food department with all its pastry and meat dishes, I was in the mood from some Indian food. I stopped at the corner at Curry in a Hurry at 119 Lexington Avenue. I needed a quick snack to keep me going so I ordered a chicken samosa ($2.45) and it was so good I went back for a beef samosa that had just gotten out of the oven. Both were extremely well spiced and full of flavor. I could taste the hot pepper and cumin for the rest for the afternoon (see my review on TripAdvisor).
Curry in a Hurry at 119 Lexington Avenue
https://www.curryinahurrynyc.com/
Refreshed from a quick snack, I continued exploring Lexington Avenue peeking at all the menus of the restaurants as I walked down the road. The aroma from the kitchens reached the sidewalks and I had to make an mental note of the place I wanted to try in the future.
By East 26th Street, I passed “Little India” and was in front of the 69th Regiment Building at 68th Lexington Avenue. This beautiful building is the home to the New York Army National Guard’s 69th Infantry Regiment, known as the “Fighting Irish” since the Civil War (Wiki).
69th Regiment Building at 68 Lexington Avenue
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/69th_Regiment_Armory
The building was designed by architects Hunt & Hunt in the Beaux Arts style and was completed in 1906. It has been home to many events and show including the controversial 1913 Armory Show of contemporary art (Wiki). You really have to walk around the building to admire its beauty and history.
The Armory Plaque
Just across the street is another beautiful building covered with snakes, skulls and dragons carved along the side of it at 130 East 25th Street.
Someone had a warped sense of humor
The former B. W. Mayer Building which now houses the Friends House in Rosehall was built in 1916 by architect Herman Lee Meader (Wiki). You really have to walk around the building to see all the unusual carvings that line the building.
130 East 25th Street, the former B. W. Mayer Building
https://www.realtyhop.com/building/130-east-25th-street-new-york-ny-10010
The doorway arch really stands out
The street art is also interesting on this part of Lexington Avenue. One the corner of East 24th Street & Lexington Avenue is the Friends House New York, a housing unit. Painted on the wall is a very unique painting by Italian street artist, Jacopo Ceccarelli.
Painting by artist Jacopo Ceccarelli
The mural is on the corner of East 24th & Lexington Avenue-The St. Francis Residence Building
Artist Jacopo Ceccarelli
http://doartfoundation.org/index.html@p=3375.html
The Milan born street artist, who goes by the name “Never 2501” hones his skills after moving to San Paolo, painting murals with an edge that got global recognition. He uses geometric forms in his work with circles and lines creating the abstract (Do Art Foundation).
I was getting hungry again with all this criss crossing across Lexington Avenue and I had two choices for a snack, DiDi Dumpling at 38 Lexington Avenue or Pick & Pay Pizza at 30 Lexington Avenue both having reasonable snacks. Since I would be stopping for Dim Sum later that afternoon, I chose the pizza. For a $1.25 a slice, the pizza was not bad in this tiny little hole in the wall that also served Indian food as well. The sauce had a lot of flavors and that is what makes the pizza.
Pick & Pay Pizza at 30 Lexington Avenue (Closed 2024)
The Cheese Pizza was good here
DiDi Dumpling at 38 Lexington Avenue (name change in 2024)
https://www.dididumplingny.com/menu
EA Dumpling replaced DiDi Dumpling in 2024
The Dumplings here are delicious. These are Soup Dumplings and the Potstickers.
I noticed on the wall right near the doorway near the Starbucks was another wall mural “Urban Ocean” by artist Yuki Abe that is off to the side of the building on the corner of Lexington & 25th, Look at the interesting color and design of the work.
“Urban Ocean” by Artist Yuki Abe
Surrounding this area of Lexington & 25th Street starts the campus of Baruch College which is part of the SUNY system, and I could see students who were taking live classes walking around enjoying the day. I am sure it is much different when classes were in full swing, and the students were hanging around the restaurants and coffee shops in the area.
The now finished Baruch College courtyard on campus
Another building that stands out in its beauty and design is on the corner of the neighborhood on Lexington Avenue between 24th and 23rd Streets, the Freehand Hotel at 23 Lexington Avenue. The hotel was originally built as the Hotel George Washington in 1928 and designed by architect Frank Mills Andrews in the French Renaissance style.
The Freehand Hotel (the former George Washington Hotel) at 23 Lexington Avenue
While still a apartment building and a dorm in the 1990’s, several famous New Yorkers lived at the hotel including artist Keith Haring and musician Dee Dee Ramone. Playwright Jeffery Stanley also lived at the hotel for a period of time.
The entrance to the Freehand Hotel is very elegant but still remains closed
I crossed East 23rd Street which is the edge of the neighborhood shared with Gramercy Park, Rose Hill and Peter Cooper Village further down the block. This busy thoroughfare is lined with a lot stores, restaurants and many interesting buildings that leads to the East River.
I stopped for lunch at a new Dim Sum restaurant name Awe Sum Dim Sum that had just opened on at 160 East 23rd Street and it was just excellent. I took my friend, Maricel, here for lunch after my birthday for lunch and we ate through most of the menu (see my reviews on TripAdvisor and DiningonaShoeStringinNYC@Wordpress.com).
The Awe Sum Dim Sum at 160 East 23rd Street
The menu items that the restaurant carries.
The restaurant has the most amazing appetizers to choose from that are all made in house and served fresh to you either at your table inside or one of the many tables outside (while the weather holds out). On my trip with Maricel, we ate our way through the Fried Dumplings, the Chicken Siu Mai, the Spring Rolls, the Baked BBQ Pork Buns, the Scallion Pancakes and the Soup Dumplings. On my trip today, I ordered the Soup Dumplings, Crispy Shrimp Rolls and the Siu Mai with pork and shrimp.
The Soup Dumplings here are the best
So are the Spring Rolls when they are fresh out of the fryer
On one of the trips I had the Pan Fried Pork Buns, Spring Rolls and Roast Pork Buns.
With the cost for each running between $4.00-$6.00, I could eat my way through the menu. The nice part is what a nice contemporary designed restaurant the place is to dine in. Everyone is kept ‘socially distanced’ so it is a nice place to eat.
The inside of Awe Sum Dim Sum
After a nice relaxing lunch, I was ready to continue down East 23rd Street. Criss crossing the street again, I noticed the beauty of 219-223 East 23rd Street. The building has all sorts of griffins and faces glaring out. When you stand across the street, you can admire the beauty of all the carvings on the building along the archways above and the faces staring at you from the tops of windows.
219-223 East 23rd Street
The window details of 221 East 23rd Street
https://www.cityrealty.com/nyc/gramercy-park/219-east-23rd-street/7437
Another building that stands out is 304-310 East 23rd Street. This former factory building was built in 1900 and now is the “The Foundry”, a converted condo complex. The amazing detail on the building stands out and you have to admire the stonework and details in the carvings along the building.
304-310 East 23rd Street is a former factory
https://www.cityrealty.com/nyc/gramercy-park/the-foundry-310-east-23rd-street/3880
The stonework is a standout on this building
Reaching the end of East 23rd Street, you will see the planned middle-class complex of Peter Cooper Village, which has gone market rate and is now getting very upscale and seems to have a younger resident walking around then the usual middle-aged residents who used to be on the list to get one of these very desirable apartments.
The entrance to Peter Cooper Village at First Avenue
https://www.petercoopervillage.com/
Across from Peter Cooper Village is the Asser Avery Recreational Center and Playground 392 Asser Avery Place with the famous baths and pools that have been part of the neighborhood for generations.
The Asser Levy Recreation Center and Park at 392 Asser Levy Place
When the baths opened in 1908, the facility was called the East 23rd Street Bathhouse. It was by architects Arnold W. Brunner and William Martin Aiken. Based on the ancient Roman Baths, the architecture was inspired by the “City Beautiful” movement, a turn of the century effort to create civic architecture in the United States that would rival the monuments of the great European capitals (NYCParks.org). The playground next to it opened in 1993.
The architecture by Arnold Brunner and William Martin Aiken resembled a Roman Bath
The fountain at the bathhouses.
The historic plaque.
The Baths and Park was named for Asser Levy, a Jewish trailblazer in colonial times when Mr. Levy and 23 Jews fled from Brazil in 1654 to seek refuge in New Amsterdam. He challenged Governor Peter Stuyvesant when he tried to evict the Jews from the colony. He was the first Jew to serve in the militia and own property in the colony (NYCParks.org).
Asser Levy
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/9876-levy-asser-asser-levy-van-swellem
The border to the east of the neighborhood is combination of the East River Esplanade, FDR Drive and First Avenue. Since First Avenue and FDR Drive are surrounded by a combination of college campus and hospital space, it makes walking around the neighborhood tricky.
When you walk across East 23rd Street to FDR Drive, you have to cross over FDR Drive at East 25th Street behind the VA New York Harbor Healthcare System Hospital complex and the CUNY/Hunter College campus and then cross over the bridge to the Waterside Plaza complex.
The Waterside Plaza complex and the Greenway walkway
https://streeteasy.com/building/waterside-plaza
This series of apartment buildings faces the East River and FDR Drive that leads to the East River Greenway walkway and the Waterside Plaza walkway both surround the complex. The views are breathtaking on a sunny afternoon of the East River and Long Island City.
The East River Greenway and the view of Long Island City.
East River Greenway from West 34th Street.
On the way up the Waterside Plaza walkway, I passed the famous Water Cafe at 500 East 30th Street that is currently closed because of COVID. This famous restaurant has been around since the 1980’s and offers some of the most spectacular views. It was one of the best known restaurants at the time when “Restaurant Madness” hit the City in the mid-1980’s as the City went through its first wave of gentrification under the Koch Administration.
The Water Club at 500 East 30th Street is currently closed
https://www.facebook.com/WaterClubNYC/
I walked all around the Waterside Plaza complex and saw where all the joggers and walkers can exercise all around the complex. The walkways both lead back
to East 34th Street and the beginning of the walkway and where Kips Bay once was located. I walked around the NYU Langone Hospital when I crossed East 34th Street and walked down the FDR Drive extension around the hospital until I reached East 26th Street and crossed to First Avenue.
This part of FDR Drive passes behind the Langone complex and the Bellevue Complex and be careful as there are security guards all over the place. They totally avoided me because with the tinted glasses I think they thought I was there to check them out. The side streets of East 30th to East 28th Streets are closed off to the public and you can’t walk down them without security looking you over. There is not much to see here but a parking lot and the back of the hospital complex.
I walked back down East 26th to East 25th Street and crossed back over to where the bridge was located and walked back around the Asser Levy Park and walked through the park. The three times I was in the park no one was there and the park seemed a little depressed with the homeless camping out.
The City Opera Thrift Shop at 222 East 23rd Street (Closed February 2023)
https://cityoperathriftshop.org/
I made my way back down East 23rd Street and stopped in the City Opera Thrift Shop at 222 East 23rd Street. They have the most interesting artwork and books, couture clothing for women and children and some decorative items on the second floor that have been donated to the store to help support the charity. Don’t miss shifting through the store and all the racks to find that perfect outfit.
Walking around the first floor of the City Opera Thrift Shop is an adventure (Closed February 2023).
As I walked back up East 23rd Street passing the historic buildings and restaurants I walked through the Baruch College complex to see that campus was being renovated and was really quiet. It is spooky to walk through a college campus and see no one. It was one of the cooler days when I visited the neighborhood, and no one was around.
Before I finished my walk of the border of neighborhood, I stopped back in “Little India” and had dinner at Anjappar, a South Indian restaurant at 116 Lexington Avenue at 28th Street. I had not had Indian food for a long time and thought it would be a nice way to end the evening.
Anjappar at 116 Lexington Avenue
New York
I was the only person eating in the restaurant that evening so all the attention went to me. The waiter gave me her great recommendations and we were able to talk about the best dishes to try. Since all NYC restaurants are only at 25% capacity, not too many people can eat there anyway. It was a quiet night with just a few to go orders while I was there.
The food and the service were excellent. With the recommendations for the waiter, I ordered the Anjappar Chicken Marsala, which was in a spicy chili and curry sauce served with a side of white rice and a side of Parotta bread, which is a buttery spiral bread that is a specialty of the region.
The Anjappar Chicken Marsala
The Parotta bread is perfect to sop up the sauces
The Mango Lasse cuts the heat of the food
The entree was so spicy that it cleaned my sinuses out and added a little spring to my step. For dessert, I order a house specialty, the Pineapple Ravakesari, which was fresh crushed pineapple in a polenta type of grain with a sugary top. It was served warm and was the perfect combination of sweet and tart.
It was the perfect dessert to end the meal and cap off the afternoon of adventure (see my review on TripAdvisor). They did not have it the second time I ate there and I ordered the Gulobjamun, a type of sweet donut.
The wonderful curries and Parotta bread of that dinner
Dinner was really good that night
The dessert Gulobjamun, sweet rice dough with a simple syrup was the perfect way to end the meal
When I reached the point of the beginning at Lexington Avenue and East 34th Street, I thought back to the wonderful sites and views from the island that Kips Bay offers . From the interesting open air art museum to the views along the river to the historic buildings and sites and smells of “Little India/Curry Hill”, there is so much to see and do in the neighborhood it even took me several trips to see just the border of the Kips Bay.
What would the British think today if they landed here? It would be more than Mrs. Murray’s punch and cake to keep them distracted.
Mrs. Murray entertaining the British in here home when they landed in Kips Bay.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Lindley_Murray
Join me as I walk the Avenues of Kips Bay on MywalkinManhattan.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/15820
Join me as I walk the Streets of Kips Bay on MywalkinManhattan.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/15954
Places to Eat:
Pizza & Pita Halal Food
344 East 34th Street
New York, NY 10016
(212) 679-6161
Open: Sunday-Saturday 10:00am-11:00pm
My review on TripAdvisor:
My review on DiningonaShoeStringinNYC@Wordpress.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/diningonashoestringinnyc.wordpress.com/1811
Curry in a Hurry
119 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10016
(212)683-0900
http://www.curryinahurrynyc.com/
Open: Sunday-Saturday 10:00am-1:00am
My review on TripAdvisor:
Pick & Pay Pizza
30 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10010
(212) 387-8200
https://www.menuwithprice.com/menu/pick-and-pay-gyro-and-pizza/
Open: Sunday-Friday 9:00am-10:00pm/Saturday 9:00am-10:30pm
My review on TripAdvisor:
DiDi Dumpling
38 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10010
(718) 709-8132
http://dididumpling.eatintakeout.net/
https://www.dididumplingny.com/menu
Open: Sunday-Saturday 11:00am-8:00pm
My review on TripAdvisor:
Awe Sum Dim Sum
160 East 23rd Street
New York, NY
(646) 998-3314/3314
Open: Sunday 9:30am-8:00pm/Monday-Wednesday 11:00am-8:00pm/Thursday-Saturday 9:30am-9:00pm
My review on TripAdvisor:
My review on DiningonaShoeStringinNYC@Wordpress.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/diningonashoestringinnyc.wordpress.com/1898
Anjappar
116 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10016
(212) 265-3663
New York
Open: Sunday (L) 12:00pm-4:00pm/(D) 5:30pm-10:00pm/Monday Closed/Tuesday-Thursday (L) 11:30am-3:00pm/(D) 5:30pm-10:00pm/Friday (L) 11:30am-3:00pm/(D) 5:30pm-11:00pm/Saturday (L) 12:00pm-4:00pm/(D) 5:30pm-11:00pm
My review on TripAdvisor:
Places to Visit:
Kalustyan’s
123 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10016
Kalustyans Landing Page
(212) 685-3451
Open: Sunday 11:00am-7:00pm/Monday-Saturday 9:30am-8:00pm
My review on TripAdvisor:
The 69th Regiment Building
68 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10010
(646) 424-5500
https://military.wikia.org/wiki/69th_Regiment_Armory
Open: Sunday-Saturday 1:00pm-6:00pm
Asser Levy Recreational Center & Park
Asser Levy Place & East 25th Street
New York, NY 10010
(212) 693-9675
https://www.nycgovparks.org/facilities/recreationcenters/M164
https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/asser-levy-recreation-center-pool-and-playground
Open: Sunday-Saturday 7:00am-6:00pm
City Opera Thrift Store (Closed February 2023)
222 East 23rd Street
New York, NY 10010
(212) 684-5344
https://cityoperathriftshop.org/donate-1
Open: Sunday-Monday Closed/Tuesday-Saturday 11:00am-6:00pm
I covered the edges and the Avenues of Turtle Bay recently and it was time to walk all the streets. To cover the rather odd shaped part of the neighborhood, I walked from East 58th Street to East 48th from Lexington Avenue to Second Avenue first and on the second part of the walk, I covered from East 47th to East 44th Streets from Lexington Avenue to the East River on the second part of the walk to complete the neighborhood. I criss crossed some of the same blocks so I might be pointing things out for a second time that you should not miss seeing. Even amongst the all the modern architecture, there are many beautiful things to admire here.
It is an interesting mix of buildings and residential use and a neighborhood in much transition as it is becoming more commercial and more like Midtown as the small neighborhood feel is surrounded by glass tower apartment buildings and offices. The side streets still keep a localized charm while the Avenues have given way to the big towers. Here you can see the distinct difference in the Upper West Side and the Upper East Side. The West Side has not lost that charm on the Avenues.
I started the walk revisiting 58th Street and walked past all the bath and home design shops that line the street. It is an interesting block of old brownstones and prewar apartment buildings fitted for all the small businesses. One stand out on the block was Bon Vivant at 231 East 58th Street Petit Fours and drinks (See reviews on TripAdvisor and LittleShoponMainStreet@Wordpress.com).
Bon Vivant’s display at 231 East 58th Street (Closed August 2022)
This charming little bakery had the most whimsical little cakes for $3.50 for a small and $6.50 for a large. The cakes come in various flavors but do try the Lavender with its fusion of lavender petals and sweet fondant outside studded with flavors. Its a nice place to eat in and just watch the street traffic go by.
Their delicious Lavender Cake
At the end of the block on the corner of Lexington Avenue and East 58th Street is the Bloomberg Building at 731 Lexington Avenue. Designed by architect Cesar Pelli & Associates, the building opened in 2004 to house the Bloomberg Company headed by former Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The building holds the offices and meeting areas for the company as well as the back part of the building which is connected by a seven-story courtyard to hold the residences. This impressive building replaced the empty and now defunct Alexander’s Department Store which had closed years earlier.
The impressive Bloomberg Tower dominates the northwest corner of the Turtle Bay neighborhood at 731 Lexington Avenue
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/731_Lexington_Avenue
As you round Lexington Avenue onto East 57th Street, you will notice the mix of old and new buildings with a collection of old grand hotels and modern office buildings. The street itself is lined with all sorts of businesses catering to the busy Midtown customer. On stand out business is Royal-Athena Galleries at 153 East 57th Street (See my review on LittleShoponMainStreet@Wordpress.com-Closed in 2022), which carries ancient Egyptian, Roman and Greek art of museum quality at all prices.
It is part museum and part store. It is like visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art and seeing price tags on all the artworks. Everything here is authenticated and anything over $5,000 is registered with the Art Loss Registry in London so you know where it comes from. Don’t miss walking through the gallery cases and tables to see all the beautiful items.
Royal-Athena Gallery 153 East 57th Street (closed in January 2022)
Also, part of the shopping district is the iconic Hammacher Schlemmer store at 147 East 57th Street, which has been in this location since 1926. The company was founded in New York City as a hardware store for finding hard to find tools in 1848 in the Bowery district downtown. The company was founded by Charles Tollner and R. Stern with Albert Hammacher investing in the company in 1859. William Schlemmer bought out Charles Tollner part of the company in the 1860’s. It stayed in the family until 1953 when it was sold to investors (Company History).
The store is like a playground for adults with all sorts of unusual items on sale like fishing equipment, survival kits, transportation vehicles and clothing and accessories not found in the department stores.
The Hammacher Schlemmer store at 147 East 57th street (company now closed)
The store is now home to Carl Hansen & Son
https://www.carlhansen.com/en/en/stores/flagship-store-new-york
Rounding the corner on Second Avenue towards East 56th Street, you will pass the unassuming High School of Art & Design at 245 East 56th Street, which is closed for the school year except for a few students taking summer classes and their gallery which is still open to the public. I went to see the “Honors Illustration Show” in the John B. Kenny Gallery, which was still opened when I was walking the neighborhood.
The High School of Art & Design at 245 East 56th Street
https://www.artanddesignhs.org/
I only got to spend about a half hour viewing the show which dealt in different media forms with the theme of social justice, social media, racism and phobias in modern society. The graduating students created their works in all media aspects including painting and quilts, which I thought was interesting.
The John B. Kenny Gallery at the High School of Art & Design
https://www.biblio.com/the-complete-book-of-pottery-by-kenny-john-b/work/59670
The Kenny Gallery was named after John B. Kenny who was one of four art teachers that founded the school in 1936. He became principal of the school in 1941. Originally named the School of Industrial Arts, the name was changed to the High School of Art & Design in 1960 when the school moved to its currently location (School History page).
After saying my goodbyes to the security staff for letting me spend time alone in the gallery I turned the corner at Lexington Avenue and walked down East 55th Street towards Second Avenue again. I passed the Central Synagogue, which is the second oldest continuous Synagogue in New York and the oldest in the City. Designed by architect Henry Fernbach between 1870-72, the building was designed in Moorish Revival.
I admired the Central Synagogue on the corner of Lexington Avenue and East 55th Street at 652 Lexington Avenue
https://www.centralsynagogue.org/
The Central Synagogue historical marker
Walking down the street, I revisited some of the sites I had seen before. On the corner of Third Avenue and East 55th is the original P.J. Clarke’s Restaurant at 915 Third Avenue which was jammed with people for happy hour.
P.J. Clarke’s has been in this location since 1884 at 915 Third Avenue
Homepage
This famous restaurant has been in business since 1884 and is named after Patrick J. Clarke who bought it from the original owner after ten years of working there. The restaurant is currently privately owned. When you look at the structure, the building is a holdout wraparound of 919 Third Avenue when the rest of the block was torn down. The building was built around the bar. This makes it really stand out.
Look for the sculpture, ‘Red Flying Group’ in front of 909 Third Avenue by artist Ann Gillen. This unusual sculpture really stands out for its bold design. Ms. Gillen was raised in Brooklyn and is a graduate of both Pratt and Columbia University. As an artist, she is noted for her use of Greek theory of matter which uses geometric forms to explain spatial relationships. When she creates a piece, she considers the work’s axis, resistance to gravity, the manner of construction and the color dynamic. This really shows in this particular piece (Wiki and Artist Bio).
The Red Flying Group outside of 909 Third Avenue by artist Ann Gillen
Ann Gillen artist
Making the next turn onto East 54th Street from Second to Third Avenue on the corner of Third Avenue that stretches from East 54th to East 53rd is the well-known ‘Lipstick Building’.
Looking down Third Avenue by the Lipstick Building
The building was completed in 1986 by John Burgee Architects with Philip Johnson and is called the ‘Lipstick Building’ because of the ‘set-backs’ that were required by the zoning laws for use of light. With its oval design and pinkish hue, it almost looks like a retracting lipstick. An oval building really stands out among the rest of the glass boxes along Third Avenue (Wiki and Builders history). The building had been featured in the papers recently being the offices of Bernie Madoff and his major Ponzi scheme.
The Lipstick Building that looks like a ‘contracting lipstick’
When crossing back from East 54th to East 53rd by Lexington Avenue again please notice all the turn of the last century architecture in both the office buildings and hotels (See this on Day One Hundred & Thirty-Eight Walking the borders and Avenues June 2019). This line of hotels was built to accommodate the railroad patrons coming into New York City from Grand Central Station.
At 599 Lexington Avenue in the lobby of the building at the corner of Lexington Avenue and East 53rd Street, look into the glass lobby and notice the colorful sculpture “Salto nel Mio Sacco” by New York artist Frank Stella. This colorful ad whimsical piece translates to ‘Jump into my Sack’ (Art Nerd).
Salto nel mio sacco’ by Frank Stella inside the lobby
Frank Stella artist
http://www.artnet.com/artists/frank-stella/
Frank Stella is a New York City artist who had worked in many mediums before being influenced by the abstract artists of the 50’s and 60’s like Jasper Johns. His use of many materials and colors reflex in his artwork. This piece which is made in aluminum and colorful paints in a three-dimensional form with all different shapes on top of one another. This bold work was quoted by the artist in saying, “the essential issue is to have a sense of form without it being illustrational, to make things that impress the eyesight and have an impact”. (New York Times McGill 1986).
How beautiful it all is at night as well
Walking towards Second Avenue into the heart of Turtle Bay, you will notice a series of excellent restaurants on both side of the street. You will also begin to notice more brownstones and small apartment buildings which gives this part of Turtle Bay its character which is rapidly disappearing. You can wonder amongst the ethnic restaurants and small retail stores tucked into the block.
East 52nd Street offers its charms as well full of brownstones and small apartment buildings. The Consulate of Hungary takes up a large portion between Second and Third Avenues and tall office buildings line the Avenue.
Look up and notice the detailed stonework of 240 East 52nd Street with its carved windows and stone faces staring at you from every direction as you pass by. The building was built in 1900 and is considered an “Old Law Tenement” which means that it is built in a dumbbell shape to let in natural light and fresh air.
240 East 52nd Street in Turtle Bay
https://streeteasy.com/building/240-west-52-street-new_york
The details at 240 East 52nd Street
The faces stare at you.
At the end of the block as you walk down Lexington Avenue to East 51st Street is the famous subway grates that were featured in the 1955 movie, “The Seven Year Itch” with Marilyn Monroe. The famous scene was shot here at night and took 14 times to film to get it right.
The grates today that I walked on top of and did not know.
The famous 1955 scene in the movie
When walking down East 51st Street from Lexington Avenue you will notice more hotels popping up not just on the Avenue but on the side streets as wellbeing refigured into older buildings. I revisited the old RCA Headquarters at 570 Lexington Avenue which was designed by architects Cross & Cross in the Gothic style. You really have to look up and around the building to see the details in it. Try to look at the building from a distance to see its sculpture work and admire the ‘GE’ clock outside the entrance.
570 Lexington Avenue designed in the Gothic Style
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Electric_Building
The embellishments of the GE Building
The GE Building historical marker
One place that I found and is such a nice place to just sit and relax is the Greenacre Park at 217 East 51st Street. This wonderful little park is situated between two buildings and has nice shade trees and benches to relax on and go down the stairs and you will come to a waterfall and streams on the side where the water replenishes itself.
The Rockefeller Park
Greenacre Park was built between 1970 and 1971 by Abby Rockefeller Mauze, who founded the Greenacre Foundation in 1971 who still maintains the park. The park was designed by architect Hideo Sasaki and Harmon Goldstone. The park is privately owned but open to the public (Greenacre Foundation).
Greenacre Park at 217 East 51st Street
The park is composed of three levels. The lowest level has a 25-foot waterfall composed of huge, sculptured granite blocks with the east wall trickling down its face to form a brook along the sidewalk. The central level is landscaped with locust trees and small chairs and tables and then there is a raised terrace which has a trellis roof to protect park goers and there is a small snack shop, Carol’s Cafe, (See review on TripAdvisor) offering a variety of refreshments (Greenacre Foundation).
The Cheeseburgers are delicious
I ate at Carol’s Cafe one afternoon when visiting the neighborhood and the food is very good. I had a cheeseburger that was loaded with fresh veggies and one of the coldest cans of Coke I had in a long time. It was fun to eat at one of the tables and just relax (Beware though and check your bill. These people can Bait and Switch on posting their prices).
Carol’s Cafe offers delicious food at reasonable prices but check your bill!
https://www.menupix.com/nyc/restaurants/30710437/Carols-Cafe-New-York-NY
Across the street from the park is another really nice and very reasonable restaurant, The Pho 6 at 222 East 51st Street (See review on TripAdvisor and DiningonaShoeStringinNYC@Wordpress.com). It is a Vietnamese restaurant offering some of the simplest and freshest food since my trip to Vietnam back in 2016.
The Pho 6 for very reasonable Vietnamese food at 222 East 51st Street (Closed August 2020)
The room is done all in woods and the walls, tables and chairs are all made of the same material which makes for interesting decor. The food is delicious. I had an order of Pork Spring Rolls ($6.00) which were crisp and full of ground pork and fresh veggies and Vermicelli Noodles with grilled Shrimp ($10.00) which was studded with fresh shrimp and topped with assorted greens. The whole meal was wonderful and very reasonable for what I ate.
The delicious Pork Spring Rolls at The Pho 6
The Pork Spring Rolls
The Vietnamese Noodles with Grilled Shrimp
The noodles are loaded with perfectly cooked Grilled Shrimp
After lunch, I continued to walk down East 51st Street to round Lexington Avenue again to East 50th Street and look at the details and renovations of the old hotels lining this part of the Avenue. The Waldorf-Astoria which sits between East 50th and 49th Streets is currently going though a major renovation to make it part hotel and part condo.
The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel at 301 Park Avenue (under renovation in 2024)
https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/nycwawa-waldorf-astoria-new-york/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waldorf_Astoria_New_York
The outside Waldorf-Astoria on the Park Avenue side.
The Waldorf-Astoria at 301 Park Avenue was opened in 1931 replacing the original hotel where the Empire State Building now sits. The hotel was designed in Art Deco design by architects Schultz & Weaver. The hotel when finished will contain 350 condos and 350 hotel rooms with most of the public rooms reopened. It will be interesting to see the results.
The Benjamin Hotel at 125 East 50th Street sits across from the Waldorf-Astoria and recently went through a major renovation and is open for business. The former Hotel Beverly was built between 1926-27 by architect Emery Roth and was designed in Romanesque Motif with pelican and owl sculptures around it. The hotel currently was named after Benjamin J. Denihan Sr., who is the new owner of the hotel (New York Landmarks).
The Hotel Benjamin at 125 East 50th Street
Review on TripAdvisor:
The rest of East 50th Street is dotted with mom-and-pop businesses, pre-war apartment buildings and Consulates being so close to the United Nations. Here and there there are still brownstones letting you know that Turtle Bay is exists alongside the commercial district.
East 49th Street is graced by The Barclay InterContinental Hotel which sits at the entrance of the neighborhood at 111 East 48th Street. The hotel stretches from East 49th to East 48th Streets. Designed by architects Cross & Cross in 1926 in the neo-Federal Colonial Style the hotel was part of Terminal City as part of the Grand Central complex and had been owned by the Vanderbilt family (Wiki).
The InterContinental Barclay Hotel at 111 East 48th Street
The entrance to the Intercontinental Hotel.
The faces at the Intercontinental Hotel watch you as you walk in.
And Stare…
And stare at you….
Walking down East 49th Street to Third Avenue you will see the historic Smith & Wollensky Restaurant at 797 Third Avenue which has been serving the neighborhood since 1897 when it was called Manny Wolf’s Steakhouse. The restaurant was opened by Allan Stillman, the founder of T.G.I. Fridays in 1977 and who still owns the original restaurant (the rest of the chain is privately owned). Known for their USDA Grade A Prime Meats, the restaurant is still a popular neighborhood institution (Company History and Wiki).
This building like the rest of the neighborhood has seen the change in times as it too is surrounded by a glass skyscraper at 797 Third Avenue
On the corner of East 48th Street and Third Avenue it is easy to miss the sculpture ‘Etazin’ by artist Kathleen Werner sitting in front of an office building.
‘Etazin’ by artist Kathleen Werner
Artist Kathleen Werner
https://kathleenwerner.com/bio.html
Ms. Werner is a Manhattan based fine artist who studied at the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture. She has created what is called ‘interactive art’ with the ‘Etazin’ an outdoor lounge chair. She was quoted by saying she was creating “large pieces that were both beautiful and useful.” (JustLux 2017)
Further down the street is lined with brownstones which is the back part of the Turtle Bay Gardens that line East 48th Street. The lovely stretch of brownstones is residential and also houses more Consulates. Many of these historic homes were built in the 1860’s.
When you double back to Third Avenue look up at 780 Third Avenue to the murals by Brazilian graffiti artist, Eduardo Kobra, who has three murals in the neighborhood. The one on the right side of the building on East 49th Street is of an exhausted fire fighter who fought bravely on 9/11. The 343 represents the number of fire fighters killed that day and pays honor to them.
The 9/11 Tribute to Fallen Fire Fighters by Eduardo Kobra on the East 49th Street side of the building
On the other side of the building is another mural by Mr. Kobra “Genius is to Bike Ride”, which is a commentary of the new bike lanes in New York City. Mr. Kobra is weighing in on the debate of adding bicycle lanes on New York streets to relieve traffic. The mural is of Albert Einstein riding a bicycle. Einstein was rumored to have come up with some of his best ideas while riding a bicycle (780 Third Avenue building history).
“Genius is to Bike Ride” by Eduardo Kobra on the East 48th Street side of the building
Eduardo Kobra artist
Across the street at 777 Third Avenue is another interesting piece of art by artist Barbara Pepper “Contrary to..”
‘Contrary to’ in front of 777 Third Avenue
https://www.artnews.com/art-news/artists/beverly-pepper-phyllis-tuchman-1202677500/
Ms. Pepper was born in Brooklyn, NY and had studied at Pratt Institute, the Art Student’s League in New York and Brooklyn College and had studied aboard in Paris. She started to specialize in metal work in the 1960’s and her works were known to be outdoor sculptures (Wiki).
As I finished that afternoon at East 48th Street, I walked past these murals again taking a good glance of the vibrant colors, the detail work and the message each was trying to tell of the City. Mr. Kobra knows how to tell a story in his paintings.
I finished walking down East 49th Street and stopped abruptly to see the building at 225-227 East 49th Street. It looked like a creepy old fraternity house. It was built in 1900 as a Converted Dwelling/Rooming House and now contains apartments. Look at the writing carved in the doorway from 1926 and unusual coat of arms that greets you at the doorway with the words “Erected in the Year 1926”, whatever that means carved over the entranceway. It looks more like ‘enter if you dare’.
225-227 East 49th Street
https://streeteasy.com/building/225-east-49-street-new_york
https://ephemeralnewyork.wordpress.com/tag/225-227-east-49th-street/
The inscription “Erected in the year 1926”. I thought it something more sinister.
I completed the top part of the neighborhood by walking part the Turtle Bay Garden Historic District homes again, looking at these historic brownstones that were built in the 1860’s and how luck they were saved by Charlotte Hunnewell Sorchan in the 1920’s. She bought these twelve historic homes, renovated them to modern feel and restored them to their former glory combining the homes with the brownstones on East 49th Street so that they all looked out on a common garden. Don’t miss admiring the work that was done on them and that the owners still continue into today.
The Turtle Bay Gardens Historic District on East 48th Street between Second and Third Avenues
https://streeteasy.com/building/225-east-49-street-new_york
The Turtle Bay Historic District details on the buildings
At 237 East 48th Street at the Turtle Bay Gardens Historic District there is a plaque to Dorothy Thompson, a journalist who lived in the home from 1941-1957. Her novel “I saw Hitler” and her column ‘One the Record’ were influential in calling for the intervention of America into World War II. She was one of the first female foreign correspondents in the 1930’s and had been expelled from Germany right before the war.
Dorothy Thompson, Turtle Bay resident, journalist and foreign correspondent
https://exhibitions.ushmm.org/americans-and-the-holocaust/personal-story/dorothy-thompson
Also near the brownstones is a modern home by William Lescaze at 211 East 48th Street, the Father of the Modernist Movement and the designer and builder of this historic home that served as his living quarters and studio. It may not seem that radical today but it was when it was designed in 1934.
The William Lescaze House at 211 East 48th Street
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lescaze_House
I finished my first day of walking the streets of the upper part of the neighborhood and I was exhausted by the heat. The weather had gotten to me. Turtle Bay has a lot to do and see. Here and there is tucked another gem that you can only see by walking around the neighborhood.
I came back to explore the streets of Turtle Bay after a long day in the Soup Kitchen. They had me working in the prep kitchen making salads and cutting vegetables for the next day’s service, so I was tired when I arrived in the neighborhood. It was a little cooler then the first day around 80 degrees, so it was more pleasant to walk around and take my time.
I started with lunch at Lin’s Gourmet Chinese Restaurant at 1097 Second Avenue by 57th Street (See my reviews on TripAdvisor and DiningonaShoeStringinNYC@Wordpress.com). This was my second time at the restaurant having lunch and I highly recommend it. I order the Shredded Beef with Hot Spicy Sauce with pork fried rice and hot & sour soup ($8.25). The food was excellent and perfect on a hot day as it seemed to cool me down.
Lin’s Gourmet Chinese Restaurant at 1097 Second Avenue
https://menupages.com/lins-gourmet-chinese-cuisine/1097-2nd-ave-new-york
The beef was cut in very thin slices like the accompanying vegetables and was cooked with hot chilies to give it some bite. The dish was studded with shredded carrots and celery, so it was a nice combination of flavors. They did not skip on the beef, and it was a generous portion. The hot & sour soup also had its share of chilies and the whole meal woke me up and I was ready to walk again.
The Hot & Sour Soup at Lin’s is amazing!
Lin’s Shredded Beef with Pork Fried Rice and an Egg Roll
The Spicy Shredded Beef here is amazing (pick out the onions though)
After lunch, I started my day walking down First Avenue to East 47th Street and started by taking a break in Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, which I had read was the comprise of the grand entrance to the United Nations complex. This popular park is full of nice shade trees, benches, a small restaurant and the Katharine Hepburn Garden.
Dag Hammarskjold Plaza in Turtle Bay in the Summer of 2024
The park and many of the surrounding buildings to the park were named after Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjold who was born in 1905 to the former Prime Minister of Sweden in World War One, Hjalmar Hammarskjold. Mr. Hammarskjold had served many government and educational positions over the years in Sweden until 1953 when he was asked to serve as Secretary-General of the United Nations. His work in Middle East Peace talks, involvement in the Suez Canal dispute and work in operations in the Republic of Congo earned him a reputation in the United Nations. He died in a plane crash near Norther Rhodesia in 1961 and was post humorously awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1961 (NYCParks.org).
Dag Hammarskjold
https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1961/hammarskjold/biographical/
Dag Hammarskjold Plaza has been part of the NYC Parks system since the land was acquired in 1948 and was renamed for him in 1961. In 1997, the park had a major reconstruction which created a symmetrical layout from north to south. The same year the Katharine Hepburn Garden was created on the south side of the park. The Friends of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza was formed to raise funds for the park, organize events and keep the place clean (NYCParks.org).
Dag Hammarskjold Plaza in Turtle Bay
The Katharine Hepburn Garden, which is inside of the park, is a quiet oasis from the hustle of the city. Ms. Hepburn, one of most accomplished American actors, moved to Turtle Bay in 1932 with her then husband, Ludlow Ogden Smith, had joined the Turtle Bay Association in 1957 and was instrumental in keeping construction from encroaching into the neighborhood. In 1997, the community got together and dedicated this garden in her honor for the work she did in the neighborhood and for her love of gardening and flowers. It is so peaceful to walk along this path and just look at the plantings.
Katharine Hepburn Garden
Actress Katherine Hepburn
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katharine_Hepburn
There is a new sculpture that I had not noticed before called “Undercurrent” by artist Zheng Lu. This graceful and interesting piece of art was just installed in the neighborhood and makes quite a statement. I thought it was beautiful and looked like a wave crashing in front of me.
The artist Zheng Lu sign
The sculpture “Undercurrent” by artist Zheng Lu
Artist Zheng Lu
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zheng_Lu
Artist Zheng Lu is a Chinese born artist who studied at the Lu Xun Arts Academy and the Central Academy of Fine Arts. He is known for his sculpture and installation works in steel structure and for two-dimensional, multimedia, stage and public art (Wiki).
Across the street from Dag Hammarskjold Plaza is the Japan Society at 337 East 48th Street. It was founded in 1907 to promote friendly relationships with the United States and over the years has promoted Japanese art and culture, held lectures and hosted Japanese dignitaries and royalty. During the strained times of World War II, the Society did not take sides politically and closed for time. In 1971, under the direction of then President John D. Rockefeller III the organization grew, and a new building was opened, the Japan House, designed by architect Junzo Yushimura. It became the first building in New York of Japanese contemporary design. It now hosts many exhibitions and social functions. When I was visiting the neighborhood, they were promoting their film festival which I attended. That was a lot of fun.
I saw four excellent films including the release of the musical “Dance with Me” which was a light weight and fun musical. The director knew what he was doing when he wanted to create escapism from the troubles outside. I can’t wait for the Society to open their Fall exhibition.
Japan Society at 337 West 48th Street at night for movies.
Watch ‘Dance with Me’ the opening film to the Film Festival
At the end of the block right on the island on First Avenue in front of the United Nations Building is the monument to Raoul Wallenberg. You could almost miss them (I did twice look for them) but they stand like so many black pillars in a row at 300-386 East 47th Street.
The Raoul Wallenberg Monument at First Avenue and East 47th Street
https://www.nycgovparks.org/art-and-antiquities/permanent-art-and-monuments/info?monId=1924
Raoul Wallenberg was a Swedish citizen who was educated in the United States in the 1930’s and when he returned to Europe was recruited by the U. S. Refugee Board to go to Hungary to save as many Hungarian Jews as possible. His and his colleagues’ efforts help save over 100,000 Jewish citizens by issuing protection from the Swedish Government. His own ending was more tragic in that when the Soviets entered Budapest he disappeared (Wiki).
Raoul Wallenberg, the Swedish Diplomat
The monument by designers Gustav and Ulla Kraitz are made of Swedish black disbase and bronze and were dedicated in 1998. Take time to look at the inscriptions on each of the five pillars. Gustav Kraitz is from Hungary and studied at the Art Academy in Budapest when the war broke out. He fled to Sweden in 1956 after the invasion of Hungary and stayed on as a visiting professor. There he met his wife; Ulla and they continue their artwork together and apart.
Artists Gastov and Ulla Karitz
http://www.artnet.com/artists/ulla-gustav-kraitz/
A store that stood out when walking past it was the Gabrielle Carlson Studio at 501 Lexington Avenue near East 47th Street (moved to 1034A Lexington Avenue in 2022). The clothes in the window really stand out for the vibrant and almost jewel like colors in deep greens, red and purples. The side tables are lined with custom ‘Made in New York’ jewelry. If you are lucky to meet Ms. Carlson like I did she can give you advice and help dress, you for the office or a nice evening out on the town.
Owner Gabrielle Carlson outside Gabrielle Carlson Studio
As I walked down East 46th Street I passed Sparks Steakhouse at 210 East 46th Street. Well- known for their food and service it was also the spot of the assassination of ‘Big” Paul Castellano, the Boss of the Gambino Crime Family in December 1985. This ‘hit’ took place right outside the restaurant and the gunmen fled down Second Avenue. This still casts a shadow on an excellent restaurant for those of us who remember the incident.
Sparks Steak House at 210 East 46th Street
https://www.history.com/news/frank-cali-mafia-murder-john-gotti-paul-castellano-gambino
Right down the road there is a group of buildings, the Blue Buildings at 222 East 46th Street that house offices and art galleries. They just stand out for being brownstones painted blue.
The Blue Buildings at 222 East 46th Street
https://www.bluegallerynyc.com/contact
Artwork seems like it is all over this neighborhood especially when I crossed onto East 45th Street and was greeted by the painting “Youth Employment” tucked into the side of the building by artist Cenzano.
Youth Employment by Cenz
When walking in the other direction on East 44th Street I saw the painting by artist Faith XLVII, “Gender Equality”.
‘Gender Equality’ by Faith XLVII
Faith XLVII
Home
These paintings that were created so close to the United Nations to promote programs such as youth employment, child labor laws, green jobs, gender equality at work and forced labor (Brooklyn Street Art).
Faith XLVII is an international artist who is based in Los Angeles. Through her works she attempts to disarm the strategies of global realpolitik in order to advance the expression of personal truth. In this way her work is both an internal and spiritual release that speaks to the complexities of human condition its deviant histories and existential search (Artist Bio).
I passed ‘Zuma’ again in front of the Nigerian Consulate created by artist Billy Omebegho and have to say it does pack a punch.
Zuma outside the Consulate of Nigeria
Billy Omebegho artist
http://www.artnet.com/artists/billy-omabegho/
I finished my walk at the James P. Grant Plaza at East 44th Street and First Avenue. I needed a rest from all the walking and from the heat. The cool waterfalls and chairs to relax in.
James P. Grant Plaza at East 44th Street
This little pocket park adjoins the UNICEF Building and was dedicated to former Director of UNICEF, James P. Grant who worked tirelessly to combat preventable childhood illness and a ‘childhood survival and development revolution’ (NYCPark.org).
James P. Grant visionary
By the time I got to East 44th Street I was exhausted. The summer heat was getting to me, and I had to rewalk the neighborhood several times to go back to things I wanted to see for a second time. Turtle Bay offers so many wonderful things to see if you look up and around. They are tucked here and there, in corners of parks, on the sides of buildings, in front of you on the sidewalk or if you just look up at the structure of the that building that you have passed a hundred times.
The street art alone makes Turtle Bay its own open-air museum and it is nice to see so many perspectives on life from so many artists of all ages ranging from the traditional to the contemporary that I have learned a lot from them. Walking around this neighborhood is not just enjoyable but entertaining but educational as well. The United Nations has done its job here bringing together so many visionaries into the neighborhood.
For more information on my walk in the Turtle Bay neighborhood, please read my blogs on Turtle Bay:
The Borders of Turtle Bay:
‘MywalkinManhattan.com-Day One Hundred and Eighty-Three: Walking the Borders of Turtle Bay’:
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/9125
The Avenues of Turtle Bay:
‘MywalkinManhattan.com-Day One Hundred and Eighty-Two: Walking the Avenues of Turtle Bay’:
https://wordpress.com/post/mywalkinmanhattan.com/15820
Don’t miss my favorite scene from “Dance with Me” the opening number “Happy Valley”
Places to Eat:
Bon Vivant (Closed in August 2022)
231 East 58th Street
New York, NY 10022
(646) 481-4044
Open: Sunday & Monday Closed/Tuesday-Friday 9:30am-7:30pm/Saturday 9:20am-6:30pm
My review on TripAdvisor:
My review on LittleShoponMainStreet@Wordpress.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/littleshoponmainstreet.wordpress.com/253
Lin’s Gourmet Chinese Restaurant
1097 Second Avenue
New York, NY 10022
(212) 752-5586/5580
https://menupages.com/lins-gourmet-chinese-cuisine/1097-2nd-ave-new-york
Open: Sunday 11:30am-10:30pm/Monday-Saturday 10:30am-10:30pm
My review on TripAdvisor:
My review on DiningonaShoeStringinNYC@Wordpress.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/diningonashoestringinnyc.wordpress.com/1144
The Pho 6 (Closed August 2020)
222 East 51st Street
New York, NY 10022
(917) 261-5050
Open: Monday-Friday 11:30am-9:30pm/Saturday & Sunday 12:00pm-9:30pm
My review on TripAdvisor:
My review on DiningonaShoeStringinNYC@Wordpress.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/diningonashoestringinnyc.wordpress.com/1186
Carol’s Cafe
217 East 51st Street (inside Greenacre Park)
New York, NY 10022
(917) 775-0535
https://www.menupix.com/nyc/restaurants/30710437/Carols-Cafe-New-York-NY
Open: Sunday-Saturday 9:00am-4:00pm
My review on TripAdvisor:
Places to Visit:
High School of Art & Design
John B. Kenny Gallery
245 East 56th Street
New York, NY 10022
(212) 752-4340
http://www.artanddesignhs.org/
Open: When the school is open
Fee: Free
My review on VisitingaMuseum.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/visitingamuseum.com/4386
Japan Society
333 East 47th Street
New York, NY 10017
(212) 832-1155
Open: Monday-Friday 10:00am-6:00pm/Saturday & Sunday Closed
Fee: Call Museum
My review on TripAdvisor:
My review on VisitingaMuseum.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/visitingamuseum.com/3148
Dag Hammarskjold Plaza/Katharine Hepburn Garden
245 East 47th Street
New York, NY 10017
(212) 639-9675
https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/dag-hammarskjold-plaza
Open: 6:00am-1:00am
Greenacre Park
217 East 51st Street
New York, NY 10022
(212) 648-5895
Open: Sunday -Saturday 8:00am-8:00pm
My review on TripAdvisor:
Places to Shop:
Royal-Athena Galleries (Closed in 2022)
153 East 57th Street
New York, NY 10022
(212) 355-2034/Fax (212) 688-0412
ancientart@aol.com
Open: Monday-Friday 10:00am-6:00pm/Sunday & Saturday Closed
My review on LittleShoponMainStreet@Wordpress.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/littleshoponmainstreet.wordpress.com/279
Hammacher-Schlemmer
147 East 57th Street
New York, NY 10022
(212) 421-9001
Open: Sunday 11:00-6:00pm/Monday-Saturday 10:00am-7:00pm
https://www.hammacher.com/home
Gabrielle Carlson Studio
1034A Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10017
(917) 514-4433
http://www.gabriellecarlson.com/
Open: Sunday-Saturday 11:00am-6:00pm
My review on LittleShoponMainStreet@Wordpress.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/littleshoponmainstreet.wordpress.com/310
The Street Artwork and Architectural Buildings are too numerous to name but I gave the best directions to see everything. Like I said, Turtle Bay is an open-air museum with loads of public art to see. Just look up and you won’t miss anything.
I can’t believe it is my forth anniversary of my blog, “MywalkinManhattan.com”. What started out as just a simple walk through the entire Island of Manhattan has morphed into visits to the outer boroughs and to outside the City. There is countless restaurant reviews, museum visits, visits to parks and historical parks and window shopping in stores all around the Tri-State area.
These additional views of the City have inspired the extension blogs to this site, “VisitingaMuseum.com”, “LittleShoponMainStreet@Wordpress.com” and “DiningonaShoeStringinNYC@Wordpress.com” to showcase more wonderful things to do, places to see and places to eat in New York City. What started out as a small site has now morphed into a blog that explores all the wonderful things to do and see in neighborhoods all over the City.
The best part of this experience is that I thank all the input that my students have given me on the sites and all the comments that have made it more enjoyable to the reader from adding in TripAdvisor reviews to contributing pictures and videos of the areas discussed. I want to thank them for their ideas and suggestions.
Today I entered the Turtle Bay neighborhood which is located next to Sutton and Beekman Place in the neighborhood that surrounds the United Nations located next to the East River. Over the last twenty years the borders of the neighborhood have become blurred with Midtown with much of Second, Third and Lexington Avenues giving way to large apartment and office complexes. There are still pockets of brownstones with local businesses dotted on the Avenues and side streets but they are becoming few and far between.
Turtle Bay has an interesting history as part of Manhattan. ‘Turtle Bay’ was originally a cove in the East River that was shaped like a knife which the Dutch gave the name “deutal” for knife. The cove was filled in after the Civil War. The neighborhood was originally a forty acre farm named “Turtle Bay Farm” that extended from what is now East 43rd to East 48th Street and from Third Avenue to the East River. When the street grid system was put into place after the Civil War, the hilly cove and surrounding areas was graded and filled in and subdivided for development (Wiki).
Turtle Bay in the early 1800’s
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turtle_Bay,_Manhattan
The neighborhood changed dramatically after the Civil War until the turn of the last century when the center of the neighborhood became a brownstone section and the river portion of the area became home to manufacturing with breweries, power plants and laundries and tenement homes to house the workers. The overhead elevated trains on Second and Third Avenues added to the decline of the neighborhood (Wiki).
The rowhouses of ‘Turtle Bay Gardens’ were saved by resident, Charlotte Hunnewell Sorchan. She bought eleven of the brownstone homes and had them renovated with stucco fronts and a common garden in the back. These have been lived in by celebrities such as actresses Ruth Gordon, June Havoc and Katharine Hepburn. It was named a historic district in 1966 (Wiki).
Turtle Bay Historic District
The historic details on the top of the homes in the Turtle Bay Historic District
The 2,800 unit Tudor City was built between 1927 to 1932 replacing the dangerous shanty town of ‘Prospect Hill’ where Irish gangs ruled and the neighborhood and the rest of the neighborhood was leveled between 1948 and 1952 for the United Nations Headquarters. When the elevated trains were torn down by 1956, it opened the neighborhood to new construction of high rises and apartment buildings (Wiki).
I started the walk at my favorite neighborhood starting point, 24 Sycamores Park on First Avenue and 60th Street, where I mapped out the walk. With schools letting out for the summer, the park was mobbed with kids with their nannies and baby sitters. It was nice to relax after a long day at Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen. They kept me busy on the hot line and we served over 800 lunches that afternoon, so I was tired. It is fun to just sit back on the benches under the trees and watch the kids chase one another and the pigeons.
24 Sycamores Park at 501 East 60th Street
https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/twenty-four-sycamores-park/history
The park in the Summer of 2024
Since my walk of Sutton Place, East 59th’s empty store fronts are starting to fill up with new businesses again. A lot of the windows are covered with brown paper, so it looks like more businesses are coming to the neighborhood. This is how the City keeps changing. I had covered all of Second Avenue to 48th Street in my blog of Sutton Place and since technically the neighborhood does not start until East 53rd Street, I started the walk East 58th Street between Second and Lexington Avenue and then walked down Lexington Avenue to East 43rd Street and then to the United Nations by the river (I will include East 58th Street to East 54th from Second to Lexington Avenues in my Turtle Bay walks).
I started the afternoon with lunch at Lin’s Gourmet Chinese Restaurant at 1097 Second Avenue (See the reviews on TripAdvisor and DiningonaShoeStringinNYC@Wordpress.com). They have the most amazing lunch specials for between $8.00-$8.50. I had the Beef with Broccoli with a side of pork fried rice and an eggroll ($8.25).
Lin’s Gourmet Chinese Restaurant at 1097 Second Avenue
https://menupages.com/lins-gourmet-chinese-cuisine/1097-2nd-ave-new-york
The quality of the food is excellent as the beef was tender and well-seasoned with a combination of Hunan and soy sauce and the broccoli was perfectly cooked, a rarity in many of these take out places. The service is really friendly too. After lunch, it was off to walk the borders and Avenues of the neighborhood.
The Beef and Broccoli was delicious
Lexington Avenue from East 58th to East 43rd Street is pretty much a commercial district. The left side of the road is lined with famous hotels and luxury apartments. Sharing this edge with Midtown East Manhattan, this area of the neighborhood is geared towards the business world and just keeps developing. I can see more newer buildings replacing the older ones in the future. Most of the hotels have been renovated in the past decade to reflex the increase of tourists into the City.
When crossing East 58th Street from Second to Lexington Avenue, I came across a gem of bakery, ‘Bon Vivant’ at 251 East 58th Street between Second and Third Avenues (See my review on TripAdvisor and LittleShoponMainStreet@Wordpress.com). This elegant little store sells the most delicious Petit fours, pastries and beverages in an elegant atmosphere. I just walked in to see what it was like and I ended up eating a large Lavender Petit Four ($6.00), that was light and sweet with just a hint of the lavender leaves in the filling. It’s a unique little store where the desserts are displayed like a work of art.
Bon Vivant for pastries at 251 East 58th Street (Closed in August 2022)
Having some energy from the dessert, I continued the walk over the next block to Lexington Avenue. Lexington Avenue is the border of the neighborhood and is more commercial than residential. The Avenue is lined with hotels and office buildings and home to some of the oldest and well-known hotels in Midtown.
On the corner of Lexington Avenue between East 59th and 58th Streets is the Bloomberg Tower at 731 Lexington Avenue, one of the first buildings merging the borders of Turtle Bay with Midtown East. This massive 55 story building of glass and steel was built in 2001 for the Bloomberg L.P., the home of the Bloomberg empire including the offices for the main company and Bloomberg news.
The building was designed by renowned architect, Cesar Pelli & Associates and developed by Vornado Realty Trust. The back part of the building is called One Beacon Court and is home to condos and retail businesses and have their own private entrance. This building replaced the closed but once popular Alexander’s Department Store. Security is really tight around here and the police will watch you (Wiki).
The Bloomberg Tower ushering in a new look modern look for the neighborhood
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/731_Lexington_Avenue
Historical buildings especially around Lexington Avenue still prevail. One of the first buildings to really pop out at me on Lexington Avenue was the Central Synagogue at 652 Lexington Avenue on the corner of 55th Street. Designed by prominent architect Henry Fernbach, the synagogue was built between 1870 and 1872 is the oldest continuing synagogue in New York City and the second oldest in New York State. The building is one of the oldest synagogues in the country. The outside of the building was designed in Moorish Revival while the inside exterior is in a Gothic design. The Synagogue practices the Reformed Jewish faith (Wiki).
Central Synagogue at 652 Lexington Avenue
https://www.centralsynagogue.org/
Central Synagogue historical marker.
The historical architecture marker on the Central Synagogue
Another beautiful building is on the corner of Lexington Avenue and East 51st Street, the former RCA Victor Building now known as the General Electric Building. It was designed and built by architect John Cross of Cross & Cross in 1931. The 50 story building was designed in the Gothic style and you really have to look at the details in the structure with the elaborate masonry and architectural figural sculpture all over the building (Wiki).
570 Lexington Avenue
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Electric_Building
The building is decorated with lightning bolts and hands with blots in their hands to represent the growth of lightening and electricity. The edges of the building are decorated with figures representing energy and the dome of the building represents ‘Gothic tracery’, representing electricity and radio waves and lit from within at night. There is even a clock with the ‘GE’ logo on it on the side of the building (Wiki).
Look at the detail work of 570 Lexington Avenue
The Gothic Tracery tower of 570 Lexington Avenue
The GE Building historical marker
Lexington Avenue has many such historical buildings up and down the Avenue especially with hotels that dot both sides of the street. Since I started this part of the walk on June 21st, the first day of the Summer (The Summer Equinox) and the longest day of the year, there were concerts everywhere in Midtown. I stopped at 570 Lexington Avenue where they have a courtyard on the side of the building near the subway entrance.
The building was hosting part of a concert series that afternoon for people walking by while the Godiva Chocolate store in the courtyard was handing out ice cream samples to hot patrons. It was enjoyable to just relax and listen to the combo while eating that sweet, rich ice cream.
When walking down the remainder of Lexington Avenue, the street is dotted with famous hotels down to East 42nd Street. This was part of the 1916 rezoning of this part of the City when Grand Central Terminal opened to rail traffic and the City needed luxury hotels to cater to the Upper-Class customers who used the rail service. Some of the oldest and most famous hotels in New York line Lexington Avenue.
Across the street from 570 Lexington Avenue is the historic 30 story Hotel Benjamin at 125 East 50th Street. The Benjamin was the former Hotel Beverly and after a massive renovation in the late 90’s was renamed after the new owners founder, Benjamin J Denihan Sr. Built in 1926-27 by building developer Moses Ginsberg and designed by architect Emery Roth, the hotel was marketed for ‘sophisticated New Yorkers at a moderate rate’. The hotel is richly decorated in a Romanesque motif and incorporates pelican and owl sculptures and warrior head corbels (NYC Landmarks Preservation).
The Benjamin Hotel at 125 East 50th Street
The Benjamin Hotel historical marker
The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel at 301 Park Avenue between 50th and 49th Streets is currently closed and going under a massive renovation to condos. This block long hotel’s back faces Lexington Avenue. The hotel is converting from 1413 hotel rooms to 350 condos and a 350 room hotel when it is complete.
The Waldorf-Astoria at 301 Park Avenue (New York Public Library)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waldorf_Astoria_New_York
The hotel was designed by architects Schultz & Weaver and was designed in the Art Deco design which was popular when the hotel opened in 1931. The original hotel was demolished for the building of the Empire State Building. The hotel has been home to many famous restaurants and was considered the ‘jewel’ of the Hilton Hotel empire. Countless society events and celebrity visits too extensive to name have taken place in this hotel. It will be a wait and see when it reopens in 2021.
The InterContinental Barclay Hotel at 111 East 48th Street stretches back to East 49th Street.
https://www.intercontinentalnybarclay.com/
The entrance of the Intercontinental Hotel
The front of the Intercontinental Hotel.
Intercontinental Hotel faces stare back
The InterContinental Barclay was designed by architects Cross & Cross in 1926 in the neo-Federal American Colonial style. The thirteen-story hotel was part of the concept called ‘Terminal City’ which was part of the New York Central and Terminal Corporation owned by the Vanderbilt family and contains 702 rooms. The hotel still hosts Society and corporate events.
Intercontinental Hotel faces stare back
The Hotel Roger Smith at 501 Lexington Avenue is a family run hotel that was originally called the Hotel Winthrop and gets its current name when it was part the Roger Smith Hotel Chain in the 1930’s. The hotel was designed by architects Hearn & Erich in 1926 and is made of brick with a clean look.
The Hotel Roger Smith at 501 Lexington Avenue
The Hotel Lexington opened in 1929 one of the last hotels of the building boom on Lexington Avenue. Designed by architects Schultz & Weaver who designed the Waldorf-Astoria, the Hotel Lexington was the promise of General J. Leslie Kincaid, who was President of the American Hotel Company of ‘a modern hotel with a refined atmosphere and with exceptional service without the hassles of a large hotel.” The hotel has Normanesque terracotta decorations that adorn the outside of the hotel (Wiki).
Hotel Lexington at 511 Lexington Avenue
https://www.lexingtonhotelnyc.com/
Toward the edge of the neighborhood at East 45th and Lexington Avenue is the Grand Central Post Office Annex that was built between 1903 and 1914 under the direction of the New York Central Railroad. Architect firms of Warren & Wetmore with the collaboration with architectural firm Reed & Stern designed this annex to provide railroad related office space, shops and a network of underground tracks and tunnels.
Grand Central Postal Annex at 450 Lexington Avenue
As you round Lexington Avenue to East 43rd Street to the edge of Turtle Bay, you will enter the lobby of the Chrysler Building. The Chrysler Building has a very interesting history in Manhattan as the once ‘tallest building in the world’ opening one day before the Stock Market Crash of 1929.
The building was the brainchild of former New York Senator William H. Reynolds, who had a goal to build the ‘World’s Tallest Building’. He hired famed architect William Van Alen to design the building which in the late 1920’s was an Art Deco design which represented the progress, innovation and modernity of the time. By the time Reynold’s sold the property to Walter Chrysler in 1928, Van Alen and his former partner at the architectural firm they once worked at, H. Craig Severance were in a race to build the World’s Tallest Building (Wiki & Chrysler Building history).
The “Race into the Sky” began between the Chrysler Building being designed by Van Alen and 40 Wall Street being designed by Severance. They kept added floors trying to top one another and, in the process, build their buildings higher than the Woolworth Building then the tallest in the world. 40 Wall Street was raised to 925 feet when it opened making it the tallest building until Van Alen secretly assembled a 125 spiral for the top of the building and in October of 1929, the spiral was raised and riveted in pieces on the top of the building making it 1046 feet. It would stand the tallest in the world until the Empire State Building was finished a few years later in 1931. The Chrysler Building was the still the World’s Tallest Steel Frame Building, with a steel frame surrounded by masonry (Wiki).
Chrysler Building at 405 Lexington Avenue
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysler_Building
Still the outside of the building is studded with gargoyles for five floors and there were hubcaps and fenders at the 31st floor and eagles on the 61st floor. Because of the 1916 Zoning, there are setbacks on various floors of the building (Wiki). The inside of the lobby is just as impressive.
The ceiling of the lobby
On the ceiling of the triangular shaped lobby is the mural “Transport and Human Endeavor” by artist Edward Trumball, which was painted in 1930. It represents the ‘energy and man’s application of it to the solutions of his problems’. Look to the detail work to see all the figures that the artist was trying to portray (Wiki).
The lobby of the Chrysler Building should not be missed
The ceiling of the lobby.
After the small tour of the Chrysler Building, I proceeded out the door down East 43rd Street towards the United Nations Building. West 43rd Street is an interesting block. By Second Avenue, you will begin to see the transition from the once ‘brownstone’ neighborhood on the corner of Second Avenue and 43rd Street to the more modern ‘glass boxes’ that now dominate the neighborhood. Here you can see how Midtown East is creeping into this once residential neighborhood.
The Chrysler Building historical marker
The buildings on both sides of the street are almost a juxtapose of styles and uses until you get toward the end of the block, and you are in front of the Ford Foundation Building at 320 East 43rd Street. This impressive building was built between 1963-67 and houses the Ford Foundation.
Looking down East 42nd Street towards the Ford Foundation and the Chrysler Building.
The Ford Foundation Building at 320 East 43rd Street
The Ford Foundation Building historical plaque
It was designed by architect Kevin Roche and engineer partner John Dinkeloo who are credited for creating the first indoor tree-filled atriums in New York, which set the tone for these public spaces in modern buildings (Wiki).
The Ford Foundation Atrium at 320 East 43rd Street
What is interesting about the design of this building is that it is a perfect glass block from the outside but a created L-Shaped design on the inside because of the atrium garden. The large windows let the sunlight in so that you can walked this tiered garden on several levels. The only problem is that there is no place to sit down in the garden and just look at it.
The beauty of the gardens from the top of the stairs
Just off of the main lobby is the small Ford Foundation Gallery that is also open to the public. This was a real treat in that it really gave an interesting look at ‘controversial art’. As said by gallery director, Lisa Kim, “Guided by inclusion, collaboration and urgency that are underrepresenting in traditional art spaces. In doing so, our hope is for the Ford Foundation to be a responsive and adapted space, the one that serves the public in its openness to experimentation, contemplation and conversation.” (Ford Foundation Gallery website).
The front of the Ford Foundation Gallery
My review on TripAdvisor:
The Gallery is currently showing “Radical Love” an exhibition on art from different cultures that is sending a message of love and acceptance in society. The show’s theme is “offering love as the answer to a world in peril” and shows different artists around the world trying to portray a social median to the problems of hate and prejudice (Ford Foundation Gallery Site).
Ford Foundation Gallery “Radical Love”
After finishing up at the Ford Foundation Gallery, I toured the indoor atrium one more time walking all the tiers of the gardens and not believing that I had never seen this all before. It is really a beautiful building that you all need time out to explore.
I walked to the end of the block only to discover Tudor City with its beautiful Gothic architecture and well landscaped grounds. Tudor City is one of the first planned middle-class housing ‘skyscraper’ complexes in New York City. Built in 1926, the complex was called Tudor City due to the Tudor Revival architecture of the complex. The complex starts right behind the Ford Foundation Building and extends between East 43rd to East 40th Street on a small cliff that overlooks First Avenue, the U.N. Complex and the tip of Roosevelt Island (Wiki).
Tudor City between East 43rd to 40th Streets overlooking First Avenue
The complex was designed by the team lead by architect H. Douglas Ives for the Fred F. French Company, developers of modern apartment complexes and was the brainchild of Leonard Gans and Paine Edson, who bought up what had been derelict housing and manufacturing businesses. The complex did expand into the 1930’s and now contains 13 buildings and two parks that the buildings face in a ‘U’ pattern (Wiki).
You really have to look up at the buildings to see the great detail that was designed to give them that Gothic look. When Mr. Ives team designed the buildings, there was an array of towers, gables, turrets, bay windows, four centered arches and chimney stacks amongst the detail work with cast iron and terracotta details. You have to walk the entire complex and really look to the detail work which is quite amazing (Wiki and my own observations).
What was really nice was the small parks that line the inside of the ‘U’ shaped courtyard of the buildings. These two parks are now run by Tudor City Greens Inc., which has run the parks since 1987 and cares for the landscaping and maintenance. They do a wonderful job caring for the parks which when I walked through were being replanted and watered and full of people either reading books or having group discussions.
Tudor City Greens inside the complex in Spring 2024
https://www.tudorcitygreens.org/
While walking through the building complex, I came across Azalea & Oak at 5 Tudor Place, a little boutique specializing in women’s accessories and children’s dress-up clothes and toys (see my review on LittleShoponMainStreet@Wordpress.com). This unique little store has one of the nicest selections of children’s dress items, accessories and handmade toys that I have seen in the City.
Azalea & Oak at 5 Tudor Place (closed January 2024-online only)
The salesperson told me the owner was formerly from Saks Fifth Avenue and you could see it in the detail of the store design and the quality of the merchandise. Don’t miss their selection of stuffed animals and handmade crowns and masks. This will be much to the delight of the younger set of customers. The owner also designs her own jewelry so there are unusual pieces to see.
The Stuffed toys at Azalea and Oak at 5 Tudor Place
I rounded 43rd Street and came back to visit Ralph Bunche Park that is at the end of East 43rd Street. It is not much a park as most of it is under scaffolding for renovations of Tudor City. The park is named in 1979 after Ralph Bunche was the first African-American to win the Nobel Peace Prize. Mr. Bunche was a diplomat, scientist and academic who won the award in 1950 for work on mediation with Israel.
Diplomat Ralph Bunche who the park is named after
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ralph-Bunche
As you are walking down the granite stairs to First Avenue, notice the quote from Isiah 2:4 carved into the wall “They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spires into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.” The stairs, now called the ‘Sharansky Steps, named after dissident Nathan Sharansky, were built and dedicated during the construction of the U.N. In front of the stairs is a 50-foot steel obelisk by artist Daniel LaRue Johnson, entitled “Peace Form One” that was created in 1980 (Wiki).
“Peace Form One” by artist Daniel LaRue
Daniel LaRue Johnson artist
https://www.artsy.net/artist/daniel-larue-johnson
Mr. Johnson has studied at Chouinard and in Paris and was part of the African American artist movement in Los Angeles that dealt with the social and political changes in the mid-Twentieth century. He had also known Mr. Bunche as well (Artist Bio).
The Sharansky Steps with the Wall of Isiah
Once down the steps, you will find yourself in front of the United Nations Building that sits on the East River and is very impressive.
The United Nations Building complex is under ‘lock and key’ and don’t bother trying to walk around the grounds. Everything is behind a fence with tons of security surrounding all sides of the building. The complex is about 18 acres that line the East River from East 42nd and East 48th Streets.
The complex was designed by architect Wallace Harrison for the firm of Harrison & Abramovitz and was completed in 1952. The whole area was cleared of manufacturing and the complex replaced blight in the neighborhood with a brand-new building and parks. The Rockefeller family was one of the biggest cheerleaders for the site and Nelson Rockefeller helped purchase the land for the site (Wiki).
The building is built in a long horizontal block that houses the meeting rooms and a tall tower in the center for the Secretariat. The building is surrounded by pathways and lawn to give the building the impression of power and with the flags of the nation’s surrounding it, an international flair. Still walking up United Nations Plaza back up to East 48th Street to where I stopped at the edge of Sutton East, there is armed security all over the place and its best to blend into the crowds.
The United Nations Building which covers the edges of Turtle Bay with the East River
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headquarters_of_the_United_Nations
I continued the walk-up United Nations Plaza up to East 48th Street and walked down the block towards Third Avenue. Once you round First Avenue, you will see less security in front of the buildings when you go back into the neighborhood.
East 48th Street is a beautiful block of old brownstones and apartment buildings and has a real neighborhood feel to it. I have discovered that the blocks above East 50th Street once you past Second Avenue are becoming more commercial with lots of large apartment and office buildings. It feels more like Midtown and once you get below East 50th Street, it looks more historical and quintessential ‘Old New York’.
I walked up and down the remainder of Second Avenue from East 43rd to East 48th Streets that border the neighborhood with Sutton East. Most of the buildings are glass boxes with commercial businesses on the bottom. There is one stand out on these five blocks in front of the Consulate General of Nigeria at 828 Second Avenue on the corner of East 44th Street and Second Avenue. It is a sculpture called ‘Zuma’ by artist Billy Omebegho.
Zuma by artist Billy Omebegho
Billy Omebegho artist
http://www.smocontemporaryart.com/artist-details/billy-omabegho/
Mr. Omebegho is considered one of the foremost modern sculptures in Nigeria and created the work in 1991. Born in Nigeria in 1944, Mr. Omebegho studied art at both Cornell University (fellow Alumnus) and New York University. The work ‘Zuma’ was created in 1991 and is a zig-zag form to symbolizes rebirth and renewal and the snake like pattern represents air, water, heaven and earth (Culture Now). This unique sculpture had some controversy in 2005 when the Consulate was approached about replacing it but it still stands proudly at the entrance.
As I passed along Second Avenue to Third Avenue, I passed a row of brownstones on the right which are the Turtle Bay Gardens houses. These were the homes that were saved, preserved and renovated by Charlotte Hunnewell Sorchan in the 1920. The two rows of ten homes were built in the 1860’s and when they were renovated and updated now share a common garden with the homes on East 49th Street. These graceful brownstones set the tone for the neighborhood (Turtle Bay History).
Turtle Bay Gardens Historic District
As you pass Turtle Bay Gardens, another unique house stands out at 211 East 48th Street, the William Lescaze House. William Lescaze was a Swiss-born New Yorker who was credited with bringing the modernist movement in the United States by building this house in 1934. The four-story home served as his personal home and studio (Curbed NY).
William Lescaze House at 211 East 48th Street
Landmarked William Lescaze House, the first modern residence in NYC, asks $5M
As I rounded back down Second Avenue to East 43rd Street and crossed over to Third Avenue to walk from East 43rd to East 59th Streets this is another block in transition. Third Avenue has pretty much been torn down is more like Midtown than Turtle Bay. There are a few holdovers from another era meaning the 60’s and 70’s in the way of restaurants.
Tucked in between all the glass towers that have changed this part of the neighborhood there are some culinary gems that still serve customers as they have for years starting with Smith & Wollensky at 797 Third Avenue.
Smith & Wollensky Restaurant at 797 Third Avenue
Smith & Wollensky is a legendary steakhouse that has been in this location since 1977. What is interesting about this popular restaurant is that the name was taken out of the phone book. The creators of the restaurant, Allan Stillman (of TGI Friday’s fame) and Ben Benson, looked in the phone book to Smith and then Wollensky to get the name.
The restaurant was originally called Manny Wolf’s Steakhouse which had been in business from 1897 until the name change in 1977. It is now owned by the Patina Restaurant Group although the original New York restaurant is still owned by Mr. Stillman. The restaurant is known for its USDA Prime Grade beef which is all butchered in house (Wiki and Smith & Wollensky history). The building like the rest of the neighborhood is surrounded by a glass box skyscraper.
Another well-known restaurant on Third Avenue is P.J. Clarke’s at 915 Third Avenue on the corner of Third Avenue and East 55th Street. P. J. Clarke’s was established in 1884 by a Mr. Duneen and Patrick J. Clarke was one of his employees. After ten years of working at the bar, he bought the establishment from Mr. Duneen and renamed it P.J. Clarke’s. The restaurant has been known for its pub food and popular bar scene.
P.J. Clarke’s at 915 Third Avenue
https://pjclarkes.com/location/lincoln-square/
The restaurant like Smith & Wollensky’s is a holdout from the past and is surrounded by a glass office building. 919 Third Avenue was built around the restaurant in the late 60’s and the owners, the Lavezzo brothers had the owners build around their property. In an agreement, they bought the building from the two brothers and knocked the top two floors of the restaurant down. Due to financial difficulties the brothers lost the restaurant and it is now owned by new group of investors (Wiki).
P.J. Clarke’s in comparison to 919 Third Avenue showing the changes on Third Avenue
Third Avenue
Third Avenue has it pockets of the old neighborhood here and there but is now firmly establishing itself as part of Midtown with its gleaming office buildings and apartment houses giving the Avenue a modern look.
As I walked back down Third Avenue, some street art caught my attention. Outside the U.S. Post Office at 909 Third Avenue is the sculpture, Red Flying Group by artist Ann Gillen, that adds some life to the building that looks like geometric blocks.
Red Flying Group by artist Ann Gillen outside 909 Third Avenue
Ann Gillen artist
Ms. Gillen has been trained in Industrial design at Pratt and got her MFA from Columbia University’s School of Art. She is noted in the use of color and the structure suggests a human body in motion. She uses all sorts of materials in her art noted with metals and stone work. Red Flying Group is based on man’s sense of motion (Wiki).
The other standout on Third Avenue was the mural of the fallen fireman in honor of 9/11. The mural by artist Eduardo Kobra, who based the painting on a photo of fire fighter Mike Bellantoni, who arrived at the scene after the second tower fell. The picture was taken by New York Post photographer Matthew McDermott (NY Post 2018). The painting depicts an exhausted fire fighter on the scene.
Mural outside of 780 Third Avenue
Mr. Kobra was noted in saying of the mural “I was paying homage to the fire fighters who fought bravely that day. The helmet represents the 343 fire fighters lost that day and the colors represent one goal, to pass on the message of life, of a restart and of reconstruction.” (Time Out Magazine).
Eduardo Kobra artist
Mr. Kobra is a Brazilian street artist who has a passion for street art. His use of squares and triangles bring life to his paintings. His use of photorealism and color bring life to his works of art (Wiki).
The one building that does stand out prominently on Third Avenue is on the corner of Third Avenue and 53rd Street, “The Lipstick Building” at 885 Third Avenue. The building was designed by John Burgee Architects with Philip Johnson and was completed in 1986. What stands out about this building is the oval design and color of the building. What makes the building unusual is the ‘set back’ space required by zoning laws and how the building seems to retract ‘as if it retracts telescopically’ (Wiki and Architectural firm).
The Lipstick Building at 885 Third Avenue
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipstick_Building
It also has a usual shade of burgundy or dark pink that makes it stand out among the other office buildings in the area. At the base are large columns that act like a ‘post-modern’ entrance to the building and allow pedestrians to walk freer in the space (Wiki and Architectural firm). I just think the building has a unusual beauty to it in that it defies the contemporary design of the squarer glass boxes and its shape and color make it stand out in a neighborhood where there is too much of the same design. Buildings like this is what gives the City character.
The columned entrance to the Lipstick Building
As I rounded down Third Avenue to East 43rd Street and headed up Third Avenue again, you can see more changes in the distance in the area around Grand Central Station with new buildings soon to be open on Madison Avenue and along 42nd Street. More construction and more buildings are going up around the station.
As I traveled up Lexington Avenue to East 59th Street, I saw the after-work crowd bring more life to the neighborhood. Between the office buildings and the hotels in the area, the place was loaded with tourists and office workers milling around after a long day and the sidewalks were jammed.
I ended my day rounding East 59th Street and having dinner from Blue and Gold Deli at 1075 First Avenue. I had been in earlier to buy a lottery ticket (did not win so still walking) and noticed their menu and the very reasonable prices. I decided on a Meatball hero ($7.00) with a Coke which I took over to 24 Sycamores Park to eat. It was still light out at 8:00pm and I watched the children playing around in the park with their parents while I ate. The meatball sandwich was loaded with meatballs and a nicely spiced tomato sauce. It was good but not a standout, so it warrants another try.
24 Sycamores Park
https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/twenty-four-sycamores-park
As I ate and watched the night sky get darker, it was fun to watch the world go by and people continue on with their business. I really wonder if they see the same things I do when walking to work or school.
24 Sycamores Park on First Avenue
Isn’t this what a neighborhood is about?
Places to Eat:
Bon Vivant New York (Closed August 2022)
231 East 58th Street
New York, NY 10022
(646) 481-4044
Open: Sunday-Monday Closed/Tuesday-Friday 9:30am-7:30pm/Saturday 9:30am-6:30pm
My Review on TripAdvisor:
My Review on LittleShoponMainStreet@Wordpress.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/littleshoponmainstreet.wordpress.com/253
Blue & Gold Deli
1075 First Avenue
New York, NY 10022
(201) 755-5506
https://www.facebook.com/BlueAndDeli
Open: Sunday 7:00am-2:00am/Monday-Friday 5:30am-2:00am/Saturday 6:00am-2:00am
My review on TripAdvisor:
Lin’s Gourmet Chinese Restaurant
1097 Second Avenue
New York, NY 10022
(212) 752-5586/5580
Open: Sunday 11:30am-10:30pm/Monday-Saturday 10:30am-10:30pm
My review on TripAdvisor:
My review on DiningonaShoeStringinNYC@Wordpress.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/diningonashoestringinnyc.wordpress.com/1144
Places to Shop:
Azalea & Oak
5 Tudor City
New York, NY 10017
(212) 922-0700
@azaleaoak
Open: Sunday Closed/Monday-Saturday 11:00am-6:30pm
My review on LittleShoponMainStreet@Wordpress.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/littleshoponmainstreet.wordpress.com/265
Places to Visit:
Ford Foundation Gallery @ The Ford Foundation for Social Justice
320 East 43rd Street
New York, NY 10017
(212) 573-5000
https://www.fordfoundation.org/about/the-ford-foundation-center-for-social-justice/
Open: Monday-Saturday 11:00am-6:00pm
My review on TripAdvisor:
My review on VisitingaMuseum.com:
https://wordpress.com/post/visitingamuseum.com/2986
Places to Visit:
24 Sycamores Park
501 East 60th Street
New York, NY 10065
(212) 639-9675
https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/twenty-four-sycamores-park/history
https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/twenty-four-sycamores-park
Open: Sunday-Saturday 6:00am-9:00pm
Visiting the Historical Buildings in the neighborhood:
I left the addresses to visit the hotels and buildings in the neighborhood but most are private or if open to the public you have to watch security.
mywalkinmanhattan 