There are times you are walking around a neighborhood and there are restaurants that just stick out to you. It might be the number of people waiting to eat there, it may be the smell of the food cooking that drives you in or just maybe you are hungry.
The afternoon I passed Kam Lai 94 Restaurant, it was all of those things and I am glad that I stopped for a late lunch. The food and the service were wonderful in this tiny take out restaurant with just a few tables.
The delicious Beef and Broccoli with Pork Fried Rice with an Egg Roll
I ordered the Beef and Broccoli combination based on seeing another customer eating it at another table. It was excellent! The rich brown sauce of Soy and Hunan sauce really brought the flavor of the beef out.
The tender beef and the well cooked broccoli was a nice combination in a dish that will sometimes not work if either is not cooked right.
The Beef and Broccoli was delicious
The Egg Rolls were wonderful
The Egg Rolls were delicious. They were filled with lots of chopped roast pork and shredded cabbage and spiced perfectly. With a little Duck Sauce it made the perfect addition to this combination lunch special.
The egg rolls here are amazing
I recently came for a late lunch after visiting a museum on the Upper West Side and ordered the General Tso’s Chicken combination platter with an Egg Roll and it was delicious. The food came out steaming hot and wafted the smell of honey, hot peppers and soy sauce.
The General Tso’s Chicken combination platter with a Coke.
The chicken was steaming hot when it came to the table
The General Tso’s Chicken was a wonderful combination of sweet and savory with hints of ginger, honey, hot peppers and Hunan and Soy sauces. It was crisp and crunchy and had nice pieces of tender broccoli.
The pieces were lacquered with sauce
I love the Egg Rolls here. They are fried to a crispness and are a bit greasy but crunchy and flavorful.
The Egg Rolls are so good
They are filled with chopped cabbage and nice sized pieces of roast pork. They are really good and the perfect accompaniment.
Yum!
Don’t let the appearance of this little hole in the wall restaurant fool you. The food is excellent and the family running it is really nice. You will have a good meal here.
This small museum in the Upper West Side neighborhood of Manhattanville is easy to miss. It is in a small brownstone on West 107th Street right near Riverside Drive. You can see the plaque for the museum to the right of the building and there is a side door to get in. The admission is free but they do ask for a donation if you can do it.
The gallery on the second floor
The museum is a specialty collection of the works of artist Nicholas Roerich. They are mostly landscapes and religious themed that cover three floors of the museum.
The is a beauty to all his works especially the ones concentrated in the Himalayas with their colorful and spiritual themes.
The artist’s portrait of his mother on the third floor
It takes about an hour to an hour and a half to see all the floors. A nice touch they had in the afternoon that I was there was a piano player whom you could hear play throughout the brownstone. When you go, it will be a pleasant afternoon where you are not fighting the crowds of the larger museums.
The art pieces enlighten you and I felt gave you a sense of hope.
(The following information is from the museum website)
Artist Nicholas Roerich
(From the museum website)
The Nicholas Roerich Museum was founded in 1949 to house a permanent collection of over two hundred paintings by the Russian-born artist, poet, philosopher and humanitarian, Nicholas Roerich. The museum also houses a library of books and maintains an archive and a collection of artifacts relating to the areas of Roerich’s interests (Museum guide).
The Mission of the Museum:
The mission of the Nicholas Roerich Museum is essentially a narrow one: to make available to the public the full range of Roerich’s accomplishments. These, however, are not narrow; they cover the realms of art, science, spirituality, peacemaking and more. Because Roerich’s activities ranged widely, so do the museum’s.
The second floor galleries
The Museum Collection:
Nicholas Roerich is known first and foremost as a Russian-born artist. His paintings, of which there are thousands around the world, explore the mythic origins, the natural beauty and the spiritual strivings of humanity and of the world.
One of the more spiritual paintings in the collection
The museum houses approximately two hundred of these works and keeps most of them permanently on display for visitors who come from around the world. Indeed, for many of these visitors, the museum is a destination of great importance; the paintings speak to them of their own inner yearnings and possible fulfillment. For them, Roerich’s paintings are a kind of teaching-about spiritual development about culture and its role in human life and about opportunities for the achievement of peace in a fractious world.
The second floor galleries
The beautiful landscapes on the second floor
Publications & Booklist:
The museum also keeps in print a number of books by and about Roerich and his life and work and a substantial stock of postcards and reproductions of his paintings. These too are seen by many as more than just prints; they are hung in homes with a degree of appreciation that is not often given to such things.
The gallery on the first floor with some of the more religious works
Cultural Events:
In addition to these functions, the museum also maintains an active schedule of cultural activities.
The second floor galleries
It was Roerich’s fervent belief that the role of cultural development in the peace and evolution of the world is fundamental and that it is therefore the responsibility of those who work in creative and cultural fields to strive always for that peace and evolution and for those goals to be the chief impulses guiding their creative work. Information about these ideas is always available.
The second floor gallery with Asian themed art
The Roerich Pact & the Banner of Peace:
The museum sustains an ongoing effort to spread public awareness of the intermingled roles of peace and culture and the ways in which each sustains the other. Information and materials about The Roerich Pact and the Banner of Peace are always available.
The patronage of the museum through the Katherine Campbell-Stibbe Foundation
Throughout this century of wars and national struggles, the yearning of the public for ways of achieving peace has been great; the ideas of the Pact and the Banner provide a welcome answer to those yearnings.
The history of the museum through the years
As Roerich’s ideas become better known around the world, attendance at the Museum grows and requests for information and materials about him and his art and social achievements increase.
The gift shop on the first floor. The director of the museum even sells honey from the beehives on top of his building.
*This information is from the Museum’s website.
Disclaimer: This information was taken from a combination of the museum’s website and from the biography of the artist.
I love the Lunar New Year with all its pageantry, parades, fireworks and crackers and especially the food. I spend most of my time running around Chinatown in Manhattan before the holidays began, where most of the main celebrations take place but now travel to museums to enjoy the festivities they sponsor for the holidays.
I start the holidays at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (or as I say my second home in New York City) for their celebration for the ‘Year of the Horse’
Touring the Asian Galleries on the second floor for the ‘Year of the Horse’ celebration
The Met had created a display of all sorts of objects in the Asian Wing of the museum for the holidays. So there many horse themed pieces on display in the cases includes a series of zodiac figurines.
Some of the ancient horse artwork in the Asian Wing
Some of the artwork is so beautiful
The Scroll Room with the paper artworks. The collection is very extensive
The Chinese Shine tucked back in one of the galleries with its unusual stonework
Some of the statuary and stoneworks in the entrance gallery of the Asian Wing
The ancient stonework in the main gallery
The last event of the day in the American Wing was the Peter Lin Ensemble, who had played at the museum last year. The band was wonderful and played all sorts of jazz hits from all over the world.
The Peter Lin Jazz Ensemble
Video of Jazz tunes:
Video of Jazz tunes:
Mr. Lin then talked about the history of his group and introduced them to the audience.
After the break, the group performed more songs
Video of popular Asian jazz tune:
At the end of the afternoon, I stopped in the lobby at the gift shop. The Grand Hall was beautifully decorated with cherry blossoms.
The cherry blossoms in the Grand Hall on the first floor
The cherry blossoms decorated the urns around the Grand Hall
The weather that night was an unbearable 10 degrees and after all that touring in the Asian galleries, I needed some dumplings. So I took the Q subway and back downtown to North Dumpling at 21 Division Street in Chinatown.
The food had been so good the week before, I had to go back and try the fried dumplings. Even in the cold, it was well worth the trip to Chinatown. The food here is delicious and so reasonable. I can see why it is winning instant popularity.
The Spring Rolls are the perfect way to end the meal
After dinner, even though it was freezing cold, I had to try a soft serve cone at Mixue, a Chinese dessert chain that just opened on Canal Street. At $1.99 for a cone you can’t get a better deal than that. The Vanilla ice cream is really good even on that freezing night.
I had to head home as the temperature dropped to 12 degrees. It had not been this cold in many years during the New Year celebrations.
The next day I visited the Newark Museum in Downtown Newark for the start of their activities with a performance of Korean dance. It was already over by the time I got there but they had a sampling of popular Korean foods and the door was excellent.
I went into the main hall as the entertainment was ending and everyone was taking pictures. I loved the outfits everyone was wearing.
The main hall of the museum just after the festivities
A sampling of Korean dishes including Korean Fried Chicken, Noodles, Dumplings and Shushi
I had to go back for seconds the food was so good
I toured around the museum but most of the galleries closed early that afternoon. It was a nice afternoon of just walking around the open galleries on the first floor.
The exhibition of art by local Korean artists in the hallway off the museum’s main hall court
I unfortunately could not go in for the parade this year plus the weather was not the best to stand around and watch other parade goers freeze. The year before it down poured making two years of not the best conditions to attend the parade. On TV I did notice a nice sized crowd.
I managed to get to Chinatown after the parade and have dinner. Chinatown is becoming unrecognizable as many of the grocery stores and restaurants have closed to the change in rents and many of the old tenement buildings are being knocked down for luxury condos. I have never seen so many changes.
Chinatown in the afternoon
While Mott Street, like Mulberry Street, keeps up appearances for the tourists, the rest of the neighborhood is under gentrification. I have watched one business after another close including groceries and take out spots. I can see a lot of changes coming over the next five years.
As the snow storms peaked and did it snow this year with 18 inches coming after the holiday, the weather gave way to two 75 degree days during my Spring Break and hopefully warmer weather in the coming months. Spring is on its way.
The front of Lyla’s Bodega at 177 West 83rd Street
When I was walking the upper streets of the Upper West Side to update my blog on the neighborhood, I came across Lyla’s Bodega. It was near the local school and the kids were coming in for their lunch special of the Empanadas and a drink. I was starved and love empanadas so J had to stop in to try some.
They were having a special of three empanadas for $6.00 and that sounded fair to me. I tried all three available the beef, chicken and cheese and they were all delicious.
The inside of Lyla’s Bodega and its selection
My lunch that day
The restaurant makes its own hot and chili sauces in house and that gives them a little kick. They also have some unusual flavors of sodas. I got the tropical Seven Up that I had never seen before.
Their delicious Empanadas
The empanadas were perfectly cooked and filled to the brim with delicious fillings.
The Chicken Empanada
The Beef Empandas
There is a small counter to eat at but after school the kids tend to take this spot. Try to come before school ends for the afternoon to get a space and eat indoors. There are lots of parks in the area to eat lunch.
I love the holidays in New York City. There are so many Christmas themed events to go to and decorated homes to visit. One of my favorite tours is at the Met Cloisters for their Christmas themed walking tours that take place from December through early January.
The Cloisters Museum & Gardens: A Branch of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
To finish my weekend of holiday festivities before the Epiphany, I took the annual Christmas walking tour of the Met Cloisters. The museum hosts an interesting walking tour of the history of the holidays during the Medieval era. Each tour has a different theme to it. There is the history of Christmas in that era, the use of plants and flowers in the decorating of the religious sites and the historic significance of the visit of the Three Kings.
Each tour guide incorporates the artwork, architecture and plants into the discussion. On average you will have about forty people on the tour.
The entrance of the Cloisters decorated for the holidays
The entrance of the gift shop decorated for the holidays
The archways were decorated with seasonal plants and fruits. I read online that the volunteers went into Fort Tyron Park and collected ivy from the wild to decorate the museum. Every day the museum is open during the holidays these are replaced on a daily basis.
The entrance to the galleries decorated for the holidays
We started the tour with a discussion of plants that once decorated churches and ministries
With the change in attitude towards the Christmas holidays during the Middle Ages and its incorporation into church traditions, decorating for the holidays came back into style. The use of holly, evergreen and mistletoe became part of the Christmas tradition and to justify the decorating, they were related to Christian symbols.
The beauty of the life plants in winter
Each of the Cloisters were lined with fresh greens and potted plants giving each of the Cloisters its own special mood.
One of the Cloisters bright with plants
The stairs leading into the chapel decorated for the holidays
The chapel on the main floor decorated for the holidays
The colorful floral displays lining the window sills of the chapel
This led to a discussion about what each plant, flower and fruit meant in the Christian tradition, a clever way to justify decorating and celebrating during the holidays. Ivies, pine, winter flowers and even late season apples not only lined places of worship but gave a festive look and district smell to these buildings. A symbol of life in the cold winter months while they waited for the arrival of Spring.
The plant types that decorated the houses of worship
The flowers and plants lining the chapel
The decorative candle stands lining the walls of the chapel
We then toured the main Cloister, closed for the Winter but was lined with plants, flowers and greens brighting every corner of the building. These were examples of plants and flowers that would have decorated these halls at the holidays.
Walking the halls of the Cloisters
Touring the halls of the Cloisters with flowers and plants to celebrate the season
Walking the halls of the Cloisters
The flowering plants of the Cloisters
The flowering plants and vines that would have decorated churches in Medieval times
We then toured the Tapestry Room and discussed the use of plants in art form and the use of the detail as symbolism in art. These tapestries were meant to cover the drafty walls of palaces and bring in color and decoration to the stone walls.
The famous ‘Hunt of the Unicorn’ tapestry
We then took a detour to the outside gardens that are enjoying their winter slumber. These gardens were used by the cloisters for food, medicines and decorative use. They will start coming to life in a few months.
The Cloisters Gardens
The garden terrace over looking the Hudson River
The terrace gardens in the winter waiting to come to life
Then we went back inside for a discussion of the Three Kings and the Epiphany and its symbolism in art at the Cloisters. These are some of the works featured on the ‘Christmas Tide’ tour to symbolize that visit.
Some of the woodwork from that era
The Visitation of the Three Kings
The Visitation of the Three Kings depicted in stained glass
The Visitation of the Three Kings depicted in statuary
We visited the last of the Cloisters and discussed some of the plants in the collection
We were admiring the plants and flowers
A candelabra in the hallway of the Cloisters
As I exited the building that afternoon, there were potted plants at the entrance of the Cloisters. It was a real treat to walk around the building at the holidays.
The potted plants outside the entrance of the museum
On my way down the stairs and out the door to Fort Tryon Park, I took another walk down the stone steps and walked through Ann Loftus Park. This popular playground was quiet this time of year, awaiting the Spring and the wonderful warm afternoons ahead.
I love coming for breakfast at G’s Coffee Shop after a tour of The Cloisters. The food and service of this small ‘hole in the wall’ diner is wonderful. The meals are so reasonable and when you dine at the counter, you can watch the food cooked right in front of you. I had a wonderful Bacon, Egg and Cheese sandwich with a side of golden pancakes. What a great meal on a cold winter morning.
The Bacon, Egg and Cheese sandwich
The breakfast sandwiches here are so good
The pancakes were wonderful. The perfect comfort food on a winter day.
It was a really great tour, and it was fun to walk around the neighborhood through the parks and seeing all the post-Christmas decorations. Inwood is a really beautiful section of Manhattan with lots to do and see. It is the perfect place to spend the Christmas break.
I was searching for someplace to eat in Chinatown after touring a few museums in Brooklyn. It was cold that night and I was in the mood for soup and dumplings. The place I wanted to go to was closed and as I walked around Division Street, I came across a restaurant that was having their grand opening (I would find out later it had opened in the summer).
The owner waved me in on a very cold and welcomed me inside to a warm restaurant where homemade dumplings are made right in front of you. The best part is that there is a lot to order under $10.00. There were so many choices from the menu with dumplings, pancakes and soups and everything was so reasonable.
The Chive Pancake
I started my meal with the Chive Pancakes. These were being made by the women working the counter behind the register. These golden cakes were rather large and were panned fried. With a little soy sauce, what a way to start the meal.
The Chive Pancakes
The were filled with rice noodles, eggs and chives
Then I needed to warm myself up and had the Wonton Noodle Soup with bok choy. The long noodles and the dumplings are made fresh right in front of you. The dumplings go right from the counter where the women just folded them into the soup or into the pan for an order of ten.
The Wonton Noodle Soup with Dumplings
The food and the service were wonderful and the owner could not have been nicer and more welcoming. She pulled me off a cold street and welcomed me into the restaurant. In a time of rising prices and small portions, North Dumpling is that wonderful exception with reasonable prices and excellent food.
What I found out from the manager after dinner was this is the sister restaurant to China North Dumpling, a tiny restaurant on Essex Street which literally has no seating and this is her new, bigger version of that very successful restaurant.
My reviews on China North Dumpling at 23 Essex Street:
It has been almost a decade since I attended the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade. The last time I attended the parade, it was when my best friend came in from the Midwest as part of a four day band trip that the local high school sponsored as they were performing in the parade. We had a really nice time.
For the next several years it was either spending time with a friend out on the island or family commitments or the weather that kept me away. Last year it down poured on the parade. This year it would be hit or miss with the weather but the rainstorm the day before went out to sea and it ended up being a sunny cool day.
My spot on the corner West 46th street and Sixth Avenue for the start of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
I got there early leaving the house at 7:00am to a packed bus. I was lucky to get a seat and I am at the beginning of the route into the City. We just passed all the stops on the way into the City as we zoomed through the Lincoln Tunnel, a first in a long time.
The crowds at 8:00am on Sixth Avenue
I had read that the route had moved from Broadway to Sixth Avenue, so I walked a couple of blocks uptown to get away from the Times Square crowds. I figured that was where all the tourists were headed. I settled on West 46th Street, which has an incline near one of the office buildings and offered a better view.
The crowd just kept growing around me at the start of the parade.
The parade started uptown at 8:30am and made its way down Broadway until 59th Street and turn on Sixth Avenue and made its way down Sixth Avenue to Macy’s on West 34th Street. I was around the halfway point. Around 9:15am, we heard the first band coming down the Avenue and Tom Turkey, one of the oldest floats in the parade that I could remember from my years in the parade.
The Tom Turkey float used to house the grand marshal of the parade. My first year with the parade in 1988 it was a freezing cold Clint Black, the country singer.
Tom Turkey passing West 46th Street
As the float passed by there was no one on top. Maybe it was too cold or maybe they were on a different part of the float. That height can freak people out.
The start of the parade passing all of us on West 46th Street. The crowds and the excitement started to build. We could see Tom Turkey coming down Sixth Avenue to start the parade. People started to cheer as the parade passed us by.
The start of the parade with the Macy’s logoed gold balloons, which have been part of the parade since I volunteered in the early 1990’s.
The Macy’s balloons at the start of the parade
After this, it was a series of balloons and floats that passed by. The funny part was I thought there were more marching bands in the past.
The Super Mario balloon passing by
The Super Mario passing by
Doria the Explorer balloon
Doria the Explorer passing by our spot
The SpongeBob SquarePants balloon
The Sesame Street float passing by
The Diary of a Wimpy Kid balloon
The Green Giant float passing by
The Disney Float passing by with Micky Mouse
The Spiderman float makes an impact on the parade
The Spider-Man float passes by
The Minon passing us and looking everyone over
The Stuart the Minon balloon passes by
The Golden Turkey float passes by with rapper Busta Rhyms
The balloons Gabby and Panda Paw balloon pass by
Cool & the Gang on the Bronx Zoo float
The Smokey the Bear balloon
The Snoopy float, one of the many that have graced the parade for years
Snoopy passing by
Snoopy has been part of the parade in different forms since the early 1990’s. This is the latest version of the balloon.
The Pac Man Balloon passing by
The Marshall from Paw Control balloon passes
The Buzz Lightyear balloon passes by
The Silver Macy’s Balloon
The parade passed by in intervals as the parade had to stop for performances further down the route.
The Jolly Polly Pirate Ship passes by with Mr. Fantasy. I did not know who he was.
The balloons moved down Sixth Avenue
Here comes the Shrek Onion Carriage balloon in the distance
The Shrek Onion Carriage balloon
The Goldbear balloon
The Bluey the Dog balloon
The Counting Sheep Dream float passing by with performer Debbie Gibson, a singer from the 1980’s.
The Noorah balloon
The Palace of Sweets float
The Pillsbury Doughboy then passed us
The Pillsbury Doughboy passing us in the parade
The Deck the Halls float passed us with Ms. Christmas herself, Darlene Love, whose Christmas song, ‘Nobody aught to be alone on Christmas’ is played every year in the movie, ‘Home Alone II’.
Darlene Love on the Christmas float as it passed by
Then Minnie Mouse made her appearance towards the end of the parade
Then the ‘Believe’ balloons came down Sixth Avenue to announce the arrival of Santa
Here comes Santa, which basically opens the shopping season snd Christmas
Santa waving at the crowds
Santa waving to us as he passed by
Santa saved my way as we all waved to him
Santa on his sleigh marking the end of the parade as it passed West 46th Street
Then the parade ended by us as it made its way to West 34th Street to join the crowds at Macy’s. There all the performers would perform clips from their shows.
Sixth Avenue at the end of the parade
After the parade was over, I spent some time in Midtown getting some work on previous blogs and creating new ones.
After work was over at the club, I headed down to Chinatown for my Thanksgiving dinner. I had been feeling the sniffles trying to come in, so I had my dinner at Wonton Noodle Garden for an early dinner.
I felt I needed the excise and the fresh air to fight this thing so I walked from East 44th Street to Chinatown. I figured a several mile walk would get rid of this thing. I got some great pictures in along the way. All the parks on the way to Chinatown still had foliage left on the trees and the parks were also decorated for the upcoming Christmas holiday season. This is when you get to see the City at its best.
When I was attending NYU, I never realized how close Chinatown was to campus and I made my dumpling runs as many times as I could. I wanted to be supportive to Chinatown businesses. I decided earlier I would go to Wonton Noodle Garden (Mei Lai Wah) on Bayard Street for Thanksgiving.
I thought Chinatown and Little Italy would be closed down for Thanksgiving and I would not have much of a choice of places to eat. Wrong! Chinatown was mobbed with both locals and tourists and all the restaurants would be packed until 6:00pm.
When I got to the restaurant, it was packed with diners. I sat in the counter area by the kitchen, which I enjoy. You get quicker service and I like talking to the staff.
My Thanksgiving dinner, Cantonese Wonton Soup with Roast Pork, Egg Noodles and Pork Wontons and a order of Fried Wontons
This is the best dinner and the cure all when you have a cold. It cleans out all the cold in your system. The food and the service here are excellent. I have coming here since the original restaurant opened on Mott Street back when I was in Junior high.
The Cantonese Wonton Soup chicken broth is so rich in flavor
The Fried Wontons are the perfect accompaniment to the soup, crisp and served with a sweet sauce
The Wontons are so good
The staff is so funny here. They can never believe my appetite. I had had only a quick breakfast and no lunch so this served as both lunch and dinner. I was still hungry after lunch. I knew where to walk for dessert.
I stopped down at Great Taste Bakery on 53 Catherine Street for dessert.
Not only were they open but still baking. I got two egg custards that were still hot out of the oven. The tables were filled with local residents talking with their neighbors in Chinese.
The egg custards at Great Taste Bakery
This is one of the last reasonable holdouts in Chinatown for excellent desserts and cheap prices. It caters to the older locals and the hipsters who are flooding the neighborhood.
After dinner, I decided to walk back to Port Authority since it was such a nice night. Most people think I am crazy when I do this but it really is a nice walk.
Walking through Chinatown around 5:30pm Thanksgiving night
Midtown with the Empire State Building lit for Thanksgiving
The Empire State Building in all its glory
It really was a great afternoon and a wonderful Thanksgiving. This was fun just seeing the parade on a sunny afternoon and the perfect dinner in Chinatown.
I had not been to the Feast of Gennaro in about fifteen years, not since my father got sick. I think 2010 was the last time I came to Little Italy for the Feast. The crowds were just as nuts as they were then.
The place was mobbed and made worse by everyone Instagramming the whole event.
The History of the Feast:
(From the Feast website)
At the turn of the 20th century when Italian immigrants settled on the lower east side of Manhattan each region settled on a different street. The Neapolitans settled on Mulberry Street. In 1926 with keeping their Neapolitan traditions they decided to have a one day block party for their patron saint and protector of Naples, San Gennaro, which continued year after year something that has now and for decades become not only a New York icon. This world renown 11 day event, which stretches throughout 11 blocks of the Little Italy neighborhood.
For generations this feast has always been an important part of our neighborhood not only representing the Saint Himself but also representing our ancestors, our culture and our traditions. This collection of booths of food and merchandise is enjoyed by both locals and tourists alike.
The patron Saint of San Gennaro sits in front of the condo building where the old church one stood. I still can’t believe they knocked the church down.
The Story of San Gennaro:
(from the Feast website)
Saint Gennaro was Bishop of Benevento, Italy, and died a martyr in 305 AD during the persecution spearheaded by Emperor Diocletian. He signed his death warrant when he visited the deacons, Sosso and Proculo, and the laymen, Eutichete and Acuzio, in jail.
The Proconsul, Timothy, had Gennaro arrested. He underwent torture without wavering in his resolution to remain loyal to Christ. He was thrown headlong into a furnace, but by the grace of God, he come through unscratched.
Furious, the agents beheaded him. His body and the severed head still dripping blood were gathered up by an old man who wrapped them reverently in a cloth. An old Neapolitan lady collected the blood with a sponge and filled a phial with the precious liquid. The body of Saint Gennaro is preserved in Naples, where he is honored as the city’s principal patron.
The Neapolitans pray to him for protection from fires, earthquakes, plagues, droughts and the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. In every emergency Saint Gennaro is their powerful champion and universal helper.
Things have gotten worse with the foot traffic between everyone filming and photographing and Tik Toking it and the excessive amount of baby carriages (who would bring an infant to these things? It’s noisy, crowded and late!) makes getting down Mulberry Street even harder.
The crowds on the side streets were just as bad
The food is the same as usual with sausage sandwiches, meatball subs, rice ball’s and plenty of Zeppole.
Pozzuoli Pizza was one of the vendor’s at the feast
Looking at all the food and sandwiches, I heard music in the back of one of the side streets and stopped to listen to the music of Jenna Esposito, who was performing that evening.
Jenna Esposito performing the night
Jenna Esposito sign and contact information: What a Talent!
Before she left on break, she sang ‘Volare’ which brought down the house. It was great way to end that part of show.
Jenna Esposito and her band singing ‘Volare’
The Feast as it started to get dark
I continued to walk down Mulberry Street and was dying for some zeppole, small pieces of fried pizza dough ladened with powered. I found a place and they looked like they were freshly frying them.
It was not until I ordered them and they were lukewarm and a little greasy. The woman said the were closing up shop and she gave me what seemed like twenty. Even though they were large and tasted good nothing is worse than zeppole’s when they get cold.
I thought these had been freshly made but were like warm. The only benefit was she gave me about 20 for $5.00. I was stuffed when I finished the entire bag of them. It must have been two pounds of fried dough that I consumed.
I walked through the mountains of crowds as this was the last night of the feast and a beautiful night. I took it as tourists and locals alike wanted to enjoy the evening. Again the worst was people pushing baby carriages through the streets of the feast.
I am sorry everyone, I do not think infants should be subjected to this type of noise and light this late into the evening.
The crowds around 8:00pm
The organizers of the feast brought the festival back to its original border of Houston Street so the there was room to stretch. These later blocks were not as crowded as those closer to Canal Street and had more retail vendors than food vendors.
Reaching the border of the feast at East Houston Street
When I used to attend the feast back in the 1990’s, the Feast would stretch the entire length of Mulberry Street straight into Chinatown and the whole street from East Broadway to Houston Street would be packed with food vendors, games and retail vendors. It shows how both the neighborhood and the Feast have changed.
Passing the Sausage and Pepper vendors walking back to Canal Street
The sausages always look so good
I was not too sure how many people were going to eat this much sausage at 8:40 pm at night.
All good things have to come to an end as the evening got late and by 8:15pm, a lot of vendors started to close up as the feast was closing by 9:00pm on the last night.
The crowds started to thin out by the time I got to Canal Street and it was easier to walk through the Feast. It was a lot of come to come back after all the years. I just forgot how crowded it was on Mulberry Street.
Walking back to the E subway on Canal Street
The Feast of San Gennaro takes place every year the week after Labor Day in New York’s Little Italy
The Summer Solstice arrived on a beautiful sunny and warm afternoon. It looked like a heat wave was coming but today and tomorrow we’re going to be spectacular. It would be a nice day for a walk.
I would have ordinarily have done The Great Saunter on my own today but Maricel and I had plans in the afternoon that I did not want to break but fell through the day before. That and I had tickets to a special event at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden for a special ‘Summer Solstice’ concert and I really wanted to go to the concert. Plus being in the Gardens at night for Member’s events is a real treat.
Once the plans fell through and after getting a series of errands done, I headed into Manhattan for a quick lunch and the I would walk all the Avenues between West 23rd and West 14th Streets between 10th and 7th Avenues. It took me about four hours to do because I kept stopping in parks and walking around the Chelsea Market between Ninth and Tenth Avenues.
I started the walk with a good lunch. I had been wanting to go back to Kashmir 9 at 478 Ninth Avenue for a while so I started my day there. The place was packed. The food is a combination of Indian and Arabic cuisines and gets an interesting crowd of people from all walks of life. The food is wonderful and very reasonable.
The Chicken Kebabs with rice and a Chicken Patty at Kashmir 9 at 479 Ninth Avenue
The Chicken Kebobs here are excellent
The Chicken Patties make a good starter
Yum!
It can be a real culture shock eating here because you will feel like you got transported to the Middle East. You are surrounded by men speaking Hindi and Arabic chatting away while other men are doing their afternoon prayers. It is an interesting experience at lunch.
After a perfect lunch of proteins and carbohydrates, I was ready for the long walk around the neighborhood. It was the perfect day with no humidity and bright sunshine. I walked down to West 23rd Street and Tenth Avenue and started my walk around the neighborhood. Chelsea is such a great neighborhood to walk around in.
The corner of Tenth Avenue and West 23rd Street
This section of the Chelsea neighborhood has been in massive flux since the opening the High Line Park. It has been totally rebuilt over the last several years. I have never seen such changes before in a neighborhood. Along the High Line Park, there are all sorts of innovative new buildings that have been built or under construction.
While walking down Tenth Avenue, I noticed the beautiful mural located outside Juban Restaurant at 206 Tenth Avenue. I thought the colors and design were so vibrant.
The interesting painting outside of Juban at 206 Tenth Avenue
I thought the mural outside the restaurant was interesting (I could not find the artist who did the outside mural)
History of the restaurant:
(From the Juban website)
Set in the heart of Chelsea’s gallery district, Juban’s rich culture offers a convivial and inspired experience of authentic fare. Here, seasonal menus and artful murals converge—serving tradition with the wink of innovation.
Juban is an inventive Izakaya dedicated to bringing wonder to the experience of Japanese cuisine in a local setting. With every meal designed for discovery, its creative spirit unfolds through community. Artful sushi, masterful seafood, elevated skewers, and neighborhood favorites are served family-style to celebrate sharing and connecting. At once serendipitous and soulful, its unique approach always serves the moment.
Further down Tenth Avenue outside of the Empire Diner building is the mural “The Mount Rushmore of Art”, one of the many murals in the neighborhood created by artist Eduardo Kobra, who has murals painted all over New York City. This one stuck out for its take on Contemporary Artists of the Twentieth Century.
Artist Eduardo Kobra painting “The Mount Rushmore of Art” above the Empire Diner at Tenth Avenue and West 22nd Street
The mural, created by Brazilian artist Eduardo Kobra, “Mount Rushmore of Art”, is the artist’s memorial to some of modern art’s biggest artists including Andy Warhol, Frida Kahlo, Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat (Vibe Map 2023).
Eduardo Kobra is a Brazilian born artist known for his contemporary and colorful art murals all over the world.
Further down Tenth Avenue, I passed the Guardian Angel School at 193 Tenth Avenue. What stood out on this building was the beautiful and intricate stone work that embellishes the building. It really is an interesting building.
The Guardian Angel School at 193 Tenth Avenue had a lot of interesting stonework around the building. The school is currently closed.
The church school was designed and built in 1930 by architect John Van Pelt of the Van Pelt, Hardy & Goubert firm. The building was designed in the Southern Sicilian Romanesque style and has many different religious elements in the detail of the outside of the building. You have to look at it from all directions to appreciate its beauty (Wiki).
What’s sad is that the school has been closed as part of the cutbacks of the Archdiocese of New York. Right now the community is fighting to keep this school open. We will see how the building gets used in the future.
As I walked down Tenth Avenue, you can see all the changes in the neighborhood and the architecture that surrounds both Tenth and Ninth Avenues. This area of the City has seen so many changes due to the opening of the High Line over the last ten years. This part of the neighborhood has some of the most interesting looking buildings and many innovative art galleries and restaurants. It still is in the process of changing. Many old warehouses and factory buildings have been converted into lofts and apartments.
The creativity in the new architecture that lines Tenth Avenue
One of the most beautiful of these new buildings is the Lantern House Apartments at 149 Tenth Avenue
The Lantern House sign at 149 Tenth Avenue
(From the Related Corporate website)
Lantern House is designed by Heatherwick Studio, founded by the British designer Thomas Heatherwick in 1994. The building offers a distinctive reinvention of the Chelsea warehouse architectural style, featuring a modern interpretation of the bay window and a custom masonry façade. The 21-story building comprises a collection of approximately 180 one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom residences, many of which bestow uninterrupted cityscape and Hudson River views and promise to provide residents a totally integrated lifestyle destination. Lantern House is part of a two-tower development that links underneath the High Line.
As I walked back up Tenth Avenue, I saw this series of graffiti art on the side of a building that will quickly disappear as the lot next to it will become a new apartment building. Still the work was very interesting.
Even the street graffiti was interesting but will not last with all the new construction
The one thing I like about the Tenth Avenue side of the neighborhood is the access to Hudson River Park and all the trails, shaded areas to relax, gardens and views of the built up side of Jersey City and the Hudson River coastline. There are all sorts of benches and shaded areas to just read a book and talk to people. No matter what the age is, people of all types are conversing in the parks.
Hudson River Park lines the neighborhood and the edges of West 14th Street
The success of the Hudson River Park under the Giuliani/Bloomberg Administrations when things ran correctly in New York City.
Hudson River Park at the corner of Tenth Avenue and West 14th Street in the Summer of 2025
Hudson River Park at the corner of West 14th Street and Tenth Avenue
Stopping in Hudson River Park for a half hour to cool off was wonderful. The breezes from the river were really nice and it was relaxing to just sit under a shade tree and watch the world go by. As I left the park and started my walk back up Tenth Avenue, I just saw how breathtaking the view was as I looked back up to West 23rd Street.
Looking up the ever changing neighborhood that lines Tenth Avenue from West 14th Street
I saw people walking around an interesting clothing shop and peeked through the windows. I could not find the entrance and walked through the door of a back hall. It ended up being the back entrance to the Chelsea Market, whose main entrance is on Ninth Avenue. I didn’t even know there was a back entrance and never explored the stores to the back of the complex. The market had once been the old Nabisco factory and you can still see some of the original features of the old building.
The inside of the Chelsea Market in the back entrance at Tenth Avenue between West 15th and 16th Street. The Market was mobbed that day. It was the middle of lunch hour. Between the locals and the tourists, you could barely move around the complex.
The selection at Sarabeth’s can be a bit pricey but the quality is excellent and the food is always consistently delicious. When I took a tour of Little Island with NYU at the start of the school year by second year at the college we came here for lunch and then had a picnic on the island. Great selection of items.
The mural “Soft Power” next to the Lantern House Building with the Pink Panther Mural in the front of the High Line
As I walked back up Tenth Avenue, I came across this giant billboard of the Pink Panther. The work is entitled “Soft Power”
Artist Alex Da Corte presents a new artwork for the High Line’s 18th Street Billboard, inspired by the Pink Panther, a Friz Freleng creation designed for the animated opening sequence of a 1963 Hollywood comedy that came to embody the film and has evolved, through 60 years of spin-offs and reinventions, into cultural ubiquity. Pink’s durability across many generations has allowed it to sell countless products, from fiberglass insulation foam to artificial sweetener, yet the creature’s essence remains out of reach.
With neither master nor peer—and seemingly eternally unbound by the rules of others—Pink represents a certain queer freedom. Da Corte revives Pink as an icon of resistance, supine but poised, wielding a sign of universal protest, brandishing a clear pink purpose. “There is a difference between falling down and laying down,” Da Corte explains. “I call that soft power.” This billboard is an advertisement for the value of such power.
Alex Da Corte is an American born Venezuelan-American artist now living in Philadelphia. Da Corte was the 2023 Philip Guston Rome Prize Fellow at the American Academy in Rome (Artist bio).
Another interesting mural was on the side of The Chelsea Square Market at 130 Tenth Street is of Mother Teresa and Mahatma Gandhi by artist Eduardo Kobra, whose work I had seen earlier on my walk and I have seen all over Manhattan. These two icons of peace face each other in a store that sells delicious deli food (see the artist bio above).
The Kobra painting “Tolerance” on the Chelsea Square Market building at 79th Tenth Avenue of Mother Theresa and Gandhi
As I was walking up Tenth Avenue towards West 21st Street, I passed a wine store and saw this sign. It was just after Pride week and I thought this sign was amusing and fun.
I saw this sign outside the wine store, Community Wine & Spirits at 140 Tenth Avenue and thought it was very clever
As I continued up Tenth Avenue, I passed Clement Clarke Moore Park, which was once part of the Moore farm and estate. The park was busy with parents and children cooling off. A series of ice cream men and guys selling ices kept coming in and out of the park while I was there. It is the perfect place to stop and cool off on a hot day.
The Clement Clarke Moore Playground at Tenth Avenue and West 22nd Street
The park sits on the spot of the original estate of the Moore family and the plaque were the mansion once stood is around the corner on West 23rd Street. This park is wonderful during the warmer months to just sit and relax.
The picnic area of the park
The playground area was packed with kids running around the parks fountains
The gardens were in full bloom and were so well maintained
It was in 1837 that poet Clement Clark Moore claimed to be the author. Even today there is a controversy of who really wrote the poem, Clement Clark Moore or Major Henry James Livingston Jr. This discussion is still being debated today (Wiki).
How the poem mixed well into the tour is that Clement Moore’s family owned an estate here on the area on West 23rd Street between Hudson River and Eighth Avenue from West 24th Street to West 19th Street. His home was at 348 West 23rd Street. He developed the area after donating a large portion of the estate to his church and created a residential neighborhood that still stands today.
The Clement Clarke Moore estate when he sold it into real estate parcels
The historical marker for the Moore Mansion. It is claimed that he penned ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas’ here (this has been debated over the years)
I then started my trip down Ninth Avenue, which has been rapidly gentrifying even around the public housing over the last twenty years. Now it has been announced that the City will be knocking down both the Chelsea-Elliott and Robert Fulton Public Housing complexes. The cost to renovate these structures are too expensive and it will be replaced by mixed housing.
Looking down Ninth Avenue from West 23rd Street and the changes that are coming between Ninth and Tenth Avenues
Discussion on the replacement of the Public Housing Projects around the neighborhood:
As I walked down Ninth Avenue, I was treated to a diversity of architecture from different times. I have admired these two tiny wooden buildings for years and they have an interesting past. They were built in the 1840’s after the Moore estate was broken up for real estate plots for new homes.
These two small building at 185-189 Ninth Avenue were built in the 1840’s by real estate developer James N. Wells and were used by local merchants who lived about them (Daytonian in Manhattan.com). It is amazing to me when buildings from over a hundred years ago have survived this long and still in use. Here and there in Manhattan I have found these buildings from the early 1800’s along street and corners of neighborhoods on the island.
Another building that stood was futuristic structure with all sorts of pot holes. This is the former Maritime Union Building that is now the Dream Hotel. It was once part of a series of three buildings that was part of the National Maritime Union. When the Union folded due to lack of membership as industry changed, the building was left empty. The building designed byBronx-born but New Orleans-based architect Albert C. Ledner in 1966 (New Yorkitecture 2015).
Walking past the hotel, the front of the Chelsea Market stands tall on the corner of Ninth Avenue right across the street from the NYC Google headquarters. Before the layoffs at the company, the Chelsea Market was really bustling with office workers during lunch hour. Now its a majority tourists and local New Yorkers from all over the City. This building was an interesting conversion from building the old Nabisco Manufacturing plant (National Biscuit Company)
History of the National Biscuit company and the building transformation:
It seemed more mysterious when you entered from the Tenth Avenue side of what you would expect to see. The market is a lot of fun especially at lunch time or on the weekends when the facility is packed with tourists coming to tour and eat at the Market.
On the very edge of Chelsea, sharing it with the Meatpacking District is the historic Homestead Steakhouse. The restaurant was established in 1868 and is the oldest continuous running steak house in the United States. The restaurant was originally called the ‘Tidewater Trading Post’ and had been opened by German immigrants. The restaurant still has excellent reviews on TripAdvisor and their steaks are considered some of the best in the City.
The oldest steakhouse in NYC, The Homestead Steakhouse at 56 Ninth Avenue and West 14th Street
I continued up Ninth Avenue, admiring the ever changing architecture of the neighborhood. This area had once been all shipping and freight filled with warehouses that now are boutique hotels and shops and art galleries. It amazes me the changes in the past thirty years.
Looking up Ninth Avenue from West 14th Street
Another mural that has captured my attention both in the past and on this series of walks in the neighborhood is the painting on the side of Gotham Pizza at 144 Ninth Avenue
Gotham Pizza at 144 Ninth Avenue has the most interesting mural on the side of it. It was created by artist Jenna Morello.
Artist Jenna Morello is an American born artist based in Brooklyn. She is known for her colorful and detailed murals.
While walking on the other side of the avenue, I got a better look at the architecture along the street. As I walked up the other side of Ninth Avenue I got a better look at the wooden buildings.
185-189 Ninth Avenue
I turned the corner and walked down Eighth Avenue, the heart of the gay community. I have to say, you are always reminded of this too when you pass many of the establishments especially during Pride Week. Rainbow flags and colors were decorated all over the place. Up and down Eighth Avenue, there are all sorts of interesting shops and restaurants.
Walking down Eighth Avenue with the mural “We Love NY”
This is the third mural by artist Eduardo Kobra and shows a playful Albert Einstein showing his love of the “Big Apple”. This interesting painting towers over Eighth Avenue. These murals add such a playful and interesting look at the neighborhood and its creativity.
The Kobra painting of Albert Einstein ‘We ❤️ New York’
On of my favorite restaurants in Chelsea is S & A Gourmet Deli, which has a wonderful selection of sandwiches and salads located at 240 Eighth Avenue.
What I love about New York is that one every corner there seems to be a favorite bodega or deli that sells what you need when you need it. Some also just stand out for the quality of the food and the service and selection. S & A Gourmet Deli is one of those places.
A friend and I had just stopped in to buy sandwiches for lunch that we were going to enjoy a few blocks away in Madison Square Park. They had a large selection of sandwiches and wraps, and I decided on Chicken Cordon Bleu hero sandwich ($8.99) with a Coke ($1.99).
The sandwich contained a fresh fried chicken breast topped with Swiss cheese and ham and then broiled for a few minutes to combine the ingredients. Inside they put a little mustard to add to the complexity of the flavors. You really felt like you were eating a piece of Chicken Cordon Bleu.
Chicken Cordon Bleu sandwich
My friend ordered an empanada and bought some snacks that we enjoyed after our lunch. The deli has a wide variety of grocery items. She also enjoyed her lunch.
The sandwich was delicious and packed with flavor.
Continuing down Eighth Avenue I saw this flag outside one of the bars on the window and I thought it was so profound but true. We are forgetting the freedom choice, expression and the right to live our lives is available to everyone. This is what makes us American.
I saw this posted outside a bar during ‘Pride Week’ and it’s nice to see people expressing their opinion. I think we are forgetting this.
At the very edge of the neighborhood on the corner of Eighth Avenue and 14th Street, technically the border with the Village is the Museum of Illusions at 77 Eighth Avenue.
At the very end of the block bordering Chelsea with Greenwich Village is the Museum of Illusions at 77 Eighth Avenue
It is a perfect museum for a day out with the kids but it is a bit on the pricey side. I had visited the museum at the beginning of last summer and here are some of the things that I enjoyed at the museum.
There are a lot of brain teasers and mirrors to throw you off or add to the display to entertain you. The optical illusions will test your mind and your senses. There are titled rooms to test your balance and your sense of sight, mirrored rooms to show location and reaction and small displays to show size and distance.
Me at the Museum of Illusions
Admittingly it is a very small museum of the steep price of admission ($24.00 for an adult) and you will only be in the museum for about an hour. The problem with this museum is that once you experience it and if they do not change the displays, there is no reason to go back. The small displays can be experienced on two floors.
The Tilted Room display
The afternoon I was here, the museum was packed with summer campers and school aged kids who dominated the place and it is so small that it was hard to maneuver around the museum. Still it was a very interesting museum to experience once as it will test the power of and exercise your brain.
The Clone Table
Me in the Vertical Room
The Illusions Gallery
I found the museum more geared towards children but visiting it once as an adult was a lot of fun. You have to visit the museum at least once because it is very interesting.
My last part of the neighborhood I visited was my walk down Seventh Avenue. Just like Eighth Avenue, these are really commercial blocks and the architecture reflects that. Mostly office buildings and newer apartments. Here and there on the Avenue there were things that stuck out and some interesting little restaurants and shops along the way. The street art was very interesting.
Looking down Seventh Avenue from West 23rd Street
One of my favorite restaurants in the neighborhood sits right on the border of Seventh Avenue and West 23rd Street in the middle of the Chelsea neighborhood, Chelsea Papaya at 171 West 23rd Street. I love coming here for breakfast, lunch and dinner and the best part is you can get all this delicious food 24 hours a day.
Chelsea Papaya at 171 West 23rd Street
I swear that Chelsea Papaya has been part of this neighborhood since the 1970’s. I have passed this place a million times and never stopped in to eat. Recently when I was walking around the rim of Manhattan for ‘The Great Saunter” walk, I needed an early start, and this place opens at 5:00am (please check their website for the changing hours).
Chelsea Papaya at 171 West 23rd Street specials
For breakfast that morning I knew I would need to load up on carbohydrates so I ordered a Breakfast platter. I had four very large pancakes with a side of bacon and two scrambled eggs ($7.95) with a medium Papaya drink. It was the best breakfast on this rare cool summer morning.
The pancakes had a nice malted taste to them and were crisp and fluffy. The eggs were sizzling hot off the grill with the flavor of clarified butter. It was quite a large breakfast and it lasted me for most of the morning and afternoon.
The breakfast is over-sized here and filling. Bring your appetite.
The pancakes and eggs here are delicious
Yum!
The only problem that I had with breakfast was that you could not eat inside and I had to eat at one of the filthy outdoor tables that were available. They looked like the homeless had slept at them all night.
Chelsea Papaya is open all night
For dinner, I tried the Fried Chicken Sandwich and it was much better in the dining area. The Fries had just come out the fryer along with the Chicken Cutlet. Even though it had the shredded lettuce and tomato on top, they seemed much fresher on the second trip. I really enjoyed the meal. It had been after class and I really needed a good dinner.
The Chicken Sandwich and fries are cooked to order here
The Chicken Sandwich #4 Special at Chelsea Papaya
The one thing about Seventh Avenue is the interesting street art tucked here and there all over the Avenue. I love the fact that New York City feels like an open air museum with creative works here and there. The first one of this apple core that lined the wall outside a shop in neighborhood.
Mike Maka is a painter and multidisciplinary artist whose practice spans large-scale murals, canvas works, illustration, and sculpture. Mike is based in between New York City and Melbourne, Australia. (Artist’s website).
The one local restaurant that has stood out the me is the Sleeping Cat at 160 Seventh Avenue. This small bakery/cafe has a lot of freshly baked items and sandwiches and it extremely popular both with the locals and the NYU students as I passed here a lot on my way to campus a year ago.
I look forward to giving it a try in the future. I loved some of the items on display.
The pastries at the Sleeping Cat
Here and there tucked into corners of buildings and on walls and poles is the most interesting street art. I always notice it at the corner of my eyes and several of them stood out to me when walking around Lower Chelsea.
I thought this was a fun piece of street art. You do not see too many snowmen on skateboards
This street artist I have seen all over the City and has some of the most amazing work. I think the designs are so unusual and the geometrics are amazing. This is just one example of this graffiti artist’s work.
This graffiti artist’s work I have seen all over Manhattan. This was on a building on Seventh Avenue.
On the corner of Seventh Avenue and West 21st Street, there is a series of graffiti art along an abandoned restaurant that I thought was interesting.
A unique homage to many genres
Old Hanna Barbara characters
Snoopy and Mr. Peanut
The Barbadok’ from the horror film
These will disappear when the restaurant reopens one day but for now you can look at them and make your own interpretation.
Another great restaurant that I enjoy is J’s Pizza at 96 Seventh Avenue, which has some of the best pizza and entree specials in the neighborhood. I used to come here a lot at night after classes at NYU and everything was so reasonable and delicious. It is one of those hidden gems for both lunch and dinner.
J’s Pizza at 96 Seventh Avenue
I have been coming to J’s Pizza for many years and had eaten here in the past after viewing the Halloween Parade in October. I just rediscovered it again when I started grad school in the neighborhood and forgot how good the food was when I dined here. The pizza slices are generous in size and their marinara and pizza sauces you can tell are freshly made and not from a can.
The sauces for all the meals here from the pizza, to the spaghetti and meatballs to the sauce that is the side to the many rolls and calzones is well spiced and has so much flavor to it. It really makes the dishes.
J’s Pizza counter is lined with pizzas and calzones
The wonderful garlic knots, Chicken and Pepperoni Rolls and Grandma Pizza
The Chicken, Sausage and Pepperoni rolls and fresh Grandma Pizza
The Tuesday Night Special is Spaghetti & Meatballs for $9.00
I finished my walk of the neighborhood in the early evening when it finally started to cool down. All the restaurants and coffee shops started to fill up with people starting dinner or going for a drink after work.
I headed to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden for a Summer Solstice concert to celebrate the longest day of the year. This was a ‘Members Only’ special event and I was looking forward to cooling off and relaxing on the lawn to listen to Jazz Music. So I took the subway from West 23rd Street into the heart of Brooklyn and joined the other members at the front gate.
The Brooklyn Botanic Garden at 990 Washington Avenue was open late for the concert and watching the sunset in the park
The gardens were in full bloom and members were walking around the Cherry Blossom Lawn. Some people were sneaking a snack on the lawn or having a drink. Some were ordering food from the carts and just relaxing on their blankets. It was a nice night to be out as it cooled down when it got dark.
It was a nice night to walk around
The Garden set the bar up on both sides of the Gardens so that members could buy a cocktail or a snack. This made it easier to get something to eat (some nights you are not allowed food in the gardens except at the cart or in the restaurant inside the gardens).
The bar just outside the Visitors center
The menu at the bar that night
Waiting for the concert to begin
As it got dark the concert began. It really was not what I expected and being so tired from all the walking, I headed home around 9:30pm. It was going to be a two hour trip home. I was lucky that I made both the subway and the bus home as they were both waiting for me when I got to both of them.
It was a really good walk around the City and get the pulse of a neighborhood. Chelsea just keeps evolving and will change even more in the next ten years as the public housing in the neighborhood gets torn down for mixed income housing. The neighborhood will keep changing.
After six months of classes and finishing Graduate school, I am finally back to walking the neighborhoods again. This time to finish Lower Chelsea, which has changed from a neighborhood of manufacturing and shipping to one of the now more exclusive neighborhoods in Manhattan. I started my walk at Sixth Avenue and West 23rd Street.
I found the City a little quieter than on other weekends but figured those who get out of New York City were probably at their weekend homes either at the shore or in the country.
The corner of Sixth Avenue and West 23rd Street
I started the walk where I left off last November walking the streets of the Lower Flatiron District on the corner of Sixth Avenue and West 23rd Street. This is the border of the Lower Flatiron District and Lower Chelsea. These neighborhoods overlap so much I am not sure where on neighborhood starts and the other stops.
Much of West 23rd Street over the last several years has been torn down and rebuilt with new apartment buildings or older more historical buildings have been renovated for the same purpose. The neighborhood has become that desirable especially with the creation of the High line Park. The first building that always stands out in the neighborhood is the Chelsea Hotel at 204 West 23rd Street.
The historic Chelsea Hotel at 204 West 23rd Street
The one building that always impresses me is the Chelsea Hotel. This former Residential hotel is now a combination of residential apartments and a traditional independent hotel.
The Chelsea Hotel at 222 West 23rd Street was built between 1883 and 1885 and was designed by architect Philip Hubert from the firm of Hubert, Pirrson & Company. The hotel is designed in the Queen Anne Revival with a combination of American Gothic (Wiki).
The hotel had originally opened as a cooperative and a home to artists and members of the theater community, but the concept changed in 1905 when it reopened as a hotel. The hotel has gone through several management changes over the years. In early 2022, the Chelsea Hotel reopened again as a hotel when the interior renovations were finished.
The historic plaques at the hotel
The hotel has such a celebrated past with all the famous people who have stayed here. I think all the plaques on the front of the hotel don’t even touch the number of well known names who resided here.
The historic plaque
The historic plaque
The historic plaque
This is just a small portion of the famous people who have resided here.
The hotel went through a massive renovation recently and is now open as a regular hotel. Many older residents still live there but as their numbers dwindle that rest of the building will probably become a regular hotel.
At 244 West 23rd Street is a beautifully embellished building in brick and cream colors was built in 1900 by developer Isidor Hoffstadt. Decorations of garlands adorn the windows and top of the building and some of the upper floor windows are surrounded by archways. It now contains twelve lofts with multiple bedrooms (Daytonian in Manhattan).
While the core of West 23rd Street has changed with gleaming new buildings as residential and office space, as you get closer to Eighth Avenue the neighborhood has that classic ‘old New York’ look to it.
Walking down West 23rd Street near Eighth Avenue
I walked the length of West 23rd Street from Sixth Avenue, the border of the lower Flatiron District to Riverside Park. The weather just kept changing going from really sunny to cloudy and rainy the entire time I walked the neighborhood. One comment it was raining and the other it would be dazzling sunshine.
West 23rd Street by Tenth Avenue and the Hi Line Park
At the end of West 23rd Street starts Chelsea Waterside Park and Hudson River Park, which lines the entire side of the Upper West Side. The gardens were at the height of their bloom and it was a beautiful display of flowers.
This was the legacy of the Bloomberg Administration’s ‘Million Tree’ initiative. Between these parks that lined the waterways and the High line Park, it just made the neighborhood more desirable.
Funny how the weather went from sunny to rainy in ten minutes on Memorial Day weekend. By the time I walked to Hudson River Park, it got gloomy again. Still, it did not affect the beauty of the parks and helped water all the beautiful flowers blooming.
The flower beds were in full bloom
The park was in full bloom in the late Spring and was dazzling. Their Friends groups and gardeners are doing a wonderful job maintaining these flower beds.
As I walked the piers, the clouds kept rolling in and out and it sprinkled off and on that afternoon.
Admiring the view as I was waiting for the clouds to clear
The skyline of Jersey City was gloomy and impressive at the same time
Then the clouds broke again and the sun came out. This would be the weather all day long. The clouds then the sun then the clouds then rain and then the sun. It made for an interesting walking day.
The sun finally came out on Pier 57
The view of the Hudson Yards was just spectacular when the clouds passed by
The path led from the Hudson River Park to Pier 57 and I took the pathway through the Pier and all the recreation buildings that now make up the complex. I had never seen it from the river side of the pier.
Pier 57 from the waterfront side of the complex with all the pleasure boats
As I walked through the passageway, I learned the history of the pier and all the famous ships that had docked or left the pier. There was a display of pictures of famous arrivals and departures from the pier that I stopped to read about. It was a interesting look at the past of these piers,
The people at the dock were waiting for the Carpathian to arrive with the Titanic survivors in 1914.
The Carpathian arriving at New York harbor with the Titanic survivors.
The Lusitania leaving New York harbor for its final voyage. It would be torpedoed before it arrived in Europe.
The modern Chelsea Piers of today
Walking down Eleventh Avenue when the rain cleared
Along past the new construction along Eleventh Avenue
For all the building and changes this neighborhood has been through and so many luxury buildings replacing the docks of the past, there is still a little influence of the old neighborhood that still pops up from time to time. The graffiti art is still fantastic all over the City.
Some of the street art on the construction site on Eleventh Avenue
Some of the street art along the fence of the new construction
I followed Eleventh Avenue down the sidewalk to the Food Court at Pier 57. That was interesting with all the sounds and smells of different cuisines cooking.
The Food Court at Pier 57 should not be missed
The Food Court at Pier 57 really has some wonderful restaurants. There is an interesting mix of Spanish, Italian and Asian cuisines in the food court but it can be a bit pricey. The smells are amazing and you could almost taste the spices in the air. The couple of times I have been here the place is always busy.
The excitement of entering the Pier 57 Food Court
The floral decorations in the middle of the food court. I love the decorations here. They are really festive. The only bad part of the food court is the prices are really high so be prepared to spend money on lunch and dinner.
I left my tour of the food court as the clouds rolled in again and I arrived at Little Island Park, one of the newest and most innovative parks in New York City. The whole park is built on this innovative type of piling that come together to create this whimsical park. Something out of “Whoville”.
My trip to Little Island and the Chelsea Market with my NYU class:
At the very corner of the neighborhood was ‘Little Island Park’ at . This very unique structure has been captivating both New Yorker’s and tourists since it was built.
I then took the time to walk all over Little Island. I explored all the paths and stairs and explored all the beautiful gardens and terraces. What views! As the clouds passed by, we had moments of brilliant sunshine and at times it looked like it was going to down pour.
The gardens in full bloom on Little Island
The views from the very top of the terraces as the clouds finally cleared
Walking back down the stairs
The view from the pathway on the way down towards the exit
The view from the exit of Little Island as the clouds rolled by
The rest of the afternoon was on again off again clouds. I crossed over Eleventh Avenue to West 14th Street into the borders of Chelsea and the Meatpacking District (where at this point all the meatpacking companies are gone). In their place now are gleaming new apartment buildings that surround the High Line Park.
Eleventh Avenue at West 14th Street
I crossed the street to see 14th Street Park in full bloom. This park represents this new neighborhood with its gleaming towers and expensive stores. The lawn was perfectly manicured and the flowers were in full bloom. I did not even see any homeless people in the park. Just young couples walking their dogs.
The gardens in 14th Street Park as you cross onto West 14th Street from Eleventh Avenue
The gardens in full bloom at the park on West 14th street
Crossing onto West 14th Street by the Meatpacking District near 11th Avenue
I have been walking around this neighborhood since the 1980’s and talk about change. What used to be buildings that were geared to the docks and shipping, then became clubs in the 1980’s and early 90’s are now lofts and luxury stores. I have really seen this City change.
Walking down West 14th Street
Walking down West 14th Street near the Meatpacking District
Walking in Meatpacking District by Tenth Avenue
This border that Chelsea now shares with the Meatpacking District (which no longer has any more meatpackers) has become one of the trendiest and innovative neighborhoods in the City. Aldo judging by the prices at the restaurants and stores, one of the most expensive.
West 14th Street in the Meatpacking District
Walking down West 14th Street
As you walk further away from the parks along the river coastline and further down West 14th Street, more modern buildings pop up on both sides of the street. Still here and there, details of the old neighborhood still pop up such as at 200 West 14th Street, with its stoic faces and immense detail in the doorway.
The unique sculptures on outside of 200 West 14th Street
The building was marketed with the sophisticated-sounding name “French Flats,” one of the very first of these was built by Jersey City businessman Henry Meinken at the corner of 14th Street and 7th Avenue. Meinken called on James W. Cole to design his new building in 1888. Cole was a favorite of the Astor family and he built several factory, warehouse and apartment buildings for them, several a few blocks west on 14th around Hudson and 9th Avenues (Daytonianinmanhattan.com).
It was completed in 1889 and given the cultured name “The Jeanne d’Arc.” The five-story brick building with brownstone trim had commercial space on the street floor and 8 commodius apartments above — two apartments per floor. To set the building apart from the baser tenements, Cole added an attractive pressed metal cornice and carved brownstone sills and lintels (Daytonianinmanhattan.com).
The street art along West 14th Street was very interesting as well. I loved this version of lady liberty. This was painted outside of a pharmacy.
The street art outside the pharmacy by Artist Shira One
Shiro’s artwork is an exploration of classic New York urban history through the lens of an artist who reveres Hip Hop culture. Her artwork is a prime example of the fusion of Japanese aesthetics and old school New York graffiti art. In 2002, she moved to New York alone, and after living between Japan and New York, she obtained an US American artist visa in 2013, acquired an US artist green card in 2021, and is currently based in New York (Artist Shiro1 website).
Another great mural that sits on the side of a building on West 14th that stands out entitled “Mural on 14th Street, New York” by Brazilian artists brothers Gustavo and Otavio Pandolfo known as ‘Osgemeos’. This colorful and engaging piece of artwork towers over the street and shows an exaggerated image of everyday New Yorkers.
The word ‘Osgemeos’ is translated as “the twins” in Portuguese, is a collaborative art duo comprised of twin brothers Gustavo and Otavio Pandolfo. It was in the 1980’s with the invasion of hip-hop, and the explosion of Brazilian culture that the brothers began to use art as a way of sharing their dynamic and magical universe with the public. Combining traditional, folkloric, and contemporary elements of Brazilian culture with graffiti, hip-hop, music, dreams and international youth culture, the artists have created an expansive body of work that includes murals, paintings, sculpture, site-specific installations, and video (Lehmannmaupin.com website).
This is what I love about walking around Manhattan. You do not even have to step foot in a museum to enjoy great artworks that are tucked into corners of every neighborhood on walls, telephone poles, on the street and in courtyards. You just have to look for it.
As I walked further down West 14th Street, between all the new construction going on and the gleaming glass towers that seemed to be changing the face of the neighborhood a few buildings stood out for the beauty and details in their architecture.
The first one was the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe at 229 West 14th Street. I was attracted the elegant look of the church.
Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe at 229 West 14th Street
The church opened in 1902 and was designed by architect Gustave E. Steinback in both the Baroque Revival and the Spanish Baroque style of architecture (Wiki).
The Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe was founded in 1902, and became the first parish in New York City to serve the swelling numbers of Hispanics. During this time the Archdiocese was ill-staffed with priests who could not speak Spanish and those who were willing to reach out to the newcomers and learn their language and their ways were preoccupied with other important ministries. Our Lady of Guadalupe parish was established as a national parish, responsible for the spiritual care of all Hispanics of the city. (Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe website).
The details of the Church stood out for their beauty and elegance
Another standout building on the corner of West 14th Street and Seventh Avenue is 154 West 14th Street. Arranged in a tripartite base-shaft-capital composition with large window areas, this building is a striking and unusual example of a large loft building partly clad in terra cotta, on the three-story base, on the spandrels between the white-brick piers of the midsection, and on the upper portion. The building was designed by architect Herman Lee Meader and was built between 1912-1913 (The Historic District Council Website).
The details on the building are so unusual and you really have to look at the building close to appreciate its beauty.
Another building that stands out on West 14th Street is 144 West 14th Street which is part of the Pratt College today but has an interesting past. Pratt bought the building in 1999.
The beautifully detailed building at 144 14th Street
144 West 14th Street is a grandly-proportioned Renaissance Revival-style loft building. It is faced with limestone, tan brick and terra cotta and was designed by the prominent architects Brunner & Tryon in 1895-96. It is seven stories tall and has a street façade articulated through a series of monumental arches embellished with neo-classical ornament (Historic District Council website).
The detail work at 144 West 14th Street
Though the building reminded me of one of the department stores from the post Civil War period, the building was actually used for manufacturing, one the tenants of the building being Macy’s (DaytonianinNYC website).
Turning the corner onto to Sixth Avenue that Chelsea shares with the Lower Flatiron District, you enter what was once the next great shopping area of the late 1880’s to about 1920 when the “Ladies Shopping District’ moved from 14th Street after the Civil War to Sixth Avenue between West 20th Street to West 23rd Street to create “The Ladies Shopping Mile”.
It would then move to West 34th Street where Macy’s resides today and the ghosts of B. Altman, Stern’s, Orbach’s and Franklin Simon buildings still remain to the last holdout of Lord & Taylor on Fifth Avenue that closed a few years ago that used to line the blocks. Most of the older smaller buildings have been torn down and gleaming new towers are starting to line parts of West 14th Street between Eighth to Fifth Avenues and up along the Avenues.
West 14th Street by Sixth Avenue
Looking up Sixth Avenue and 19th Street, the eastern border of Chelsea
Walking up Sixth Avenue towards West 20th Street, most of the more elaborate buildings are closer to the edge of West 20th Street. Walking back up toward the heart of the former “Ladies Shopping Mile” along Sixth Avenue from West 18th Street to West 23rd Street, the lower part of Sixth Avenue is similar in look to West 14th Street. A mish-mosh architectural styles from years of knocking down the older buildings. Inside are a variety of fast food restaurants, coffee shops and small stores.
The first building left of the former shopping district is the former Pace Building at 610 Sixth Avenue.
David Price opened his first women’s clothing store, D. Price & Co. around 1887. The Price Building was built in 1910-1912 and designed by Buchman & Fox in the Beaux-Arts style (Wiki). The was the combination of the two stores, the one facing Sixth Avenue and the one facing 18th Street (DaytoninManhattan.com).
The embellishments of 610 Sixth Avenue designed by Buchman & Fox.
Next to the Price Building is what was one of the grandest of the department stores in New York City at 620 Sixth Avenue, Seigel Cooper
620 Sixth Avenue-The former Siegal Cooper Department Store
The original store design in the late 1800’s (New York Historical Society)
The Siegel-Cooper Department store was a Chicago based store that was founded in 1877 by Henry Siegel, Frank H. Cooper and Isaac Keim. They opened the New York City store in 1896 on the Ladies Mile Shopping District. The store was designed by the architectural firm of DeLemons & Cordes in the Beaux-Arts design. When it opened, it was the largest department store in the world until Macy’s opened in 1902 (Wiki).
The Siegal Cooper insignia on the building.
The window details
The details on the upper windows of the store.
Henry Siegel over-extended himself and sold the company in 1902 to an investor and the store declared bankruptcy in 1915 and closed in 1917. After the store closed, it was used as a military hospital and then as a warehouse. Today after years of being used as a warehouse, it now has several retailers located in the store space (Wiki).
Across the street from the Siegel-Cooper store is the old B. Altman & Company store before they moved to East 34th Street.
625 Fifth Avenue-The old B. Altman & Company Department Store.
B. Altman & Company was founded in 1865 as a family store that eventually came under the control of Benjamin Altman. It moved from its Third Avenue and Tenth Street location to 621 Sixth Avenue in 1877. The store expanded four times in this location to cover what is now 625 Sixth Avenue. The store was designed in the Neo-Grec design and built in four stages. First by architects David and John Jardine for the original store in 1877 and then the extension in 1880. Then by architect William Hume in 1887 and then by architects Buchman & Fox in 1910. The store moved to the corner of Fifth Avenue and 34th Street in 1906 when the shopping district moved to 34th Street (Wiki).
The last old department store on the Ladies Mile Shopping District is at 641 Sixth Avenue on the corner of Sixth Avenue and West 20th Street.
641 Sixth Avenue-The old Simpson Crawford Department Store
Simpson Crawford like many stores on Sixth Avenue had its humble beginnings on 19th Street. The store continued to grow and expand catering to the ‘carriage trade’ and selling the finest merchandise. After their new store was destroyed in a fire in 1880, they opened the store at 641 Sixth Avenue in 1899 which was designed by architectural firm William H. Hume & Son in the Beaux-Arts design (dayoninmanhattan.com).
The details of 641 Sixth Avenue.
This part of the Flatiron District feels so different from the northern part of the neighborhood. So much of it has disappeared over the years that the character has changed. It does not have the distinction of the blocks between 23rd and 20th streets. There are blocks of these types of buildings whereas the blocks of the old shopping districts of the early to late 1800’s from 14th to 18th Streets have slowly disappeared over time. Older buildings have since been replaced with modern office and apartment buildings. The buildings have even been refitted for apartments and for the growing college campuses in the area.
While there are many architectural gems in this neighborhood, it just goes to show the progression of Manhattan and how things have changed in the last 100 years. The City keeps marching on. Still this section of the Lower Flatiron District shows just how important this part of the old “Midtown Manhattan” was from the Civil War until WWI. Just look up and admire all the details on each building. There are a surprise and delight for the eyes.
The Street art on West 15th Street off Sixth Avenue “I Love New York”
Read my blog on Walking the Streets of the Lower Flatiron District:
While I was walking around Chelsea, I was trying to figure out where to go for dinner. A guy was sampling slices of pizza outside of a new branch of Pizza Studio on West 14th Street. It was delicious and I decided to eat there for dinner.
I thought that the prices were very fair and you got a delicious 12 inch pizza for $10.00 and a lemonade. The whole bill with an extra tip was around $12.50, which was reasonable for all the food. Plus the pizza was delicious.
The ingredients to choose from
The Sausage pizza I ordered that evening
The pizza was wonderful
The pizza served with the Blue Lemonade
What was really nice after the day walking around the neighborhood was the lemonade was so refreshing. You got a choice between Watermelon Lemonade and the Blue Lemonade above and you got free refills. Talk about quenching your thirst on a hot day. It was a great dinner.
Walking past Holy Apostles Church at night
The Empire State Building lit for the holiday
A beautiful site of the Empire State Building
On each corner of the neighborhood, surprises and changes keep this neighborhood in a continuous flux. It just keeps reinventing itself.
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