I came across Lucky’s Famous Burgers while walking the Hell’s Kitchen/Clinton neighborhood for my blog, “MywalkinManhattan.com” and thought it looked like a nice little neighborhood restaurant. It is an excellent combination of food, atmosphere and good customer service. For a burger place, I thought the food was excellent and the portion sizes were really fair.
They have a nice selection of combination meals on the menu to choose from and after walking all day long I was starved. I settled for the Lucky’s Original Special with French Fries and a Boylan’s Black Cherry Soda from the fountain. That was a real treat because I love their sodas and you don’t see them on the fountain too much…
The Flower District is alive and well in the Chelsea neighborhood although it has gotten a lot smaller in the last twenty years. Rezoned for residential and commercial in a new way, most of the lower part of Sixth Avenue from West 34th to West 23rd Streets has changed dramatically with new residential high rises being built along the avenue. Still on the side streets, small ‘Mom & Pop” businesses still thrive making this area a haven for fresh cut flowers, potted plants, garden equipment & accessories and many floral gifts and arrangements.
Foliage Paradise at 113-115 West 28th Street in the heart of the “Flower District”
I came across this wonderful little dumpling and lo mein shop when I was walking around Kips Bay for my blog, “MywalkinManhattan.com”. I had not had the chance to try the restaurant on those trips to the neighborhood but tried it recently and was thrilled by the food and service of this family owned shop. The food and the service were both excellent.
The Combination Platters are a great deal for lunch
The pot stickers and lo mien combination is so reasonable and the portion sizes are very generous. The pot stickers were pan-fried and crisp on the outside and moist and juicy on the inside.
The dumplings and pot stickers that I tried on my first two trips were filled with…
*Milanes Restaurant closed for business in June 2022. I stopped by to see if the hours had changed and there is a “For Rent” sign on the business. It is too bad because the food was excellent and very reasonably priced. The owners were also super nice.
Sometimes you just stumble across a restaurant when you are walking down a street that catches your attention. That is how I felt when I was staying in Manhattan for Spring Break from school and was staying at the Sheraton Four Points a few doors down from Milanes Restaurant.
I saw how reasonable the restaurant was and the nice selection of dishes for breakfast and lunch. This Spanish restaurant has a Dominican influence in its cooking from it owners and chefs.
I stopped in for breakfast after seeing the menu and had never had a Dominican Breakfast before. My selection though ended up being very American with me ordering two breakfasts. I had an order of French Toast which was two very thick slices of bread dipped…
There are some stores in New York City that just stand out for their uniqueness because of the product they sell or their history with the City or both. Little Pie Company is one of those stores.
I had heard of the store since its opening years ago and had never visited it. When I was walking the Hell’s Kitchen/Clinton neighborhood for my blog, “MywalkinManhattan.com”, I finally came across this friendly little pie shop just off the Theater District. Since I remembered that the founder was a actor who was trying to earn money while he was in between jobs I thought it was fitting for its location.
Since COVID, the pies are now individually wrapped for purchase and did not come just out…
Don’t miss this touching memorial to the victims of the Titanic that sits just in front of the South Street Seaport.
The Titanic Memorial Lighthouse sits just in front of the entrance to the South Street Seaport.
I have been to the South Street Seaport dozens of times over the years and can’t believe that I never noticed this memorial dedicated to those lost in the Titanic disaster. I was visiting the Seaport recently after finishing another walk down the length of Broadway for my blog, “MywalkinManhattan.com” and was walking past the Seaport on my way to Chinatown. Something about it this time caught my attention and I stopped to look at the dedication of this small lighthouse.
It was really touching to see that the people from the 1912 disaster were not forgotten in New York City, its ultimate destination. This was the work of Molly Brown, the ‘Unsinkable Molly Brown’ from the movie. She wanted to be sure that the people who survived were never forgotten. The small lighthouse structure sits at the entrance to the main part of the seaport on an island just off the cobblestone walkway into the complex.
The Memorial plaque on the lighthouse
The tower that it was originally placed a top of the Seamen’s Church Institute Building and it was put up for sale and demolished in 1965 and the small lighthouse memorial was donated to the South Street Seaport Museum. It was placed in its current location in 1976 (Friends of the Lighthouse).
The little lighthouse is a touching reminder of Manhattan’s connection to the event over 100 years ago. Try not to miss it when you are visiting the Seaport.
The history of the Titanic Memorial Lighthouse:
(This is from the Friends of the Titanic Memorial Lighthouse website)
On April 15th, 1913, one year after the sinking of the Titanic, the Titanic Memorial Lighthouse and Time Ball, mounted atop the Seamen’s Church Institute, were dedicated to honor the passengers, officers and crew who perished in the tragedy. The dedicatory service opened with a hymn and prayer and then Rt. Rev. David h Greer, Bishop of New York, read the following lines of dedication:
“To the glory of Almighty God and in loving memory of those passengers, officers and crew who lost their lives in the foundering of the steamship, Titanic, on April 15, 1912, I, David Hummell Greer, Bishop of New York and president of the Seamen’s Church Institute of New York, do solemnly dedicate the Titanic Memorial Lighthouse Tower. As its light by night shall guide pilgrims and seafaring men from every clime into this port, so may they follow Him who is the Light of Life across the waves of this troublesome world to everlasting life and looking at noon toward this place to note the time of day, may they remember that our days pass as the swift ships and in view of the shortness and uncertainty of human life, strive to fulfill their duty well as the beat preparation for Eternity. Amen.”
The Titanic Memorial Lighthouse exhibited a fixed green light that could be seen throughout New York harbor and down as far as Sandy Hook. Five minutes before noon each day, a time ball would be hoisted to the top of a steel rod mounted atop the lighthouse and dropped at the stroke of twelve as indicated over the wires from Washington DC. According to The Lookout, the magazine of the Seamen’s Church Institute, the Titanic Memorial Lighthouse would be a much needed daily reminder for ‘in a busy, carless city the average person so soon forgets’.
The Seamen’s Church Institute was established in 1834 and had announced plans for its new twelve story headquarters at South Street and Coenties Slip in Lower Manhattan several years before the loss of the Titanic. The Flemish style building was meant to reflect new York’s Dutch origins and was to be crowned by a tower whose beacon would welcome incoming seamen. The cornerstone for the building was laid one day after the sinking of the Titanic and a week later the institute announced the lighthouse atop their building would be a memorial to the victims of the tragedy.
I have been to the South Street Seaport dozens of times over the years and can’t believe that I never noticed this memorial dedicated to those lost in the Titanic disaster. I was visiting the Seaport recently after finishing another walk down the length of Broadway for my blog, “MywalkinManhattan.com” and was walking past the Seaport on my way to Chinatown. Something about it this time caught my attention and I stopped to look at the dedication of this small lighthouse.
It was really touching to see that the people from the 1912 disaster were not forgotten in New York City, its ultimate destination. This was the work of Molly Brown, the ‘Unsinkable Molly Brown’ from the movie. She wanted to be…
There are just some restaurants and shops that are institutions in their neighborhoods and the Chinatown Ice Cream Factory is one of them. I have been coming to the store since the 1990’s when I fell in love with their Lychee and Fortune Cookie Ice Creams. What I have loved about the flavors here is that they follow a Chinese-American theme with flavors based on fruits and desserts popular here in the states.
The Original Chinatown Ice Cream Factory logo
Since the first time I ate there, I have tried their Almond Cookie, Banana, Mango and Passion Fruit flavors over the years along with some of their seasonal flavors like Pineapple and Strawberry. Since then they have added flavors like Durian, Black Sesame, Green…
I have stopped in at the Hotel Chocolat a few of times over the last couple of months and have found that the store has the most amazing candies, chocolates and ice cream creations. The store had been closed during the COVID pandemic but reopened with a nice manager with a big smile and hearty greeting. I have never been so warmly welcomed to a store before.
I had been staying in Manhattan over the Spring Break, working on updating my blog on ‘Midtown East’ for my sister site “MywalkinManhattan.com” and revisited the store again. There were all sorts of beautifully boxed chocolates for sale for the upcoming Easter holidays as well as every day candies.
The candies here are creatively made and packaged with all sorts…
There are times that you pass a restaurant many times and you never go in. This was the case of Amore Pizza Cafe at 370 West 58th Street. A friend of mine worked at the Hudson Hotel for years and passed the restaurant that is around the corner many times.
As I started to my walk around the Midtown West/Hell’s Kitchen/Clinton neighborhood for my blog “MywalkinManhattan.com”, stopped in for a quick snack. I had a slice of cheese pizza ($2.75) and it was excellent. The pizza sauce is nicely spiced with a rich tomatoey taste. It really makes the pizza. The slice was the right combination of cheese and sauce and had a gooey complexity.
There are times that I walk around Manhattan and things just pop out at you. Tucked inside small pockets of the City are small community gardens, detailed statues, street art and sometimes a small cemetery. I had passed the First Shearith Israel Graveyard or also known as the Chatham Square Cemetery many times when visiting Chinatown since I was a kid. This tiny elevated pocket square of land is located next to a building and locked behind a gate just off St. James Place right at the end of Mott Street strip of Chinatown.
You really have to look for this at the side of 55-57 St. James Place
This is the oldest Jewish Cemetery in Manhattan that was in use from 1683 to 1833. The site of the cemetery was originally on a hill overlooking the East River in an open area at the northern periphery of the British-Dutch colonial settlement. The plot was purchased in 1682 by Joseph Bueno de Mesquita and the cemetery’s first interment was for his relative, Benjamin Bueno de Mesquita. The cemetery expanded in the 1700’s from Chatham Square to the upper part of Oliver Street to Madison Avenue (Wiki).
The original map of the Dutch Colony (New York Historical Society)
In 1823, a City ordinance prohibited burials south of Canal Street and the congregation opened a second burial spot at West 11th Street. A third cemetery was opened at 21st Street west of Sixth Avenue. The size of the cemetery has been reduced over the years because of development and most of the bodies were removed and moved to the other cemeteries. In 1851, the City again prohibited burials below 86th Street and the congregations again opened a fourth cemetery in Ridgewood, Queens. In 1855, with more development changing the area again and over two hundred graves were removed from the site. Only about hundred remain (Wiki).
The inside of the cemetery
Two of the most notable people buried here are Reverend Gershom Mendes Seixas (1745-1816), the first American born Jewish spiritual leader and Dr. Walter Jonas Judah, the second person of the Jewish faith to attend an American Medical School (now Columbia University) and the first native born one. (Wiki). There are also 18 Jewish Revolutionary War era veterans and patriots buried here.
History of the Jewish Settlement in Dutch New York:
In September of 1654, just after the Jewish New Year, twenty-three Jews, mostly of Spanish and Portuguese origin arrived in Manhattan. These people had been living in Recife, the former capital of the 17th Century Dutch Brazil. When the Portuguese defeated the Dutch for control of Recife and brought with them the Inquisition, the Jews of that area left. Some returned to Amsterdam, where they had originated and others moved around the Caribbean to other islands. These twenty-three arrived in New York due a series of unseen events (Big Apple Secrets).
Governor Peter Stuyvesant did not want to permit them to stay but these settlers fought for their rights and won permission to remain. In 1655, the Jewish settlers applied to the Dutch authorities for permission to purchase a parcel of land as an exclusive place to bury their dead. In February of 1656, appealed “that consent may be given” for the purchase. In 1644, the British took New Amsterdam and renamed it New York and the Jews were granted more civil rights. In 1706, they had organized their own congregation, Shearith Israel (Big Apple Secrets).
The cemetery for the most part is pad locked but you can view the outside from the street level. The cemetery is open on Memorial Day for services to the members of the armed services but for the most part you have to view the cemetery from the street level.
The plaque that you can see at eye level just inside the cemetery.
This unique plot of land is easy to miss so look for the plaque at eye level as you pass it.
There are times that I walk around Manhattan and things just pop out at you. Tucked inside small pockets of the City are small community gardens, detailed statues, street art and sometimes a small cemetery. I had passed the First Shearith Israel Graveyard or also known as the Chatham Square Cemetery many times when visiting Chinatown since I was a kid. This tiny elevated pocket square of land is located next to a building and locked behind a gate just off St. James Place right at the end of Mott Street strip of Chinatown.
You really have to look for this at the side of 55-57 St. James Place
This is the oldest Jewish Cemetery in Manhattan that was in use from 1683 to…
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