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Manhattan & DC Tips?

E

Veteran

Hah! Clearly I have a lot on my plate for April; I'm tapping into the hive mind again for travel ideas. I turn 29 in less than two weeks (!), and to celebrate I'll be going on a train trip to DC to visit with friends/family for about a week (I haven't seen DC since I was around 9 years old) and then up to NYC for the very first time. I've got 5 nights, in a little, cheap-for-Manhattan boutique hotel, so I plan to focus most of my sightseeing/eating in that borough to get the most of my hotel bill (usually I'm a hostel, backpacking girl). I figure I live a train ride away, and can always visit again & stay in a different borough for more exploring!

For both DC & NYC, I've got my lists settled of the major sights I'd like to see. But I also love eating, especially at budget, hole-in-the-wall types of places. I'm an adventurous eater who enjoys trying out new cuisines. I also love spending a few hours in a cafe, people watching, on a trip. So I thought I'd ask if anyone has any such suggestions for such things in either Manhattan or DC. I'll be getting around via public transport in each, and am happy to go a few metro/bus stops away from the highly touristed sections to get a better & cheaper meal.

Of course, if anyone has any off-the-radar activity suggestions, like little vintage or indie book shops/quirky museums/beautiful photography places/parks, I'm more than open to all of that too. And if anyone would like to do a Manhattan meetup (I'm not sure we have any NYC regular posters?) & give me a local tour, or wants to browse the Chelsea flea market on Sunday, that would be super fun too! I'll treat you to lunch to say thank you.

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24 replies

Latest reply was from E

Tanya

Veteran

Oh, you are coming to DC! We absolutely have to meet, I would love to! I am off to send you a message with my contact info etc. How lovely!

carter

Veteran

What a wonderful trip! It's been 100 years since I lived in DC, and I was on a serious budget the first few years. I lived one block over from the Eastern Market, so that was my uber-cheap spot for breakfast and dinner to go. It's an easy walk from the Metro and just a darned fun way to putter around for a bit.

http://www.easternmarket-dc.org/

Daria

Happy birthday!
In NYC, I can think of the following in the area of your hotel:
the High Line:
http://www.thehighline.org/
Blue Bottle Coffee (Chelsea location):
https://bluebottlecoffee.com/cafes/chelsea
Rubin's museum of Himalayan art is very close too and is quite special:
http://rubinmuseum.org/

deb

Veteran

What part of DC will you be staying in? My son moved there 4 years ago. I spend 10 days there every year and have gotten to know the city fairly well. I think, for me, the first place I would see is the Newseum.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

Oh, if you do want to have a DC meetup, let us know!

My knowledge is a bit more Annapolis- and Baltimore-centric (let me know if you might want to explore either one, all within a half-hour's drive of DC), but I'm sure other ladies can give you some good DC restaurant advice. There are a lot of great ethnic restaurants in DC, but my knowledge may be out of date.

If you at all enjoy botanical gardens, check out the beautiful one (the US National Botanic Garden) on the Mall, and the National Arboretum is worth a visit too -- there's a lovely bonsai collection and koi pond near the visitor center, and hundreds of acres of gardens to explore. Great for an afternoon of walking or biking.

I hear really good things about the Spy Museum too.

Traci

Veteran

My biggest tip for eating on the cheap in NYC is food trucks. There's an app to help you find good ones. My family still talks about our meal from Uncle Gussie's foodtruck while we were in NYC. We also had a great truck for breakfast right down from our hotel. It was simple and good.

E

Veteran

I’m PMed you Tanya.

Ohhh, I love markets Carter! Thanks for the tip; I’ll definitely add it to my itinerary.

Thank you Daria; I’m really enjoying my late 20s & am excited to turn 30 too, so birthdays are fun. I’d marked down the High Line already, but the other two are new to me & both sound great!

Deb, I’ll actually be staying Baltimore (that’s where my family is) & taking the train into DC. That museum looks fascinating & who can resist such a pun for a name?

Janet, Tanya & I have talked about meet up possibilities, so I’ll PM you that info! As I just told Deb, I’m actually staying in Baltimore, as that’s where my family is, so Baltimore info is welcome too. I’ll be getting around via public transport though when I’m exploring on my own, hence why I’d focused more on DC; I assumed it was more solo traveller friendly. I purposely wanted to visit in April for the cherry blossoms, so I’m definitely interested in botanical gardens! And as a confirmed tree hugger, the arboretum sounds irresistible. Thanks.

Traci, ohhh that’s a great idea! I didn’t realise there were apps: I’ll look into that. Thanks!

Anonymous

(Popping my head out from long-term lurkerdom)

Happy birthday, Eva!

For DC coffee shops, I always like Tryst in Adams Morgan. Fun atmosphere, good place to park yourself for a while, and it has more of a full-service menu than most coffee shops. You might also like Teaism (has a few branches downtown), which is (obviously) more tea-focused and has good desserts. Kramerbooks in Dupont Circle is an independent bookstore with its own cafe and also has really good desserts. I know there've been a bunch of new places that have opened in the last few years too which I'm less familiar with.

In terms of ethnic food, Ethiopian is really big in DC and is delicious. I like Etete near U St. I think Dukem is good too, and there are a bunch of others whose names I'm forgetting now. Will try to think of more options, but I'm a little rusty on more budget-y places in DC proper, since I live just outside the city and most of the bargain places I tend to go to are in my neighborhood.

Not really a hole in the wall, but cheap and good, is Beefsteak near GWU, which just opened. It's run by a chef who has a bunch of higher-end restaurants here, and basically does vegetable-and-grain bowls with local, seasonal veggies. Other random food options I'll throw out are Pizzeria Paradiso and Two Amys, which both have amazing pizza.

I second the Newseum and Arboretum recommendations and also really like the American History Museum. And I love Eastern Market, which I really need to go to more often! Another good market is Union Market, which is pretty new, with vendors that are kind of more hipster/artisanal.

I'm going to be out of town for one of the weekends in April, but would love to join in on a DC meetup with you if it works out!

Dee

Veteran

Another vote for a DC meetup! Or even a Baltimore one, if needs be.

Janet and Aubergine have given you some great museum suggestions. The Newseum is amazing and I'll add that National Portrait Gallery is much more interesting than expected. If you are going to the Mall to see the cherry blossoms at peak season, be prepared for it to be absolutely crazy but slightly less so on weekdays.

The Atlas district on H street NE has a wide variety of ethnic food and small cafes at a variety of prices and is walkable from Union Station.

deb

Veteran

Oh, I love Eatonville, on 14th NW. It is a few blocks from my sons place. It is always my first stop. Busboys and Poets, across the street is fun, too.

E

Veteran

Oh thanks for all of the suggestions Aubergine! Those restaurants sound great; Ethiopian was on my list of ‘definites’ already, and now I have a rec. For some reason I thought you lived in Boston, but I’m delighted you might be able to meet up too! I didn’t realise how many DC area Fabbers we had; I’ll PM you my dates/info.

Dee, I’ll PM you too! I forgot you weren’t in Canada anymore. I’ll put on my best ‘crowds are fun’ face for the cherry blossoms & try to go on a week day too. Thanks for all of the other suggestions!

Thanks again Deb!

Diana

Veteran

Oh, I wish you were coming to Boston! (Actually, let me know when you will be in NYC. It's not actually that hard for me to get down there and I haven't been in a while ... although I don't know how many free weekends I have in April.)

I am by no means an expert at NYC, but I just wanted to put in another plug for the High Line. Because I got engaged there.

Also, I am not a morning person AT ALL but one of my favorite things to do in the Village/SoHo is walk around early in the morning. Those neighborhoods are lovely and quiet and serene on a sunny morning, and it's really nice to enjoy a coffee/pastry at a quiet cafe. (I used to love Dominique Ansel in SoHo but that was pre-Cronut madness. I haven't been there since, but I imagine it's a madhouse from dawn till dusk (or at least until the Cronuts run out) now.

Also in SoHo is Purl SoHo, which is a super cute knitting/sewing shop. It's tiny, and the prices are on the high side, but worth dropping in just to see all the beautiful yarn. =) School Products (in the garment district) is another yarn store I like to go to NYC; they carry the owner's yarn line as well as a bunch of coned luxury yarns (remainders from commercial enterprises) for good prices.

A lot of NYC museums have free days/afternoons. I know MOMA is free on Friday evenings (after 4 or 5, I think) - I used to take an early train/bus into the city when J. was living in NJ and go to MOMA when I got there while I waited for him to get off work. The Frick Collection is free on Sunday from 11-1, as well.

ETA: There's a Kinokuniya (Japanese bookstore) near Times Square in Midtown, which is a fabulous place to find Japanese knitting books (and sewing too, I'm sure) and stationery/pens/etc.

rabbit

Veteran

What a fun trip! My sister lives in DC. Two of more art/craft oriented museums that I really enjoyed are the Renwick Gallery of American Art/Craft (Smithsonian) -- great contemporary craft work; and the museum of American Visionary Art in Baltimore (outsider art) which is weird and wonderful, and so is the building: http://www.avam.org/

ETA: shoot, it looks like the Renwick is closed for renovation until November.

E

Veteran

Diana, Boston's on my list for future train trips! I'll PM you my dates: that would be great fun! So far all of my online friends seem to live in DC and none in NYC. LOL Thanks for all of the suggestions; I've jotted them down!

Rabbit, too bad about the Renwick gallery, but the Baltimore museum looks really neat. Thanks! I'm hoping to visit the American Folk Art museum in NYC, so maybe that'll make up for the Renwick.

chadya

Veteran

Definitley do The Highline, I like Eataly http://www.eataly.com/ very touristy but worth it, if you want to eat there try to do mid afternoon not at actual dinner time or at least get coffee. There is a Nutella Room if you like that stuff.
At Lincoln Center there is an exhibit about Frank Sinatra

The Neue Galerie is worth a visit, in conjunction with the new movie The Woman in Gold. The restaurant there is one of my favorites, so Austrian.

chadya

Veteran

DC

Spy Museum is worth it, also Hillwood which was Majorie Merriweather Post's house. Russian art and objects d'art. http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org/
I would skip the Zoo and beware that all the Smithsonian museums get very crowded.

chadya

Veteran

One more thing if you like knitting the Lion Brand store is supposed to worth a trip, they dont actually sell a ton of yarn but they have cool projects and windows. I don't know where it is but if you google or if you are on Ravelry you can easily find out. Or LMK and I will.

Elle

Veteran

Happy Birthday! Your trip sounds wonderful

For NYC, I also recommend the High Line. Also, from your hotel, it's an easy and pretty walk through the West Village (I love 11th street). There is a house that is only 9 feet wide at 75 1/2 Bedford Street.

For cheap(er) food: Veselka (Ukraine diner) in the East Village, Brick Lane Curry (Indian) on 6th St in the East Village. Pastrami Queen (upper East Side), 2nd Ave Deli (on 31st or 33st on the East Side).

If you are there on a weekday, go to Balthazar on Spring Street in Soho for breakfast. It's a charming French bistro with good food and great people watching. I wouldn't put it in the cheap category but it's fun and breakfast is manageable.

Jenny H

Veteran

If a DC meetup happens, I would love to participate!

E

Veteran

Thank you Chadya & Elle!

Jenny, I've PMed you with the details!

annagybe

(website)

Veteran

They used to have an UES location I went to, but now only out in Coney Island. If you make the trip, seriously the best pizza I've ever had.
http://www.totonnosconeyisland.com/

JG

In DC I love the Textile Museum, just reopened, in its new location on the GWU campus, and the Museum of African Art and the Freer and Sackler (Asian art). The National Building Museum and the Museum of Women in the Arts are my favorites, too. Finally, Mount Vernon estate has vegetable and flower gardens, farm land, woodlands, river access, a historic home, a museum, restaurant and food court, great gift shops.
Will you send me info about the DC get-together? I'd love to join you!

citygirldc

(website)

Veteran

I'm in the heart of DC. Let me know if you have any other questions. I can possibly meet up with up depending on the dates.

E

Veteran

Thanks Anna!

Thank you for all of the suggestions JG; I suspect we share a lot of similar interests! I just started another thread, but in case you don't see it, I'll PM you too re: the meetup.

CityGirlDC, thank you for the offer! I'm going to (finally) dive into my DC guidebooks today, so I'll PM you if any more questions arise! And I'll PM you meetup info.