New York New York!

I am off to New York, this will be my first ever trip to America hurrah! As a belated honeymoon sort of thing. We will also be visitinf family also in Virginia (Norfolk?) I think...sorry itf thats vague. Any hoo, I am on a quest for all things devinely vintage. Could any-one help with regards to places or areas I can check out...? We will be in NY for about a week or so, vintage shops, food places, markets OOOH Flea markets please too...thrifty places? Or just amazing stuff we can do...? Would be fab

First off, how exciting! It sounds like a fun trip and I'm sure you will have a wonderful time.

I haven't been, but I hear there are tons of vintage clothing shops. Hopefully some of the local ladies will be able to offer more help in that area.

Personally I'd have to see Rockefeller Center, Central Park, Radio City Music Hall, and Grand Central Terminal.

Restaurants... I don't know about the quality of the food or prices, but just to say I'd done it, I'd probably go to Sardi's and the Russian Tea Room. I'd also want to go to a "real" delicatessen, pizza parlor, and probably a street hot dog vendor. Bagels - that's another thing I'd have to try in NYC.

Wow thankyou so much for you pointers fortworth gal, its most appreciated. I am really excited, I will defo check out those places. Grand Central Station must be amazing. I adore my food too, so I am sure to hunt out as many places as I can. I will of course take lots of photos too...

There are many threads here in the Lounge about things to do in NYC, but if you're to be here on the evening of Sept. 24th, you should attend Wit's End, a monthly Jazz Age party organized by one of our own, Diane Naegel.

Here's my idea for a "divinely vintage" afternoon well-spent:

If you have a chance, I'd highly recommend you spend some time in Brooklyn. Hop on the 2 and 3 if you're on the West side of town or the 4 and 5 if you're on the east and go south to Borough Hall station. Check out the amazing New York Transit Museum where you can see an excellent collection of vintage subway cars (a few of which are being run on the 2 and 3 lines on weekends this September to promote a new TV series). Then walk south on Court Street, check out the great businesses in the Cobble Hill neighborhood. Once you get to Sackett Street turn right and head that direction until Henry. Buy yourself a treat at the Brooklyn Farmacy (an new-old drugstore, soda fountain joint). Continue south on Henry Street until you get to Carroll Street, then make a left and go up until you reach Smith Street. Take a left on Smith. The Carroll Gardens neighborhood here has a lot of great shops all along Smith Street until you get back up to Fulton/Joralemon which will put you back at the subway station you started at.

I never had any great finds in the vintage shops of NYC actually--maybe you'll have better luck. I wasn't looking too hard. I'm sure there are some good ones, perhaps out in Brooklyn or Queens or somewhere besides Manhattan.

Some of NYC's food scene can get a little over-hyped at times. For a somewhat irreverent dessert I'd recommend grabbing something at one of the Milk Bar locations ("cereal milk" soft-serve is the specialty). Kat'z Deli is kind of legendary, though I'm personally not too taken by it and the employees are kind of rude. There are, of course, many high-end restaurants if you want to splurge a little. I'd recommend Jean-Georges at the Trump International for lunch.

Plenty of traditional things to do too: walking over the Brooklyn Bridge (stay out of the cycle lane!), strolling through Central Park, Little Italy, and touring the UN, just to name a few.

Sorry if that's overwhelming! I just moved back to Seattle after living in NYC for a while, so I'm full of ideas.

hellsbellslolly said:

I am off to New York, this will be my first ever trip to America hurrah! As a belated honeymoon sort of thing. We will also be visitinf family also in Virginia (Norfolk?) I think...sorry itf thats vague. Any hoo, I am on a quest for all things devinely vintage. Could any-one help with regards to places or areas I can check out...? We will be in NY for about a week or so, vintage shops, food places, markets OOOH Flea markets please too...thrifty places? Or just amazing stuff we can do...? Would be fab

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Hey there! I'm a native new yorker and there are so many things to do in addition to the landmark visits. When are you arriving? In answer to your question about vintage clothing, the word around town is that most true vintage is gone and a lot of new items are masquerading as older ones and the prices are sky high in most vintage shops I've visited. I've heard that the 11th Street Flea is supposed to be great but I haven't had the chance to visit yet. Here's the Yelp page for it: http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-mary-help-of-christians-church-flea-market-new-york
For vintage revival events visit the websites for Wit's End and Dances of Vice and the calendar by location at yehoodi.com.

I hope that helps!