So you’re in the Big Apple. You’ve been to Times Square, walked through Broadway, embarked on a harbour cruise to see the dazzling Manhattan skyline, Ellis Island and the towering Statue of Liberty. But now you’ve got some spare time. What should you do?
To answer this question, we asked our friends who live and work in New York to give us their favourite haunts. One thing’s for sure, New Yorkers don’t just spend their time in Manhattan; Brooklyn seems to be where those in the know often head for.
Manhattan
Neue Galerie (Southeast corner of Fifth Avenue and East 86th Street) is a “very relaxing museum visit… in a beautiful historic building – a perfect museum for those who don’t want to spend hours touring the Met”.

The beautiful staircase of the Neue Galerie
After exploring Central Park, catch an arty flick at The Paris Theatre (West 58th Street)– a charming movie theatre right near The Plaza hotel. Afterwards, head to The Plaza Food Hall by Todd English (West 59th Street- Concourse Level) for some oysters, tapas, sushi, burgers, dumplings… pretty much anything you want!
Best wine shop? They recommend BottleRocket (5 West 19th Street). The shop makes shopping for wine intuitive and fun by organising their wines by theme – and each wine comes with informative tasting notes and ratings. The back of the shop also has a substantial library of wine and cookbooks for sale and reference.
The Players (16 Gramercy Park) is a private members club located in a beautiful town house facing Gramercy Park. Modelled on London’s famed Garrick Club, it boasts members such as Kevin Spacey, Sidney Poitier, Christopher Plummer, Liza Minnelli, Peter O’Toole, Roger Moore, and many more. Our friend tells us that its restaurant, The Grill, is a great place to “grab a juicy burger” and spot a few stars – it’s “where members still play pool”.
Book lovers should check out Strand (on the corner of 12th Street and Broadway) where “they’ll be enthralled at the selection, especially of out of print and rare books”. There are regular events such as book signings and even “literary charades with wine”. Then pop across the street to Max Brenner (841 Broadway – between 13th and 14th Streets) for a luxurious brunch and chocolate indulgences (I’ll have a Melting Chocolate Truffle Heart Cake!).

The Melting Chocolate Truffle Heart Cake from Max Brenner
Brooklyn
Although not necessarily as easy to get to for an afternoon, Brooklyn is a very popular insider’s destination.
For the meat-lovers, “Mile End Deli (97a Hoyt Street) in Brooklyn is definitely worth the trip”. Whether it’s breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner, you won’t be disappointed.
Stone Home Wine Bar (87 Lafayette Avenue). Chef John Gibson’s menu contains delights like sautéed gulf shrimp, warm asparagus flan, spice rubbed skirt steak and sticky toffee pudding, with a handsome array of cheeses and a charcuterie selection that makes your mouth water.
Franny’s restaurant (295 Flatbush Avenue). Owners Andrew Feinberg and Francine Stephens believe that food should be locally grown and used in the seasons during which they are grown. “If a dish has three perfect ingredients, then it doesn’t need anything else”. Pop down to Flatbush Avenue for dishes such as pork cheek and beef tongue terrine, wood-roasted pork sausage with freekeh, and rigatoni with spicy pork sausage, parmigiano reggiano and ricotta.

Prospect Park has nearly everything you could want in one space
The vast 585-acre Prospect Park has nearly everything you could want in one space: a zoo, a huge outdoor entertainment venue, an outdoor cinema, a carousel, beautiful buildings, playgrounds, sporting facilities (not least horse-riding, tennis and seven baseball pitches!), a tranquil meadow and nature trail… Check out their website for the full listing.
Brooklyn Museum (200 Eastern Parkway) is one of the oldest and largest museums in America. Located in a beautiful 560,000 square foot Beaux-Arts building at the north end of Prospect Park, it houses a vast collection of art from Africa, Asia, Egypt, Europe, as well as a whole floor dedicated to American art, ranging from the ancient to the contemporary.

The Brooklyn Museum is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the US
Have we missed out your favourite place to go in New York? Please let us know, we’d love to hear about the jewels that you’ve found.
March’s Destination of the Month on insightvacations.com focuses on Eastern USA.
Thanks go to our contributors for this blog post, especially Diane Letulle and Rodolphe Boulanger.
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