Wineshops on Manhattan

Today I have been looking for a sparkling Italian wine. More precisely a beautiful bottle with an artistic green label and a handtied string over the cork. Looks classy tastes great and doesn't cost a fortune. Well. I didn't find it. But I did find three supernice wineshops. At the Winfield-Flynn Ltd. in Midtown I was recommended the Chelsea Wine Vault and thereafter I went to Discovery Wines in my own Alphabet City. All staff supernice. Not afraid to recommend other shops. Clever questions on drinking purpose. Great interior - great cards.
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MIDTOWN Winfield-FLynn 558 Third Ave at 37th street
CHELSEA Chelsea Wine Vault 75 Ninth Ave at 15th street
ALPHABET CITY Discovery Wines 10 Ave A at Houston

Privacy policies

Strolling New York is all about me being genuinely curious. Asking and documenting. As simple as that. I guess that is one of the reasons why I love our time. Everything is so accessible. Not everyone is like me tho. People I stroll by - with the most fantastic ideas and creative plans - are afraid. Of our time of people like me of Internet and most of all - of cameras. Usually I'm not allowed to take a pic inside a shop - no matter how much I show my businesscard or let them approve the photo. People are terrified. I am of course used to another and much more open society. But I do sincerely hope people will let down their guard a little bit and take the advantage of the Internet. Soon.

This is the lock of one of those supersecretive superprivate shops.

Bike repair at Lorimer

My favourite bike repair is in Williamsburg. No businesscard no accessories no fancy schmancy. A tad quiet to begin with - but getting more and more talkative. Always very professional and efficient. They fix the bike on the street while you are waiting. Go for a coffe or hang out with the funky crowd. There are also bikes for sale.
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WILLIAMSBURG 636 Lorimer Street
Open all days of the week. Usually close 7pm weekdays.

Russian candy at Brighton Beach

As everyone else I deeply love all the different cultures in this city. Most of all I love to go to Korea China and Russia - all in one day. Just a few blocks from the Brighton Beach subway there is a delicatessen with Turkish and Russian food. And candy. I was so happy when I found this Russian fudge. Absolutely delicious.
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BROOKLYN Brighton Beach Exakt address to come shortly.

Midtown not to be forgotten

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Last fall I spent some decent time in Midtown. Mainly office hours far up in some skyscrape - but also quick lunches and walks to other offices. Yesterday I had a morning appointment just by Madison Square Garden. And I have to say - few things are as fotogenique as some good old New York skyscrapes. Take a stroll along 6th Ave up to 33rd Street over to Madison Square Garden and continue on 8th Ave up to Central Park. Ave 6 and 8 are my favorite walking avenues.
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MIDTOWN 33th Street betw 7th and 8th Ave
Morning hours for the best light.

Live at Ludlow

Pianos on Ludlow is a nice and cosy bar - surprisingly enough with a concert room in the back. Only 8 dollars for all bands playing. First band out was Running still - ballads and more hardcore rock. A very good singer and an extremely entertaining drummer - Zack. Worth seeing live only because of him. A bit later The Bones of Davey Jones with bluegrass-kletzmer made us dance and clap our hands. Great crowd. Nice staff. Pianos is well worth some love for their live music.
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LOWER EAST SIDE 158 Ludlow Street two streets south of Houston
coming soon...

A long New York day at the beach

Some days it is really hard to believe Manhattan NewYorkers are only 45 minutes away from a huge beach with bright blue sky - superfine sand - and refreshingly cold water. Best of all - it's not even crowded. And a total bonus is the kitschy fairground of Coney Island and the Russian neighborhood in Brighton Beach.
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BROOKLYN Coney Island or Brighton Beach Subway N or Q

Mermaid Parade on Coney Island

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A less traditional summer celebration is the Mermaid Parade. And what place can be more suitable for a kitschy and cheesy parade than Coney Island. Actually some of the participants were really good. But most of them were just for fun. And for naked.. This year was the 25th anniversary - and in the evening there was even a Mermaid ball.
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BROOKLYN Coney Island
21st of June - next year i guess...

Swedish Midsummer in New York

Sweden may be known for cold weather and darkness - but that's only the winter truth. Summertime temperatures rise and days never end. The Swedish solstice - Midsummer - is celebrated since pagan days. Most people go to the countryside and eat typical Swedish food such as dark sourdough bread herring salmon meatballs - the smorgasbord - and then a juicy piece of strawberry cake with whipped cream.

Swedish Midsummer in New York is in Battery Park and - I do have to say - is a recommendation for next year. Either come early to avoid lines to delicious Swedish food - or bring your own picknick put together by Swedish friends. Even bottles are allowed. The New York Park Department is organising the event in close cooperation with The Swedish Consulate and Swedish sponsors.
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FINANCIAL DISTRICT Battery Park
Friday between 19th-25th of June.

Free Williamsburg

To get myself around New York I use a lot of different guides - as you can see among the links. Only favourites make it to my list - and Free Williamsburg is the latest add. Great info on restaurants and bars in a perfect strolling area. I especially like the cool background on the website - and therefore borrowed some dots.

Acqua Santa

Acqua Santa is a cosy Williamsburg spot. Good pizza and pasta - don't hesitate to try the beet gnocchi. Most of all I like the interior and atmosphere - very homie. Staff is nice and friendly and the owner quite something. Go see! E per favore - parli in italiano con lui. Winebar will open soon.
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WILLIAMSBURG 556 Driggs Ave Corner of North 7th Street
mon-thu noon-11pm fri noon-midnight sat 11am-midnight sun 11am-11pm

The perfect strolling route

Some of my friends are visiting from Sweden and I am so happy they understand what New York is all about. Strolling. Today we took a stroll from Union Square via a coffee at the undercover Starbucks at Washington Square Park and down south to Prince Street. Prince to Broadway and a couple of streets down Broadway. It doesn't have to be more difficult than that. Supercute and supernice. On my way home cross China Town and up to Alphabet City I had this beautiful view at Houston and Essex. Looks lite Cuba to me. Gotta love.

IKEA Brooklyn opens Wednesday

IKEA will have its grand opening in Brooklyn Wednesday morning.

Actually I took this pic without any thoughts of the opening. Passed a huge IKEA ad at 4 am Saturday morning. When I sat down on the sidewalk for a closeup of the logo - some kids laughed and yelled IKEA all over the street. What I love about the photo is the haze - accentuated by the sharp orange spots that are actual street lamps.
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BROOKLYN 1 Beard Street
Open 9am Wednesday June 18 | thereafter 10am-10pm every day

Beautiful New York pieces

Slipped into Fishs Eddy porcelain shop only minutes before the thunder storm yesterday. The sticky heat outdoors was transformed into a warm and nice homie feeling indoors. Now I know where everyone buys supercute Manhattan cups. Not to mention I fell in love with the Brooklyn bowls. Super nice staff dressed in Manhattan tees. Basically the perfect place to buy classy New York stuff. And enjoy the oil canvas portraits on the walls. - fortunately not for sale.
One can even stay at home and buy online.
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FLATIRON 889 Broadway at corner of 19th Street
mon 10am-9pm tue-sat 9am-9pm sun 10am-8pm

European soccer in New York

Simply love soccer. So no choice but to see the Euro2008. The last game I tried to watch indie-style on a Chinese bar down-town. Bad idea. Reluctantly I decided to try the Tonic Bar although I saw it as a tad cheesy. But I was wrong. It is actually the perfect place for a soccer game. Decent food - efficient staff - a variety of beers - large screens - A/C - english-speaking speakers (yes in my part of the city they are spanish-speaking). Organised by the International Swede.
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MIDTOWN 727 7th Ave between 48 and 49
Sweden-Russia Wednesday 2.45 pm. Be early for good seating.

Organic Avenue B

Another perfect spot on Ave B is Back Forty. Not only do they have delicious food and supernice staff - which is kinda mandatory to make it to strolling - they are also green. Or at least as green as one can be in the middle of New York. Most of the food is bought at the Farmer's Market on Union Square only a few blocks away. And still affordable prices. Also note that the owner owns Savoy in SoHo.
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ALPHABET CITY 190 Ave B between 12 and 13
mon-thu 6pm-11pm fri-sat 6pm-midnight sun also brunch

Escapade

Just love those stairs. Good for escape good for anyone being locked out good for parties. And quite graphic at the Manhattan scene.

A disappointing heaven

House and clubbing in New York seems like a long gone fairy tale. Last summer a friend of mine insisted I should go to Cielo as "the best commercial club for house". It took me a year but Friday I went. Well. Seamus Haji was playing and he wasn't bad. But no one was dancing. The club was rather empty and mostly men. Bathroom supernice and bouncers supersweet. But no. Don't go there a Friday unless your favourite DJ is playing. Weekdays may work tho.
BONUS The best song played was... PJANOO. Of course. Swedish.
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NOHO 18 Little West 12th Street
open all days - check calender for dj

New York Communication System

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Gotta love all those New York signs and messages. Especially the varieties of keep-your-voice-down. This one being a favourite.

Avenue B for dining

There will be a series of B recommendations from now on. As I couldn't go very far for some weeks I explored my own neighborhood. Rue B is a classy yet homie spot with superb food and great service. Dinner offers asparagus artichoke prusciotto olives mozarella and brunch includes delicious pancakes with strawberries or classical salmon bagels. Share one foodie and one sweetie - cause the portions are generous. Best part is walking through the kitchen to find the outdoor seats. Tiny and funky.
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ALPHABET CITY 188 Ave B between 11 and 12
weekdays 4pm-4am weekends 11am-4am [happy hour weekdays]

Dashing SoHo spot

Barmarché is a SoHo oasis I found last fall. Yesterday I took a friend for a salad before clubbing. Oh my gosh. The service is brilliant. Brilliant. Food is great and prices affordable. And a classy interior.
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SOHO 14 Spring Street at the corner of Elizabeth

Parking lot

Soulgasm for decent weekday house

Just before I was going to bed - a friend called me and asked if I wanted to join for Soulgasm at Sin Sin. As he knows all the funky spots I got dressed. Some two hours I enjoyed really good house at the first floor and a beer at the second. The photos delude - the place is all but glamorous. But the music was great. And the very best part was the relaxed crowd. No one mentioned I was the only blondie - and people actually DANCED. Wednesdays for house.
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EAST VILLAGE 85 Second Ave actually on 5th street
open all days - but house on wednesdays

Stonehenge at Manhattan

On our way from Upper East to Alphabet City Sunday evening this beautiful sight met us at every single intersection. When I stopped for a picture a young man told us it was like the Solstice at Stonehenge. The Sun shines straight through all the streets of Manhattan.
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EAST MIDTOWN 42nd Street and Second Ave

Epitaph for George Dillon

Tonight I went to 45th Street Theatre to see a friends friend play. No expectations whatsoever. A tiny intimate theatre. And I have to say it was really good. Low key yes. But good. Especially the second act - where some quite thoughtful dialogues got me thinking. About stereotypes and cliches. Noncurious people. Artsyness really being nothing but religiousness. Worth seeing for the colorful setup only.
And thanks to Paloma Pigeon I found the official website.
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HELL'S KITCHEN 354 West 45th Street btw Ave 8 and 9
call 212 613 6328 for hours dates and prices

Lifesavers

All my apologies for letting go of this site for three weeks. Monday the 13th I experienced my first bike accident and it turned out pretty bad. A cab driver suddenly and absolutely unexpectedly opened his door when I passed by on my bike. It was all his fault and I had no chance whatsoever predicting the situation. The edge of the door cut into my foot and suddenly I had a wound to broad to even stitch.

The process of being injured in another country taught me a lot of things. First of all I realised that the American health care isn't as bad or expensive as the rumours say. Quite the contrary. I went to Beth Israel at 34th street and was x-rayed and taken care of so well it exceeded all my experiences in Sweden. I also realised the worst part was neither the accident nor the cut - but the fact I got handicapped in New York and couldn't walk - at all - for ten days. My experiences of being different in Alphabet City got a whole new aspect.

Last but not least - I once again fell in love with my bike - that has taken me everywhere I couldn't walk. Slowly I have recovered and now I can walk pretty much as before. It will probably take yet another week or two before I am fully recovered tho. Yesterday I had my first bike across the bridges and it was fine - part from muscles and foot being a bit sore today.
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LOWER MIDTOWN 55 East 34th Street between Park and Madison
monday-friday 9-5