Baseball, New York City

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You've heard the stories of starving actors working as waiters? Well, here starving waiters work as actors. There is actually a cast listing at the door and descriptions can be found of the restaurant's "residents." The characters are pretty funny and can be witty if you play along.

But the best characters are actually animatronics. Fang the Gargoyle, Zeus, the talking wolf's head, all these things interact with the patrons around them. Fang is a riot, if the least PC character (then again, that's what makes him so good).

TVs are all over the restaurant, so if you aren't near the action, you still can see and hear what's going on. Each floor (five in all I believe) has its own theme. I'd suggest sitting on the ground floor if possible (the Laboratory). The food is okay at best. The prices for food and drink are high, and they tack on an "entertainment fee" to boot. But more often than not, the price is worth the fun you'll have.

The food is also artsy. They have interesting and tasty sandwiches. I think it's the brie melt I go for most of the time: warm brie, sprouts, tomato, multigrain bread. Weekend brunch is good too. Cheese grits make a good side, while they serve egg meals over popovers. The eggs Popeye is like an eggs Benedict with salmon over the popover instead of a muffin. Included with the cafe is a little chatzky shop that sells curios for adults and kids.

The French Roast reminded us of that time, especially because of one item on the menu: raclette. This was an appetizer for us, and it's similar to fondue, except it’s a melted lump (not a pot) of reclette cheese that you dip vegetables into. This made the meal for both of us. Otherwise, I had a decent chicken, avocado, and Gruyere sandwich, and my friend enjoyed a nice-sized sandwich. I had a freshly made hot chocolate, which I was indifferent towards. They may have added a hint of mint to the cocoa, which would have been okay if I had been in the mood for it.

One thing that made the meal less enjoyable was the set-up of the restaurant. They have maybe two or three too many tables to really spread out while eating. Also, we had to sit right in front of the door, so it got chilly at times. I intend to go back, but I may wait until the spring. They advertise another location uptown on the West Side (at 85th and Broadway), as well as other French-based restaurants. You can pick up a postcard at French Roast to see the list of the connected restaurants.

The place is very attractive. Built on the first floor of an old warehouse, it has white tiles on the walls and large murals of old advertisements from about the turn of the century. There is an island bar here, too, so it's not just a diner. I, however, order out from here more often than I eat here just because it's convenient.

The downside: It is pricy. Those smoothies, for instance, are like $6. Some of the staff is very friendly, although I have had and seen arguments there over misheard orders. Some coworkers have complained of getting sick on the food, but I've never had that problem. Despite advertising as 24 hours, they often don't have a full breakfast menu when we order from work at 7:30am. During their first holiday season, they experimented with not staying open overnight, and they may continue that trend. Part of the problems might be able to be attributed to growing pains, but the place has been open for about 4 months now, so one would hope the (operating) bugs would've been worked out by now. I work across the street from the Cup, and we here at work still have high hopes, but for every good experience we have there, we have just as many bad times there, too.

Baseball fans undoubtably know the Dodgers once played in Brooklyn. When the team moved away in the late '50s, it took a large part of the soul away from the burough. At the turn of the century though, baseball came back to Brooklyn in the form of the single-A Mets affiliate, the Brooklyn Cyclones.

The Cyclones play at the fairly-new Keyspan Park. Keyspan is at Coney Island, still a very popular summer attraction for city-dwellers. Much of the park has the carnival feel to it, just like the neighborhood. I made my first trip to Keyspan in August '03, and couldn't help notice the flavor. Clown-like characters were making balloon animals for the kids on the main promenade. The roof along the foul lines looked like they may have been from a carousel. The light stantions looked like they belonged in a theme park, and the florecent lights on the prominade were reminicent of those you'd see at a bumper cap track. Above the scoreboard in left was a representation of the Cyclone roller coaster (from where the team got its name), and beyond that, you could see the real coaster in action. Meanwhile down the right field line the old parachute drop tower looms over everything. And if that weren't enough, the Coney Island boardwalk runs along behind the center field wall.

The team also tips its cap to the Brooklyn Bums. The only two retired players are Gil Hodges and Jackie Robinson. The press area has a sign hanging in front of it reading, "The Catbird Seat," as famed announcer Red Barber used to call his vantage point.

Cyclones tickets, like all at this level of play, are cheap. So is parking compared to the major teams in the area. However the park is much smaller, and is often sold out. If you do get tickets, drive out or take the subway early and spend the day here. Besides the game, there are still the amusements of Coney Island and the New York Aquarium just a walk away. With all these attractions, and the less-stuffy crowd, a trip to Keyspan is a much better family outing than either Yankee or Shea Stadiums.

If you're staying in Manhattan (as most tourists do), the stadium is very easy to get to. Three subway lines go to the park, as well as a bunch of bus lines. If you're taking the subway from the West Side though, check which of the two trains is stopping at the stadium as they alternate depending on time of the day/week. Driving can be a pain. If you can navigate the local streets, do that and avoid the Deegan and Cross Bronx. Parking is also tight.

Prices are kinda steep and lines can be long, but there are few if any bad seats in the house. Bleachers are cheap, but can be rowdy, even though they don't sell beer in the bleachers. The bleachers are not recommended for fans of visiting teams. If possible, arrive a couple of hours early and enter through the left field gates. This is where Monument Park is, and the Yanks celebrate their stars of the past.

Some consider the stadium hot dog a must, but the stadium has a number of alternate meals as well. Along both foul lines on the field level are two food courts that offer chicken, roast beef, cheese fries, and hamburgers. Pizza and tacos can also be found in the stadium. The chicken fingers have become a family favorite.

There's not too much to do in the area besides the stadium. River Avenue under the subway offers a number of bars and baseball stores (also a bowling alley), and Stan's Bar is almost as much an institution as the stadium itself.

First the positives: Good parking and less traffic, even for capacity crowds. Much easier to get to by car than Yankee Stadium. The 7 line of the subway goes there, but it's a longer ride than the trains to the Stadium (at least from Manhattan). The LIRR also runs there.

There are more information and scoreboards here than at Yankee Stadium. Pitch speed, full line-ups and out of town scores are much easier and better here. The food seems even more diverse, with sushi being on the menu besides the usaual ballpark cuisine.

Every so often, the team offers a chance for kids to run the bases, as well as at least one photo-op with the team a year. These are nice touches that the Mets' have over the Yankees.

Negatives:

It's an ugly place, very much feeling like one of those generic stadiums that are being phased out of baseball. The inside walkways are cavernous and dark. The seating areas are much further away from the action than the seats at Yankee Stadium. Also where Yankee Stadium offers up the Bronx Superior Court building, looking out from Shea gives you views of auto repair and scrap areas. Shea is also on the flight patterns for LaGuardia airport, and flights often go right above the stands.

And as of the time this is written, the Mets are a horrid team. If you're looking for a good game, you're more likely to find it in the Bronx. I'd also say if you're looking for a better baseball experience, Yankee Stadium is still the place to go.

The zoo first opened in 1899, and the designs of the many buildings shows just how long this zoo has been a mainstay in New York. Classic buildings still survive around the Astor Court section of the zoo, with the old cat house, monkey house and elephant house standing in this area. Not far off are newer buildings with interesting designs. For instance the World of Birds, with its catwalk ramp connecting the two levels, or the circular design of the World of Darkness.

It is of course the animals that are the stars of the zoo. Thousands of species are represented here. The elephants, lions, polar bears, and sea lions seem to be the biggest draws. The zoo keeps expanding with new exhibits, and the newest section is Tiger Mountain. This area is home to a handful of tigers, where they sometimes play and often sleep. This new display also discusses the conservation of the tigers' natural habitat as well as poachers. The zoo is run by the Wildlife Conservation Society, and tries to enlighten its visitors about threats to animals and the environment.

Personal year-round favorites are the before-mentioned World of Birds, with one of the zoo's mock rain forests and the aviation cage, where aquatic birds get a good chance to spread their wings. The Buffalo Range and the Mouse House are also high on my list.

Many areas are open on a seasonal basis. The Bengali Express monorail, the Skyride cable cars, and the tram rides all open in the spring. The Children's Zoo is also a summer attraction, and a must for children. Kids get a chance to live like the animals for a few moments, from exploring large prairie dog holes to climbing a large spider web to getting to hear the world the way a fox does. There is also your typical petting zoo for the kids to see once they've worn themselves out.

Not all the seasonal events are summer-based. In December, the zoo stays open late for the "Holiday Lights" display. With wire frame animals in some of the fields.

Prices vary for the Bronx Zoo. Some tickets allow people only general access and others allow people to visit all areas. Prices I believe are also based on seasonal conditions. To get to the zoo, take the 2 or 5 Subways. A number of bus lines also stop nearby. Driving may be the best solution if possible, with easy access to the Bronx River Parkway.

I like to visit zoos when I travel. I was lucky to be born in city with a number of zoos. Of those, it is the Bronx Zoo that stands above all others, and perhaps above all zoos in the world.