I live in NYC

My favorite pasttime throughout the years has been to watch the people who live here. However, for those of you who like to actually do things, read on...

Quick Tips:

Best Way To Get Around:

I gave up taxis in August, my most financially-wise decision that I have made in NYC.

www.newyorkhotel.com

This average hotel in an unattractive part of Manhattan is located 4 blocks from the Jacob A. Javits Convention Center and a block from the Port Authority Bus Terminal and near the Lincoln Tunnel. From the Tunnel, make a left on 40th Street, a right on 10th Avenue and a left on 42nd Street to the FREE PARKING of the hotel. The good value, the free parking and the friendly staff are the best assets here.

We stayed in a clean room with two double beds, a desk, TV center (with Internet and Atari games available for a fee) and amenities in the bathroom. The mattresses were fine for one person, but slanted when two used the same bed. If you have back problems, make sure you have your own bed. There was a smell when we returned in the evening. (I assume this was from the heater but the windows opened to the fresh air and the smell was soon gone.)

Because the streets are noisy around the hotel, ask for an inside room. The hotel has a pool (empty in winter), and an exercise room with new equipment.

It was fun going next door to the River West Café and Deli for breakfast. "Mr. Personality," William, not only waited on us, but amused us with stories of New York and its entertainment industry. The breakfast was good, too, and inexpensive.

I recommend this hotel if you have to stay near the Javits Center.

Best Things Nearby:
The lake, the hikes

Best Things About the Resort:
The lake, the hikes, the rooms, the fireplaces, and the balcony.

Resort Experience:
I can't remember the last time I visited a website for a hotel, and then went to the actual hotel, and the hotel was nicer and more magical than it looked on the website. Until now. This full-service resort has activities every hour from 7am until the evening. These activities include yoga, QiGong, fitness walks, children's programs, art shows, blacksmith demonstrations, afternoon tea and cookies, videos, and dances. You can choose to go on them, or you can hike solo or paddle or fish or play golf on your own. We went on a morning nature hike with the amazing naturalist Ann Guenther, who taught us in a short while about the beautiful and serene environment surrounding the mountain house.

• Unit Type: Other
• Activities: Excellent
• Amenities: Very Good
• Unit Satisfaction: Very Good
• Family Friendliness: Not Available
• Service: Not Available

I have to admit that I have been a supporter of restaurant row (46th St) since I moved to NY. When I was working at my firm in midtown, we would frequently take our summer associates to lunches on this street (because the restaurants here are kinda pricey but delicious). So, I was surprised when my friend asked me if I wanted to sup at Barbetta (because I had never yet been there).

Even though we had a reservation, the host told us we had to wait 15/20 mins. I thought he was joking because there was absolutely no one dining in the restaurant. But, there were people in the garden. The garden is straight from a movie set. There's a fountain in the middle with four statues of little naked boys around the edges. The trees smell nice and make you forget for a short while that you're in NYC.

But you remember when you taste the food. My lamb chops (I think around $30) were the best lamb chops I have ever eaten. I must underscore that statement. I ordered them medium rare, but there was no blood on the chops. The outside bone was perfectly crisp, yet the meat melted in my mouth. I normally can't stand lima beans, but these were succulent. I used my hands, even though the place was very elegant. And I wasn't embarrassed because I was eating like a slob. Neither was my friend (or so he led me to believe . . .). There wasn't a drop left on my plate. My friend ordered the gnocchi because he's a vegetarian. I suppose there's not too many options for a veggy, but the gnocchi was great (not nearly as sumptious as the lamb chops, though). Although I had no room in my tummy for dessert, it didn't matter, and I had the chocolate mousse. I almost cried it was so tasty.

If you have the $$$, I can't recommend this place enough.

You walk into Sammy's and immediately you laugh at the beautiful tackiness of the place. We ate dinner in the "party" room, which has pictures of customers and shiny things all over the room. Unfortunately, the Bar Mitzvah sounding singer was sick, but it was ok b/c the tape was blasting old Yiddish songs. It didn't matter to anyone that I started singing (badly) at random times throughout the meal.

Sammy's is famous for their frozen vodka drinks, which simply were made from some (a LOT of) Romanian vodka that was frozen and cranberry juice. The food was excellent and expensive and hung out in my tummy for three days. Two of us had the chopped liver, the veal sausages, one rib-eye steak, one "small" filet, latkas and the best ruguleh I have ever had (hot melted chocolate in a soft batter). The servings were humungous. The rib-eye and the small filet, no joke, were each about the size of my forearm. The chopped liver came in a big bowl. The sausages were covered in grease. Tasty!

Rumor has it that once there were triplets who were separated at birth. They were reunited at Sammy's when one of the triplets decades ago was waited on by another one. They quickly did a search and found the third one, and all three started working at Sammy's.

One of the owners gave my friend and I t-shirts when we left. I wear my shirt proudly.

The Soy Luck Club has been around for six months. The owners wanted to bring soy to our lives without having to make the place vegetarian. Lots of magazines. Fantastic food. Fantastic drinks. A tuna sandwich is about $7.

Cosmoparty.com throws weekly Dinners in the Dark, where precisely at 8pm, a group of about 30 people were escorted in the pitch black to a gourmet four-course meal (we have to guess what we're eating), including glasses of white and red wine and champagne. The waiters wore night goggles and I couldn't see a thing. One of the points to this is that our taste sense is heightened as a result of our loss of sight. Everything sure did taste fantastic. And it was amusing because everyone seemed to be yelling because they couldn't see. But we also were surrounded by people we never met before. It was surreal to talk to and meet for the first time people who you can't see. The dinner cost $89. From what I heard, the parties used to be kinda raunchy when they offered all you can drink, but now they are much more mellow and mainstream.

If you're stuck in the Upper East Side, you should go to this restaurant. It was tasty, and the owner and I had a discussion about how Ethiopian wine and Manishevitz taste alike. We agreed, though, that Ethiopian wine is better because there are no sulfates (it's made from honey and blackberries), so no hangovers. The food was excellent and cheap. My friend and I ordered samosas, the mixed platter of lamb and beef, and the chicken. YUMMY!

Although none of the waiters were Vietnamese, they are really good looking and wear tight black tops. This Vietnamese restaurant (that opened around seven months ago) makes up for such lack of authenticity with excellent and creative dishes. In fact, the food here is much better than any food I tasted while I was in Vietnam.

My friend and I decided to forego the main entrees and just eat appetizers because they looked so tasty. We had fresh seared tuna in wrapped rice leaves, egg rolls, sizzling steak in peanut sauce, and jumbo shrimp on a stick. When the table next to us became filled, I felt compelled to talk to them because they were right next to us. Regardless, the small space didn't bug me.

This is the third restaurant by the people who did Nam and Cyclo. Apparently they used to have a very nasty hostess and lost many customers. However, I understand that they recently axed her.

I was very excited about this place when I made plans to eat there with 4 of my friends -- Middle Eastern, belly dancing -- how could I miss? Well, first the host was a jerk. Although our reservation was early (8:30 is early for this place), and there were plenty of open tables, the host insisted that he had to seat us at the door. Because it was freezing we had to ask to the host 3x whether or not we could move; eventually we asked the waiter who let us move. Then, after 1 1/2 hours of eating, we were told we had to leave because that's their limit. Mind you, we had eaten appetizers, main course, and lots of drinks. So, we were upset about that. But, the finale was that after we paid, the waiter took a 20% tip WITHOUT TELLING US OR LEAVING ANY INDICATION ON THE BILL THAT HE DID THIS. I've read plenty of articles about this, but to my knowledge it's never been done to me before. We were all a little tipsy, except for one of us, who luckily was divvying out the change and realized that we shouldn't double tip the guy. I know another person who refuses to go here. Now I fully understand why.