JenMac

I like Monitor street. It's a cute, residential street with a lot of really lovely apartments. It's quieter and cleaner than a lot of streets in the area. And, it's close to both McCarren and McGolrick parks which is great. But, there are a lot of things about the street that make it so that I would probably never live on Monitor. For one, it's kind of in between neighborhoods. It's almost in Greenpoint and almost in the Graham area of Williamsburg. But, it's about a 10 minute walk toward either area before you come across any bars, restaurants, shops . . .even a deli. I feel like this would be a major thorn in my side all of the time. I loved living across from Khim's Deli. it was so easy. Having to walk ten minutes in the winter to get a coffee sounds really unenjoyable. It also sounds a bit scary at night. It's not a bad street and it's safe as far as anything in New York can go. But, the streets that have no nightlife on them scare me a little. They're a little too quiet at night for my liking / walking. It's also a bit of a walk to the Graham Ave L train stop which can be a pain sometimes.
But, the thing I mostly don't love about Monitor is that so many of the buildings have been converted into "luxury" homes that the street is now insanely expensive. I can't justify spending hundreds of dollars more to live with nothing fun around me than to live on Graham or Lorimer. It makes absolutely no sense to me why anyone would pay over $2000 / month to live 10 minutes away from any sort of convenience. But, I guess people do. I just think it's a shame because it's a really lovely street that I wouldn't mind if it were actually less expensive than the hip streets.

Yikes, this street is far. Lombardy Street is so far north in Willburg, that it's neighboring on the northern part of Greenpoint and Queens. There's really nothing up here and it's bordering on the part of the neighborhood that's heavily polluted which makes it not exactly ideal. And, the southern part of Lombardy has some really beautiful homes and apartments that are pretty cheap with a lot of space (a lot of them even have yards which is crazy). But, the northern part of the street looks like an industrial wasteland with a bunch of warehouses. Getting a three bedroom apartment with outdoor space for less than $2500 / month is a pretty great deal, but you have to pay for it in other ways.
For one, transportation is criminally far away from Lombardy Street. So, if you have to commute into Manhattan, it's really a pain. And, the walk to even a deli or market is pretty far, let alone any sort of restaurant or form of nightlife. Running out to get coffee is a bit of a chore on Lombardy. And, the northern end of the street is pretty sketchy at night because it's so vacant. It's really a toss up. You have all of this space for a reasonable price, but you have to really enjoy that space because walking anywhere else isn't exactly pleasant or easy.

i'm still not totally sold on Bushwick as far as safety and having a whole lot to do in a neighborhood. But, there are an awful lot of youngsters that seem to like this neighborhood and Knickerbocker is one of the main streets in it. I guess if you were going to live in Bushwick, this would be the street you would want to live on. There are a lot of condo converts that have popped up on Knickerbocker in the last five years or so. And, I know that's a sign that the neighborhood is taking off, but I can't get around the price of them. Or, the rental prices in Bushwick, in general. Because the young and arty have flocked here over the last few years because of rent hikes in Williamsburg, the neighborhood has become somewhat popular. But, that was because the rent was cheap. And, it's nearly the same as Williamsburg now without nearly the number of bars, restaurants, shops and art venues. There are a few, of course, but not enough to justify not living in Willy. And, there are some streets in Bushwick that still have significantly lower rent. But, Knickerbocker isn't one of them. I guess this is because this street and the streets that cross Knickerbocker have the most going on. And, it's pretty close to a number of train stops. But, I still wouldn't call this street safe. There aren't enough young and arty people on it yet to have completely gentrified the street. So, it's still pretty sketchy at night. And, it's not especially pretty . . though most of north Brooklyn is pretty ugly.
I guess if you can find a cheaper rent and you're young, this wouldn't be a bad street to live on. It has enough going on that it's decent. It's just not enough to entice me.

Kingsland Ave is a tough one because it has a lot of goods and bads. The blocks of Kingsland closer to Metropolitan are great and they're not too far from the L train or any of the bars and restaurants in the Graham Ave area. One of my good friends lives on Kingsland right at Skillman it's not too bad as far as convenience goes. He also has a back yard in his apartment which is nearly unheard of for anywhere in New York. The street is definitely a younger one. There are a lot of artists, students and hipsters on it because the rent is a bit cheaper than parts of Willy that are even off of Graham which is only a few blocks away. And, the further north you go on Kinglsand, the cheaper the rent gets because the further north you go, the further you are from any sort of convenience. It's a really residential street so if you live up toward Greenpoint, there's nothing in the way of bars, restaurants or delis near you. But, the walk isn't too bad. The other bad thing about Kinglsand is that the northern chunk of the street has a lot of pollution problems. It's right under the BQE and a lot of the new, expensive condos on the street are built on former factory sites that had sewage problems. Also, a lot of the buildings were put up really quickly so they have sort of tape and glue problems (i.e. poor insulation, electrical issues, etc). I guess I wouldn't mind living on Kingsland -- especially if I could have a yard -- but I would definitely live as close to Metropolitan as possible and I wouldn't live in one of the newer "luxury" buildings.

I - 278 is actually a freeway, not a street you can live on. It's part of the BQE and it actually runs through all five burroughs of New York. The Williamsburg part of it is pretty small as it starts just after the Williamsburg bridge and runs up to Queens (which is pretty close to Williamsburg). I-278 isn't the most productive or fast freeway in New York, but it connects to just about every other freeway, directly. So, you can get to the airport, the Hamptons . . Connecticut. . . you name it, from this guy. Not much else to say about it, other than, don't live under it if you can at all help it.

There's not much to say about the Brooklyn Queens Expressway as far as reviewing a street to live on or visit because it's a freeway. You can access it starting at the Williamsburg Bridge and you can access both airports, Queens / Long Island and the Hamptons via this freeway. Traffic on it is pretty standard for New York City but there's no avoiding it if you're trying to do a quick summer beach visit (unless you're going to Jersey). The only bad part about the freeway is that it's not exactly pleasant to live on any of the streets that are directly under it.

Sniffen Court is a really lovely little court just off 36th that was built in the mid 19th century as a stand alone courtyard and then converted into stables shortly thereafter. It was converted into residences in the early 1920's and the residences are kind of like living in little condos. They're really cool and Sniffen Court used to be a big artist enclave I'm guessing because of the secluded courtyard mixed with bungalow kinds of apartments. Sniffen looks a lot like the alley or mews streets in the West Village. It's very charming and the properties are stunning inside and out. And, because it's so secluded, there's very little in the way of noise or traffic. Most people don't even know it exists. The homes are are pretty spectacular on the inside and have roof decks, old accents, etc. Needless to say, the days of the artist enclave are over as buying property on Sniffen Court will set you back a few million dollars. There's a little theatre in here, as well, that has been around for about 150 years which I think is really cool. It's a very old timey little alley street. And, I don't think anyone would complain about living here.

Interstate 495 which is often called the Long Island Expressway is a freeway that starts in the neighborhood right at the Queens-MIdtown Tunnel. It passes under the East River into Queens. It's a freeway so you definitely can't live on it, but it provides access to Queens / Long Island so it's a pretty well known freeway for Manhattanites. Long Island is where a lot of wealthy people live and many work in the city. It's also one of the easiest freeways to get to both La Guardia and JFK as well as the Hamptons which is undoubtedly the most popular summer vacation spot for New Yorkers. There's always a ton of traffic on this freeway but it's particularly grueling in the summer as people use it to get in and out of the city to hit the beaches. So, I never use it at normal hours if I'm trying to go to the beach. There's not a whole lot to say about it because it's a freeway but I guess it's a good thing it exists.

Like FDR as it runs through any neighborhood on the east side, it's more of a highway than a street. The Drive part of FDR Drive is pretty literal. It's a very quick way to get from lower to upper Manhattan; or, at least, it's very quick compared to any of the avenues. But, it's not a street you live on. There aren't any apartments on FDR in Murray Hill. It would be like having an apartment on a Freeway.
And, the apartments that are just off of FDR aren't ideal, in my opinion. They have a great view of the East River but it's very loud and kind of scary because traffic just flies by. It's not particularly safe to even walk next to FDR in most parts. But, if you need to get from Murray Hill to the Upper East Side, Queens, etc, this is the best way.

39th starts off on the East River with an old Con Edison Plant that they're in the works to demolish and replace with high rise condos and commercial spaces. I'm not sure how I feel about this. For one, do we really need more high rise condos? Nobody that I know is looking to spend five grand a month to live in nowhere'sville Murray Hill. But, maybe I'm wrong. Also, these buildings are actually pretty cool and I doubt the new ones will be. But, it will probably stay the middle of nowhere as long as there's just a bunch of old, creepy power buildings and nothing else. It's really a toss up.
The block across 1st Avenue houses a very ritzy apartment building called the New York Tower. It's kind of a de facto banker's building which I will never understand. A woman who lost her job at a big bank jumped out of her apartment in this building in the early 2000's. And, that would be enough for me to pass on wanting to live here. Actually, no, Murray Hill would be enough for me to pass on wanting to live here. All of the blocks leading up to 3rd have really nice apartment buildings and nothing else. Plus, they're surrounded by entrance and exit tunnels to the Queens Midtown tunnel, so there's no aesthetic and nothing to do here but look at traffic. I don't understand why so many people with money would think that this is the spot to live.
At 3rd, there's an old publishing building that now does textbooks, I believe, but used to publish the likes of Edgar Allen Poe and Washington Irving. I'm sure they make a lot more money now but they definitely lost their street cred when they crossed over, in my opinion.
The block at Lex has an interesting mix of commerce, I think. There are two old hotels that have both been acquired by the W. And, an old distillery building that has now been acquired by Jim Beam. I find the very Vanilla W chain being next to the very dirt south Jim Beam really funny. But, I suppose the people working at Jim Beam all come to work with shoes on, etc so there's probably not as much of a war between them as I imagine in my mind. This block used to be the home of a city comptroller, Andrew Green. He is responsible for the New York Library and Met Museum. He was shot to death on this block on his way home. . . .not by a Jim Beam associate.
The next block is getting us into Midtown big commercial space kind of territory. There's a big pharma building, a smaller building dedicated to Jungian psychology and a massive commercial tower with all kinds of different businesses.
There's not much of a neighborhood feel around here though there are an awful lot of places to live. There's no nightlife or local hangouts in the mix. And, there's very little green. It's not a bad street and a lot of people like living here. I just think that if you can afford to live here, why wouldn't you live somewhere else?

Pearl starts its run through Chinatown at St James with a very interesting looking high school and a tiny little patch of green. It sounds like nothing much but there are some ugly buildings in this neighborhood and not very much green so these are kind of a bonus around these parts. The high school is business oriented (it looks medieval to me and I don't understand the connection). I find it interesting that so many high schools in this city are catered toward a certain profession. Whatever happened to regular school with a broad range of subjects?
The next block houses the NYPD police headquarters which is a massive, extremely ugly building but I venture to say that this is one of the safest blocks in the city. That's an awfully big building so there's got to be a cop walking in or out of it nearly twenty four hours a day, I imagine. I always see one when I'm here, anyway, which is a good thing because there's a housing project on the other side of the street and those scare the bejeezus out of me. They're always made to look like prisons which I don't get.
The next block houses a correctional center and two gorgeous courthouses. They are both really spectacular looking so it kind of makes up for the ugly preceding it. I don't, technically, consider this block of Pearl to be in Chinatown and I talk about the buildings at length in another Pearl review so I'll just say they are both very different and very beautiful buildings.
This isn't really a street you live on . . it's more a street you have to go to for jury duty or something and then happen to admire the little tidbits of great, old architecture. There's no neighborhood to this street at all. No bars, restaurants, nothing. It's a very state oriented kind of street.

There's not much to say about the Police Plaza walkway except for the fact that it's probably one of the safer places to walk in Manhattan. It's a little walkway through the NY Police Headquarters and it runs parallel to the Brooklyn Bridge for the equivalent of about a block. It's quite green and the bridge peeking up over the trees is a lovely view. It's just the actual headquarters that you have to walk by that is quite the eyesore. It's a nasty looking building: a mass of concrete with tiny windows everywhere that makes it look like a prison.
You, obviously, can't live, eat or drink here but if you're going to the Brooklyn Bridge or happen to need a cop, this is at least a somewhat scenic part of your journey.

There are some lovely old brick buildings on Catherine right at Broadway. One of them is a gorgeous building from the early 19th century that should be for residential use but is actually a commercial building. The building directly across Catherine is a newer apartment building that looks like it should be commercial. I may have to go talk to them about that.
But, that's about it as far as excitement goes for this little one block of street / lane. Those buildings take up pretty much the entire block on either side so there's not much else to do unless you're a government employee (the pretty building) or a resident in the bigger one. It's not a bad little street to live on and it's definitely quieter than other blocks in this neighborhood. There's just really not much going on.

There's not much to say about this street because it's basically the entrance to a bridge. So, you can't live on it and there are no bars, restaurants, shopping etc. There's really nothing to it except for bridge. And, it's not exactly in the prettiest part of town so the view isn't pleasing. There is, however, one gem to this particular bridge entrance: the Arch and Colonade.
There's a really beautiful arch kind of structure that was built in 1910 by the same people that did the New York Library so it looks similar to it (the NYPL is one of my favorite buildings). It was meant to serve as an impressive entrance into Manhattan and it certainly is. That is, if you can disregard all of the delis, tenement looking buildings, billboards and homeless people surrounding the arch. It really is beautiful. The funny thing is that the Manhattan Bridge is one of the lesser traveled bridges by myself or anyone I know so it seems like a waste for this particular bridge. But, there it is.
There's not much else to say considering there's not much you can say about something you drive on to get to Brooklyn. But, the Manhattan Bridge takes you to the southern part of Brooklyn and this is the entrance. Full stop.

There's quite a lot of green space on 6th Avenue which is rare for an Avenue and even rarer for the Garment District. That adds a massive bonus to the street appeal but it's still hard to justify living on an Avenue -- especially in this neighborhood. It's just always so crowded and loud around here. And, the neighborhood feel isn't exactly stellar.
The neighborhood starts at 32nd street and that block is taken up by Greeley Square and the Manhattan Mall. Greeley is a little green space in a sea of big buildings that's actually quite nice. The only problem is that it's pretty small so it's next to impossible to find a seat here. Because of that, I rarely go here. The Manhattan Mall is one of the weirdest things ever. It used to be Macy's rival department store called Gimbel's but it obviously wasn't that big of a rival because it went out of business. Now, it's a mall sort of thing with cheap stores like JC Penny's and little kiosks lining the walkways. I didn't know there was a mall in the city for about a year. That's about how popular this place is . . .
Up at 34th, we have more shopping and green with Herald Square and the Victoria Secret / H and M building. This is a crazy busy intersection so I never hang out around Herald Square. But, it would be lovely if there weren't so many tourists here all day every day. I feel sorry for the people who live around here because it can be an absolute nightmare to get through. It's pretty, though, if you can erase all the people in your imagination.
The rest of the Avenue in this neighborhood is a mix of commercial and residential spaces but most of the buildings are pretty old which I like. There are a lot of textile buildings on this street which is to be expected and a lot of little delis and takeout places. There's nothing really in the realm of neighborhood bars or restaurants and it just has a really commercial feel. It's not bad as far as Avenues to use to run errands. And, it has a ton of green and things to do, but I wouldn't want to live on it.

This run of 29th, from 5th to 6th, looks now about how seedy it used to be back when this was the Tenderloin. It used to be a big neighborhood in the gambling, dance hall and prostitute arena in the 20th century; but, now it's just a dark commercial wholesale kind of jam. It's not dangerous around here for the most part, nowadays, but it's not fun by any stretch now either.
The block at 6th has just about every kind of wholesale shop you can imagine. There's a hat shop, accessories, clothing, party supplies, jewelry. . . you name it. They kind of scare me so I don't shop here but a lot of people do, apparently, because this area is always really crowded during the day. The costume jewelry shop on the corner used to be the most popular dance hall in the neighborhood where people like Eugene O"Neill would come to drink amongst other seedy activities. There were at least four gambling / dance halls on this block alone in the 19th-20th centuries. And, now, there are enormous, weird hats. Go figure.
Across Broadway, there are two magnificent looking cast-iron apartment buildings that used to be popular hotels for the likes of Oscar Wilde and other literati. I imagine the rent is grotesque at either of these buildings, but the apartments must be lovely if not maybe a little small even for Manhattan. The ground floors of both house bizarre wholesale shops which I'm sure the residents just love. There are some great, old buildings on this block like the Marble Church and other lovely apartment buildings so it kind of annoys me that the store fronts are all chintzy shops or to go places like a dingey falafel. This stretch of 29th could be so pretty but the businesses here really drag the aesthetic and energy down, in my opinion. It makes what could be a lovely street into a crowded and creepy passover one. It's not a horrible stretch to live on, but I think it has so much more potential than what it is now. Luckily, New York always changes so I'm sure it'll come back around.

This stretch of 28th only runs from 6th to 5th but has quite the rich history and some great old buildings. The block from 6th to Broadway used to be known as Tin Pan Alley. It's where all the new music was published in the 20th century and the sheet music shops would hire to people to play the new stuff on the street in front of the shops. I guess it made a lot of tin pan banging noises which doesn't say much for the music at the time. There's a fun little plaque on the south side of the street. All of the great, old buildings were music publishing companies that are now things like flower shops with apartments just above. I think these are some of the coolest looking buildings in the area. 57 West 28th used to be a high end gambling den (I wonder how many people were killed in that room). There's a gross looking high rise apartment building on the south side of the block which ordered the demolition of some of these great old building in order to go up. It's a very generic looking luxury apartment building that doesn't fit in at all with the architecture. I know it's not the residents' faults but I always give them stink eye when I see one entering. Conversely, there's a great old building on the corner at Broadway which used to be a church, then a public bath house and now it's a Wholeseller outlet. It was a bath house until 1985 which is pretty cool / creepy. The building is gorgeous, though, so I'm glad it's still around.
Across Broadway, there's another stretch of great buildings starting with the Johnston Building which is scheduled to open as a boutique hotel some time shortly, here. There are a lot of little bizarre / wholesale shops on this block and one of them is in one of the few remaining brownstones in the neighborhood. It's really lovely and I believe they sell perfume here. It used to be a gambling den back when this area was crawling with them. There's a beautiful but run down looking building on the corner at 5th which has more wholesale selling involved with it but I can't imagine it was built for anything remotely like that. It has these great story high arched windows at the top which I imagine would be awesome to look out of every day if you could live in that space. This building is somewhere around where Newland Archer lived in Age of Innocence, though, I'm presuming he lived in a brownstone back when the neighborhood was fancy.
West 28th is incredibly commercial and there isn't much in the realm of things to see, eat or do. But, so many of the buildings are so cool that I wouldn't mind horribly living in one of them if it were available. This block is very old timey to me and you don't get a lot of that in commercial areas.

Centre streets run through Civic Center starts just below Foley Square in Thomas Paine park. The square is actually pretty cool if you can ignore all of the surrounding noise. It was named for a Tammany Hall big wig whose saloon was located right in the square. Directly across the street, Thurgood Marshall Courthouse dominates the block. We have a lot of courthouses in this area, but I believe this is the one that most people go to (or at least, this is the one I had to go to when I had a jury summons). It's a pretty building but it doesn't really stand up to the courthouses in the neighborhood, aesthetically. And, it's kind of depressing on because of all the shabbily dressed government appointed attorneys and their clients.
A little further down Centre, and you run into the Surrogate Courthouse which is the most beautiful courthouse I think I have ever seen. It's stunning. The exterior is gothic feeling with a ton of statues lining it and the interior was designed after the Paris Opera House so it's very opulent but very pretty. I feel like if I have to go to court again, can't I get summonsed to this one? Across from the courthouse is the Muncipal Building which is also very pretty and neo-gothic. It has a very large tower that makes it easy to spot. . . not that it's hard to . . it holds a million square feet of space. Most of the mayoral offices are in this building.
City Hall Park is just down from the Surrogate Courthouse. It has always been a park, even before New York was New York. And, it's a pretty big space where a lot of riots like the Draft Riots, Slavery Riots, Revolutionary riots have been started or ended. . . or both. And, yet another green space is just a bit further down at Printing House Square which ends the street. The square has a big Ben Franklin statue so it's hard to miss but the real history is that this square was the site of the execution of a British militia leader whom refused to step down from his post when New York was part of the colonies. He was hanged, burned and disemboweled not far from where the statue is now. It's always in the most peaceful looking places, that the most violence happens in this city it seems.
There are a lot of green spaces here and a lot of beautiful buildings, but unfortunately, not a whole lot of living areas. It's largely for government offices which also makes the energy and feel of the neighborhood such that you wouldn't really want to live on Centre even if you could find a place. There's just nothing to do outside of a visit or work.

58th in midtown starts with quite the bang at 5th Avenue with Bergdorf Goodman and the Pulitzer Fountain. The Pulitzer is kind of part of Central Park but it does make for a fancy entrance to an extremely fancy store. I don't shop at Bergdorf because I'm not a millionaire, but I do like to people watch the patrons of the store. It's a very interesting set and reminds you about just how much money people in this city have. The block stays pretty grand with The Plaza Hotel next to Grand Army Plaza (cute, huh?) and the Kobe Club across the street. The Plaza Hotel is one of the more famous hotels in the city and the place that the uppity New York girls all try to have their wedding at . . though I believe it is now being reconfigured. The Kobe Club is only famous for serving ridiculously expensive differentiations of kobe beef. I've never been there because it sounds ridiculously, but the garrish seem to like it.
The intersection of 58th and 6th is the famous intersection in Midnight Cowboy where Dustin Hoffman hits the cab and says, "I'm walking here!" The funny thing about that scene is that it was a total accident. A cab drove through the set and almost hit both of the actors but Hoffman stayed in character and they used that take. The rest of the block isn't so exciting. It's a lot of Hotels which is understandable because this street is almost right on Central Park. Oh, and a New York Athletic Club. I feel like most people who live right here don't go the the New York Athletic Club but what do I know?
It's an ok street and the apartments are really nice but this is just crazy town as far as the tourists are concerned. Between the shopping, tourist attractions and Central Park, it's kind of the porthole touristville which I would not want to pay that kind of money to deal with. And, the restaurant and bar scene is really lacking. Put the two together and you get a nice neighborhood street with zero neighborhood feel.

East 50th starts off with a bang as it enters Midtown (few Midtown streets can say the same) with The Waldorf Astoria and St. Barthelomew's Church. The Waldorf is one of the most famous hotels in the world and it really is lovely. The only issue I have with it is the fact that it has been completely taken over by the business set so it doesn't feel as old timey and grand in energy as it used to. If you happen to catch it during a slow run, though, it's beautiful and the upstairs home to the Waldorf salad does make you feel like an aristocrat from another time which I enjoyed very much. St. Bart's Church is one of the prettier ones in the city and I like that it's in the midst of this big building, commercial area. The two buildings remind you of what this area used to look like.
The next block is a strange mix of big commercial buildings with the Villard Houses sandwiched in there. It used to be six private brownstone residences for the elite but now these houses serve as the entrance for a grand hotel. I'm glad they kept the buildings and the courtyard because they really are stunning. I just wish they were still residences though it would be hard to pay that kind of money to live in this part of town. It's so commercial and loud.
The block between Madison and 5th showcases more famous buildings with Saks, New York Magazine and St. Patrick's Cathedral. Saks Fifth Avenue is about as elite of New York shopping that you can get and people watching the old uptown ladies that shop there is really fun. It's definitely snooty but I enjoy it. St. Pat's Cathedral is gorgeous and gothic. It has been the spot for many famous funerals from General Sherman to Bobby Kennedy. It's visually stunning and a welcome break from things the Palmolive Skyscraper.
I wouldn't want to live on 50th in this part of town because of the noise and lack of green or restaurants. And, there are too many tourists. But, it's a spot you have visit because there are so many famous places on one little stretch.

49th is one of the prettier streets in Turtle Bay and the aesthetic takes a pretty swift departure once you enter the midtown section at 3rd Ave. There are a lot of hotels right at the start of 49th's run through midtown and it's pretty much just all business patrons. I know because I had to stay in the W on this block. It's a nice hotel but walking out is really depressing for a downtown person like myself. There were suits everywhere. And, no good restaurants. Across from the W is the Marriott which is an okay hotel that has some great history from when it was the Shelton. Georgia O'Keefe lived here as did Penny Guggenheim. Harry Houdini used the basement for his under water coffin trick. I wish the Marriott would have kept up the grandeur of this place but I don't know that Marriott's are capable of that.
The next block houses the Barclay Hotel which is pretty nice but it gets really overshadowed by it's across the street neighbor, The Waldorf Astoria. My parents stayed here the first time they came to visit and it is a really beautiful hotel. Unfortunately, it has been taken over by the business set so it doesn't have that kind of swagger it became famous for these days. It's still an institution, though (even though it's now owned by Hilton). The salad really is great and the restaurant is named for the Alley (Peacock Alley) where all the society figures paraded in the hotel. Many presidents, Kissinger, and Eisenhower have all lived here at some point. It's worth taking a look and trying the salad, that's for sure.
The block between Park and Madison loses all of its timey grandness with commercial buildings that house banks and big business. You walk out of the old timey Waldorf and right into depressing block USA. But, it sort of turns around again just before 5th with the famous Saks Fifth Avenue, the headquarters for New York Magazine and shops such as American Girl Place. Sidenote: I find American Girl Place to be one of the creepiest stores in existence but I guess kids like it. I went in there once and upon seeing that they have a doll hospital, immediately walked out.
East 49th has some great historical and noteworthy places to see but it's definitely not a great place to live. It's too commercial and filled with suits, tourists and traffic. There's no neighborhood feel and no great restaurants, bars, etc.

There's not much to say about the Ped crossing other than it's a way across FDR by foot. FDR is an incredibly busy, highway of a street so you can't get across it safely by foot. So this bridge sort of crossing makes it easy to get from the East River bank over to the park and into the rest of Manhattan without getting run over by the whizzing cars of FDR. It's not exactly a scenic walk because of all the traffic noise, but if you need to get to the water, it's a good thing this is here. You can't live here, obviously. It's just for walking convenience.

45th starts off its run through Times Square at 8th Avenue to the West and right away it's pretty Broadway heavy. The corner at 45th and 8th houses the Golden Theatre on the south side and Frankie and Johnny's on the north side. Frankie and Johnnie's used to be a really popular speakeasy kind of restaurant but now it's just popular with the tourist set. The restaurant next door, Sam's, is now more of a local Broadway performer hangout than Frankie and Johnnies. Next door to that is the Imperial Theatre which is beautiful and has seen the debuts of power houses like Les Miserables. This kicks a pretty impressive row of theatres that include the Jacobs, Schoenfeld, Music Box and Booth. These are some of the Broadway big guns and have been for a very long time. The Booth theatre was a big Shakespeare theatre named for Edwin Booth, a famous actor whose brother killed President Lincoln. There's one chain hotel at the end of the block, but other than that, this block is gloriously theatre dominated. Yeah, it has a ton of tourists like the rest of the neighborhood. But, it's so exciting to watch everyone pile in for theatre at 7:45. It keeps an old timey feel to this block and it's lovely that art is so alive right here.
The block at Broadway starts the big lights, tourists, ads situation that we all have come to know about Times Square. The swatch building right on the corner at Broadway is particularly known for its ads: they're covering the building. The oldest theatre on Broadway, the Lyceum is in the midst of all of this chaos and that's kind of sad because it's so beautiful. There used to be speakeasies and local restaurants all over this block but now it's taken over by tourist shops and chain restaurants which is really a shame. It's kind of a mess right here, and exhausting to navigate. I wouldn't recommend even walking through this block let alone living on it. It's utter mayhem right here 24 hours a day. But, the block with the theatres is so lovely to hang out on (and even see a show (but not a musical). As far as Times Square streets go, 45th isn't half bad because the block at 8th saves it. But, it's just too crowded, loud and dirty on the whole. And, because it's such a tourist trap, there's no local feel or neighborhood hang.

West 44th is a big Broadway street and from what I understand, it has been since this started being the big Broadway area. John's Pizza, the offshoot of the famous Greenwich pizza, is right on the corner at 8th. I, personally, don't like Johns but if you want to try tourist famous pizza in a really touristy area, then maybe this is the place. Next door to John's is a big Broadway hang called Angus McIndoe. Investors include Matthew Broderick, Nathan Lane and Mel Brooks so there are always theatre big wigs at this spot. Next to Angus is the St James theatre where Hello Dolly and The Producers both enjoyed very long runs. Across from the St James is the Majestic Theatre where Phantom ran for many moons. This is the street where all the big Broadway shows are. Most of them are very commercial and you're not going to see anything ground breaking, but it's great for old fashioned Broadway going, that's for sure. The Helen Hayes Theatre and the Broadhurst are also right here. They have both been around for about 100 years and have seen such gems as Grease, Amadeus and Cabaret. They're grand old theatres that I'm glad are still around even if the crowds on the street drive me bonkers. The famous Broadway restaurant Sardi's is next to the Helen Hayes. I think the food here is sub par and kind of pricey considering but the history is great. Greta Garbo, James Cagney and Robert De NIro were all frequent patrons. Another famous Broadway restaurant called Carmines is a few doors down though that's more for the Broadway going tourists nowadays. The Shubert Theatre (one of the more famous ones) is on the corner of the block right at Shubert alley. Spamalot is here now but this is where A Chorus Line debuted and ran for about an eternity.
After Shubert Alley, the block becomes home to massive commercial buildings like the MTV headquarters and the Paramount building. The back entrance to the New York Times is next to the Paramount. There are disturbingly tourist driven, crappy restaurants on the ground floors of these buildings like Bubba Gump Shrimp but one cool thing that happens here is the Paramount plays a chime at 7:45 every night to let everyone know there's 15 minutes til curtain call for all of the shows. I like that.
I wouldn't live on this block because of the crowds, trash, noise, Times Square-ness, but it is really magical to walk down because of all the theatre history.

Shubert Alley is a little pedestrian alley that runs along the back of Shubert Theatre. It used to be a fire lane for the Shubert and Booth theatres and Astor Hotel around the turn of the 20th century as law dictated they had one. Then, the Shuberts rented it from the Astors to use as their personal alley. It became a public alley a few decades later and boasted a lot of little shops and a waiting place for actors waiting to audition for a show in the theatre. Nowadays, it's a little alley that's not particularly crowded considering its location. It has a gift shop that used to be a Booth theatre dressing room. It is still a fire alley for the Shubert, but you can walk down it to gain access to the theatre. You can't live here and there's not much to see but it's a fun little stretch of history.

The start of 41st's run through Times Square really indicates just exactly what Times Square is meant for: there's a massive Red Lobster right at the corner of 41st and 7th. Why anyone would want to come all the way to New York City to eat at Red Lobster is beyond me, but it manages to remain, so I suppose an awful lot of people seem to think that's acceptable. The New Amsterdam Stage Door is just next to the Red Lobster where the Lion King is enjoying its insanely long run. Zeigfield Follies debuted at this theatre in 1913. Across the street from the New Amsterdam is the Nederlander Theatre which saw Broadway premieres for plays such as Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? It's a big theatre that looks very Times Square to me. But, it often does have some great plays which I often don't say about Broadway theatre. There are also two hotels on this block: a cute, boutique hotel and a massive, ugly, Hilton (I'm presuming for all of the Red Lobster patrons).
The street at from 8th and 9th is taken up by the Port Authority Bus Terminal so that's pretty much the end of 41st street through Times Square. It's a little run but it's exactly what you would expect from any street in Times Square: catered to people that don't live in New York.

Depsite the fact that I don't like this neighborhood, I kind of enjoy West 45th. It has a lively energy, some beautiful townhouses and a lot of art culture which makes it, aside from one sore around 8th, a pretty cool block to live on if you have to live in the neighborhood.
The block at 10th houses the IMG headquarters which used to be the Tootsie Roll Headquarters where the Tootsie Pop was invented. It's funny that such a big business situation is housed in a building that still has a Tootsie Roll logo on the side. I like that they didn't remove it, though. There's a playground across the street, but that's pretty much it for the block. The block at 9th has a little more going on with the Film Center (a building that houses several production companies) and a residential hotel on the corner. Next door to the hotel there's an apartment building called the Whitby where Doris Day and Joe Dimaggio have both lived. There's another nice apartment building and a sushi restaurant on the same side of the block which makes the fact that Private Eyes Strip Club across the street seems a little misplaced. Next door to Private Eyes is a big Broadway theatre that was playing The Lion King last time I checked. Broadway Dance Center is on the other side of the Strip Club which, again, just adds to the creep factor of Private Eyes' location. Broadway Dance Center is one of the more renowned dance schools in the country and I take classes there every summer. It's a fantastic school on a great block but all these foreign kids are always hanging around outside in between classes and I get worried that they're going to be creeped on. I wish that club would move but I'm not the block boss.

Grand Army Plaza is a really decorative little chunk of the south part of Central Park. There's a massive statue of Civil War General Sherman being led by a woman that is supposed to symbolize peace. It's a really pretty statue and it is very . . . gold. Thank god it's brushed gold, or this would be blinding when the sun is out.
There's a split design to Grand Army that is modeled after a Parisian landmark (the name I can't recall). And, the south end of the Plaza holds Pulitzer Fountain. I swam in this fountain with a friend after a lot of cocktails. We totally could have been arrested but the photos and laughs we have from this night made it well worth any recourse we could have gotten.
Grand Army is definitely a grand entrance to the park but it is often completely overrun with people. There are people everywhere around here. It's mostly tourists trying to figure out where to go in the park and about an equal amount of solicitors trying to get the tourists to buy something so it can be a bit of a nightmare. But, if you catch it at the right time, it's a very dazzling way to enter the park.

Columbus Circle is a crazy circle on the west side of Central Park. It is always packed to the gills with people, cars, noise, trash . . you name it. It can also be quite perilous to cross due to all of the traffic, so this area can definitely raise your heart rate. There are also a lot of people catering to tourists around here so I always have to mentally prepare myself to be bombarded when I go to Columbus Circle. Oh, and the horses. Lots of those too.
There's a lovely fountain right at Columbus Circle that my friend and I jumped into one night after drinking a little too much. We probably could have been arrested but I'll count it as one of my favorite nights in New York.
There's a weird shopping center called the Time Warner Center on the west side of the circle. It also has businesses in it, which I presume include Time Warner. There are a bunch of stores (like a Sephora) and some of the most famous foodie restaurants in the city are also here. I find this equally bizarre. Masa and Per Se are counted as the most expensive restaurants in the city and they are in a shopping center? Weird. But, it doesn't seem to hurt the restaurants at all so I don't presume they plan on moving. There's also an Equinox gym (one of my least favorite ones), a Starbucks and a bunch of medical buildings surrounding the circle -- as well, as the southwest corner of Central Park. There are some terribly expensive apartments on Columbus Circle but I don't know that you could pay me to live right here. There are just way too many people and no energy feel. It's really just crawling with tourists and people trying to either get to the park or to work.

It's not exactly a "great" hill, but Central Park Great Hill is definitely a hill. It's a little far north for my blood, so I don't come here a lot. It's right next to the 103rd street stop on the west side so access to the Hill is pretty easy. The only thing I can think of as far as things to do on Great Hill (outside of normal park things) is the yearly Wiccan festival. Yep, that's right, witches. They have a big celebration in the summer. I went one year because I enjoy watching weird things and it was pretty awesome. They do a maypole, and chant and jump over cauldrons and stuff. I was surprised at how many witches live in New York . . but, I don't know why I was surprised, it is New York, afterall. It was actually pretty cool and made for an interesting afternoon involving things I don't do in a part of town I rarely visit. All of Central Park is beautiful, but if you have a reason to trek over here, or live in Morningside, the Great Hill is a cool thing to see.

Central Park Driveway is a beautiful and convenient way into two of my favorite parts of the park. It's on the east side of the park just of the 79th street transverse and it takes you to both the Sheep's Meadow and the concert stage. I have been to at least two shows every summer at the Central Park Summer Stage and it never gets old. Some of the shows are free and some are not free but pretty cheap. The lines are pretty long but it's not too shabby of scenery for a long wait in the afternoon so you can't complain much. I highly recommend everyone see a show here (the Philharmonic at least) and Central Park Driveway is the easiest way to get there.
The Sheep's Meadow used to be an actual sheep's meadow and now it's just for grazing people. It's unadulterated by trees so people come here to soak up the sun, play hand ball, and people watch. It's like a massive picnic with a bunch of people you don't know every weekend and it's pretty fun.
You can use a lot of roads through the park to get around, and, you don't even need one if you're on foot. But, Central Park Driveway makes getting to the goods quick and easy -- I've gotten lost a lot from veering off this road and it's a really big park to find yourself lost in.

The 97th Street Transverse is way too far north for my liking, seeing as I'm a downtown kinda gal. But, I have a friend that lived in Harlem and when he did, he used it all the time. This transverse marks the top end of the resevoir which is pretty popular for joggers. I think it's just over 1.5 miles around the water so if you like that kind of run and you live uptown, then this is your road to get there. There's not a whole lot else around here, but you can get to great north Central Park attractions like the Pool (awesome for a picnic), the Hill (highest point in the park with great trees) and the Conservatory garden. Those are all in the 100's, street-wise, but a few blocks in this city is nothing and you may as well do them in a gorgeous park with sweeping views, no?
Like all transverse roads, the actual road isn't much for a leisurely stroll as cars shoot through the road and traffic can get backed up. But, it's a great access point and makes getting across the northern part fast and easy.

86th seems a little redundant to me seeing as there is also a transverse road at 85th, but I guess it doesn't seem that way to the rest of the New Yorkers because there are always people on it. This transverse road is the best for getting to the resevoir and the Old Croton Aqueduct trail. Before the park was a park, it used to be a massive resevoir with an aqueduct wall leading to it. A lot of this wall still remains around 86th and it's a pretty cool little trail. It looks old timey like castle / moat old timey which I like. And, this far north in the park tends to be much quieter than the southern parts, so if you want a peaceful day with as little city noise as possible, this is a good road to take to get into the park and branch out.

The 79th Transverse Road is a great road for access from the east to the west side of the park, and there are some little gems right off of this road. Belvedere Castle is off of 79th and there's a fantastic rock wall that serves as a walkway beneath the castle. It was put in around the 1850's and there used to be gaslamps to light the way. Not too many tourists know about this rock wall walkway so it's a great, semi-quiet treat. The 79th St Transverse also runs directly into the Natural History Museum (one of my favorite spots!) so if you're on the east side of the park, you can just shoot straight across.
This is also a pretty convenient entrance for getting to the Summerstage, Philharmonic and Shakespeare in the Park though the 72nd entrance is a bit closer. This road isn't particularly tranquil for a park stroll because cars can use the road. But, if you need a direct shoot to any of the aforementioned sights as well as Turtle Pond and the Conservancy, then this is the best street to take.

72nd St Transverse is the park entrance that I use to get to all the things I do in Central Park. I enter on the east side to get to Philharmonic in the Park, Summer Stage, the movies in the park, etc. I use the west entrance to get to Shakespeare in the park. It's basically a direct line to all the free summer fun there is to be had in the park. It's also the best entrance to use to get the famous Boathouse. The boathouse really does deserve all the notoriety it has as far as a great lunch place. The food if pretty good, and it's just beautiful. I highly recommend having a lunch here. It took me two years of living here before I finally did it and I can't believe I waited that long.
The transverse is open to cars so it's not the most scenic park walk as it can be pretty full of traffic that either goes way too fast or doesn't move at all. But, supposedly, they're putting in more bike lanes which is supposed to make that better -- seems to me it'lll make it worse but who knows. All in all, this is the best road to use for navigating your way into all the goods but not ideal for a leisurely stroll

The 65th Street Transverse is a road that connects the east side to the west side through the park. It is open to cars, so it's not exactly the most scenic pass through the park. And, cars tend to drive pretty quickly through here so it makes it a bit dangerous for a runner. It can be quite loud, too, so it's not ideal. But, it's nice if you need a quick cut from one side to the other. It also makes entrance into the park easy and allows for a vantage park as the park can be really confusing if you don't know it well. The east side of 65th transverse is where the opening to the zoo and petting zoo is so it's pretty popular with little kids.

Center Drive is what 6th Avenue turns into once you enter Central Park. You can't live here (or anywhere in the park for that matter), but it's an easy drive street if you need to get through the park by car for some reason. Center Drive takes you through the Bolivar Plaza entrance to the park. There are a lot of statues Latin American liberators right around here. I don't know who any of these people are, but the statues are pretty. There's also a little treehouse looking thing on the east side of center drive. There really all kinds of surprises in this park, so driving through it isn't the best way to see it. But, if, for example, you have to get to the north side of the park, this is probably the best way to go to get into the meat of the park. However, on a nice day, traffic can be a nightmare on this street. There are so many pedestrians and bikers, etc and there are only two lanes so there's no way around all the people. And, cabs whizz down this street so if you are a biker or walker, be careful.

If the picture didn't indicate enough . . .you can't live here. It's a tunnel for traffic that connects Brooklyn and Governor's Island to Manhattan. I wouldn't even recommend hanging out close to it because it's loud, filled with traffic and you could be maimed here. The cars whizz through and honk and it's just a drab tunnel anyway so there's nothing really to see here. It's a nice way of getting to Brooklyn, though not exactly the most scenic.

Liberty starts at the park which makes this little run of street pretty prime property. The particular part of the park that Liberty runs into has a yacht harbor (nice view, huh) and Pumphouse Park. There's a little playground, a chunk of the Berlin wall and plenty of grass in this stretch of the park. And, grass is quite the commodity in Manhattan.
The shame about all of this prime real estate with a gorgeous view is that it's pretty much just commercial high rises that line Liberty. The block at South End leading up to West (where the neighborhood changes) is taken up by 1 and 2 World Financial Center. 1 houses Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal and 2 houses Merril Lynch and Deloitte Touche. I mean, yeah, when you work 12 hours a day banking, it's nice to have a gorgeous view, but they probably have one at home. So, I kind of feel like it's a waste of a view on bankers. But, that's just me.
After West, another neighborhood begins, so you can't live on the street as it runs through this neighborhood.

This stretch of Madison Avenue is one of the only parts of the street that takes even a tiny break from its almost entirely commercial run. Maybe that's why I like Madison Square Park: it's a nice breath of fresh air in a crazy part of town. Granted, that kind of crazy takes away from the park sort of vibe, but the park is still pretty cool. And, its being surrounded by behemoth buildings is a very New York picture to me.
Madison at 26th has the Merchandise Mart on the northeast corner. It's a really ugly building with china and silver showrooms inside, but luckily, buildings like this aren't abundant in this part of town. There used to be a mansion on this site and it's such a shame that this is what replaced it. The south side of the block houses a courthouse -- really weird place for a courthouse, I know. But, I guess it was here first so what can anyone do? Nothing like a burger and a petty crime, right?
The Credit Suisse building is at 25th. It's a massive business building with nothing noteworthy in it aside from Danny Meyer's two big time restaurants 11 Madison Park and Tabla. 11 Madison won the James Beard award last year but I think it's too pretentious. I prefer Tabla of the two though it's not nearly as exalted by foodies. They are both insanely expensive, though, so be warned. Just down at 24th, in the park, is the way cheaper Danny Meyer shoot, the Shake Shack. It's a perpetually crowded but delicious hamburger stand that every New Yorker has to try at least once. Finding a seat on a nice day, though, is like finding Xanadu. That's how popular this place is.
As far as the park goes, the Madison Oak tree is on the Madison Avenue side. This tree was taken from Madison's actual estate and planted here to commemorate him. And, there are a lot of lovely sitting areas. This park has a lot of wonderful history to it though it doesn't look particularly historical anymore. Herman Melville used to walk here every day and it is the site of many O. Henry stories. It's a pretty cool park and apparently used to be really cool.

This stretch of Broadway seems a little wonky because it crosses over 5th Avenue which it normally runs parallel to. It's weird and a little confusing at first but I guess that's part of this city's charm, no? Because of the cross, the first block of Broadway in Madison Square runs past the exact same things as the first block of 5th in this area. This block holds the International Toy Center which is in a really cool building, though I don't quite understand why a toy center has to take up an entire block of a city. But, then again, they have managed to stay there so what do I know. This block on the park side is lovely. It has a fair number of seating, or, at least, I don't often have trouble finding a seat, it has a dog run and a little playground. It's a beautifully designed park.
The block at 24th has the north building of the toy center (more toys!) with a cool looking skywalk. I think I'd be terrified actually walking on it, but it's fun to look up at. The north corner holds Jay-Z's horrible 40/40 club which I can't say lesser things about except for don't go there. It used to be a place called the Hoffman House (hotel) where William Randolph Hearst lived when he first came to New York. They had a bar famous for shock value because of naked nymph paintings -- quite the outrage back then.
The street's run through this neighborhood ends at 25th but it is a lovely little stretch. The downside to living here is that it's a very busy street so it's really loud and there are people / tourists everywhere. And, it's a really city kind of vibe around here so the local kind of energy isn't apparent. It's not a bad place to live by any stretch. I just prefer a little more neighborhood to my neighborhood. And, the prices are sky high here because of the park proximity.

The area around Madison Square Park is pretty cool. And, 5th is one of the better streets here because not only is there a park view, but the buildings are not too hard on the eyes either. There's a massive old building that takes up the entire block between 23rd and 24th that houses the International Toy Center (weird, I know). It used to be a bank but the site has held many things including the Madison Cottage (a suburban lounge) and the Fifth Avenue Hotel which was one of the grandest in its time (1858-1908). There's a gorgeous clock right on the corner that is a relic of the time before wrist watches. I feel like wrist watches are going to be a relic in the not so distant future which will make the clock even more interesting. This side of the park has a William Seward statue ( I think statues of humans are equal parts scary and beautiful so I like this guy) and a WWI Memorial.
The next block up houses the park on the east and a green square on the west. It's really unusual for a city block to have green on both sides so this stretch is quite the commodity. There are memorials on both sides of Generals that I've never heard of but the real draw is just the green. You forget how much you miss a little grass until you live in a place where there barely is any grass.
There are some beautiful buildings on the next block leading up to 27th that mostly have businesses. The corner at 27th used to house Delmonico's which was the most fashionable restaurant in New York history. I'm sad I missed out on it because it seems to be mentioned in just about every historical city book. The building next door has a great current restaurant called Dewey's. Flatiron isn't known for its restaurant scene but they're really starting to make headway and this is a staple. It doesn't hurt that its building is incredibly dramatic looking. It even has bay windows which happen almost never around these parts.
The park is one of my favorites in the city though it's too small to feel like you're removed from all of the hustle bustle. Still, it has a great energy and the people watching on a nice day is hard to beat here.

Named for a church that is no longer there, Mount Carmel Place is a walk-only street that runs nearly two blocks between a little park and Bellevue Hospital. It's nice because there are no cars so it's much quieter than other Kips Bay streets, and the view of the park is nice. But, because the surrounding area is dominated by big apartment buildings and big hospital buildings, it's not exactly an idyllic walk. It's just ok in my opinion but cool because there are so few streets in New York where cars can't go. Another cool fact about this street is that it's so obscure that most maps don't even actually list it -- so you can tell all your New York buddies about it to one-up their knowledge . . .if you're into that sort of thing.

York is only a block long before turning into Sutton Place. It's funny because it's an Avenue but not a very impressive one being so tiny and uneventful. There's really nothing to talk about in regards to York. The Queensboro Bridge dominates York and you can't really live on the street until it becomes Sutton.
The Queensboro bridge, however, really is lovely so the street isn't entirely a loss (how else would you get on the bridge). And, as far as streets go with a bridge opening, York is by far the prettiest and cleanest. Another cool thing about York is that there's a little park with a baseball diamond right underneath the bridge on this street which is a nice, unexpected bit of green in a very city-like neighborhood. There's also a nice stretch of sitting area on the street that looks out onto the bridge and the East River. No matter what time of year it is, it's an unreal view. It's exactly what you would think it would look like when it's described in the Great Gatsby.

Sutton Place at 59th isn't quite as grand as one would expect of a neighborhood with this kind of cache. The block is taken up by apartment buildings. Most of New York is taken up by apartment buildings so this is nowhere near a crime, but we just come to expect a certain amount of gorgeous house and trees from Sutton Place and this block is a little lacking. It doesn't help that the building on the northwest corner is really ugly. But, these apartments are all the really nice, doorman kind so they're not bad to live in at all. It just looks like a regular, nice New York block instead of a Sutton block.
The block at 58th has some nice, beaux-arts kind of apartment buildings on the west side and gorgeous tree-lined townhouses on the east side. It must be kind of unfortunate to look out of your insanely expensive apartment and see insanely beautiful townhouses that you can't afford on the opposite side of the street, but that's first world problems for you, I guess. The townhouses on the east side are from the turn of the 20th century. They're all gorgeous and expensive and one of them has a really cool Medusa kind of head stone on the front door arch. I wonder if that keeps petty thieves away . . .
These homes have some pretty prominent former residents, with Elizabeth Marbury (Oscar Wilde and George Bernard Shaw's agent) dying in 1933 in 13, JP Morgan's daughter living in 3, and the Vanderbilts living in 1. 3 is now the official residence of the UN Secretary General. And, 1, the Vanderbilt house is absolutely massive. It's not every day that you see an actual mansion in Manhattan, and it's an actual mansion. A quick jaunt down this block and you feel like you're in 1920's high society. It's pretty cool.
Sutton Place turns into another street at 57th so it has a pretty short run. There aren't any conveniences around like great local restaurants, cafes or grocery stores; and, public transportation is quite a hike from here. But, the architecture is gorgeous and the neighborhood is beautiful and pretty quiet for New York. The only downer is that it takes a pretty penny to buy that kind of house / tranquil environment so the people that live here are a little stuffy.

There's not a lot to say about the Queensboro Bridge other than the fact that it's a bridge. It's quite a lovely sight at night, and I think it's the second prettiest Manhattan Bridge after the Brooklyn. It was completed in 1909 and about 50 lives and $18 million dollars were the cost of its construction. It's a massive bridge with 10 lanes and two levels and it's the only bridge uptown. It is referenced in a few Woody Allen pics and The Great Gatsby so I guess it has always made a sort of romantic impression. It doesn't hurt that this bridge is the only bridge that enters the city in a nice neighborhood and that neighborhood happens to be one of the nicest in Manhattan. You can see the Mayor's Mansion and all of these beautiful homes as you're descending and none of the other guys present that sort of aesthetic.
There's also a really nice market below the bridge which I can hardly say about the others.
You can't, obviously, live on the bridge but this the only bridge you can live right next to without being in a sketchy stretch of street.

Of all of the Stuy Town loops, the West one is probably the most convenient. It faces out to first avenue, so the L train is right at 14th and the green line is just an avenue over. None of the other loops have quite that access to the trains. It's also within a few blocks of a Trader Joes, Whole Foods, a number of pharmacies and a ton of deli's so food is a non issue. It's also perfectly centrally located between Gramercy, Flatiron and the East Village. You are a few blocks away from the serenity of Gramercy, the hullaballoo of the East Village and all of the commerce of Gramercy which makes your social and errand life kind of a breeze. Most parts of town don't have that kind of axis of fun.
The downers of living in the West loop come with the convenience, though. It can be quite loud and dirty here though definitely less sketchy than, say, the east loop. The units are a bit more expensive here than the east or north loops because of the popularity. But, all in all, if you want to live in Stuy Town, this isn't a bad loop to start looking around.

I'm kind of at a loss for what to say about the Stuy Walks . . because they're just walkways extending from the center of the residential complex out to the different buildings. This is a massive housing development. Thousands of people live in Stuy Town and I find it so bizarre that the few times I've walked down Stuyvesant Walk, I haven't really seen that many people. These walks are basically like walkways through a park, but instead of a park, it's a housing complex that kind of looks like a park with dorms in it. It's really green and there are all of squirrels and the like, but it's very quiet as far as activity goes. The complex offers outdoor activities such as movie nights, bbq's etc., but I don't know how great the attendance is. It's an alright complex, though, as far as massive housing goes. And, the units are really nice. There's just neighborhood feel at all. It's a bunch walking in and out of their apartments. No one's really hanging out on the walks and there's nothing like a cafe or anything on them. It really is exactly like being in a dorm area.

Stuyvesant Oval is a walkable oval at the center of the Stuy Town housing complex. There are apartment buildings surrounding the oval and though there's a lot more foot traffic milling about outside those buildings, there's also no street traffic and it's, obviously, more centrally located and protected I guess. And, it's very green right here so the buildings surrounding the oval would probably be my first choice if I were looking for a place here.
The oval also holds a rec center with a pool table, wifi, a tv and couches. They have wine tastings there and residents can use it to have parties. The Stuy Town gym is also at the oval as is, I believe, the parking structure and the rental office. There's a lot going on right here but it's definitely quieter than being street side.
The apartments are really nice and a one bedroom around the oval is about $3300 / month. It's steep but there are a lot of amenities and these are some of the biggest apartments I've seen in apartment remotely close to this price range.

16th gets a little squirrely just before Stuy Town so there isn't really much to say about it . . . because there isn't much street. It stops at Stuyvesant Square which is a little park that doesn't have near the energy and crowd that Tompkins or Washington Square Park have and then picks up again only to be broken up yet again by the Stuy Town housing complex. Between the park and Stuy Town is a high school and Beth Israel Medical Center. So, the good news is that if something should happen to you, you are literally across the street from an ER. The bad news is that it makes this area really boring, unattractive and kind of sketchy late at night. The only people really around the square are people involved with the hospital and a few other stragglers because Stuy Town complex has it's own mini park for the residents.
When 16th is cut off again, it's literally cut off by the buildings. It's not the kind of cutoff that you can still walk through. And, the Stuy Town complex isn't exactly a hang out kind of place. The other side of Stuy Town where 16th picks back up just has FDR drive (which is basically a freeway) and the Hudson. So, if you're looking for something . . anything to do over here, you're going to be SOL. There isn't a single bar, restaurant, theatre . . . nothing. It's just housing and the end of the road. I think it makes the street scary at night and even kind of depressing during the day, so I wouldn't live here unless I was really attached to the Stuy Town units.

Houston is actually the cutoff between the Bowery and the Lower East Side, so the North side of Houston is actually the only part the hits the Bowery. Right at Bowery, the north side of Houston has a pretty community garden. I cannot begin to describe how rare it is to see a garden on a street as busy and commercial as Houston. It was the first of its kind in Manhattan and it's pretty impressive. Sort of an homage to the fact that this corner was the southern most boundary of the old Stuyvesant farm back when New York was New Amsterdam.
Just across Chrystie on the north side, there is a vacant spot which used to hold a building that saved artifacts and then sold them. The building was demolished in a fire, but they still put the artifacts out in the lot every day to sell them. That's some out of the box thinking. . . The whole rest of the block is taken up by a park (again, super weird for a street like this). It's kind of a depressing park though because you see people trying to enjoy themselves in the midst of madness: crazy people yelling, tourists, honking cabs, trash, dirt, construction. It's not even my 15th choice for a park, but I guess it's nice to know it's there should anything ever happen to the first 14.
The particular strand of Houston that runs through the Bowery isn't a stretch where you can live. Pretty much the whole chunk of it is taken up by public things. But, that's a saving grace because I can't imagine living on a street as filthy and loud as Houston and managing to maintain some sort of sanity.

Cooper Square only runs through one tiny block of the Bowery (from 4th to 5th) and the neighborhood definitely starts to take on a new tone at Cooper. There are some really beautiful old buildings right here. But, you can't really live in Cooper Square. It's taken over by school and commerce. But, you can definitely enjoy walking through. Right at 4th and Bowery / Cooper is where 14,000 homeless people were counted living in the late 1940's. That's just to an idea of what this area was like for a very long time. The book The Alienist does a great job of painting the horrific back drop that was this neighborhood up until fairly recently. In line with the Alienist, there's a building at 32 Cooper that used to be a big hall where trannies would congregate in the 19th century. One of them was murdered in the opening of that fantastic New York book. People nicknamed the building Paresis Hall after the final stage of Syphilis. This was not a neighborhood for a gentleman, that's for sure. And, now rich people live all around it. Just to stamp in the new rich vibe, The Cooper Union Hotel went up a few years ago right at 5th. It's modern, sleek, trendy and very shi shi. My dad has stayed here a few times and it carries along the vibe of the new Bowery very well.

18th starts off at the Hudson with the massive Chelsea Piers. It used to be a major port but then was revamped in the 80's to be a sort of fun complex / commercial space. The Law and Order Casting office is here along with some other businesses. But, the majority of the complex is dedicated to rock climbing, golf, batting, trapeze and a kids gym. It's a weird spot but if you're into outdoor kinds of fun in the city, this is the spot. The next block down is the Highline, so this is a really outdoorsy few blocks which is very rare in Manhattan.
Once you get around 8th, there's a mix of apartment buildings, restaurants and retail like Barney's Co-op (a favorite amongst my friends). But, once you cross 7th, the street is crazy commercial. The block between 7th and 6th is filled with cute, little restaurants, a few consignment shops, a weird poster shop, you name it. It still manages a bit of a neighborhood feel too so it's a great block to live on. There's a lot of bustle, but it's not overly packed with people / tourists. There are some great old buildings too.
While there's not a lot that's a must see spot in New York on 18th, there is a lot to do. It's a pretty cool street that packs a lot of activity into a few blocks. If I were going to live on 18th, I'd want to live somewhere around 8th as it gets a little busier around 6th-7th, but overall, it's a fun street.

There are some lovely old relics on Lex in Gramercy Park, but like most major avenues, the street is pretty boring. It's a nice walk into Gramercy but it's not really a hang out kind of street. There are some lovely apartments on this street, but I feel that if you can afford them, you can probably find a better street to live on.
There are some really cool, old buildings right at Lexington and 24th but they have less than cool usages these days. The George Washington building used to be one of the grandest hotels in the city. WH Auden stayed here in the 30's a lot. It's now a . . . .dorm. Across the street used to be another hotel that's now a co-op with bizarre little eateries next to it. I imagine that this block used to be very en vogue and now it's kind of boring. The buildings are pretty, though.
There are some really old, gothic looking buildins at 23rd and Lex. One of them is Baruch College. The building is stunning so I recommend everyone go in and take a peek if at all possible. The other is a high school so I would recommend just admiring it from afar unless you want to be arrested for being a creepy trespasser. The block at 22nd has some of the most beautiful big buildings in the neighborhood: Sage House and the Gramercy Park Hotel. Sage House is now apartments (lucky tenants!) and the Gramercy Park Hotel is not to be missed. It has had a slew of famous tenants such as the Kennedy's, Deborah Harry, and Babe Ruth. It's sort of seedy nowadays on the inside but it's still really old timey and very cool. I love this building.
Just after the Gramercy Park Hotel, you run into Gramercy Park and Lexington ends. Gramercy Park is a gorgeous park that is only accessible to the residents of the streets surrounding it, so the park doesn't have a New York energy, but it's very charming and sort of an elitist perk. I believe it's open on Christmas day, but you can't go in any other time unless you are a resident (i.e. rich).

Tribeca doesn't have a lot of little alley-way kind of streets, so the neighborhood is really taking advantage of the one they have in Collister Street. Every alley or tiny, cobble stoned road in Manhattan is ridiculously expensive, so the price tag guffaw goes without saying on a street like this. But, these homes are seriously expensive. There are only a few little buildings on this little road, but the buildings don't hold a lot of units. So, the units are pretty big and pretty much all of the apartments on this street have been remarkably redone. I haven't seen a listing for a home on Collister that is under $8 million. You can't really rent on this street (but you could afford to rent with that price tag why wouldn't you just buy?) They are ridiculous homes and yeah, they're big . . but, they're not that big. I guess it's the privacy of the street combined with the fact that the street is so old and charming. And, not a lot of people know about it so there isn't a lot of foot traffic. It's a beautiful street and one of the few in the neighborhood that has a real neighborhood feel as well as an old timey New York kind of feel. If I were really rich, I would look at places on this street. But, the unit would have to knock my socks off to get me to pass up a West Village row house if I'm being frank, here.

There's not much to say about Watts St Extension as the majority of the extension crosses through the park on the Hudson. It's not a street you can drive on, but the park is lovely. I live in the West Village just off of this park and I run down past Watt's in the park all the time. The view is fantastic and there are always a lot of people out and about here -- especially in the spring. The only buildings on the extension are two luxury condo buildings right at West. They are both fantastically expensive but the units are amazing.
The only thing I wouldn't recommend about the extension is that I would beware of the traffic on West (it's very busy and very fast) and the park is a little sketchy at night. So, I wouldn't hang out West of West after midnight at all.

The corner of Greenwich and Canal has some really cool buildings. One is a new, condo building with stunning units, one is a federal row house, and the other is a cast iron commercial space. It's a really interesting showcase of the evolution of New York architecture. Across Watts, there are more historical buildings, but they have always been commercial spaces. Commercial spots as historical landmarks aren't all that common in this area, so they're definitely worth a look.
As you go further down Greenwich, a definite theme is established with commercial buildings on the west side and apartment building with little bars and restaurants on the ground floor on the east side. The must-do of this stretch is at Moore. The Tribeca Film center is right on the corner with a few restaurants surrounding it that are all fantastic. This is a very trendy little corner and I always recommend that people take a peek.
This street, around Moore, is a great street to live on because the apartment buildings are fantastic (though very expensive), the restaurant scene is great, and Greenwich is far enough west that there isn't a lot in the way of traffic, tourists and lurkers. So, it's a bit quieter than a lot of other streets in the neighborhood. I like Greenwich street in its entirety, and the Tribeca stretch is no exception. It's a really cool street.

The Brooklyn Bridge is the most famous bridge in New York and it is certainly the most attractive. One of the first things I did when I moved to the city was walk over the Brooklyn Bridge. It's a gorgeous view and you have plenty of company on your walk. I made the mistake of doing the walk in December but the weather still didn't destroy the charm of the walk. The bridge began construction in 1870 and it took 13 years and 16 mortalities to complete. The architect of the bridge actually died of tetanus during its construction. His son took over and also died. So, the bridge was helmed to completion by the son's wife which was very interesting in the 19th century. Just after the opening of the bridge, a panic took over the crowd and several people were trampled to death. So, this bridge has seen some things.
The entrance to the bridge in the Fidi is pretty lackluster, though. It's crowded and kind of ugly and there's nothing really to do immediately around the bridge (going into Brooklyn is a lot more eventful). But, there is a plaque at the bottom of the bridge marking George Washington's first residence and there's a really popular skateboarding area just under the bridge in the Fidi. I think the skateboarding thing is pretty funny since I don't tend to associate Fidi with skateboarders. But, that's the great thing about neighborhoods here. I wouldn't live around the Brooklyn Bridge just because it's so boring and unpleasing to the eye. But, you have to walk across it and this is the only way on.

I don't go to South Street Seaport for how much I love this place. The Seaport is a historic district in Manhattan that kind of reminds me of San Francisco. I remember the first time I went there and there was actual sunshine that broke through from all of the surrounding buildings as I walked onto the cobblestone. It still looks like an actual seaport and even though a lot of the buildings are newer, it still has a great, old-timey feel. There are even ships from the 1800's docked there as part of the museum.
The best part is that aside from the historical element of the area, there are tons of restaurants, bars and shops. It's kind of like a time capsule and a mall of sorts wrapped into one. You can go to J Crew and then hit up Heartland Brewery with a view of the boats. There is no way to have a bad time . . even though all of the businesses are chains.
Yes, it's a major tourist enclave. And, yes, it's a little far out of the way from actual nightlife and local haunts. But, it's really charming, in my opinion. I wouldn't even mind living there. I have a friend that lives in the seaport and she says every time she walks out of her place, she feels like she just entered the 19th century. It's my favorite tourist spot in the city. And, I highly recommend it.

The Manhattan Bridge was the last of the suspension bridges built across the East River. And, not that there's a popularity contest going on between the bridges, but if there were a contest, this bridge would come in last place. It's the furthest south of the bridges and it is the only of the three I haven't ever walked across. Then again, that could be because the pedestrian lane was closed until 2011 for construction. And, weirdly, most of my friends haven't either. I guess it's because it's so far south, doesn't connect to a cool part of Brooklyn, and isn't particularly pretty. It was opened in 1909. It cost $31 million which is crazy for that time . . even for a bridge.
The bridge is pretty standard. It has a lower deck for pedestrians, bikes and the subway and an upper deck for cars. The bridge is mostly utilized for people commuting from lower parts of Brooklyn like Park Slope, Cobble Hill etc. There's really not much that's noteworthy about the thing to be honest.

Suffolk is a pretty mixed bag as far as LES streets go. There's not a ton of stuff to see or do but there are a few nice surprises on the street. The good news about that is that it makes the street quieter and a little lower in rent while still being more than close enough to the life of the party streets. The bad news is that there's a lot of useless space on the street and that always make me think that there are creatures of the night lurking about in them. I'd rather not walk through a parking lot at 2 am but that's just me.
The west side of Suffolk at Houston is all residential and like most of the Lower East Side, the apartment buildings all look like old tenements but have non-tenement rent prices. The opposite corner houses a pretty decent bar (I can't remember the name (there are so many in this neighborhood) and a garden which is kind of weird match but great if you live in one of the apartments across the street. You have a local haunt and some green which is a hard combo to find in the LES. The opposite corner of the street, at Stanton, offers an Argentinean restaurant called Azul and an art gallery. So, this block is pretty well rounded but not crazy with the hustle and bustle of things to do.
The next block . . . not so well-rounded. There's a prep school for troubled youth and a matzo shop.. . .and that's it. Both have been around forever though so that must be a testament to something. It's just not a testament to fun or cool living spaces.
Once you cross Rivington, the street gets much more in tune with the neighborhood. There's a crazy, out of place Gothic building that's not an art center. I wish it were apartments because I would so want to live in the one gothic structure in the middle of the Lower East Side. It probably will be eventually but for now, it's just a dream. Across the street, there's a pretty cool juice place called Organic Avenue. Yes, I'm a nerd for pushing a juice place, but it's surprising how hard those are to come by when you're not near a Juice Generation. The same side of the block also houses a French restaurant that's pretty good and has live jazz and a vegetarian Japanese place that's also pretty good but doesn't have live jazz. Shocking, I know.
The block across Rivington is entirely a parking lot. On both sides. I'm not kidding. And, now the next block is pretty much entirely parking lot except for the relic of a building that used to have Two Boots Pizza. I think Two Boots closing here is one of the saddest things ever. It's my favorite pizza in the city and it's hard when your favorite closes but all of the disgusting Ray's Pizzas are still open. Go figure.
Across Grand, there's nothing but the Seward Co-op buildings. They're monstrous looking things. It kind of looks like a hospital and for all of the trouble you have to go to in order to live in a co-op, why here? I don't understand the people that live in these things.

Ludlow really starts off with a bang with Katz' Deli right on the corner. Katz is one of the two best deli's in the city and it's quite famous. It's the deli with the famous scene from When Harry Met Sally. The pastrami is pretty killer. I recommend it to any visitors that want a downtown deli. There are a ton of bars on this block as well. Max Fish is across the street and it's probably the most popular one. It has been around since the 80's and it's very Lower East Side. There's a grilled cheese spot a few doors down that's perfect after a few too many hours at the Max Fish if you catch my drift.
The block between Stanton and Rivington is where the LES really gets ahold of the street. Pianos is right on the corner. And, it's a great dive bar with live acts ranging from music to comedy. Cakeshop, the creepiest but most awesome coffee shop is right next door to that. And, down the street is 'inoteca which is a fantastic restaurant that has a jammin brunch. There are also a lot of funky shops on this block so you could actually never leave this block for an entire day and have things to do.
But, you don't have to stay on that block because the good times keep going after you cross Rivington. Spitzer's, on the corner, is another lovely little restaurant with a long beer list. There's also a crazy, Bulgarian bar called Mehanata that's pretty fun if you're into crazy. But, my personal favorite spot on this block is Motor City. It is one of the scariest of dive bars of all time and I love it. Some of my favorite memories in New York have occurred in that disgusting bar. The rest of the street is all schools and apartment buildings until you get down to Canal where you hit yet another fantastic restaurant: Les Enfants Terribles. The food is great, the restaurant is lovely and it always has a great energy.
Ludlow is one of the most Lower East Side streets of the Lower East Side. It's fun and lively and loud. It's too loud at times and sometimes dirty but there's so much going on, it's kind of hard to care. I really enjoy Ludlow. It's one of my favorite streets in the neighborhood.

Attorney's not a great street. My sister used to have an apartment on Attorney and though I loved her apartment and her neighborhood, the street is a little too dark and quiet. Yes, the Lower East Side is stupidly loud so it's nice to have a little quiet, but this street is quiet in a kind of scary way at night. There aren't any restaurants on the street and there isn't a lot going on. But, if you find a great deal on Attorney, it's not awful. It's really close to so much to do. . . just be careful at night on your walk home.
There's a cool dive bar on the corner of Attorney and Houston. It's really divey but the good news is that there aren't nearly as many hipsters and punk kids. And, there's a liquor store right next door to it in case you're a big lush and want more for the road! There's a school that stops the street at Rivington which is lovely for the kids but a major pain for the rest of us. The gates are often closed and we have had to walk around the block and back onto Attorney on the way home from a night out. Seeing as Attorney isn't the most lively street in the neighborhood, it's kind of a sketchy walk to get around the school. The street does it again at Seward "Park" but at least you can actually walk through the park and it's not really park so it's not nearly big enough to be scary late at night.
Once you get past Broome, there's just a few big apartment buildings that don't have much character, a Church that I don't think has much character considering how old it is and a deli. It's really no man's land after the bridge though I think Attorney is a bit of a no man's land in its entirety.

Hudson is a pretty cool street around the West Village but it's really sleepy is it enters Soho. The sleepy is kind of nice because it's definitely quiet, but there aren't any bars or restaurants and it's pretty far from transportation. Also, this part of Hudson is a little sketchy at night because of the lack of people. But, if you're more interested in quiet and lack of traffic than nightlife and the like, Hudson isn't a bad place to live. It's just pretty pricey considering what the area has to offer.
The corner of Hudson and Clarkson is home to the radio state Hot 97 that wouldn't be noteworthy aside from the fact that this seems to be the spot where rappers like to settle rivalries with gunfire. Lil Kim got into her notorious kerfuffle that led to prison here and 50 cent and the Game got into a gun war in front of the radio station a few years later. I find this location so bizarre because it's right on the precipice of the West Village which is one of the more expensive - less rappy areas in the city.
Another bizarre building for the neighborhood is on the corner of Hudson and Houston. Across the street from Saatchi and Saatchi is a massive pile built around 1930 that used to be a warehouse for all of the goods seized at customs. Now it just seizes people from customs. Kidding. Sort of. It's now the INS detention center where they have a lot of "special guests" or political prisoners. Interestingly, this is also the building where I renewed my passport last year. I guess that kind of makes sense in a sad way.
Across King Street is the famous Jacques Torres Chocolate Haven. You can get the most amazing hot chocolate here that you've ever had in your life once you've been released from the INS. You can also get the most amazing hot chocolate you've ever had in your life if you haven't been detained. And, this is the spot. It's famous for a well-deserved reason.
As Hudson continues south, the majority of the street is big apartment buildings. There aren't really any bars or restaurants and there are only a few businesses. Skylight Studio -- a massive gallery and performance hall -- is on Hudson and Spring and Edelman PR is directly across the street. Other than that, there is pretty much nothing on the street but residential buildings. . . and the entrance to the Holland Tunnel.

Howard only runs through Soho for a block, so there's not really much to say. It's a very commercial block and there are no trees because, apparently, the person that owned the building where the trees were decided he hated them and tore them out some time ago. Howard is busy in the way that most of Soho is so there are people and cars and trash everywhere. It's too loud and busy to want to live on. And, there aren't any restaurants or bars on the street -- and, none that are of any note even in the surrounding area. The buildings are cool, though . . .
The Citibank building on the corner of Howard and Mercer used to be home to Arnold Constable, a massive department store where the likes of Mary Todd Lincoln shopped. All of the buildings on this block are cast-iron, massive buildings built around the mid-19th century. For some bizarre reason, this corner was heavy in the Civil War (i.e. Arnold was boycotted by southerners and the building across the street was a soldier depot during the war.

The corner of Charlton and Hudson is, strangely, still owned by Trinity Church. The land was given to the church by the Queen in the early 18th century and Trinity has torn down old apartment buildings and put up commercial spaces somewhat recently. Nothing like a church making a killing, eh? In fact, Trinity property takes up Charlton until east of Varick. And, what a remarkable difference Varick makes. The final block of Charlton (between Varick and 6th) is one of the most beautiful blocks in the city. Richmond Hill used to be right on the south side of the street and there's now a commercial building -- which is such a shame -- but, that's pretty much the only house that has been demolished on this block. The rest of the block is entirely Federal and Greek style row houses from the mid 19th century. They are gorgeous and ridiculously expensive. This block is really special because it looks almost exactly like it did nearly 200 years ago. Many members of Tammany Hall lived in these houses around the late 19th century. Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker used to live at 17, Edna St Vincent Millay lived at 25 and Fred Gwynne lived at 9. Apparently, one of the victims of the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire lived at 11 when she died which is odd because those women were all working class. I'm guessing there must have been loads of people living in these around the time because the neighborhood wasn't great for a period of time. This block is really worth walking down because of the history and beauty . . .let alone the celebrity residents.
Charlton ends at 6th Ave and becomes Prince street but the short stretch that is Charlton is a really desirable street. If you can afford it, this is one of the better streets to live on.

There are some great places to hit on 13th but it's not a street I would want to live on. It's too close to Union Square and way too busy. There are people everywhere and it just doesn't feel like a neighborhood. The buildings are generally massive and the commercial spaces runneth over. It's loud and kind of dirty too. It's a great area for stuff to do. It's just not great if you want to avoid tourists and students.
There's a little Vietnamese joint on the corner of 13th and Uni that is pretty good but definitely caters to the student set. There's also an awful bar on the floor above that. The rest of the block is taken up with business like a gym, a day spa, a few shops and two of my most frequented places in the city: the Union Square Chase and Cosi. This Chase bank is surprisingly uncrowded considering the location and the building is lovely. Across the street is a Cosi in the Roosevelt building. The building is from 1893 and it is really gorgeous. It stands out on a block of already pleasing architecture. And, this Cosi is massive. There's always a table, they have free wifi and the foods pretty good / good for you for fast food. They even have a bar in this branch which I think is hilarious. I can never imagine going to a Cosi to get a beer, but apparently, some people do.
Across the street from Cosi is the big Union Square movie theatre. This is the one that I (along with everyone else downtown) usually go to to catch a flick. I just went there for Underworld last week (don't judge). It's massive and always packed but the location and number of movies they play is really hard to beat when you are a last minute movie goer like myself. It's built on the side of Wallach's Theatre which was an equally popular live theatre space around the Wharton era. I believe this is where they had the riots due to two MacBeth's going on. I wish people would still get that crazy over theatre.
The next block is a mix of arty and commercial spaces. Everyman Coffee is one of my favorite coffee spots in the city and the Classic Stage Company behind it is one of the best theatres in the city. Venus in Fur just played there for several weeks before going to Broadway. And, there is usually some sort of celebrity actor in all of their plays. Next door to Everyman is Peridance dance center. This is the best dance studio in the city for ballet and contemporary jazz but it is really catered to the professional dancer. There are an awful lot of gyms on this street so it's interesting to sit in Everyman (with the actors) and watch the dancers pass the meatheads. I've spent a lot of afternoons doing just that.

This part of 12th isn't bad but I'm not a huge fan. It's very commercial and the buildings are all giant (few with character). It's really oppressive and not noteworthy in any way. It has a central location but no charm.
The corner building on 4th and 12th is an apartment building called the Petersfield (named for the Stuyvesants). It doesn't look like much from the outside but the apartments are awesome -- and ridiculously expensive. There's a Crunch Gym in on the ground floor of the building which takes a little away from the old world aesthetics but if a gym is more than 3 blocks from where you live, you'll never go. There's nothing less motivating than trying to make yourself get up at 6 am to work out when there's a blizzard you have to endure for more than five minutes. Utrecht, the art store of all art stores, is across the street from the Petersfield. This place has everything (and a lot of hipsters to boot). There's also a lot of students at this store thanks to the NYU dorm that went up over what used to be an old rectory. Ok, yes, there would still be art students at the art store -- I just wanted to complain about NYU again. The entrance to this dorm is actually the only thing that remains of a crumbly, old church. It's a cool way to enter a building. It's just sad that NYU demolished the majority of what was clearly a gorgeous building.
The rest of the block is what seems to be a dorm war between NYU and the New School. They kept the majority of the old buildings, and I'm sure the insides are very cool, you just can't see them unless you're a student which is a shame.
Because so much of 12th in Noho is taken up by NYU, it's hard for me to not consider this part of town as Greenwich. It's just Greenwich without the charming, small buildings and restaurants.

11th isn't a bad street to live on in Noho by any means. But, there are an awful lot of people and trash for an area that doesn't have that much going on. I wouldn't say no to living here but it's not my first choice either.
East 11th and University is marked by the Albert Apartments and a Wholesale Antique Shop on the corners. The antiques shop building is nothing to write home about but the Albert is a really cool building. It used to be a hotel where a lot of big writers stayed. The Dean and Deluca where Felicity worked in the show Felicity is on the ground floor of this building. There's another really cool hotel turned apartment building across the street but the majority of the block is taken up by Antique shops. I wish I could say whether or not they are good shops but being that they're wholesale, you can't go in without a license. I think this is a really weird spot for this sort of district. It's such prime real estate that I would have expected that they would have been driven uptown by now. The end of the block where there is now a Eastern Antique shop used to be the most popular high end hotel in the city -- we sensing a theme with this street? It was called the St Denis: President Lincoln, Buffalo Bill, Alexander Graham Bell and Ulysess Grant all stayed here.
The next block is entirely taken up by Grace Church and I'm not complaining about that. The building is so beautiful it's impossible to ignore. It makes you imagine what this street looked like before it was so commercial. It's a Gothic Church that was designed in the 1840's by a completely unknown architect -- whose grandfather owned the land. I think he lived up to his nepotism in this case, though. The church is unreal.
The block at 4th Ave has a cool looking post office that used to be a school with a really not cool looking billiards hall across the street. Next door to the post office is my favorite concert hall in the city: Webster Hall. It was built in 1863 and was nicknamed The Devil's Playground because they used to have such wild parties. It's a really cool, old building that isn't glamorous in any way. But, the place is so small that every concert seems intimate. I saw Owen Palett here last year and it was magical. The corner of the block is marked by a place a go to all the time and wish I didn't and a place I never go to an wish I did. Village Pourhouse on the south corner is a massive sports bar that gets out of control and there are a lot of turds that hang out there. But, it's our go to spot (so, I guess we're turds too) for football season and I never have a bad time -- and, I never leave even knowing where my face is. Across 10th is a little movie theatre that I've only been to twice and always wonder why I don't see more movies there. It's little and cute and rarely crowded.
11th has a good mix of things to do, things to see and things to pass over. But, it is a little lacking in neighborhood feel, trees and restaurants. It's not a bad block and it's central to everything, but this far north in Noho lacks a little charm, in my opinion.

Shevchenko Place is a one block street that traverses Cooper Union School. The Ukrainian population in New York fought to have this name given to what was formerly Hall Place and they won in the '70's. Well, they sort of won: both street names are up on the sign. This street is a pedestrian walkway from 6th to 7th that runs in between Cooper Union's main building and their residence hall. The place is still surrounded by Ukrainian businesses and a Ukrainian Church but Cooper Union has had plans in the works for a decade to terminate this street and it looks like the bill is about to be passed. As far as things to do, McSorley's is right at the end of the walkway on 7th, so it's spitting distance from one of the oldest and most popular bars in the city. But, you can't live on this street and there's really nothing to do on it. It's in a great area and there are infinite things to enjoy surrounding Shevchenko Place but it is really just a means of getting through the school (which is gorgeous, by the way).

FDR Drive is basically the east side equivalent of the West Side Highway. But, unlike the West Side Highway, you can't live on this street because it isn't a street: it's a freeway. It's great because you can get from the bottom of Manhattan to the top very quickly, but there's really not much else to say about it. Being that it's a highway, there are no restaurants, bars, homes or things to look at. It's simply a quick way to get from downtown to uptown and beyond. An interesting fact about FDR Drive is that no commercial vehicles can drive on it. This lends itself to the speed of using the highway, but it makes a little moving a little difficult. Moving vans, trucks and buses are prohibited because there is a weight limit which I believe is due to the fact that the section between 23rd and 34th is built entirely upon rubble -- so think about that next time you're stuck in gridlock with 100 other cars in this area. Kinda scary.

There's a weird convenience store called M2M right on the corner of 11th and 3rd. I always want to go in there and see what they sell, but every time I walk past it, I think, "ehhhh, next time." I still have no idea if it's a deli, a grocery store, a health food store . . . .I just don't know. There's a really pretty garden just behind the M2M and the rest of the block is taken up by St Marks in the Bowery Church which I talk about in the E 10th street writeup. It's my favorite church. It's one of the oldest buildings in the city and it is really beautiful. They often have poetry readings, dance events and classical music concerts on the weekends which I highly recommend.
The next block has some great old, sort of run down buildings that are pretty unique to the East Village and the Lower East Side. There's a garage at 310 that used to be a garage for horses which I find amusing. Across the street from that is a great little dumpling spot. If you can't make it to Chinatown, this one is the place to be for dumplings. Most of the buildings on this street have great little boutiques and consignment stores on the ground floor. But, there is an actual restaurant on the block called Veneiro's though they are most well known for their dessert. So, it's more of an after - dinner restaurant. The block between 1st and A is a bizarre mish mosh of shops, a school, a garden, apartments . .. you name it. And, all the shops are the mom and pop kind that are specialty stores. One of them only sells tiles. . . that sort of thing. The end of the block does have Westville East, however. Westville in the West Village is one of my favorite lunch spots. This one is exactly the same just with more hipsters in it.
The block between A and B has a ton of small, great bars. Bar on A, Angels and Kings and 11th street bar are all within 50 feet of each other and they're all really fun. There's a building on the other side of 11th that used to be a bath house and is now apartments. I feel like it would so weird to live in a building like that but it's probably really cool inside. It's gorgeous on the outside and it definitely looks like a bath house.
East 11th is a really hip street (weirdly, it's where all the cocaine dealers in the city used to live but definitely don't anymore). It's not great as far as transportation but it's a very walkable street and there's tons to do. I would live on 11th and a lot of my friends live quite close by.

11th has a ton of historical residents and great old buildings but there isn't much of a neighborhood feel to the street as it traverses Greenwich. I think it's a little too close to Union Square, or maybe it's the fact that there are so many businesses and schools in the area. It's pretty but most people don't notice that because it seems like more of a pass through street than many village streets.
French Roast Cafe on the corner of 11th and 6th is one of the few 24 hour spots in the city that isn't god awful. The food is actually decent enough that I've eaten there at a decent hour. A lot of comedians hang out there and I have never understood why. I like the place as far as a quick breakfast is concerned. The smallest cemetery in New York is next door to the Roast and it is seriously small. I don't know that I would want that right outside my window but plenty of people don't seem to mind. The New School's undergraduate campus is directly across the street from the cemetery because, you know, it's not a school without an old creepy bunch of graves. I feel kind of sorry for the freshman that come in from Idaho and realize their school is practically on top of dead people. That must be a horrifying introduction to the big city. Once you get about halfway down the block from 6th, things really get cooking, history-wise. Those old and beautiful buildings have been home to a lot of prominent people. Harold Ross lived at 56, Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft lived at 52, Oscar Wilde lived at 48, Jane Curtin lived at 35, and Dustin Hoffman lived at 16. 32 was where Vincent Pepe hung himself off the bannister in 1935. Don't get me wrong, if I had a chance to live in this house, I still would, but I would definitely sleep with a flashlight. And, I would probably replace the stairs. 18 West 11th is a monstrous house both in size and ugliness. It used to be the home of Charles Merrill and then was a radical hideout in the '60's. They were building bombs and blew up most of the house in the '60's. This thing is what was rebuilt. You can't buy taste, I suppose. Dustin Hoffman lived at 16 and the time and witnessed the explosion. What a cool life that dude has had. I mean, cool from what I have ever read.
The Judge Crater House on the corner is famous because Judge Crater was living here at the time he went missing in 1930. Five months later, cash, insurance policies and his will turned up in his bedroom out of nowhere but he never did. The building kind of looks like a building where people get murdered to be honest. It has always creeped me out. Across the street is an equally creepy but incredibly beautiful gothic revival church from the mid-19th century. There used to be so much going on here but now it's a bit slower. This is the only block of West 11th that runs through Greenwich. And, there is so much history and a lot of beautiful buildings. But, now, it's not as jamming. It's a fantastic street. It's just not a great neighborhood street.

Macdougal Alley is one of those lovely little alleys that are so charming and private that you can't help but be jealous of the people that live there. It's a tiny little alley and I'm not sure of its specific history but I imagine it was, like of the most of the alleys in the Village, meant to be servants' living quarters. And now, like the other Village alleys, those living quarters are some of the most coveted in the city. This particular alley is a little different from the rest in that most of the residences are taken up for NYU professors (NYU taking over historical landmarks? What a shocker). But, there are a few private residences left and they are magnificent. One sold somewhat recently for about $8 million and it came with a wine cellar, backyard, roof patio, etc. That house had basically everything that you can't find anywhere in Manhattan and all of the good stuff as well (i.e. massive fireplaces and grand stairs). $8 million is ridiculously expensive, of course, but it actually didn't seem all that high of a price considering how fantastic the house is. Most of the other alleys have apartment homes so MacDougal is a rare find. It's a tiny whisp of a block so there isn't much in the way of entertainment on the actual street but it's right next to Washington Square Park in a pretty stellar, central location -- aside from all the NYU business. It must be nice to live on MacDougal Alley

14th in Greenwich begins right at the site of the commencement of the Draft Riots of 1863 and I dare say the intersection doesn't seem much more peaceful today. This area is an absolute zoo between students, commuters, tourists, etc. 14th street, in general, is always ridiculously crowded but the part of the street that runs through Greenwich is the worst.
The corner building that is now some nearly unknown dance studio used to be the Living Theatre. Eliot and Auden debuted plays at this theatre and Martin Sheen had his first acting job here. It's such a shame that places like that are gone but Walmart is alive and thriving. Across the street is a gorgeous building that used to be a high end department store and is now Urban Outfitters. I'm not gonna lie, I go here all the time when I've got time to kill. That Urban is massive. 56 W 14th is the only remaining part of the original Macy's and the architecture is stunning. It was built at the end of the 19th century and it's too bad that the rest of the building no longer remains. The entire street leading up to 5th Avenue is full of grand old buildings with disappointing businesses in them. I often wonder how on earth most of these stay in business but I suppose it's because the street is always so packed.
The block between 5th and Uni is also pretty blah aside from the architecture. Although this block does have Garden of Eden which is a great alternative to nearby Whole Foods. It's like Whole Foods but not corporate and not packed. And, 7 E 14th is not only a lovely building but it has an interesting history.
Unit 11 was Biograph Studios where the likes of Mary Pickford and Lionel Barrymore got their start. And, 17 is where Florence Maybeck lived after being released from prison in England. She was accused of poisoning her husband and she had two Presidents intercede on her behalf. They came to find he was addicted to arsenic so they released her. He is, to date, still one of the main suspects thought to have been Jack the Ripper.
The next block is the dreaded Union Square. It's fantastic as far as public transportation and the outdoor market but it is so unbelievably crowded it's almost insufferable at times. There are just way too many people and it ruins the street. Things like a 24 hour Best Buy don't help either.