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billfromlaketravis

By billfromlaketravis
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creeper

creeper 98

Posted
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On 6/8/2024 at 8:44 AM, Reynolds Woodcock said:

Went to Blanca last night for the first time since they reopened post pandemic. Continues to be my favorite high end dining experience in New York. Inventive and delicious, and thankfully lacking in the pretentiousness that sucks the fun from many fine dining experiences. The wine pairing is also super creative.

Thanks for the report.  Blanca was my favorite high-end spot before the pandemic, and I heard they brought back a handful of the original staff, at least FOH, for the new iteration. 

 

I wonder if we'll see a Times review soon... Wells recently ranked it #2 in his top 100 list.

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Logging my NYC report.  I was up there at a sales conference and had the wife fly into the city and meet me there on a backend of the trip over the weekend of the 4th.  It was my first visit post-covi

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If slorch can be a cunt there!  He can be a cunt anywhere! It's up to you! New York, New York!

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Reynolds Woodcock

Reynolds Woodcock 4626

Posted
Posted
7 hours ago, creeper said:

Thanks for the report.  Blanca was my favorite high-end spot before the pandemic, and I heard they brought back a handful of the original staff, at least FOH, for the new iteration. 

 

I wonder if we'll see a Times review soon... Wells recently ranked it #2 in his top 100 list.

Yep, definitely had a few FOH folks that were there pre pandemic. 

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PenelopeWitherspoon

PenelopeWitherspoon 18402

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Some sad news over the weekend.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/16/obituaries/james-kent-dead.html

Quote

James Kent, Chef Who Was Building a Restaurant Empire, Dies at 45

He had opened two restaurants and a cocktail bar in downtown Manhattan, and he was preparing for a big expansion backed by LeBron James.

James Kent, a distinguished chef and successful Manhattan restaurateur who seemed poised to become a food-industry tycoon, died on Saturday. He was 45.

His death was announced by Saga Hospitality Group, the holding company of his two restaurants, Crown Shy and Saga, and his cocktail bar, Overstory, which are all in the same building in the Financial District of Manhattan. The statement did not specify where he died or the cause.

In 1993, when he was a 14-year-old growing up in Greenwich Village and already working at a restaurant, Mr. Kent’s mother made him knock on the door of their building’s newest resident — the celebrity chef David Bouley. The young man asked if he could spend time in Mr. Bouley’s kitchen. Mr. Bouley said yes. He spent the summer working at Bouley, the chef’s TriBeCa mainstay.

Before long, Mr. Kent was also working at famed New York City restaurants like Babbo, Jean-Georges, Eleven Madison Park and NoMad, where he became the executive chef.

He opened his own restaurant, Crown Shy, in 2019 with a partner, Jeff Katz, the general manager of Del Posto, an Italian restaurant in Manhattan that closed in 2021. “At Crown Shy, the Only False Step Is the Name” read the headline of a “critic’s pick” review by Pete Wells, the restaurant critic of The New York Times. (The name refers to tall trees’ tendency not to allow their upper stories to grow entangled with the branches of their neighbors.)

Mr. Wells wrote that Mr. Kent’s dishes “regularly over-deliver.” He singled out for praise “an almost absurdly creamy purée of white bean hummus under a fiery red slick of melted ’nduja;” a beef tartare with toasted walnuts and rye croutons; and oysters served with “cucumber jelly, diced cucumbers, grains of jalapeño and microleaves of purple shiso.”

The Times restaurant columnist Florence Fabricant agreed, describing Crown Shy’s menu in a 2019 article as “eclectic and creative.”

Two years later, Mr. Kent gained four more stories in the same building, an Art Deco skyscraper at 70 Pine Street built in 1932.

Crown Shy occupies the ground floor; Floors 62, 63, 64 and 66 of the building were transformed from executive boardrooms for A.I.G., the insurance company, into Saga, Overstory and a private dining room. The space includes 12 terraces “with breathtaking views in every direction,” Ms. Fabricant reported in 2021. Saga’s “seasonal tasting menu” today costs $298 per person.

Crown Shy garnered one star from the Michelin restaurant guide. Saga earned two.

It was fine dining worthy of the European tradition, but with American casualness and the embrace of pop culture.

Mr. Kent played Wu-Tang Clan and the Notorious B.I.G. at Crown Shy. He eschewed a formal dress code. With his chef coat he could often be seen wearing expensive sneakers.

After years of doing graffiti while growing up, he became known as “a chef that’s also a wildly talented graffiti artist,” as Bloomberg reported in 2016. He was commissioned to do artwork at NoMad Hotel and the restaurant tech company Salido.

“I’ve walked into these fancy restaurants and I don’t feel welcomed,” Mr. Kent told Bandit, a running brand and blog. He sought for Crown Shy, he said, to be “our generation’s restaurant.”

All this seemed to add up to a winning business formula.

In April, The Times reported that Mr. Kent and Saga Hospitality Group had leased 3,000 square feet on the ground floor of the former Domino Sugar refinery in Brooklyn for a bakery and a “casual all-day restaurant.”

The same month, The Robb Report described yet more ambitious plans. Mr. Kent was opening a new 140-seat restaurant on Park Avenue inspired by the Grand Central Oyster Bar, where his grandmother, Sue Mingus, first went on a date with the jazz musician Charles Mingus, who became her husband and whose legacy she took charge of securing until her own death in 2022.

At the same time, Mr. Kent was also planning a fast-casual fried chicken sandwich restaurant on the level of Shake Shack, The Robb Report said. LRMR Ventures, a private investment firm of LeBron James and his friend and business partner Maverick Carter, was backing Saga Hospitality Group’s expansion.

Investors “believe Kent’s a rare, multidimensional talent who’s primed to become the next great American restaurateur,” The Robb Report wrote.

“When I walked into 70 Pine seven years ago, I was one person,” Mr. Kent said. “It’s not like I was Daniel Boulud with a massive team, and I built all the systems — everything — that we needed to operate on this level.”

Jamal James Kent was born in 1979. His mother was born in Rome and his father was born in Tangier. He grew up in Greenwich Village.

In an interview with the tea brand Kettl, he described his upbringing as poor and said he had to work “as a young kid” in a restaurant owned by his uncle and his uncle’s best friend to make money. Then his mother encouraged him to introduce himself to Mr. Bouley.

He studied food service and culinary arts at Johnson & Wales University in Rhode Island, and he took part in a study abroad program at Le Cordon Bleu in London and Paris.

He grew up in an Islamic household, and when he applied for jobs as a young man, he used his middle name, worried about Islamophobia, he told Eater in 2022.

As Mr. Kent became more successful, he was associated particularly with his tenure at Eleven Madison Park, “the equivalent of Harvard for ambitious young cooks,” Pete Wells wrote in 2023.

The Saga Hospitality announcement of Mr. Kent’s death listed as his survivors his wife, Kelly Kent, and his children, Gavin and Avery.

Mr. Kent spoke at length about how hard he worked. He said that he noticed himself looking fatigued in photographs. He described once having a panic attack showing up to work. He said running had helped him feel more grounded.

“Before running, I only had professional goals,” he told Bandit. “I was like, ‘I want to be the best, learn from the best, and run these incredible restaurants.’ And then I got to the point where, without the personal goals, I was on the floor thinking I was going to die.”

From my own personal experience, and everything out there about him, he was a stand up human being.  This one hits close to home as he was a year younger than me (hearing it was cardiac arrest), and both Overstory and Crown Shy are two of my favorites in the city.

 

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PenelopeWitherspoon

PenelopeWitherspoon 18402

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So, the line to get into Tatiana was dumb, so we did not go.  We are going to try and get reservations for a Friday night in July. Uncle Vanya was decent, and I am glad I saw it before it closed.  I thought the acting was fantastic.  The story was very meh.  Not my favorite Chekov.

 

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Ghost of LL

Ghost of LL 15244

Posted
Posted
On 6/18/2024 at 10:17 PM, txduck87 said:

There last 4 days. Saw Mary Jane and Sleep no more. Liked Mary Jane a lot. Rachel McAdams was fantastic . Sleep no more was a freaking trip . Not my thing but I’m 58. 479da34b0bdbf40132280718660b28f4.jpg

 

I wanted to see that, but I was outvoted by the family, which unanimously wanted to go across the street and see Six.  It was good.  Probably not my favorite.  But I was entertained.

Notwithstanding @PenelopeWitherspoon's sage advice, we ended up staying at the Ritz-Carlton in NoMad, and that ended up being a good decision as we ended up at Bazaar afterwards.  That's a great place, and I'd definitely go back.  All around, a fantastic property that I'd highly recommend.

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Buzzrock

Buzzrock 14779

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Any recommendations for a good but not crazy expensive sushi place in midtown?  We're staying at The Warwick (54th and 6th) in a couple weeks and are looking for something in walking distance.

Hit this on a rainy day after the museum and really liked it. It’s tiny though.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/nH5W7mzTKaVEugqp6?g_st=com.google.maps.preview.copy
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PenelopeWitherspoon

PenelopeWitherspoon 18402

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Posted (edited)
40 minutes ago, South Austin said:

PSA: JFK is a shitshow. They moved the rideshare pickup area a few miles from the terminal and you need to take a shuttle there. It took us over an hour from landing to get in our Uber ride.

Which terminal are you flying into?  I think it is different terminal by terminal.  I last flew into Terminal 8 at the end of April, and you just walk outside. Still a shitshow, but it is becuase JFK is fucking busy.

Edited by PenelopeWitherspoon
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SimonBolivar

SimonBolivar 10673

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6 hours ago, South Austin said:

PSA: JFK is a shitshow. They moved the rideshare pickup area a few miles from the terminal and you need to take a shuttle there. It took us over an hour from landing to get in our Uber ride.

EWR everytime for us if we're going to Manhattan.

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South Austin

South Austin 51564

Posted
Posted
17 hours ago, PenelopeWitherspoon said:

Which terminal are you flying into?  I think it is different terminal by terminal.  I last flew into Terminal 8 at the end of April, and you just walk outside. Still a shitshow, but it is becuase JFK is fucking busy.

Don’t remember which terminal, but it seems like the whole area is more fucked than normal, and it took 2.5 hours from our arrival gate to our midtown hotel. In hindsight, we should have taken the train.

Oh well, travel bitching is over, and I’m back to loving this town. Saw Hamilton for the first time last night, and holy shit, that show is not overrated in the slightest. Such intelligent, sharp, and funny writing, and the talent all around is phenomenal. We have a little more somber morning today at the 9/11 museum, but then taking my stepdaughter shopping in West Village. 

IMG_8992.jpeg

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PenelopeWitherspoon

PenelopeWitherspoon 18402

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I still have not been to the Met Costume Institute exhibit yet.  Since I leave for London tonight, I think that is how I am going to spend the AM of Bastille Day (Sunday I get back).  Then afterwards, lunch down at Libertine.  

The only things I have tickets to in July are the Foo Fighters on July 19 in Brooklyn and Oh Mary! on July 25.  Nothing else planned once I get back, so hoping to do some neighborhood exploring.  I love doing that...pick a neighborhood and just walk the streets and see what is there. I have lived here for 5 years this time around, and I feel like I am constantly discovering things about the city.  

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The Ace of Aces

The Ace of Aces 4946

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10 hours ago, PenelopeWitherspoon said:

I still have not been to the Met Costume Institute exhibit yet.  Since I leave for London tonight, I think that is how I am going to spend the AM of Bastille Day (Sunday I get back).  Then afterwards, lunch down at Libertine.  

The only things I have tickets to in July are the Foo Fighters on July 19 in Brooklyn and Oh Mary! on July 25.  Nothing else planned once I get back, so hoping to do some neighborhood exploring.  I love doing that...pick a neighborhood and just walk the streets and see what is there. I have lived here for 5 years this time around, and I feel like I am constantly discovering things about the city.  

If you wanna wait we could meet you there Friday Aug 2 - that is our plan before we see Oh Mary that night 

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royiv

royiv 9044

Posted
Posted
On 7/20/2024 at 7:44 PM, PenelopeWitherspoon said:

I laughed. Hard. 

IMG_0430.jpg

Two people that I both found hilarious in the past. Now, for an unpopular opinion, I think they are both guys who have gotten high on their own supply. Intelligent comedians with an acerbic wit that now think they’re smarter than everyone else. 

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PenelopeWitherspoon

PenelopeWitherspoon 18402

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7 hours ago, royiv said:

Two people that I both found hilarious in the past. Now, for an unpopular opinion, I think they are both guys who have gotten high on their own supply. Intelligent comedians with an acerbic wit that now think they’re smarter than everyone else. 

Have you seen everyone else? I mean, hear me out, I am amazed at how stupid a lot of people are. At dinner last night, we sat at a communal table.  I was the only single diner in the entire place. So I was reading the news on my phone, listening to the chef, and observing the people around me (as you do). The 20 something men across from me were breathtakingly vapid. I mean, if you are going to talk about going to Ibiza, at least learn to say it right. Given my observations of the people of NYC, yeah, they are smarter than a lot of fucking people out there.

That being said, I think because of where we are politically, the show was especially good this go round (I have seen both of them separately before). Dave's bit about buying all the property in his small Ohio town and purposefully keeping the grass unmowed was fucking hilarious.

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The Ace of Aces

The Ace of Aces 4946

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Did the Met’s Sleeping Beauties exhibit this morning. Joined as a member last wen and used the member hours to skip the line today. The line was an hour long by 10:30 so fair warning. Go early. 
 

Saw Oh Mary last night. A brilliant romp. Saw Stereophonic this afternoon and it was very good. I don’t think it’s as good as the number of Tonys it win, and it’s way too long, but it’s well done. 
 

It’s currently pouring fucking rain as we sit here at Quality Italian. Illinoise tonight, Titanique and Gramercy Tavern tomorrow.  

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PenelopeWitherspoon

PenelopeWitherspoon 18402

Posted
Posted
On 8/3/2024 at 5:18 PM, The Ace of Aces said:

Did the Met’s Sleeping Beauties exhibit this morning. Joined as a member last wen and used the member hours to skip the line today. The line was an hour long by 10:30 so fair warning. Go early. 
 

Saw Oh Mary last night. A brilliant romp. Saw Stereophonic this afternoon and it was very good. I don’t think it’s as good as the number of Tonys it win, and it’s way too long, but it’s well done. 
 

It’s currently pouring fucking rain as we sit here at Quality Italian. Illinoise tonight, Titanique and Gramercy Tavern tomorrow.  

I still have not seen the Sleeping Beauty exhibit. And yeah, Morning Member hours is the ONLY way to go.

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The Ace of Aces

The Ace of Aces 4946

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Illinoise was emotionally moving for me, because my association with that album is so strong. My wife is a dancer by trade and the choreography was so, so good. She was floored by it. 

Titanique was a fun campy show, we had tried to see it twice previously but had both shows cancelled so glad we got it in. 

Gramercy Tavern's food was as good as ever but the service sucked after we left the bar for our table. We had a train to catch, told them, and still sat there for 40 minutes after our plates were picked up before they asked us about desert. And then took another 20 minutes after saying we didn't have time to get the check. 

But the garden gimlet was excellent

IMG-3773.jpg 

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NoName

NoName 16229

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Posted

Wife is in the city for work and had a client dinner fall through...so she's free for the evening. Any recs across the board that are good and that she can get in tonight?

Staying near Empire State building if that helps, but will go wherever I think.

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PenelopeWitherspoon

PenelopeWitherspoon 18402

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Sorry I didn’t see this. I was working and didn’t get to even think about anything else until after 10 (last minute requests kept me from Suffs last night too). KJUN is near there, which is Korean flavored KJUN food that is really, really tasty. 
 

Cafe Chelsea at the Hotel Chelsea is also really good, though a little further.

31st and 32nd between 5th and 6th is Ktown and there are tons of places. I like Her Name is Han.

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Ignatius

Ignatius 3979

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On 8/21/2024 at 5:27 PM, NoName said:

Wife is in the city for work and had a client dinner fall through...so she's free for the evening. Any recs across the board that are good and that she can get in tonight?

Staying near Empire State building if that helps, but will go wherever I think.

HNIH is excellent if you want to be in K-town proper. Cho Dang Gol isn’t technically KT but is just a couple of blocks north of you and was really tasty back when I lived there (4 years ago)….

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Sbbruin

Sbbruin 21587

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Headed to NYC in later October to meet the boy for the Rutgers game.  Maybe I'll go early and check in here.

https://www.cnn.com/travel/walker-hotel-tribeca-self-love-pod-wellness/index.html?utm_term=1726091890183ca8edeaa3bf3&utm_source=cnn_Copy+of+Evening+Newsletter+-+Tuesday%2C+September+10%2C+2024+20240911_140624642&utm_medium=email&bt_ee=DGMvhWrOclr7HeyZ5bRrySuED2aqSvdzkQxX8vLXHhWpG4Eb%2FsRvB%2FyTAcL5y4G9&bt_ts=1726091890187

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PenelopeWitherspoon

PenelopeWitherspoon 18402

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6 hours ago, Sbbruin said:

Best way to get from JFK to Midtown/Chelsea area?

Cab or Uber. If there is no cab line, I will just grab a yellow taxi.  If there is a line, I call an Uber Black (usually traveling for business). Cab is going to be cheaper ($75 into Midtown Manhattan). 

I am on the east side, but on a good night, it is 40-45 minutes tops.

Also, I am WAY behind on updating this thread.  Have had a good summer when I wasn't working my ass off.  Work has killed me this summer.   So much for slow summers.

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Sbbruin

Sbbruin 21587

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17 hours ago, PenelopeWitherspoon said:

Cab or Uber. If there is no cab line, I will just grab a yellow taxi.  If there is a line, I call an Uber Black (usually traveling for business). Cab is going to be cheaper ($75 into Midtown Manhattan). 

I am on the east side, but on a good night, it is 40-45 minutes tops.

Also, I am WAY behind on updating this thread.  Have had a good summer when I wasn't working my ass off.  Work has killed me this summer.   So much for slow summers.

No easy train into Midtown from JFK?

 

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PenelopeWitherspoon

PenelopeWitherspoon 18402

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19 minutes ago, Sbbruin said:

No easy train into Midtown from JFK?

 

Not really.  You have to change multiple times. And at that point, you just have to hope things are running on time.  I would say it is most like an hour and 30 in on the train. And, if you make it without difficulty, most likely, you will be hauling your shit up multiple flights of stairs becuase NY Subways still are not ADA compliant (and do not have to be until something like 2050).

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PenelopeWitherspoon

PenelopeWitherspoon 18402

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1 hour ago, Sbbruin said:

Good restaurant recs in the midtown area?  Would like to take him to a good dinner.  Maybe Italian, but open to others.

I think I have made a long list of places that I like.  On the italian front, Midtown is very meh. 

My favorite Italian places in Manhattan (in no particular order) are:

Scalinatella (3rd and 61st)

Emillio's Ballato (Houston and Mott)

Roscioli (do the a la carte - MacDougal and Houston)

I like Via Carota, but no reservations sucks, and I hate waiting. Sartiano's is also very good.  Went once for a McQueen dinner and once with my friend, where we just carried on drinking all afternoon.  As one does.

Places that have an Italian flavor that I really like are King (which Southern Italian and French - King and 6th Ave) and Foul Witch (Ave A and Houston).

Oh shit, I also forgot about Barbuto.  I have not been to this iteration, but went to the Waxman popup at Claud, and he still has it.

My favorite overall restuarants at the moment are Claud (E 10th..think French wine bar), Le Veau d'Or (old school french done right, E 60th and Lex), and Bangkok Supper Club (West Village).

If you are sold on staying in Midtown, Jupiter has solid pasta and Le Rock is a scene.  Both are in Rockefeller Center.  

 

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Spankytoes

Spankytoes 1787

Posted
Posted (edited)
13 hours ago, Sbbruin said:

Thinking midtown so we're close to Penn Station to jump the train to New Brunswick to see the UCLA/Rutgers game.

If you want decent food without having to leave the area, I like Bond 45 or Tony DiNapoli’s. Need reservations for both. Carmines is also ok.

None of these are super fancy

Edited by Spankytoes
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Reynolds Woodcock

Reynolds Woodcock 4626

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16 hours ago, Sbbruin said:

Good restaurant recs in the midtown area?  Would like to take him to a good dinner.  Maybe Italian, but open to others.

 

15 hours ago, Sbbruin said:

Thinking midtown so we're close to Penn Station to jump the train to New Brunswick to see the UCLA/Rutgers game.

For Italian near Penn, I think Ci Siamo in Hudson Yards is by far the best answer. It’s more upscale than red sauce. Need a reservation in advance.

Also plus one for Keen’s if you are trying to be close to the Penn Station area. Sure it’s a little touristy but I still try to go once a year with buddies. Not a god damn thing wrong with two martinis and a mutton chop. 

W/R/T JFK to midtown, personally I always take a car, but if you are set on a train you can definitely take the AirTran to Jamaica and grab any number of LIRR trains into Penn/Moynihan Hall. It won’t save you time. By far the better option would be to fly into Newark or LaGuardia. Fuck JFK

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stc

stc 1441

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Posted
On 9/14/2024 at 9:23 AM, Reynolds Woodcock said:

For Italian near Penn, I think Ci Siamo in Hudson Yards is by far the best answer. It’s more upscale than red sauce. Need a reservation in advance.

ate here a couple of weeks ago and it was great. reservations were easy to get. 

 

On 9/14/2024 at 9:23 AM, Reynolds Woodcock said:

W/R/T JFK to midtown, personally I always take a car, but if you are set on a train you can definitely take the AirTran to Jamaica and grab any number of LIRR trains into Penn/Moynihan Hall. It won’t save you time. By far the better option would be to fly into Newark or LaGuardia. Fuck JFK

did this a couple of weeks ago as well. the train was easy and took a little over an hour from penn station to jfk. 

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