New Yorker wants to be a tourist in her own city

Hi all - I recently started perusing this forum, occasionally adding my own input, and now I%26#39;d like yours. I live only 28 minutes by LIRR from Manhattan, and have been a Long Islander my whole life, but feel like I%26#39;ve seen more of the cities I%26#39;ve visited for only 3 or 4 days. So I%26#39;ve decided to make a list of things I want to do in my own city. I started last week, and walked across the Brooklyn Bridge. I know I want to go to Top of the Rock and Ellis Island, take the Staten Island Ferry, and do something in Central Park (more than just at 59th Street). I have plenty of time - years really - so give me your best ideas. And if you have recommendations of reasonable neighborhood type restaurants in the area of your %26#39;tourist%26#39; recommendation, that would be great.

New Yorker wants to be a tourist in her own city

Good heavens, butnotrmpt, I hesitate to suggest this, but you should plug a few things into the search box. Are you really a New Yorker, taking a years-long New York vacation, asking about all of New York?

(Fine then. Go see Accomplice.)

New Yorker wants to be a tourist in her own city

And Accomplice The Village (but it is on hiatus for a month from now.) Maybe some theater too? We liked God of Carnage.

Good for you! So, how was the Brooklyn Bridge walk? Did you walk around lower Manhattan?

As with any tourist, as Hankshanker says, ya gotta do the basics.

At the top of this forum is an FAQ ';sticky.'; In the FAQ is this list of ';must see'; items:

MUST-SEE%26#39;S AND MUST-DO%26#39;S! WHAT SHOULD A FIRST-TIMER ABSOLUTELY NOT MISS? This list could go on forever, but here%26#39;s a ';Top 21'; that sums up the Big Apple%26#39;s best features.

tripadvisor.com/Travel-g60763-s409/New-York-鈥?/a>

Since you%26#39;re a ';repeat visitor,'; we also have some threads on what folks who have already seen the main sights can do:

YAWN, I%26#39;VE DONE ALL THE TOURIST SITES, NOW WHAT? A collection of posts for repeat visitors and those in search of interesting places OFF THE BEATEN PATH.

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g60763-i5-k976302 -New_York_for_the_2nd_time-

QUEENS:

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g60763-i5-k1563295- QUEENS_a_collection_of_posts-

YO, WHAT ABOUT BROOKLYN?:

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g60763-i5-k884862- No_sleep_til_Brooklyn-

Now that the weather is (allegedly) getting warmer, it%26#39;s a great time to take a boat ride:

THE WATERFRONT: water taxis, cruises, the Statue of Liberty and the Staten Island Ferry: We are a city of islands

tripadvisor.com/Travel-g60763-c63031/New-Yor鈥?/a>

At the bottom of the FAQ are collections of trip reports, including this collection by solo travelers. (S

ome might be a bit old, but the sights and sounds are basically the same.)

tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g60763-i5-k474427- Collection_of_trip_reports_from_SOLO_TRAVELLERS_great-

For restaurants, what your definition of ';reasonable?'; Any particular food you love or hate? And have you tried using www.menupages.com? It%26#39;s great!

FWIW, I love using the ';search nearby'; feature on Google Maps and Yelp to find stuff around a specific location.

http://maps.google.com/

www.yelp.com/nyc

Enter your location (use a famous name or enter the cross-streets), click on it and then select ';search nearby.'; You can enter anything like ';pastrami'; or ';pizza';, etc. Works like a charm.

With Yelp, there%26#39;s a map in the right margin and you can select ';find nearby'; categories.

';I have plenty of time - years really..';

I hope so for you and for all of us, but as you are finding out, no time like the present to get out there and do stuff.

I%26#39;d also reco subscribing to TDF (the people who run the TKTS booths) and Time Out New York magazine.

www.tdf.org

www.timeoutny.com

Enjoy and give us regular updates! You%26#39;re going to have a great summer.

In answer to hankshanker, yes I am a New Yorker wanting info on New York. I%26#39;m not taking a year long vacation. (Would be nice though). I simply want to see more right here where I live. And now that my kids are grown, I have weekends, and days off midweek, when I can hop a train and do things in the city. It%26#39;s not uncommon for people like me, who live just outside of a major city, to not do the tourist must sees. Certainly I%26#39;ve been to the major museums, seen some shows, enjoyed the jazz clubs. But there are many things I haven%26#39;t done. I will do a search, as you suggested. But I had hoped that people would offer up their favorites. And it doesn%26#39;t have to be just a major tourist thing like the places I mentioned. I%26#39;d also love to hear about things like a jewel of a neighborhood, or an off beat museum, or a walking tour, or an interactive show :-). I love the idea of Accomplice. I had never heard of it until I started reading these boards.

Thanks Queensboulevard. I never looked at those stickies at the top of each forum. But I will now.

And yes - I enjoyed walking over the bridge. We explored on the Brooklyn side (my son just moved there) - walked on the promenade, had brunch, found a great little boutique. That%26#39;s really what I am looking for in terms of experiences. I don%26#39;t need to shovel all of New York City into a 5 day period like when I travel somewhere else. This will be a leisurely exploration.

Re reasonable prices on restaurants - I guess $15-20 pp for brunch, $25-30 for dinner (without wine). Any kind of cuisine.

Hey fellow Long Islander. Visit the county on the other side of the island - Kings County [aka Brooklyn]. Take the LIRR into Flatbush Avenue and then the subway up to Grand Army Plaza to see Park Slope and Prospect Park. Shop and dine on trendy Fifth Avenue.

Head into Williamsburg at nite to catch the great vibes, have dinner, and maybe hit a pub or two.

Visit DUMBO, walk around some great cobblestone streets, have a hot chocolate at Jacques Torres or some muligatawny soup at Almondine. If you like art, hit the galleries - DAC, Smackmellon and about a dozen at 111 Front Street.

From another thread, these are some of my favorite restaurants in the city.

The first group are all places you could easily get out of for under $30/person

Indian: Surya, Brick Lane Curry House, Chennai Garden

Chinese: Nice Green Bo, Buddha Bodai

Ethiopian: Ghenet, Meskel

Italian: Frank, Supper, Max, %26#39;ino, %26#39;inoteca, Porchetta

American: Westville, Alias, Shake Shack, RUB (BBQ), Cafe Condesa

Jewish Deli: Katz%26#39;s

French: Zucco, The New French

Pizza: Totonno%26#39;s, Artichoke, Co., La Pizza Fresca

Turkish: Beyoglu, Turkuaz, Sip Sak

Take-out falafel: Taim

Thai: Holy Basil, Sripraphai

Greek: Kefi

Balkan: Kafana

Mexican: Cafe el Portal, Pinche, Itzocan Cafe

Latin American: Caracas Arepa Bar, Empanada Mama

Moroccan: Cafe Mogador, Nomad

Ramen noddles: Rai Rai Ken

My higher budget favorites are as follows:

Indian: Tamarind, Tabla, Vatan

Italian: Lupa, Al Di La (both on the cheaper side), Babbo, A Voce, Scarpetta

American: Cookshop, Blue Hill, Eleven Madison Park, Gramercy Tavern, Union Square Cafe, The Little Owl (for the pork chop)

French: Bouley, Jean Georges, Daniel, Le Bernadin (seafood), Balthazar (brasserie), The Modern

Spanish: Casa Mono, Degustation, Tia Pol

For a picnic in Little Italy/Nolita/etc. you could get great Bahn mi (vietnamese baguette sandwich) at Saigon Vietnamese Sandwich on Broome. Sodas are only 85 cents so you can have a cheap nosh in a fun part of town.