Tag: manhattan

Posted on

Review: Scott’s Pizza Tour in NYC

This dude loves his pizza.
This dude loves his pizza.

We were looking for something fun to do with the kids and my in-laws, the Friday after Thanksgiving. Having just “won” two tickets to Scott’s Pizza Tour in a silent auction, we signed up and bought four more tickets to bring my Chicago in-laws and our kids.

Let’s start off by saying that Scott is PASSIONATE about pizza. That comes through loud and clear. This is a man who loves pizza, loves sharing his information and learning everything he can. He’s also hilarious and great with adults and kids. For those reasons alone, the tour was a delight. It takes a special tour for my kids not to complain or fight with each other for three hours – especially when at least half of the tour time is outside. And it was in the 30s that day – brrrrr!!!!

A few fun pizza facts:

–There are 2,000 pizzerias in New York City Continue reading “Review: Scott’s Pizza Tour in NYC”

Posted on

Treat of the Day: Rice to Riches

I have to admit, I did not actually eat at Rice to Riches. It wasn’t open yet (too early in the day), and we were on our way to Scott’s Pizza Tours, which meets nearby. But the Rice to Riches company signage was so funny and the concept so awesome, I have to believe it would be great. So if you’ve eaten there, please give us the scoop.

rice1

I‘m not a big rice pudding fan (I also don’t hate it), but I’m dying to try this place, which has been around since 2002. Check out some of their flavors: Sex, Drugs and Rocky Road, I’ll Take Eggnog for $200, Alex; Fluent in French Toast…I like a place with humor. You can get a bit of background about Rice to Riches, the concept development and its quirky founder in this New York Times story. Continue reading “Treat of the Day: Rice to Riches”

Posted on

Treat of the Day: Doughnuttery

If you haven’t been to Chelsea Market, you’re missing out. It’s one place we bring almost all visitors who want to see New York City. But that’s a whole other post.

One section of Chelsea Market has a an open area with a bunch of small vendors, mostly selling food. The Doughnuttery was new from our previous visit, and we ordered a few of their little doughnuts.

donuterry3

Their schtick is that they make them fresh and you choose what kind of sugar you want on them. you can see the sugars on the shelf above (and the menu is below). Continue reading “Treat of the Day: Doughnuttery”

Posted on

Review: Shipwreck: Pirates and Treasures – Good for Kids? Discovery Times Square NYC

If you perk up when you hear about divers finding sunken wrecks full of precious metals, Shipwreck: Pirates and Treasure exhibit at Discovery Times Square would be a good one for you.

Learn about pirates and deep sea exploration at Shipwreck. Copyright Deborah Abrams Kaplan
Learn about pirates and deep sea exploration at Shipwreck. Copyright Deborah Abrams Kaplan

Groupon has discounted tickets as I post this, but act quickly. If you’re new to Groupon, get the tickets here. If you’re already a Groupon user, get the tickets here. Search under Long Island, NY in the search bar on top for “Shipwreck.” Tickets on Groupon are $12-15 (kid/adult), which is a savings. Read the Groupon fine print before buying.

As you might imagine, treasure seeking is a high tech affair. The exhibit focuses on finds from Odyssey Marine Exploration, a deep ocean exploration public company (NasdaqCM: OMEX) that salvages items from shipwrecks and does mineral exploration. They choose from the 6,500 shipwrecks in their database, evaluating them based on archeological importance, claims to the property, and other factors.

WHAT YOU’LL SEE Continue reading “Review: Shipwreck: Pirates and Treasures – Good for Kids? Discovery Times Square NYC”

Posted on

Treat of the Day: Sugar and Plumm, Purveyors of Yumm

Just a few days after Easter, I thought I’d tempt you with come Easter candy – and some that’s not specifically for the holiday. This treat of the day comes to you from Sugar and Plumm, with stores in Paramus, NJ and the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Pictures are from the latter location, just around the corner from the American Museum of Natural History, where ironically we were seeing an exhibit on whales.

This chocolate egg crate is all edible! And costs $45. Copyright Deborah Abrams Kaplan
Ahhh the chocolates...Copyright Deborah Abrams Kaplan
Ahhh the chocolates…Copyright Deborah Abrams Kaplan

These chocolates came in flavors like Continue reading “Treat of the Day: Sugar and Plumm, Purveyors of Yumm”

Posted on

Review: Whales: Giants of the Deep Exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History

Did you know that dolphins and porpoises are whales? We learned that, plus many other interesting facts about whales during our visit to the American Museum of Natural History’s exhibit Whales: Giants of the Deep. Admittedly I knew very little about whales before going to this exhibit. I didn’t know that the precursors to whales WALKED, losing their legs eventually as they took to the ocean full time. A simulation video of the whale’s evolution is a good visual representation.

Did you know that whales can be broken up into two categories: toothed whales and baleen whales? Toothed whales are smaller, and include dolphins and porpoises (porpoises don’t have beaks, dolphins do). Baleen whales are filter feeders, taking in larger amounts of small food and filtering it out, where as toothed whales go for single prey, swallowing it whole.

In addition to videos and other displays, the exhibit features Continue reading “Review: Whales: Giants of the Deep Exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History”

Posted on

Review: Yotel

I’ve been wanting to check out Yotel for some time, and finally made it there when I went to a toy show. One of the nice women working in the information area agreed to take me to see some rooms. I didn’t realize how generous she was going to be, as she took me to a lot of rooms to give me a good idea of the various types they have. My kids were in heaven and wanted to stay there.

Yotel is at 10th Avenue and 42nd Street, an easy walk from Times Square (and Port Authority). The hotel is more economical than many, with rooms starting at $149 (in winter, for the smallest room for 2) and going up from there.

The front of Yotel, on 42nd and 10th. Copyright Deborah Abrams Kaplan

Yotel is a very funky hotel with smaller than average rooms (think cruise ship), and they actually call them cabins. The space is well designed though, and you kind of forget about the size when you realize how much else it offers. Like great design! Yotel in NYC is the only actual freestanding hotel in its group – the other three are airport hotels at London’s Heathrow and Gatwick airports, and Amsterdam’s airport, where you can book by the hour without worrying feeling like you’re in a brothel.

Leave your luggage with YOBOT while you hit the town on your first or last day in town. Copyright Deborah Abrams Kaplan

Continue reading “Review: Yotel”

Posted on

Union Square Holiday Market

If you’re looking for a unique holiday market with high quality vendors, check out the Union Square Holiday Market which runs through December 24th, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. each day. More than 100 booths have a variety of items, from gourmet foods to soaps, from hats to dog clothing, from toys to jewelry. My daughter and I spent a leisurely 2+ hours strolling from shop to shop, buying a few gifts and nibbles. Here’s what we saw:

The Union Square Holiday Market. Yes, it’s crowded.
Copyright Deborah Abrams Kaplan 2012
Copa Soaps smell so good and are a good deal at $5/each. Nice gift box assortments too.
Copyright Deborah Abrams Kaplan 2012

Continue reading “Union Square Holiday Market”

Posted on

Review: Bring it On – the Musical

When we had friends in town who wanted to see a Broadway show, I looked through the list that would be family-friendly (and shows we haven’t already seen). We settled on Bring it On the musical, a Broadway adaption of a movie. I was a little wary about the subject matter, having never been a cheerleader myself, nor having cheerleader aspirations. The show was a lot of fun, though, and taught some good lessons about being true to yourself and being nice to other people.

the countdown before the show was similar to what you’d find in a sports arena

Continue reading “Review: Bring it On – the Musical”

Proudly powered by WordPress