All stories about "New York"

It takes a leap of faith to suck down a quivering mass of cold, briny bivalve meat for the first time, but once you're hooked, it's difficult to walk past a raw bar without ordering a dozen. To aficionados, an icy tray of fresh oysters is akin to a round of shots: a quick burst of intense flavor that feels like a miniature celebration, with all its attendant toasting and savoring of the moment. New York has been an oyster town for generations, and these marvelous mollusks are still on the menu at restaurants all over the city. Here are a few of the better places in New York for shucking and slurping the ocean's bounty.

Perfect sweet potato fries are not easy to make; avid lovers of the snack know they can easily turn out too mushy or too burnt. Here are a few New York restaurants that hit the sweet spot somewhere in between -- perfect levels of salty, crunchy, and starchy deliciousness. Any other suggestions? Hit the comments or the tip jar.

During the summer, weekends in New York City are sort of dead. With people hopping the jitney to the Hamptons or off to the Jersey shore for the weekend, you'd think that the city was a landlocked desert. Not so! You can enjoy seaside fun even in the heart of the city, and not just at perennial favorite Water Taxi Beach. The travel time is minimal, and there's no need to join an annoying house share with people you will inevitably grow to hate. Oh, who are you kidding ... you already hate them.

Atlantic City's new hotel, the Chelsea, is showing its first signs of life! The pink neon signs out front and on top of the new hotel were up-and-running as of last night. The non-gaming boutique hotel, which officially opens August 1st, is boardwalk-adjacent and will house two restaurants overseen by Stephen Starr, nightlife courtesy of the boys behind NYC's Beatrice Inn, as well as a 15,000 square-foot rooftop pool. The countdown begins...

Forget pulse-pounding cab rides, stifling subways, or touristy buses -- the best way to see Manhattan is from a vantage aboard the nautical vehicle of your choice. Barring seasickness, one can find a multitude of excursions to satisfy your boating desires while observing this surprisingly tiny island. That can mean doing the physical rowing yourself, gorging on a three-hour waterborne brunch, or getting trashed on a happy hour cruise, depending on your concept of pleasure and the depth of your pockets. One of the simplest and most flexible options is the ever-expanding New York Water Taxi, with 12 stops and counting; but there are, of course, other choices.

Everyday on Gridskipper we give you a new map. Some are new, some are fetched from our archive, newly updated. Happy Gridskipping. Whether it's rot-gut bourbon in a Waylon song or high-priced single-malt in a Wall Street boardroom, the lure of whiskey is universal. This brown elixir has long drowned the woes of everyone from hard-luck cowboys to the business elite, leaving its victims moaning with throbbing hangovers in the process. And in a city filled with breakups and bad investments, New Yorkers need a place to hang their head as much as anybody, hence the following list of noteworthy whiskey dealers in NYC. Feel free to supply your own favorite bronze elixir haunts in the comments or the tip jar.

Everyday on Gridskipper we give you a new map. Some are new, some are fetched from our archive, newly updated. Happy Gridskipping. Given you visit them once the extreme heat subsides, gardens can provide a haven for those with urbanity overload, even if you still see the tops of skyscrapers or hear car engines from within. In New York especially, personal gardens can be limited to window boxes or patches of plants dominated by evacuating canines. Manhattan is the only borough without an official botanical garden, but there are many a plant oasis amongst the hustle and bustle. Although not mapped here, there are also over 100 community gardens that dot the city, and many can be found on the Garden Locator. Regardless, there are many examples proving that "the Garden" does not always mean that eyesore of an arena in midtown.

Everyday on Gridskipper we give you a new map. Some are new, some are fetched from our archive, newly updated. Happy Gridskipping. Let's be honest: New York City is not exactly a summertime haven, and right now, given the unbearable heat, it's even less tolerable. Our rivers are not the balmy breeze types, and it's hard to hang a hammock between skyscrapers. The one summertime treat we can enjoy? Besides frozen liquor beverages? Ice cream. In one of the most gourmet-centric cities in the country, ice cream in New York isn't merely a cup-or-cone affair. Check out our picks for the very best cold stuff in the city, and feel free to add your own.

Guest of a Guest has new photos of the views and construction rubble that will soon be the Standard Hotel. One of the most eagerly anticipated hotels NYC has seen in awhile, the hotel, which is owned by Andre Balazs Properties, will join the ranks of the Standard’s handful of sister outposts – Hollywood, Downtown LA and Miami.
· The Standard Hotel View from the Inside [GofG]

". . . walking through Williamsburg several years ago, I was stopped in my tracks by the haunting face of a young girl peering out at me from within a doorframe. Pasted on a door was a beautifully detailed woodcut print I would later learn had been crafted by the street artist Swoon. Down the street, I discovered what looked like a cover of a tawdry pulp fiction novel stenciled on some wooden scaffolding by a collective known as Faile . . . from that moment on, I was hooked. With a little patience, you too can develop a street art habit."

Come summer in NYC, few things compare to being able to drinking outdoors (that is, unless you're lucky enough to have summer Fridays, but that's another story). Be it in a backyard or on a rooftop, pairing a cocktail with a cool summer breeze is pretty much the best it gets. And what better place to do so than the epicenter of all things hip? That's right folks, next stop: Williamsburg, where there are dozens of places to slap on a pair of wayfarers and down a few PBRs while basking in the sun. (photo)

Fred Segal Green, Los Angeles. (photo: L.A. Times)

Boston
• Orinoco: South End Venezuelan restaurant opens a new location in Brookline Village.

Chicago
• Angels & Mariachis: A two-story taqueria and "rock cantina" opened on Monday in the East Village.
• Veerasway: New restaurant in the Warehouse District offers Indian small plates by chef Angela Lee.
• Zed 451: New River North restaurant served global fare made with seasonal market products.

There are only three categories of purchasables that genuinely motivate me to shop: books, food, and yarn, in that order. Since independent bookstores have been done, and I don't want to bore you with my philosophical musings on Pathmark, deli counters, and self-checkouts, it looks like I'll be pointing you in the direction of fuzzy bunches of mohair and bamboo knitting needles. Hooray! In the past 10 years, yarn shops have gone the way of a lot of small New York businesses, transforming from mom-and-pop joints into upscale boutiquey venues with a painstakingly "curated" array of goods. The latter shops are fun for browsing, but when you calculate that your knitted sweater pattern will take upwards of $150 and 18 hours of labor to create, the whole do-it-yourself ethic loses it appeal. If balls of cashmere fibers don't get you going, perhaps the Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef Project at the World Financial Center will. Pictured at left, the exhibit seeks to raise awareness about dwindling coral reefs, but at the very least, it should convince you to pick up that crochet hook and join the rest of us cool I-craft-on-the-subway folks. (photo)