Coney Island, Park Slope, Chihuly Exhibit while in New York

Someone more familiar with the area may correct me - but we stopped at Coney Island on my last visit home (heading to LaGuardia). I was really shocked how run down it was. My daughter wanted to see it as it was the setting of some recent books she read. But we didn't bother to get out of the car.
However, if you do go, a good friend who grew up there highly recommended an Italian restaurant named: Garjulos (sp?) on 16th... it's quite near the water... We passed it but it wasn't meal time.

I can't comment on most of your questions, but did want to point out that the Chihuly exhibit is actually at the New York Botanic Gardens (in the Bronx), not the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens.

Park Slope a beautiful neighborhood filled with brownstones and a number of excellent restaurants. Ivisited Coney Island and Brighton Beaches a few weeks ago and they were fine. It is no Disneyland but felt safe. Still has the spectacular Cyclone Rollar Coaster and one of the largest ferris wheels in the world that has moving cars. Park Slope is also walking distance to both the Brooklyn Museam and the Botanic Gardens.

Thanks to all. Yeesh - sorry jlm_mi - thanks for pointing that out. That definately changes things. I think we'll still head to Coney Island - just one of those "would like to see it just for the fun of it." I'll keep my expectations low.

I'll plan to head to the New York Botanic Gardens on another day of the trip. Is there anything else nearby we should visit or should we just plan to hit the exhibit and head back? Any interesting restaurants nearby?

Sorry - meant to revisit the walking tour issue in my last post. Do you think it's necessary (or worth persuing) a walking tour of Park Slope?

Don't bother doing a walking tour of Park slope,it's easy enough to explore on your own.

After walking through park slope you could either spend some time in Prospect Park (which borders Pslope to the east or if you have lots of energy walk west through Brooklyn Heights and over the Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan

Do the gardens on another day you could easily spend a whole day there.

Thanks Jibboo. Approximately how long of a walk would you figure from Prospect Park through Brooklyn Heights and then over the Bridge? We'd probably just be doing a leisurely pace. Is there a place to eat in Brooklyn Heights you'd recommend - that way we could break the walk up. I love walking the Brooklyn Bridge so that would be a great way to end the day.

Well do you have your heart set on Park Slope? How about the neighborhood of Carroll Gardens instead, just west of Pslope.

Assuming your using public transportation, you would take the F train from Coney Island to Carroll St. and then you can walk north to Brooklyn Heights and over the Bridge which would take about 45 minute, if you not stopping to look at stuff etc.

Court Street and Smith Street are the two main drags both have of plenty of good and affordable restaurants. Little Bistro, Joya, Zaytoons, Lobo, Grocery, PJ Hanley’s and Savoia to name a few….

Thanks for the suggestion - the only reason I was thinking Park Slope was because I had heard it's a nice place to visit. I'm excited about finally having time to see areas of NY I haven't had a chance to visit yet and I'm certainly open to suggestions. I'm usually only in NY for 4 or 5 days at a time and often with friends who haven't been so I feel like I'm playing "tour guide." Not that I mind - any excuse to visit but I've done touristy areas over and over.

We'll definately be taking public transit so I've already copied your post over to my itinerary. Sounds like we'll have time to really enjoy the area if the walk will take less than an hour.

Thanks for the restaurant suggestions - I don't really want to be held to a reservation time - are these mostly "walk-ins"?

Park slope and Carroll Gardens are similar neighborhoods. Pslope is a large yuppie haven and Carroll Gardens it’s smaller more down to earth sister. It’s full of brownstones with little gardens in front of them, good food and fun boutiques. Plus its an old Italian neighborhood so it has a pizza shop and bakery on nearly every other block.
Don’t get me wrong PSlope is nice too, I think I’m just partial because I live in Carroll Gardens
I don’t think any of those places even take reservations, but waits aren’t usually a problem even during dinner. Enjoy!!!

Sounds great - thanks again. I'll post a review of my Brooklyn experience when I return.

Coney Island is a bit rundown, but still something of an experience. I think I just read that they re-opened a parachute-type ride?

However, I caution you not to veer too far off the boardwalk and the beach. The surrounding neighborhood is not very nice -- a high crime area. Be aware of your surroundings.

Thanks lissettemac. I wasn't aware of that at all. We were thinking to just wander a bit so it's good to know we should be a bit careful.

If you're going to Coney Island - tacky but true to what it is - very 1940's/50's - do take time to do the aquarium - which is right down the beach. IMHO - much more interesting use of time - but you can do both.

You wouldn't want to do Coney Island and the NY (Bronx) Botanical Gardens in the same day, because they are quite far apart from each other. However, you could do Park Slope and the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens in the same day. If you want, do the Bronx Botanica Gardens and the Bronx Zoo the same day; they are next door to each other.

lisettemac, the Parachute Jump isn't open for rides, but it has just been lit with LED lights that twinkle in patterns dusk to midnight through October. Might be worth seeing if the OP wanted to hang out at Coney Island until dark. Here is an article on the lights:
http://tinyurl.com/ghb72

Thanks sunny16. I'll hit Coney Island early in the day and then head to Carroll Gardens and possibly Park Slope after - sounds like we'll be able to fill our day wandering leisurely through those areas. Funny - I can't even say why I want to go to Coney Island - just curious I guess since it's a place I've heard of since I was a young child even though I'm from Canada .

I'm really looking forward to going to the NY Botanical Gardens but I'm not too interested in the Zoo (thanks for the suggestion though) so we'll probably just spend a good part of the day there and then head back into Manhattan. Sounds like it would be best for us to take the Metro North train from Grand Central - is that correct? I'd like to catch the 10:30 which would put us at the Gardens for 11. Is the MN platform easy to find and manouver at Grand Central?

Is the Metro North a subway train or a regular rail train? Do you know if the Harlem Line makes any stops between the Botanical Gardens and Grand Central? It looks as though it doesn't.

I know you said you are really looking forward to the Botanic Gardens, but did you know there is also a Brooklyn Botanic Garden? Not as big as the one in the Bronx, but perhaps more convenient to your itinerary.

http://www.bbg.org/

Thanks lisettemac. I'm interested in going to the NY Gardens this trip to see the Chihuly Exhibit. I would love to go to the Brooklyn Gardens at some point though - maybe next trip.

I figured as much, but wanted you to know.

Metro North is a regular train not a subway - although it naturally runs underground in Manhattan - until just south of 125th st. The 125th St stop is elevated.

It is on completely different tracks and does not stop where the subways do. If you look at the MetroNorth site you can see where each train stops.

I live 10 minutes from Coney Island, and it is definitely something to see. Great history and the best roller coaster in the world. It is a true urban amusement area though. Stick to the amusement parks and boardwalk and don't roam the streets outside of the area. If you are there are on friday night (summer), you'll catch a great fireworks display and you can also time a trip to catch a Brooklyn Cyclones game (minor league baseball). We go many fridays and take our kids to the fireworks, although I'm not sure if they happen after Labor Day. If you make the trip, let me know what day you're going and I'd be happy to try and make that a day I take the kids and show you around a little.



John

Oh, also - Carrol Gardens is great for restaurants, but not much else. In Park Slope you can spend an afternoon on 7th Ave. shopping, etc. and you can eat at some of the best spots in Brooklyn on 5th Ave. Neither is particularly interesting to a tourist though unless you just want to feel like a local for a bit. Whichever neighboorhood you decide, I can make many restaurant recommendations as we eat in both neighborhoods ferquently.

Hi janette - welcome to Brooklyn! Sounds like your plan to visit the borough is shaping up. I just wanted to point out that if you do take in both Park Slope and Carroll Gardens, you absolutely want to hit "the Slope" first because it will be on your way back from Coney; you'd be backtracking to do Carroll Gardens first.

I might get flamed for this, but as a resident of the Slope, IMO there's way more to do in here than in Carroll Gardens. In fact, there are even Park Slope shops that have outposts in Carroll Gardens / Cobble Hill...

As for a walking tour, I don't know any in particular, but if there's one that offers you a visit inside any of the historically registered brownstones, it could well be worthwhile. Otherwise, you can wander the side streets and get a feel for Brownstone Brooklyn, and maybe even catch a few architectural details through the windows.

The Brooklyn Museum of Art nearby just had a huge renovation to its front entrance; check out brooklynmuseum.org to see if you'd be interested in a visit.

Let us know what your final plan is - as john127 said, there's lots of restaurants and other stuff to choose from, and if you tell us what you like and price range, we can give you more suggestions!

ggreen

Are you going to the gardens for Chihuly on a weekend? I ask because there is a special deal called City Ticket on metro north line on weekends, $3 each way. That is even cheaper than the combined ticket and metro north transportation package deal being offered by the Gardens when you get tickets online.

http://mta.info/mta/cityticket.htm

The tickets for the Chihuly exhibit are timed tickets, purchased ahead. I raise this because it sounds like you might not know that. I think there are a limited amt. of same day tickets avialable each day depending on what they have sold (see the website for info), but I do not know if you can just walk up and get in when you get there. Call ahead and talk to them. They have been responsive; I've called 3 times in the last week to ask questions and have gotten a knowledgeable, live, helpful person each time.

Thanks all - you guys are great. Okay so the plan so far is to take the D train to Coney Island - Stillwell Ave (correct?) probably on the Saturday (the 2nd) so we can experience CI on a weekend day. Then we’ll head back to Park Slope and go to Carroll Gardens after that if we have time.

I’d really appreciate restaurant suggestions for Park Slope - 2 gals - one 30ish, one 50ish - we like fresh, light foods - my friend is on a gluton-free diet so pizzas and bakeries are out. Salads, soups, chicken, etc - moderate price - say $20ish or less for complete lunch each, $40ish for complete dinner each.

john127: Yep - even though there are nay-sayers I’ve always wanted to see Coney Island and I’m very excited about having the extra time this trip to head that way. Thanks for the advice about the surrounding area - I wasn’t aware of that so definately good to know. Very generous of you to offer to show us around - I don’t think that will be needed though - we’ll probably just take a wander along the boardwalk and then head back to the train. We may hit the Aquarium but at this point I’m not sure.

ggreen: Thanks for the welcome - I’m really looking forward to it. I’ve been to Dumbo a couple times but never wandered much further into Brooklyn. Hmmm - if I get arrested for peeking through the brownstones’ windows can I tell the NYPD that ggreen said I could. I think that we probably will just wander on our own - that way we don’t have to meet up at a certain tour time. I’ll check out the museum and see if we can fit it in. Our main focus will be to enjoy the area as if we lived there - only in my dreams of course.

emd: We’re thinking of going to the Gardens on Sept 8 (Friday). I saw the combination deal but was a bit worried about purchasing the tickets ahead in case the weather is bad. Looks like I should purchase the tickets now though if they’re limited. Thanks for the suggestion. Silly question - in Grand Central is it very quick and easy to locate the Metro North line? Just trying to figure out how much time to allow to get there from our hotel (Belvedere, 8th and 48th) that morning.

Janette,

Hope you didn't think I was being weird offering to show you around. It's just that I'm a history teacher, love the history of NYC, am extremely proud of my borough, and I'm a Coney lsland history buff! I'm always looking for an excuse to talk about CI history.

Anyway......

In Park Slope, your more upscale (and far superior) restaurant choices are on 5th Ave. My two faves are "Al Di La" - one of the top rated Italians in the city and "Convivium Osteria" - an amazing Portugese/Spanish/Italian fusion place (this is maybe my favorite place in Brooklyn). Both are a little pricey, but worth it.

On the casual side, on 7th Avenue you can't go wrong at the 2nd Street Cafe or, really, anyplace else you just happen by - there are a lot of little places on 7th.

In Carroll Gardens, my faves are Cafe Cafe Luluc (the best french bistro food!) and Savoia (authentic Italian) on Smith street but my absolute favorite in this area is Frankie’s 457 on Court street (wonderful, homey Italian - ask to sit out back in the converted stable.) All are reasonably priced.

Oh, and Coney Island, obviously a must is a Nathan's hot dog but if you walk east down the boardwalk you'll wander into Brighton Beach, "Little Odessa", and you'll find some excellent Russian cafes right on the boardwalk!

Have a great time!

John

Thanks John. You know - it is a shame that we have to think that way and it did briefly cross my mind -not that you were being weird but that if we were to meet we would have to be careful - but I also thought how generous an offer it was. Funny - I met someone a couple years ago (Atilla) through the Fodor's posts - she's a fellow Canadian and posted that she wanted something picked up in New York and since I was going I offered to do it. Some of my friends thought it was bizarre that I offered (some even said creepy) but we ended up becoming pen-pals from it. Turned out we had so much in common (we have the same jobs and our hubbies the same name, etc) - one is a love of NYC - and it's been a great experience e-mailing back and forth. I totally understand your pride and really appreciate the offer. We're hoping to be pretty loose with the scheduling for this trip so it's probably better to just let the day flow - I wouldn't want to make plans to meet at a certain time and then not make it.

Thanks for the restaurant suggestions too - I'll put them on our itinerary. Definately I'll be having a Nathan's hot dog - my friend won't be able to eat the bun so I don't know about her.

Sounds like we will quite likely be in Park Slope for supper - when you say "pricey" - can you give a range? Would we need reservations at Al Di La or Convivium Osteria? I prefer not - again so we aren't needing to be anywhere at a specific time.

Hi Janette,

It's so funny, but after my first post I thought to myself, "For all she knows I'm a serial killer or something!" Glad you really did worry for a minute, you ARE coming to NYC, after all!

So, Al Di La doesn't take reservations, there's usually a wait although on a holiday weekend it might not be bad. Convivium does usually require a reservation but, again, on a holiday weekend, a lot of people are out of town. The two are within a few blocks of each other, as are many other fine restaurants - that stretch of 5th is loaded with them - so you won't have trouble finding somehwere to eat, believe me. As for price, it depends. We've spent $35 per person at each and $70 per person on other occasions. It depends on what you drink, really. I think both places have websites, check them out for a better idea. My suggestion would be to check out those places when you're ready for dinner and assess the wait. If there is a long wait for either of those two, like I said, you have plenty of other options. Oh! Another good one - NaNa - Thai/Japanese with a nice outdoor garden and very reasonably priced. It's on 5th Avenue, right near the others.

Shopping and strolling on 7th Ave. and dinner on 5th Ave. is definitely a good bet for an afternoon/evening in Park Slope!

Oh, and where are you from in Canada? We had a wonderful vacation last summer in New Brunswick and PEI.

Yep - too bad but we do need to watch out some - I'm still a firm believer though in the good in people. I've met the most lovely strangers in my travels so I think it's wise to make a good cautious judgement and then go with your gut. It's funny - I've never felt nervous when in New York City even when returning to my hotel very late in the evening, etc. I'm cautious and don't go anywhere foolishly off-the-beaten-track late at night but then again I wouldn't do that in the small town I live in either.

Which is BTW - Waterdown - a fairly small but rapidly growing (due to a large commuter population) - town about 1 hour west of Toronto. Yes, New Brunswick and PEI are beautiful - my mother-in-law lives in Nova Scotia so we've travelled down that way a few times.

I think I'm a city girl at heart so I don't think I could happily live that down-east laid back lifestyle but it's a beautiful area to visit.

Thanks again for all the advice - I really do appreciate it. I can't wait for this trip - like I said - I'm usually playing the "tour guide" role and this time I'll be able to really relax and "go with the flow."

This would probably be pushing it, but once you're in Carroll Gardens, you can walk to Brooklyn Heights and the promenade overlooking lower Manhattan. However, I think you'd want to save that for a separate trip that might include exploring DUMBO and a walk over the Brooklyn Bridge.

Thanks sunny16. I have spent time in Dumbo and walked the bridge a few times in the past - love it. We may even do that on the day I have us loosely scheduled to be in lower Manhattan. Maybe I'll get to the ice cream place this time - seems everytime I've been it's a Monday (you'd think I'd learn) and they're closed. I've been to Grimaldi's and Jacque Torres and the last time I went I also went to the little cafe across from JT - didn't know it at the time but apparently it's owned by Jacque Torre. Yummy desserts.

Please don’t let people scare you away from Coney Island, it is definitely worth a visit and it’s wonderful to walk the boardwalk. If you can fit in any kind of a trip to the Aquarium it is spectacular. The real gold at Nathan’s is the french fries and they really do taste better at that Nathan’s than any other one. Oh, see if you can find a frozen, chocolate dipped banana! I can’t help with restaurants, I don’t go there often. I’m surprised no one mentioned Farrell’s. The best place for a frosty beer and the last bit of the real Park Slope left.

Hey janette, sorry to be so quiet (and now so brief), but I'm in the throws of a summer school precursor to grad school and am swamped! I'll say that john127 gave you good suggestions for Park Slope dining; hopefully I'll get a chance to type out some other options for you sometime in the next few days!

I did want to answer your other question, about Grand Central: it is very easy to find Metro North inside the terminal. Walk into the main part of the building and all the lines are listed on arrival / departure boards. The main part of the building is that large area so famously portrayed in photos and movies, with the clock over the information booth in the center. The entrances to most of the platforms are on the north side of that area (with the arrival / departure boards on the south wall). There are more lines downstairs, near the dining concourse. (Dining concourse is great by the way - little takeout versions of a number of NYC restaurants.)

From the Belvedere, it's 6 avenue blocks east and about 4 blocks south to Grand Central, not a bad walk although the ave blocks can be tedious. Your subway option would be to take the C or E one stop downtown to 42nd Street and transfer for the 7 train, but that's an ugly transfer... Oh, or you could take a bus across 42nd Street - might be slow-moving but at least you have a view...

Okay, that's all for now - back to my homework!