Greetings!
We are spending a long weekend with extended family near New York City in November. We plan to explore the city for the day on Friday. The party includes two young teens. We are looking for a jazz club for the evening that features a "safe" area, fine dining, and great live entertainment. Any recommendations? (We'd love something like Zanzibar Blue in Phillie, if anyone is familiar with that.)
As for the earlier portion of the day, would you all vote for Plan A or Plan B:
A. Full day at the Metropolitan Museum, including lunch upstairs.
B. Half day at the Museum of Radio and TV, lunch at John's Pizza, and shopping until dinner.
Thanks for any insight you can provide!

I'd adopt a compromise plan - perhaps a day at the met until early-mid afternoon and then shopping. The Met is fascinating but depending on the interest and attention spans of the teens, it may be wise to throw in an afternnon alternative. Museum of Radio and Television is great - whether it would take a half day is contingent on whether the current non-permanent exhibits/showings are of interest to you all. We went when my daughter was 15 and two hours there seemed plenty for her. I'm not certain what you mean by "safe areas" in a jazz club. The best bet for reasonably "fine" dining and jazz is probably Birdland (not the original but it is nice and has good line of sight to the stage in addition to good acoustics. I'm not sure if Iridium, Blue Note, Village Vanguard, Sweet Basil or Small's have fine dining or just upscale bar food. If they have resumed live jazz (it was temporarily discontinued this summer) the Internet cafe on east 2nd near 2nd Ave would be a great place for dessert and jazz. They were featuring live acoustic jazz (usually trios or quartets) nearly every night and it's a classic brick walled small subterranean type room - really has the look and feel one might associate with a stereotypical NYC jazz club (in a good way). Worth checking out of they have a musical artist you like is the BB King Club on W 42nd. Wide variety of music (actually very little of it is blues) and a great upscale venue with fantastic sound, great line of sight and good (but IMHO a bit overpriced) food. Service was spotty at best when I was there six months ago but those who ordered food said the food was very good.

Small's offers great jazz music, but the atmosphere leaves a lot to be desired. It's basically a dive which has a cheap cover charge and a packed crowd. There's no bar - bring your own beverage of choice. No food served either. But it's located in the Village and the negihborhood is safe.

A good option for you might be Metronome, on Broadway at 21st St. It's a safe and popular area, with many trendy and popular restaurants, and an easy enough subway or cab ride from midtown ir the Met. Metronome features live jazz on the weekends either in the restaurant or lounge, where they offer a full menu, I believe. Food is good, atmosphere is upscale, there's no cover, and since it's a full-service restaurant, I doubt there will be a problem with bringing teens. You can info, music schedule, menu, etc. on their website via this URL: http://www.ny.com/nyc-cgi-bin/frame?...ame/music.html

As for your daytime plans, you know the teens best and can assess their level of interest in spending all day at an art museum, how much they'd want to shop. There are some parts of the Met that tend to appeal to younger people, such as the Egyption collection, Temple of Dendur, Arms and Armor; perhaps you should consult the people in your party and see what they'd prefer.

Wow! Thank you all for the great suggestions!
As for Caitlin's sensible advice. Consult? Why consult? I'm a control freak. I plan and drag. LOL!
Actually, I surely will gather the opinion's of the parties involved. It's just nice to have some inside scoop to describe so they can make a more educated decison. Thanks again!

Another thought... if you're looking to drag the family to a different Sunday brunch experience there is Arthur's Landing - a restaurant adjacent to the Port Imperrial ferry dock in Weehawken NJ. It is on the water and faces the NYC skyline with a spectaular view from every table . I was there a month or so back and they had live jazz during brunch. The food was excellent - brunch was $30 each and included a choice of appetizer or soup, an entree, dessert, coffee/tea and one drink (alcoholic or otherwise). I believe they will validate your ferry ticket to allow for free trip back and forth from NYC. It's a bit of a trek but the view is amazing.