NYC Holiday Weekend
 

Hello! My 18 and 20 year old daughters and I are traveling to NYC for a long weekend in early December. We will arrive Thursday night and fly out mid-day Sunday. We are staying at the corner of 43rd and 5th Avenue near Times Square. We have been to NYC a couple of times and have mainly done museums and iconic sights (Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, etc). We have never been during the holidays and are very excited! Any suggestions for must-sees during the holiday season, as well as good restaurants, would be very appreciated! We are seeing the Rockettes show and another Broadway show, but are looking for activities during the day! Definitely want to do Rockefeller and the 5th Avenue shop windows. I've heard that some outdoor Christmas markets are good as well. Any suggestions? In terms of restaurants, we are looking for mainly mid-price point (just not super super expensive) restaurants that are convenient and delicious!

Thanks in advance for all of your help!

I am a local and am happy to address the restaurant question.

But in order to offer useful responses, we need to know what kind of food you like and what you consider to be "mid price." Do you like "ethnic," such as Asian, food? (There are some good Chinese restaurants in then West 30s). There are hundreds of restaurants in midtown so we need to narrow it down for you.

Are you willing to take bus or subway or taxi to eat, or do you need a place within walking distance of your hotel?

It is very important for you to know that the best restaurants in all price ranges will book up quickly during that time so I suggest making reservations as soon as possible. Most places will take bookings one month in advance, so keep that in mind.

Which is your hotel, please?? Or are you in an apartment?

"activities during the day"
Ice-skating, either in Central Park or Rockefeller Center.
If you catch a mild day, walking on the Highline, followed by hot chocolate in the nearby market building.

Um, there are no hotels near Fifth Ave and 43rd St. Do you have the location confused? Or have you rented an apartment? (If the latter you must know that these are illegal in NYC and liable not to be there where you turn up - even if they are ot an outright scam.)

Hi, thanks all for the help! I am staying at the Princeton Club (15 W 43rd Street) - It's a club with accommodations available for those with reciprocal memberships.

In terms of restaurants - I do like ethnic food. I'm hoping for one nice steakhouse/seafood-esque restaurant and one more casual ethnic restaurant for dinner. We are seeing shows both nights - would prefer one restaurant close-by to either the club or theater district for dinner before the show and willing to take a taxi or subway the other night.

I'm also looking for good brunch and lunch places! I've heard good things about Sara Beth's in Central Park - any comments on that? Looking for others near Rockefeller as we want to spend an afternoon there. Another potentially near Grand Central Station or Bryant Park (hoping to do the Christmas markets there).

For ice skating, does anyone have a recommendation for Central Park vs. Rockefeller? And any recommendations for Christmas markets or any other activities?

Thanks again for your help!

You also might consider:

http://www.grandcentralterminal.com/...air/2145475695 and

http://urbanspacenyc.com/union-square-holiday-market/

As for restaurants do not patronize Tavern on the
Green in Central Park - food & service not up to par.

Sara Beth is a good choice.

For steakhouse, take a look at Keen's. Not far from the Club and among the best in Manhattan. Lots of history there, as well as good meat:


http://www.keens.com/

Szechuan Gourmet and Lan Sheng are two well regarded Chinese restaurants on
West 39th Street, near 5th Avenue. If you decide to check on of them out, make sure to do some reading about which dishes to order; there are some excellent choices but you should research before going. Lots of Chinese tourists patronize both.

In Hell's Kitchen, we've had good meals at Pongsri Thai, Basera, China Green, El Centro, Kashkaval Garden.
For a very casual lunch, we liked Hale & Hearty in the Grand Central Terminal food court; they have lots of other restaurants.

Personally, of all the places to ice skate, I like the temporary rink at Bryant Park best. I'd skate and do the market same afternoon or evening.

Re Rock Center - I'm not sure what you mean by "spend an afternoon there" - does that include skating? Going up to Top of the Rock? If not, it won't really take up an afternoon.