Hello there,

I actually live here, but am expecting an out of town guest this weekend. We had a great Fall outdoors itinerary planned - Central Park, etc. Now, it seems that will have to change. I want to bring him to the Met for a bit, but don't want to spend the entire weekend in museums. Anyone have any fun ideas? I'm blocked! Please help,
Robin

What about Chelsea Piers? You can hit golf balls, bowl, etc, hang out and have a great time. See the Intrepid while you are in the area.

Thanks very much, GoTravel. I feel badly b/c he wanted a real "city" weekend - Central Park, Times Square, the Village, etc.. I'm considering a stop at Grand Central, but I don't know - we might just have to suck it up and get wet! Anyone else have any ideas?

It's another museum but very different -- how about the Tenement Museum? Afterwards, you can go grab some excellent food or drinks around the area.

That's a great idea!! I've been wanting to go to the Tenement Museum for the longest time. I'll definitely add that to the list. Thanks very much, Michelle.

Hmm, sorry, my ideas are museum related too. Maybe got to the Met tonight or Saturday night for the jazz on the balcony? What about the Frick museum - be sure to get the audio guide. Maybe someplace very "NYC-ish" for a drink? or a great brunch?

Ooh, sitting atop Rockefeller Center at the Rainbow Grille with cocktails for several hours spending time talking while watching the rain sounds wonderful!

last time I was in NYC it rained the entire weekend. But like this wknd forecast, it should still be on the warm side. Getting wet in the cold vs. getting a bit wet in warm is worse. Wait and see, you know how the weather changes out east. a rain jacket and umbrella will get you far. The Met is nice, and you can lunch there and chat and catch up. Or go out to the Cloisters, or even walk around Soho?and down to North of Italy (nolita) where the stores are so close together you'll still have fun browsing and lunching and won't get too wet, same for 5th Ave and all around St. Patrick's, etc. be adventurous. I had a friend with me that weekend who had never been to NY and we did it in the rain and kept our sense of humor and laughed about it. Duck inside somewhere when it pours. Grand Central is always beautiful, particularly at nigth for a drink with the ceiling lit. MOMA and a drink at the bar of nearby Remi's - I know you don't want to spend the wknd in museums, but would your guest if he/she is not from an area with so many fabulous ones? Depends on what friend has where he/she lives - nice afternoon tea in a hotel with lovely architecture/decor? How about all the inside tours of tv studios? I haven't done them, but some who do like to see behind the scenes of the big city.
Are they sports nuts? I know a friend who once did a behind the scenes tour of madison sq. garden or wherever it is they play bb, and into the locker rooms, and onto the floor, etc and all that but I am not a sports nut so I don't know if it's game time or what - Empire State BLdng, or an off broadway or off off broadway matinee or evening? Sometimes I find when someone is visiting me, I am often surpised if I visit web sites for Boston offering ideas of Boston in a day or weekend what I find, things I haven't either done in a long time or forgot about. Maybe perusing some of them will give you some ideas depending on interests. - sometimes we forget what we wanted to see in our own city (as you mentioned with tenement museum)......otherwise, suck it up, cuff up your pants, wear shoes that can get wet, and smile, you'll just be happy to be together and he/she will love nyc in any weather.

I took a food tasting and historical tour of Greenwich Village a few years ago and loved it (they go rain or shine). I checked, but they're already full for that tour this weekend. BUT, they still have 3 spaces for Sunday on their Chelsea Market/Meatpacking tour. Lots of tastings, lots of historical information, you might want to try it as something different to do.

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Thank you so much for your thoughtful replies and great ideas! Chelsea Market is another one I've been meaning to get to. I think St. Patrick's will be a go, too. I'm printing this & taking it home! My guest, I think he'd be up for going to a museum or two, but it's not his thing so I don't want to overdo it. I also like the idea of ducking into stores when it rains hard, could make for some laughs. Thanks so much, all!

Open House New York is this weekend...GREAT if you're into architecture. Some of the open houses are in buildings (or parts of them) not normally open to the public. Last year I did the tour of the NY Public Library and Grand Central. Most of the tours & events are free.

OHNY.ORG

So, what did we wind up doing? We actually spend all day Saturday at the Met, which as always was wonderful. He'd never really been to a museum before, and I think I have a convert . After that, in the pouring rain, I drove us downtown through Times Square. It was even more beautiful in the rain, and the pictures we took were spectacular. Dinner was a picked up pizza and Veneiro's cannolis back in Brooklyn (it was just too dreary to head back into the city). Sunday, we just ambled around the Village, stopping for a drink on Bleecker St. (a bar there, 1849, has an all-day happy hour - $2 drinks and .20 wings - what a deal! Dinner was at Pete's in Brooklyn, overlooking the downtown skyline. Thanks everyone for your great suggestions! I'm saving many of them for the next visit.

Is the Pete's in Brooklyn the place near the River Cafe Cafe? If yes, how was it????

Yes, that's the place. I thought it was pretty good, and I'm picky about Italian food. We were in a bit of a rush, so it wasn't a full-blown dinner, but I had baked ravioli which I liked (having a good sauce is half the battle!), and he had linguine w/ white clam sauce, which was also very good (a bit too al dente for my tast, but tasty nonetheless). BTW, I had their iced tea to drink, which I didn't think was good at all.

Thanks for reporting back. Sounds like a perfect weekend in NYC.

Sorry for more questions, Robin. Is there much of a view from inside Pete's?

No problem, McLaurie, feel free to ask. The view was a bit obstructed from inside the restaurant (the ice cream factory is a bit in the way). We arrived early so we did have a window seat w/o a reservation. You can see the base of the B'klyn Bridge, and some of the skyline (the tops). The River Cafe across the street has lovely white lights on their trees, it really gives a nice touch (as the wind blows, it makes them look like they twinkle). After dinner, it's literally across the street to a viewing platform of the skyline; beautiful at night. BTW, we got a table right away while Grimaldi's (which I've only heard about from Fodors, and I've lived in Brooklyn most of my life) had a HUGE line.

Thanks for the info. Good to know.

Re: Veneiro's in Brooklyn - didn't know they had one. We've been going to the one nearer to us at 1st and 10th. That's where we get our cannol;is and coffee fix when we want some that's as close, but not quite, to the ones they serve at coffee bars in Italy.

Just curious, where's the Veneiro's in Brooklyn?

Whoops! I think that was an error in my sentence formation. We went to the Veneiro's (the one & only, I think) in the Village, and took some cannoli's & Italian cheesecake to go - and ate it in Brooklyn. I WISH there was one closer to me - but on second thought, it's probably a good thing that it's not so close