Staycation - NYC style.

Having found a great rate at The Warwick (6th Ave @ 54th) for a few days, an
Ohio friend flew in to join me for shopping, theater, dining.

The Warwick. Quite impressive; allowed to check in at 10:30 am. & upgraded
to a view room w/2 beds as requested. Aside from 1 cruiser line, we both agreed the
most comfortable beds ever slept on. Free amenities are coffeepot (upon request),
2 umbrellas in the room, excellent reference materials, free (3) computers in
room off lobby available 24/7. Would stay again in a heartbeat.

Theatre: Blithe Spirit. Angela Lansbury is outstanding & very gracious (Ohio friend
always gets autographs after ea play). Play moves a tad slow at times but definitely
an enjoyable evening at $31.50 p.p.

Waiting for Godot. Outstanding cast w/Nathan Lane, John Goodman, Bill Irwin.
However, you really need to understand Beckett to enjoy it. While Lane can perform a
dramatic role well, thought Irwin was outstanding & Goodman was surprising agile.
I have membership so her ticket was a mere $25 (matinee).

Accent on Youth. David Hyde Pierce plays the aging playwright beset w/angst. Liked
the play. Had not been to the Manhattan Theatre Club prior and loved the theater; am
looking into membership. 37.50 tix.

Shopping. Friend did major damage at Jimmy Choos. Found Lord & Taylor & Macy’s
inventory on a poorer scale. L&T has been on downward trend. Macy’s 34th always a zoo. Store sales in general poor. I investigated the consignment shops starting on upper
Madison @ 84th @ Bis & Encore, down to Michael’s & La Boutique Resale @ 79th,
Over to Lex to 2nd Chance Resale @ 77th. Bought nada. Chanel suits & St. John’s very
outdated. Designer handbags going @ huge premium. No real sales…so did not have to schelp anything back. 6 others still on list.

Dining. We both had business lunches first day. Mine was at a cute new Greek café
on west 42nd www.dafnitaverna.com. Very inexpensive & ordered a plethora of apps
which were delightful. Recommend for inexp. lunch or dinner before theatre.

Benoit on 55th @ 6th. Love this Alain Ducasse bistro. Still offer $24 prix fixe lunch & $35 dinner. (app, entrée & dessert). And gleaned 1,000 Open Table points for early
Resv. which fit in well since we had 8 pm theatre.

Touring. On Tues & Sats, Francis Morrone offers a free one-hour 3 p.m. tour of the Plaza. He is a architectural maven so the accent of this tour that ends at the Oak Room
may give your more background than your wish but hey - you’re in the Plaza which is
still being remodeled but the rooms are beautiful.

And so back to the LIRR to pick up my car & drive her to airport. Deliteful sojourn
At little expense w/good company.

Sounds quite lovely, thanks for posting. NYC is always fun, for visitors/tourist and locals alike.
Deb

What a great time you had, thanks for sharing it here. I tired to get reservations for the free Plaza tour and when I called the recording said it was booked through the end of August. Did you make reservations in advance or did you show up and luck out that there was room?

thanks for sharing!! ohhh Jimmy Choo shoes! so out of my price range haha

Update & answering your queries:

Margo: We were told the same thing so we just showed up @ 2:45
w/nary a problem. And, as he was speaking, more folks just
showed up and were accepted. One caveat: Saturdays are a zoo & group gets too cumbersome so Tues is the recommended day.

ac: But she said the Jimmy Choos were 1/2 price - LOL! $375 & $275 respectively. That's 2 memberships to NYC theatre in my book.

Benoit: Scratch my recommendation. Had lunch there yesterday
& talk about slimming down the menu! Now offer 2 plates for $19 or 3 for $24. The bread basket not as good altho the 4
warm cheese puffs are yummy. 3 apps, 3 entrees,3 desserts offered.
The pate is horrible & advised friend not to have but no
she ordered & agreed. The salmon en croute still good.
The orig tossed voluminous salad now a olio of various vegs
w/no lettuce...filling but disappointing. Lastly, no sign of French waiters which enhanced my orig experiences (& think of the airfare I saved as the other Benoit is in Paris!).

New play to recommend: Tin Pan Alley Rag @ Roundabout's
Laura Pels theatre about Scott Joplin & Irving Berlin...well done!

Thank you - we will be there on a Tuesday so we'll give it a try!

My pleasure Margo. Be forewarned that he does wax euphoric on the architecture, his main interest. It ends @ the Oak Room where you may partake of a libation at your own $$ risk.

I have chaired a few events in their main ballroom & somehow remember the venue as being much larger (selective memory?).

Just a follow-up on the Plaza tour. We went on a Tuesday with no reservations. The tour meets on the lower level where the shops are, there is a surly woman at a desk that crosses your name off the reservation list and gives you a name badge. We asked about joining the tour and she basically said "no way". Luckily the tour director was nearby, we chatted with him a few moments and expressed our disappointment about it being full, he said to tell the woman at the desk that he said it was all right to join in. She STILL didn't want to give us badges but reluctantly handed over 3. The first stop on the tour the guide looked around and those without badges were asked to leave. Our tour was very full, I am sure that on less crowded days he can be a little more lenient.

A reporter from the Times was on the tour so there should be something written somewhere about the tour soon (or maybe I have already missed it)

The tour was excellent, Francis Morrone is outstanding he freely answered questions and has a good sense of humor. One thing that I would like to pass on to all who do the tour: PLEASE tip him at the end. I am embarrassed to say that 99.9% of our group applauded at the end of the tour (that went way over the allotted time) asked additional questions and then walked away.

If you can get in (one way or another!) it is well worth the time. Thank you Rhea for encouraging us to pursue it.

You're most welcome, Margo; thanks for the feedback.

Another interesting NYC tidbit is Ron Adar's first USA
exhibit @ the MOMA; I attended the Opening Reception for
his show this past week & found his work fascinating.

Front page of NYTimes yesterday if interested:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/31/ar...gn/31arad.html