Month: November 2018

Daily life on the Upper West Side is one of ease and access. The Upper West Side no-fee apartments brought to you by Algin Management can be found throughout the neighborhood, near to some of the finest in culture, shopping, and cuisine that the city has to offer. You could spend a lifetime exploring the Upper West Side — and we urge you to — but for now, we’ll just go through a few of our favorites in the way of fun and food that make living here such a delight.

Entertainment

Refined. What else is there to say about the Upper West Side’s marquee marquee, Lincoln Center? This iconic cultural institution, near the Sessanta apartments, is home to 11 performing arts organizations and covers more than 16 acres. Here, you’ll find the Metropolitan Opera, the New York City Ballet, and the New York Philharmonic, as well as the renowned Jazz at Lincoln Center. As New Yorkers, we adore the show tunes of Broadway and welcome plaintive blues played in the Bowery, but when our minds are set on virtuoso violinists or seeing that prima ballerina whose expressive grace makes us weep before the intermission, this is where you’ll find us.

Of course, not every night is right for tuxedos and evening gowns, and on those evenings, we head for the Beacon Theatre, just a few blocks north of 242 West 61st Street. The venue provides superior acoustics and drawing power for both performers and crowds. Over the years, this cultural landmark has been host to the Rolling Stones, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, The Allman Brothers Band, George Carlin, and Jerry Seinfeld, as well as world leaders, such as His Holiness the Dalai Lama and President Bill Clinton. FYI: Tickets for Seinfeld’s 2019 New York residency went on sale on Nov. 2.

Food

If you’re looking to simply “eat,” your choices are practically unlimited on the Upper West Side. If you’re looking for an experience, then book a reservation at Belle Harlem. With only 12 seats and an ever-evolving menu sourced primarily from fresh, local ingredients, the owner’s intention of offering guests the comfort of being attended to in someone’s kitchen is readily met. The menu of comfort foods — like chicken and waffles (the finest you’ll ever eat) and a hearty black sea bass, with sautéed yellow squash, almonds, fennel, asparagus, truffle oil, and lime — gives diners a truly memorable selection of dishes to savor.

Brunch enthusiasts will want to find their way to Flat Top: a cozy bistro whose twists on classic dishes foster contemplation of what you’ll try on your next visit. We’re partial to the blueberry buttermilk ricotta pancakes with lemon curd and the Irish ham Benedict with poached eggs, hollandaise, and spinach on homemade focaccia. However, these are simply two dishes that we favor from a menu filled with unique culinary delights. Excellent Stumptown coffee awaits to accompany your selection and your post-meal conversation with friends.

The Upper West Side boasts easy access to two cornerstones of NYC life: Central Park and fabulous deli food. When you reside at 461 Central Park West you are near to both — across the street from the North Woods and just up the avenue from one of the city’s most notable delicatessens, Barney Greengrass. A family business that dates back 100 years, Barney Greengrass is the go-to for a quick lox and bagel or a weekend brunch with friends. Sturgeon, whitefish, pastrami, gravlax, and sable, all of your favorites are here, along with soups, salads, desserts, appetizers, and even caviar.

Down the way is another luminary in the foodie realm: Zabar’s. Your home for gourmet coffees, seafood salads, and delicious rugelach and babka. Zabar’s carries an amazingly wide selection of specialty items, and offers consistently excellent meats and platters.

The Upper West Side competes heartily with any other neighborhood in the city when it comes to fine dining experiences. Put Red Farm at the top of your list and indulge in an Asian-fusion experience that is uniquely New York. By that, we mean dim sum offerings like BBQ “Black Foot” Berkshire pork belly with grilled jalapeño peppers or Katz’s pastrami egg rolls that sit easily next to 16 ounces of grilled prime Creekstone bone-in New York strip steak, dry aged for 40 days.

Tessa, Mediterranean to its heart, is a complex amalgam of southern French and Italian cuisines twisted into a Spanish tavern. The result is divine with small plates of duck pastrami sliders and

octopus a la Plancha saddled next to hearty mains like grilled branzino with broccoli rabe, fingerling potato, fennel puree, and pimento coulis. Show up hungry, let the sommelier select your wines (you won’t go wrong), and stay for not one but two desserts, such as the bombolino with raspberry jam and vanilla glaze and a decadent chocolate chip bread pudding with bourbon ice cream.

Culture

The American Museum of Natural History brings you one of the finest collections of wonders from the natural world ever assembled under one roof. Start your adventure in the David H. Koch Dinosaur Wing before diving into the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life. Or tour the Milky Way with a show at the Hayden Planetarium. In the warmer months, The Butterfly Conservatory brings hoards of these delicate insects together, while year-round you can explore more exotic creatures from across the sea in the Akeley Hall of African Mammals.

While the American Museum of Natural History is by far the largest museum on the Upper West Side, it is certainly not the only one. Right across the street is the New-York Historical Society, housing 400 years of New York history. The American Folk Art Museum, near to Lincoln Center, hosts an exploration of art “by the self-taught” with more than 7,000 artworks dating from the 18th century to the present, revealing human nature and its expression of self in profound and engaging mediums and forms. And don’t forget the Children’s Museum of Manhattan: fun for all ages with five floors of magic and mystery.

A bit further uptown you’ll be happy to find the National Jazz Museum in Harlem. A Smithsonian affiliate, the museum seeks to preserve and promote this quintessentially American musical genre. The current space is designed to give its visitors “an immersive jazz experience” through exhibits that bring jazz into the present age. In addition, the museum offers the public more than 80 free performances every year. And no visit is complete without an exploration of the Savory Collection: “more than 100 hours of live recordings of jazz legends made from New York City radio broadcasts aired between 1935 and 1941.”

For those seeking fresh air and open space, iconic Central Park is quite literally right in your backyard. With 843 acres of fields, wooded glens, and pathways, the park is the fifth largest in the NYC park system, but certainly its most famous. A National Historic Landmark, the park offers activities and attractions in all seasons, including sporting opportunities at a variety of fields and courts, the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theater, the Central Park Zoo, the Central Park Carousel, and Lasker Rink ice skating, just to name a few. Whatever your outdoor or cultural passion — from bicycling to cross-country skiing; from rock concerts to Shakespeare in the Park — you’ll find an opportunity to indulge it in Central Park.

Explore availabilities for Algin Management’s Upper West Side buildings and find your next home in classic New York.