Almost 10 years ago when I was living in Washington DC, I discovered that my friend Stacia had never been to New York City. To me it sounded so strange, like saying – I have never worn pants! The natural thing to do was fix the situation with a weekend trip ASAP. I remember having a blast and feeling like I had made a small difference in the universe.
This past weekend I was in NYC with some of my best friends and of course despite of having been there a million times before, I still got this giddy feeling that said I was about to experience something new and amazing.
Dottie and I flew from Raleigh and were the two mommies in the group. This was the first time Dottie was leaving baby Chrissy behind and I remembered from my previous trips how much of an emotional rollercoaster that can be. Quite appropriately, while at breakfast at Penelope near our hotel Roger in Midtown, her coffee cup came with a shout out to daddy Greg!
I don’t know how but somehow we got lucky enough to score a Saturday afternoon reservation for tea at Bergdorf Goodman. We had a blast eating our tiny sandwiches, drinking tea, and talking politics. Might I add that we also saw Scarlett Johansson hanging out at the bar!
Saturday night dinner was at Anjappar which is a South Indian restaurant on Lexington Ave. I can eat Dosa every day for every meal, but none of my other friends had tried it before. It was hilarious to see their faces when the plates arrived with a ginormous triangle of folded dosa. They were certain that they couldn’t eat it all…until they did of course! Here is a before and after photo to proving it.
Sunday morning we took a cab to Brooklyn to have brunch at our friend Maria’s house. She made this awesome uber fluffy quiche with a secret ingredient that still has me guessing. It was a cold and rainy morning and after a few cups of coffee some of us went to the tenement museum for a walking tour (highly recommended) while Dottie and I went to a book signing in Nolita at McNally Jackson to see Gary Shteyngart and Hisham Matar. They were so so nice and chatty. I felt so flattered to be in their company.
After a quick bite of pizza and window shopping we reunited with others at Jack’s Wife Frida for a late lunch! It’s a terrific little spot with a quintessential New York vibe. Then a quick visit to Laduree on Madison Ave and the MOMA design store, we made our way to Washington Square Park near NYU to see Sense and Sensibility at Bedlam. This was one of the best shows I have ever seen. It was a small off Broadway production but so perfectly done that I didn’t want it to end! We got out just in time to catch the last 30 minutes of the presidential debate. We found a sushi spot that had the TV tuned to it and we could actually hear it. Since it was around the corner from Mamoun’s falafel’s, Sara and I snuck out for a quick bite.
Dottie and I flew back to Raleigh on Monday morning. As always the trip was exciting and rejuvenating but in spite of all the fun, I was ready to hug my little babies and eat them up! I am so happy that we have been able to get together like this for three years in a row. I hope this is a tradition that never ends!
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