what to do when you have 48 hours in NYC: upper east side edition
ITINERARY
STAY:
Park Lane - Amazing views of Central Park, so make sure to book a park-facing view. It’s very centrally located, so you can walk pretty much everywhere, which is really nice. Note that the breakfast is not great, so I would not count on that.
*this itinerary is based on staying at Park Lane. You may not do some of these activities if you’re staying at The Mark or Carlyle since they're more uptown.
DAY 1
Pick up coffee/matcha at Sip + Co.
Walk in Central Park! You can wander around where you want to go, but if you want directions, start by going around The Pond and connect to The Mall and Literary Walk to get to The Arcade / Bethesda Terrace and then loop around.
Lunch at The Grill - this place is more known for dinner as they specialize in great steaks, but we went for lunch. Expect everyone to be in suits / there for a business meeting. The food is really, really good. The salad and the club sandwich were great lunch options.
Shopping on Madison Avenue.
Dinner at The Polo Bar. You must get the tuna tartare, the crab cake, the burger, and the chocolate cake. They also serve popovers as the bread, and they’re delicious.
Broadway show! We saw The Six, which is such a fun show.
DAY 2
Ralph’s Coffee for caffeine and Eli’s for a bagel.
Visit The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Walk down Fifth Ave (I personally love walking on Fifth, it makes me feel like I’m in Paris).
JoJo for lunch - amazing food and such a pretty restaurant in an old townhouse.
Downtime to wander around, shop, or do whatever you like. If you head back uptown or to the park, stop by Cafe Sabarsky and get a cake or pastry - it’ll make you feel like you’re in Vienna.
Drinks at Bemelmans Bar (a classic) or The Mark Bar.
Dinner at Sistina. Get the chicken meatballs and the Italian crudo. The pasta is served very al dente, just so you know.
Other restaurants:
Dowling’s at The Carlyle for a special dinner.
Heidi’s House By The Side of the Road for dinner.
