We are on Day 2 of 5 of the New York City vacation we took in June/July. If you missed my first post, you can find it HERE. This was our first FULL day in New York City. On our last trip to NYC many years ago, we did a food tour in Chinatown and Little Italy, but I had heard great things about Chelsea Market and we decided to check out to food tour on Viator. It did not disappoint! He also took us to Pier 57, which is a quieter food hall and we got to see the tree island, which is an artificial island in New York. The tour also included the High Line, which is a 1.45 mile long elevated linear park, greenway and rail trail created on a former New York Central Railroad spur on the West Side of Manhattan. Then, at the end of the tour we got to see The Vessel, which is a really cool building/structure that is in Hudson Yards at the end of the High Line. After all that, we went to the Starbucks Reserve (right next to Chelsea Market), which is a Starbucks outpost featuring a roaster, a cocktail bar, a pizzeria and a bakery. Last, we finished off dinner at Carnegie Diner & Cafe by our hotel.
I had been following the Chelsea Market Instagram page and I couldn’t wait to see this lit up entryway with the clock. It is really pretty! Chelsea Market is a food hall that also includes shops and a flea market.
Fresh flowers always get me to stop! There were a lot of neat shops in Chelsea Market, including a candy store, book store, etc., etc. I was glad our tour guide gave us 45 minutes to browse.
We ate a lot of food on the tour! Our first stop was at Takumi Taco and we had a braised shortrib taco, the beef was really tender!
Next, he took us somewhere sweet! The Doughnuttery makes mini donuts right in front of you and you select what sugary blend you want on your donut, such as powdered sugar, coco loco, pb&j, s’mores and MUCH more. They were SO good!!!
After the donuts, he took us for a BIG slice of pizza from Filaga Pizzeria. We had a slice of the Bufalina and it doesn’t look big here, but it was a HUGE slice. I love me some Italian pizza, even in New York!
You know what I love about food tours? Trying new things! Joey Bats is a Portuguese spot in Chelsea Market with pastéis de nata, which are creamy, custard tarts that were created in Lisbon in the early 1800’s and are now known as the country’s most popular pastry. Joey Bats Café’s traditional “natas” are light and flaky shells filled with rich, vanilla-spiked custard filling before being baked, caramelized, and served warm with a dash of cinnamon and powdered sugar. SO good!
After we finished up at Chelsea Market, our foodie guide took us across the street to ANOTHER quieter food hall called Market 57 inside Pier 57. The tables inside had a really nice view of the artificial island and public park in Hudson River Park. This “tree island” is named Little Island, which is near the intersection of West Street and West 13th Street. Little Island is known for its unique design, featuring 132 “pot-shaped” structures (called “tulips”) that support the park’s landscape, including trees, flowers, and walking paths.
We didn’t spend as much time in Market 57. We had chicken and vegetarian dumplings at Nom Wah (I forgot to take a photo!) and then a sweet tea beverage at Bird & Branch.
After all that food, we were ready for the second part of our tour, the High Line. As I said in the intro, the which is a 1.45 mile long elevated linear park, greenway and rail trail created on a former New York Central Railroad spur on the West Side of Manhattan. We got some really great family photos among the buildings and flowers!
Brian and I saw the High Line when it was being built, 10 or so years ago. There is SO much more to see on it now. I love how the tracks are exposed around the plants/flowers. There are murals on some of the buildings.
There was a lot of sculpture on the High Line. This 16′ Pigeon statue was hard to miss!
Last photo from the High Line, we are standing by the London Terrace, which is an apartment building complex in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It occupies an entire city block on Manhattan’s West Side. It’s HUGE! There are a lot of neat building you can see off the High Line and I found THIS website which tells you what a lot of them are… it is a fun read!
The High Line ends at Hudson Yards and you’ll see The Vessel. You can go up in it by climbing or taking an elevator (there is a fee!). We just took photos of the outside of it.
I was SO excited to get over to the Starbucks Reserve Roastery!! It was conveniently located next to Chelsea Market and it was nice to cool off with a sweet treat and alcoholic beverage after. Starbucks Reserve Roastery is Starbucks outpost featuring a roaster, a cocktail bar, a pizzeria and a bakery. It has it all!
Of course I had to get a photo of myself in the Starbucks Reserve Roastery! I ordered a Cold Brew Spiced Rum and the Strawberry Lemon Tart. So good!
Autumn is really into Brandy Melville and we went there not just once, but twice! We got a selfie the second time.
It was fun to hit the reception hour each day. This day they had a pasta bar and I think it was my favorite of all of them! Yum!
For dinner, we had nothing planned… so I let Brian pick for once! Ha, ha! He picked a place close to our hotel called Carnegie Diner. Brian and I both got breakfast and it was phenomenal, the teens both got dinner (a pasta and fish and chips). I got Nutella banana pancakes (breakfast for dinner!). SO GOOD!
That’s a wrap on the second day, more to come… stay tuned! I’ll be back on Thursday with a fun post sharing my swimsuit and cover-up haul from CupShe! Yes, it’s a 2 post week over here!
Westhouse Hotel, MOMA, Serafina & More! {NYC Trip Recap 1 of 5}
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