Christmas in NYC -- Bryant Park and Bloomingdale's
Among my favorite NYC places to visit this time of year is Bryant Park. Located behind the famed NYC Public Library, the park features an open-air winter village/marketplace. You can shop for that not-from-a-department-store gift, eat semi-exotic street foods, ice skate under the Christmas tree, or let your young children ride the carousel.
Yes, there is always a big tree...
Drew and Kathy and I spent a good deal of time in the marketplace the other day.
One of our favorite shops was Farm To People. It's a Brooklyn, NY company featuring artisanal products from small-batch producers. We bought hand-made cherry licorice (very sweet but very good), some cookies, some hot sauce, and something that sounds incredibly delicious, can't wait to try it:
Another favorite is No Chewing Allowed. This shop features a rich, smooth chocolate. As the shop name implies, you're not supposed to chew the chocolate, you're supposed to let it melt in your mouth. We've indulged in the free samples every year, but his year I took the plunge:
Kathy especially liked Meow Parlour. Meow Parlor is a "cat cafe", a nonprofit animal rescue organization. The cafe, located on Hester Street, features snacks for humans in an environment where adoptable cats are allowed to roam free. The kiosk in the park sells all sorts of feline-related merchandise. Kathy wound up with a t-shirt.
Also giving out samples was Mike's Hot Honey. Sweet honey infused with chilies, a new and interesting idea. Drew and I tried this product last year. Not our thing. Kathy tried it this year. Sorry, Mike, that would be a "no" from her, too.
One of our favorite shops in the village is Metal Park. Artwork crafted from scrap metal.
And I'm still in love with a peacock figurine at Homart NYC, if anyone's interested.
And no, it never gets old:
Bloomingdale's, at Lexington and 59th, had award-winning windows this year. The windows were based on Dr. Seuss' Grinch. They were very interactive, allowing customers to take a photo, sing karaoke, and generally enjoy themselves.
You'll see a lot of reflection in the windows, sorry... the best time to take pictures of the windows is at night, but I was there in the afternoon.
While we were walking towards Bloomie's we found an interesting display in front of an office building on Park Avenue.
Yes, there is always a big tree...
Drew and Kathy and I spent a good deal of time in the marketplace the other day.
One of our favorite shops was Farm To People. It's a Brooklyn, NY company featuring artisanal products from small-batch producers. We bought hand-made cherry licorice (very sweet but very good), some cookies, some hot sauce, and something that sounds incredibly delicious, can't wait to try it:
Another favorite is No Chewing Allowed. This shop features a rich, smooth chocolate. As the shop name implies, you're not supposed to chew the chocolate, you're supposed to let it melt in your mouth. We've indulged in the free samples every year, but his year I took the plunge:
Kathy especially liked Meow Parlour. Meow Parlor is a "cat cafe", a nonprofit animal rescue organization. The cafe, located on Hester Street, features snacks for humans in an environment where adoptable cats are allowed to roam free. The kiosk in the park sells all sorts of feline-related merchandise. Kathy wound up with a t-shirt.
Also giving out samples was Mike's Hot Honey. Sweet honey infused with chilies, a new and interesting idea. Drew and I tried this product last year. Not our thing. Kathy tried it this year. Sorry, Mike, that would be a "no" from her, too.
One of our favorite shops in the village is Metal Park. Artwork crafted from scrap metal.
And I'm still in love with a peacock figurine at Homart NYC, if anyone's interested.
And no, it never gets old:
Bloomingdale's, at Lexington and 59th, had award-winning windows this year. The windows were based on Dr. Seuss' Grinch. They were very interactive, allowing customers to take a photo, sing karaoke, and generally enjoy themselves.
You'll see a lot of reflection in the windows, sorry... the best time to take pictures of the windows is at night, but I was there in the afternoon.
While we were walking towards Bloomie's we found an interesting display in front of an office building on Park Avenue.
I find these open air shop and also pop and mom business interesting and unique.
ReplyDeleteI got a few gifts this year for friends and family from such place.
Coffee is on
Great pictures. One day I will make it to NYC Christmas time so I can see all the decorations!
ReplyDeleteHm - maybe my friend Mandy and I can add Bloomingdale's to our annual holiday window fest, to make up for the loss of Lord & Taylor :( .
ReplyDeleteThe usual route was Bergdorf's/Tiffany's/Henri Bendel (also :( ), Sak's/Rock Ctr, L&T, then on down to Macy's if it's nice and we aren't absolutely frozen. We did the Reader's Digest Condensed Book edition last night and just went to the first 3 'cause she's just over the flu and I'm slowly recovering from a self-inflicted case of plantar fasciitis (latin for "ow my heel hurts", I was wear cheap but cute flats from H&M as street shoes over the summer instead of sneakers, won't do that again) but I'll keep that in mind for next year. We also never go to Barney's for some reason!
Oooh, the outdoor market sounds like fun.
ReplyDeleteThe market is fun.
ReplyDeleteI miss L & T too, their windows were alway great. Didn’t get any photos of Bergdorf this year. Didn’t see Henri Bender.