Although the Empire State Building is incredibly touristy, it really is incredible to be up there and something you have to experience. I wouldn't make the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island a priority. And Central Park is nice but not that great. Go to the Comedy Cellar at night, get dinner in Little Italy. God I've been to the city so many times but in reality I'm clueless about it. Don't go to Times Square though... just have fun and don't spend too much time wandering around thinking about what to do next!
Go to the top of the Empire State Building. Sure, it's one of the tourist attractions people always mention, but it's worth doing. The view is tremendous. One visit when we went up there, there were thunderstorms in the area and it was a trip just watching the weather play out, and how it made this incredible city look. Go see a big Broadway production. Don't miss out on some of the best theatre on the planet. Sounds like you have one night when you could do that, and the evening you do it, you can walk through Times Square. Consider going to the Guggenheim Museum by Central Park (which you should walk through as well, both the park and the museum). The architecture of the building itself is worth a visit, and the collections are amazing, if you appreciate art. Go see the site of the World Trade Center. It'll humble you. Doesn't sound like you've got the time for the Statue of Liberty, or Ellis Island, both worth a visit on another trip, but just what I mentioned can be covered during the day with two days. The subways will get you where you want to go quickly and cheaply, or you can just take a cab. They are everywhere, and will take you anywhere. And for god's sake, hit a couple of great eateries. You're going to wish you had more time. You'll just have to make another trip.
Do the touristy thing. Its easier to do than trekking out to brooklyn or queens in all honesty. If you are a big time food network person, then i do suggest hopping on the coney-island bound q train to ave j in brooklyn. There is a complete craphole place called difarras that i used to goto a lot when i was in elementary school. Supposedly itz the best pizza in new york according to boudain and some other foodies. The pizzas pretty good, and hats coming from a guy whos been eating brooklyn pizza for 30 years. I also suggest hopping on the queens bound 7 train to the end of the line "main street". Theres a mall called flushing mall and its foodcourt is just absolutely beautiful in terms of types of food and quality. I promise you wont be disappointed.
Just letting everybody know that I'll be dining at Per Se on Saturday night if you want to come out and meet up.
So, I ended up doing the Empire State Building. I went down to Battery Park so I could at least see the Statue of Liberty. I had a couple dogs at Papaya King. I went to Yankee Stadium and saw Wicked on Broadway. Had some decent eats at Madison and Vine. All in all a fun trip. Thanks everyone for the suggestions, even if I didn't end up taking all of them.
You're welcome! ;-)- Hey, for those who might be going to New York soon, I just got back and saw 6 plays while there. Enjoyed them all, but my favorite's were Once and Kinky Boots on Broadway (two fantastic Tony Award winning musicals), and an absolutely hilarious comedy Off-Broadway, Peter and the Starcatcher. The last one is a prequel to Peter Pan that's aimed at adults. Don't ask about it, see it!
