Sunday, May 28th New York City
Updated: Feb 5
Over the many times we’ve visited New York and stayed at the Westin we’d often pass a large old fashioned and lively breakfast restaurant right next to Grand Central Terminal on E 42nd Street. Pershing Square Restaurant makes the claim, in bright neon lights, to be “breakfast central” – the place is literally built right under Park Avenue as it crosses E 42nd Street via a bridge leading directly into Grand Central. Today was our day to give it a try.
Pershing Square Restaurant has amazing architectural design with lots of large windows providing great views of the lively scene around Grand Central and an interior that gives the feel of being inside an immense old structure, with lots of large rivets, iron girders and arched tiled ceilings. The menu was very basic, covering the usual breakfast options – nothing fancy; the food was good as was the attentive service. It hit the spot!
It was another beautiful, warm, and bright day – such a contrast to the times we usually visit New York, in the dead of a freezing cold winter. We’ve heard great things about the walk along the High Line, but it’s always been too cold for us to attempt it. Today seemed like a great day to check this one off.
The High Line is a 1.5-mile-long elevated linear park, greenway, and rail trail created on a former New York Central Railroad spur on the west side of Manhattan. It’s hard to imagine now but from the mid 19th century Manhattan was a significant manufacturing center. In 1847 train lines were installed to bring in materials and take away finished goods, much of the needed food and produce were also delivered via rail. However the trains soon added to congestion and became a significant safety hazard for pedestrians. To solve this problem an elevated train track, The High Line, was constructed; opened in 1933 the track ran through warehouses and factories allowing for the direct loading and unloading of goods. As the manufacturing business moved out of Manhattan use of the high line declined and by 1978 the line was used to deliver only two carloads of goods, it was finally shutdown in 1980 and fell into decay. Over the next decade many attempts were made to demolish the High Line, but various groups fought against this and eventually the idea of repurposing the line into a “linear park” was developed; the first part of the High Line Park was opened in June of 2009.
We took an Uber to the southern end of the High Line, in the former meat packing district and ascended a couple of flights of stairs to reach the track level (there is also an elevator). At this end the line literally stops right where it would have entered an enormous meat warehouse, the building is still intact though the rail line entrance has been covered over with an interesting mural – the entire building used to be refrigerated. We did not really know what to expect, but once we were on the High Line it became immediately obvious that this was a really special place. The design and construction of the linear park is incredibly well done; somehow, the designers have managed to integrate the original aspects of the rail line with beautiful landscaping; the trees and plants just seem to flow with the layout and there are water features and sculptures installed along the way. In addition, the High Line offers an excellent platform for viewing the incredible cityscape that has grown up along either side of the track. Strolling north we passed under a bridge where a few stalls had popped up selling coffee, food, and artwork – it just seemed so right. It took us about an hour to walk the entire length of the High Line from the southern end at Ganesvoort Street up to the Hudson Yards area of 30th Street where it briefly turns west towards the Hudson River. Can’t wait to do it again.
During our 2nd stop in New York on the world cruise we had wanted to visit the Museum of Broadway, but with Sandra just coming off Covid our time in the city was restricted. So this afternoon we took the opportunity to visit the relatively new (it opened in November of 2022) Museum of Broadway. The museum is located just half a block from Times Square on W 45th Street and covers two floors divided into three sections; the Map Room, featuring a short film that outlines the history of theater in New York and the location of the current theatres, a two-floor Broadway timeline, and the Making of a Broadway Show. We pre-booked our tickets and, since we did not know exactly when we’d be arriving, we opted to pay a little more for a flexible entry window, otherwise you have to book for a specific entry time.
After the brief history video we set off on our self-guided tour of the museum, the place was virtually empty which made picture taking a lot easier and we did not feel rushed. The extent of the collection is very impressive; they have exhibits from all of the major Broadway shows going back decades – some parts are even interactive, allowing visitors to pose with the props and scenes. I found the museum to be very well arranged and it was easy to follow along the prescribed route. I like Broadway shows but would not say I was an enthusiast – so for me the museum was interesting, but I could see if you were a genuine theater buff you could get stuck in here for days.
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