Christmas in New York

By Lou Pastina

I’ve been wandering around New York again, and in case you were wondering what’s happening in New York during Christmas, I have some tips for you! First off, if you decide to go to Manhattan during the season, you should be forewarned that driving is a disaster. Not just because they have narrowed every interior artery by adding bike lanes, bus lanes and off curb parking, but because during gridlock alert days, they completely shut down crosstown streets in the 50s. That makes it impossible to get anywhere. So, my recommendation would be to take the ferry if you can and then uber home if it is past the last ferry at night. In addition, barring any last-minute lawsuits, congestion pricing goes into effect January 5. If you go through the Battery Tunnel and proceed to the FDR or West Side Highway, there won’t be a charge if you exit past 60th Street. Otherwise prepare to get hosed for holidays!

But if you do make it in, I must tell you, the city is electric with the Christmas spirit and there are people everywhere. It makes Covid look like a distant memory and thank God for that. I was recently downtown in the Wall Street area, and the NYSE Christmas tree is up and decorated and as beautiful as ever, and a great alternative to Rockefeller Center.  Stone Street is open and busy and bustling, as well as the Tin Building and Industry Kitchen, all on the waterfront. The old Seaport area is a bit forgotten these days, but the areas around are full of energy. If you really must see the Rockefeller Center tree, my advice is to go over to Greenwich Street and take the E train to Rock Center. It’s an easy ride and full of people during the day and at rush hour.

I was wandering around the West Village recently and many of the old brownstones and colonials are nicely decorated for the holidays. I saw two shows in the Village, one at the Bitter End, with the absence of the Bottom Line, is one of the lone places to catch an intimate night of music. I caught the Ripple All-Stars, a Grateful Dead cover band with the Electrix’s bass player sitting in with the band. They were awesome and play there once a month. At the other end of the spectrum, I caught the Village Vanguard’s Big Band performance on a Monday night. This was my first time at this venerable jazz establishment. It is very intimate, jazzy and very cool. I may have even snapped my fingers. I also stopped at the Duplex on 7th Avenue, the sing-along piano bar that sits right next to the Stonewall Inn, now a historic landmark. That place is always a hoot!

If you are interested in theater rather than music, two recommendations for the holidays. Both performances are put on by the Irish Repertory Theater. The first is Dylan Thomas’s “A Child’s Christmas in Wales,” performed at the Irish Rep Theater in Chelsea. This is a poem by Mr. Thomas, put into play form, and is very sweet. The second is James Joyce’s “The Dead,” which is performed at the Irish Historical Society’s Fifth Avenue mansion. This one is an immersive experience, and you walk around from room to room as the play unfolds. Both are powerfully Irish and Christmas infused, although “The Dead” is definitely heavier.

Christmas dining in the city is festive, and none more so than Rolf’s, the German restaurant on Third Avenue. Another is Lilly’s Victorian on East 17th Street. And let’s not forget Pete’s Tavern on East 18th Street. This is where Clement Clark Moore supposedly wrote “The Night Before Christmas.” By the way, Clements’s family was a prominent real estate owner in the day, owning much of what is today, Chelsea. In fact, he owned the General Theological Seminary on West 21st Street, which takes up the entire block still!

Whatever you do, and wherever you go, be safe, smart and always kind. And lastly, if you are wondering why you didn’t get a Christmas card from us this year, it’s because I got lazy again. You didn’t fall off the list, sorry!! So, both the mermaid and I wish you a very Merry New York Christmas and New Year!!!