My boyfriend goes to school at New York University, so I’ve visited Greenwich Village quite a few times over the past two semesters. I feel like I’ve seen, done, and eaten a lot of cool things in New York City at this point, so I thought I’d share some of my favorites!
Tompkins Bagels
We got three bagels to share once… I don’t remember what exactly we got, but one of them is a french toast bagel with sprinkle frosting
Tompkin’s Bagels is a well known bagel shop that’s walking distance from Washington Square Park. They are known for their wide variety of bagel spreads and breads, and most importantly, how delicious the bagels are. The lines there can get long at times, but it’s definitely worth the wait. The actual shop is cozy with minimal seating, so maybe plan to take your bagels somewhere else to eat. These bagels are probably the best bagels I’ve ever had in my life, and to give you an idea of what’s on the menu, here are some of their unique cream cheeses: bacon herb, berry berry, birthday cake, wasabi, chipotle avocado, pear, espresso, and more.
Smorgasburg/Williamsburg
We picked out an ube cookie and jackfruit twinkie from one of the venders at Smorgasburg. You can really see how pretty the area is in the background!
Smorgasburg is an open-air food market that is open during the warmer months of the year. The Williamsburg location is right by a park with plenty of places to sit on the grass and admire the NYC skyline. We went to Smorgasburg in Williamburg, which is Brooklyn, so we took the subway out of Greenwich Village. However, the commute really doesn’t take long, and the streets surrounding Smorgasburg are super fun to walk around. I loved going to Smorgasburg for lunch because we were able to try a bunch of different items. Other than the desserts pictured above, we got mozzarella sticks, a coconut to drink from, and a ramen burger! There is also a beautiful walking path right by Smorgasburg where you can walk along what I believe is the East River.
Morgenstern’s
A photo of Morgenstern’s menu from a Yelp Review. Source: Dwight S. on https://www.yelp.com/biz/morgensterns-finest-ice-cream-new-york-5?start=20
Van Leeuwen is all the rage in NYC, and I think it’s delicious too. But the more I’ve visited Greenwich Village, the more that I’m starting to think that Morgenstern’s outranks VanLeeuwen in my ice cream rankings. Morgenstern’s is similar to Tompkin’s Bagels in that they have so much variety. They even serve savory foods like smash burgers too that I haven’t tried. However, it’s not just the variety that sets Morgenstern’s apart, but it’s also the unique flavors they offer and even the way they organize their menu (pictured above). Price-wise, Morgenstern’s tends to be more pricey than VanLeeuwen, but every ice cream is also made small batch style, a.k.a. made just for you. I definitely need to go back and try more flavors.
Angelika Film Center
A photo of the Angelika lobby from Tumblr. Source: https://nycmovietheaters.tumblr.com/post/648377661743366144/angelika-film-center
Lastly, but certainly not least, I’m going to talk about something not related to food. Well, sort of. The Angelika is an arthouse theater where many movies get their start. This theater differs from an AMC in that it will show foreign and indie films, and it has a vintage looking cafe when you first walk in. When I went, I saw The Whale starring Brendan Fraser, and they had set props from Women Talking displayed in the lobby. This place is awesome for film people like my boyfriend (he studies film and TV at NYU), but still a very cool experience for uncultured people, like me, too!
I’m realizing that most of the things I chose to talk about involve food, but hey! NYC has lots of it! And it tastes really good! If you’re ever in the city, Greenwich Village is one of my favorite areas to visit. I didn’t mention this before, but it’s also where the famous Washington Square Park is with the arch. The park is super lively on the weekends and can be a bit sketchy at night, so like everywhere you visit, be aware and alert at all times. And if you’re interested in simply walking around Greenwich Village, two main streets to hit are Bleecker Street and MacDougal Street. There are plenty of fun shops and restaurants to see and that area is the heart of Greenwich Village in my opinion. If you’ve ever been to this part of NYC, what did you think? And if you’ve never been before, what on this list looks most enticing to you?
I am a little skeptical of some of the flavors of cream cheese but I guess it I shouldn’t say anything before trying it first? I have been to NYC multiple times but have never explored the smaller shops and places for food. I wish I had, because those bagels look SO good. What I always really enjoy about NYC is the fact that it is so diverse. You would think that with a big city, people would be inclined more towards the standard foods and restaurants but clearly not! I mean, if this was the case, you probably wouldn’t be able to find ube and jackfruit flavored deserts… It’s nice that you have a reason to go back and I’m sure that you have a lot of adventures to share!
All of this food looks so good! My family does a lot of day trips to NYC so we never really have time to look around for smaller places like these, but I’m definitely going to be insisting on trying one of these places next time we go. One place that I would recommend trying if you haven’t already is Bake Culture. It’s a fantastic bakery on the edge of Chinatown (W Bowery St) and they have some of the best bread items I’ve ever had in my life. It’s definitely worth the trek down there, plus if you walk there’s a ton of fun sights on the way.
I feel the need to try an authentic NYC bagel! Definitely on my list. I think pear-flavored cream cheese sounds interesting. I wonder if the flavor would be fairly subtle (especially mixed into cream cheese) since pears don’t have a super strong flavor. Would you say it’s hard to stick to a reasonable budget in NYC, or are there reasonably priced shops/restaurants that are cool to visit?
Wow those are some really interesting looking bagels! I used to be skeptical of nontraditional flavors, but after eating ice cream in the flavors of lobster, corn and avocado, I’ll try just about anything before I say its a weird flavor. Thanks for sharing some of these smaller spots to eat that you might not know about if you don’t go there often!
I hope to live in NYC after I graduate, but I’ve only been once, so this is a really helpful list! Espresso cream cheese sounds like an odd combination, but I kind of want to try it! Also, the Angelika sounds really cool. I’m not really much of a movie person, but I still would love to check it out.