Less Than 12 Hours in New York City
/One of the things I’ve always loved about living in this area is how easy it is to get to cities like New York, Baltimore and Washington, DC. Though it’s just as easy to spend a night or two in any of these cities, if you only have a day, you can make the most of it.
Back in October, when my Mom and I were in New York to see Springsteen on Broadway, we were lucky enough to score tickets to Hamilton for April. After patiently waiting 6 months for the day to arrive, it was finally time for us to make our way back to New York City for our Wednesday matinee of Hamilton. By the way, having the flexibility to do a Wednesday matinee of a show like this will save you quite a bit of money over, say, the 8pm show on a Saturday night. If you can take a day off during the week, it is most definitely worth it. Second side note: I had no idea how badly my Mom wanted to go see Hamilton (though I really should have known this, it's Hamilton after all!) This came up during our trip in October and, as we walked by the Richard Rodgers Theater, we decided to pop in and see about getting tickets (half figuring there was no way we would). Little did I know, we could, so we most certainly did. We may have been able to go sooner than 6 months out, but have the flexibility to go back to NYC during the week allowed us great seats (including an aisle seat for my Dad, who's 6'2") and an excuse for another visit to the city.
Here's a look at the timeline of our day in New York for Hamilton. Everything timed out so we never felt rushed.
9am - Left my parents' house to head to the Hamilton New Jersey Transit Station. We very rarely take Amtrak into NYC anymore. Round trip out of Hamilton is $33 per person. Parking is also reasonable here too: First 2 Hours $3.00 / 2 - 3 Hours $4.00 / 3 - 12 Hours $7.00 / 12 - 18 Hours $8.00 / 18 - 24 Hours $10.00 (source: Nexus Parking Systems)
10:47am – NJ Transit Northeast Corridor #3838 from Hamilton to Penn Station (a 68 minute train ride).
12:15pm – We arrived in Penn Station and walked 10 blocks to Ben’s Kosher Jewish Delicatessen at 209 W. 38th Street. This fit my Dad's request of getting a pastrami sandwich before the show. Ben’s was jumping. We were thrilled that they were able to get us seated and fed with 45 minutes. Serious NYC bonus: my Mom and I each had a bowl of the chicken noodle and matzo ball soup that was nearly a meal, and $5.49! The bill in total, for lunch for 4 people was UNDER $55 (plus tip). You can guarantee we'll be back there during our next visit.
Chicken Noodle and Matzo Ball Soup at Ben's Kosher Jewish Deli
1:20pm –we walked 8 more blocks to the theatre, getting to our seats with plenty of time to spare for the 2pm curtain call.
I’m sure you don’t need to be told this, but Hamilton was amazing. I’ve been at a loss for words on how to describe it. It was just beyond and I could have been easily swayed to purchase tickets to go see it again before we even walked out of the theatre.
it was finally time!
5:00pm – Dinner was at Dos Caminos, a 3 minute walk from the theatre.
As my Dad was trying to decide where we should eat after Hamilton, he happen to catch Mike Colameco’s Real Food episode with Ivy Stark. That sealed the deal. Meanwhile, I loved that my Mom was familiar with the restaurant from when “Marshall from How I Met Your Mother was dating Michelle Williams.” She told us she read somewhere that Marshall (or Jason Segel) and Michelle Williams had been spotted at the location in the Village, which encouraged her to look it up since my parents like spending time in that part of town. The whole rationale behind why we were eating at Dos Comino's is reason #4256 why I adore my parents!
Clockwise from top left corner: Calle Fresca Margarita (cazadores blanco, mango, cucumber, ancho salt rim), Pollo Tacos (citrus-marinated free range chicken, queso fresco, pickled pinto beans), Salted Caramel Tres Leches Cake (caramel cake, vanilla pudding, caramel crunch, fresh raspberries) and Carnitas Tacos (12 hour roasted heritage pork, green chile salsa, pickled red onion).
6:40pm – Walk 18 blocks back to Penn Station
7:10pm – Back on the train to Hamilton (on the #3963 train).
I never complain when we decide to make a night of a visit to the city, but days like this are such a great reminder of how lucky we are to live in an area where we can experience all that New York City has to offer in a short day off from work.
heading out of the city, making our way back home.