A Short NYC Trip on a Budget for a Grad Student and a Teacher

[ALB]

Hi everyone,

I think this disappeared so I apologize for the double post if there is one.

I am meeting my sister in nyc this weekend. She is on a grad school networking trip and I'm tagging along for about 40 hours. I'm a teacher and she is in school so we aren't looking to spend a ton of money, but we would love a few interesting/lower cost suggestions. We are staying near her meetings in midtown west. We were thinking maybe the Fatty Crab but we are open to other suggestions- maybe a Korean place? We are looking to keep mains (or pp small plates) under $20.

We are going to try to get student rush tickets to the nyc ballet saturday so I don't know if there is anything near by or we should try another place elsewhere.

We were also thinking of trekking t the brooklyn flea... is it worth it in the winter?

Thank you all for being a dependable place to reach out.

[Rieux]

Miss favela in Williamsburg is fun for Brazilian drinks and snacks, haven't eaten the mains.

[sheldman]

I had an awesome meal a few years ago at Szechuan Gourmet (39th btwn 5th and 6th), and googling suggests that it is still good (also pretty nearby and within budget). No great atmosphere, though.

Apologies if this is too touristy/trendy, but let me suggest that the High Line really is a nice walk, even on a somewhat coldish day - and that the Doughnut Plant (in Chelsea Hotel or LES) has some really awesome donuts. I guess if you lived in Chelsea or LES you might look on it with disdain a la G'town Cupcakes, but damn they were good donuts even just a couple of weeks ago.

[Waitman]

I think the great New York City budget meal is dumplings. I favor Prosperity Dumplings at 46 Eldridge Street, but I'm just a tourist. And good New York pizza is always fun. Arturo's at 106 Houston is a worthy establishment. More upscale -- if you take the money you saved by eating dumplings -- is the Tavern Room at Grammercy Tavern. I think the place is utterly charming,the food excellent and the service very pleasant.

[Steve R.]

I agree with Waitman about the dumplings & pizza but understand that these are generally low ambience type places and not for sitting and/or hanging out (except for Arturo's, which is a restaurant... however, avoid anything other than pizza or salads there). A place to get good affordable wines by the glass & food (especially the terrines of veggies and seafood or the salumi or cheese) is Otto at 1 Fifth Ave. It's the low end of the Batali chain and also has good pasta and ok grilled (not traditional NY style) pizzas. Although its the same menu whether you sit in the restaurant or at the bar, the bar is much better to hang out, eat/drink and meet others, including the great bartenders.

If you're in Midtown West, you can go downtown to the West Village (below 14th St from 6th Ave west) or to 9th Ave mid 40s-59th St for wall to wall choices. Lots of everything.

At lunchtime, or if you're willing to do some waiting later on, Mission Chinese Food on the Lower E.Side is worth a shot. You can walk around the area while waiting.

[Mark Dedrick]

The Fatty Crab is fantastic (although I've only been to the West Village version). I echo the High Line as a tourist option, and if you wanted to you could combine it with a very affordable dinner after at Co.

[cheezepowder]

If you go, I love the coconut rice at Fatty Crab. I thought the dungeness crab wasn't worth the high price tag.

[DonRocks]

Back in my People Express budget days ($39 round-trip from Greenville, SC!) when I'd go for the day and come back that night, it was Chinatown, bagels, deli, pizza by the slice, lots of walking, free (or discounted) attractions, etc. There is SO much to do and see for free in NYC, including the magnificent architecture - there are surely entire books about it (including the Let's Go! series). Are you staying overnight? That could easily be half your bill if you are, so a discount hotel is imperative, and either a central location or near a subway stop is important.

Things such as MoMa have discounted rates for students and even Target (the store) Free Friday Nights. There is such a wealth of culture there that it's worth the $14 or whatever it will be - just make the most of it, and plan your trip in advance so you don't get gallery fatigue.

You can't experience "The Best" of NYC on a budget, but you can experience "The Real" NYC for next to nothing and some hard work. Man, I enjoyed those trips every bit as much as the ones that I take now, maybe even more. And Central Park is a gem. TKTS has half-price theater tickets available the day of the show, and is well-worth standing in line for. Look into it if you haven't.

Fatty Crab (the one at upper west side closed, btw) is probably out of your budget. Get a discount on your hotel, and that will free up a lot of things. Have you tried a hostel, or a discount website?

[Waitman]

If you favor walking tours, try Big Onion for low-priced group tours (I've done the Brooklyn Bridge and the Jazz Lover's Tour of Harlem) or just follow the AIA Guide to New York City or this book of self-guided walking tours. Obviously too late to order from Amazon, but the BArnes and Noble on Union Square (where you can check out the Green Market even though it's off-season) may have one or both.

We're on the subject, andy out-of-the-blue suggestions for killing two hours between an interview at 59th and Lex and a 1:30 flight out f Laguardia?

[dcs]

We're on the subject, andy out-of-the-blue suggestions for killing two hours between an interview at 59th and Lex and a 1:30 flight out f Laguardia?

MoMA?

[Waitman]

MoMA?

Hmmm...not out of the blue but, now that you mention it, closer than I remembered and a quick jump (fingers crossed) to the airport.

[Tweaked]

The $25 admission fee at the Metropolitan Museum of Art is actually just a "recommended" fee. You can pay whatever you want.

[ALB]

Hi everyone, thank you for the advice! We are staying overnight- she got there yesterday and we are staying until sunday for her school organized trip. Thankfully, she is a student so our parents kicked in a few hotel points to keep costs down. I've passed along everyone's suggestions and we will look over and report back!

Thank you again everyone for your fantastic suggestions, we've been to the city before but it is so big and there are so many choices of things to do and places to eat. ...

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[The following post has been split into its own thread:

Totto Ramen (ALB)]

Edited February 17, 2013 by DonRocks

[DonRocks]

So.. the blizzard kept our wanderings to Manhattan but I have one new place to put on the radar for DRers... Totto Ramen on 51st between 8th and 9th. We were looking for a hot dinner and found it on urbanspoon.. it was really great.

A basement 20 seater where everyone who works there communicates in Japanese. 10 seats at tables, 10 at the bar next to 3 giant pots of broth and 3 large Japanese men assembling the bowls for all. We both had the chicken broth with chicken and minimal add-ons but I would go with pork next time after watching them crisp a tray of the pork meticulously with a blow-torch.

The broth was incredibly flavorful and the house-made noodles still had a nice bite.

Some notes- cash only (ramen about $10) and enter the covered basement steps and put your name on the unattended clip-board and DO NOT LEAVE. If you leave, they move on. The line moves fairly quickly as it doesn't take that long to eat/drink a bowl of ramen. I will visit this place again on my next trip, even if I am not staying in midtown/hells kitchen.

http://tottoramen.com/

This is owned by the same people who own Yakitori Totto which was just terrific when I went there several years ago.