-
-
Ad Space
(728 x 90)
Finding entertainment locally is key, as the commute can be a drag. “To get from where we live to the Met takes roughly an hour,” Rapp says. “You’re just way the heck uptown.” Though retail options are a bit limited, the dining scene continues to improve. Jesse’s Place (812 W 181st St at Pinehurst Ave) is a favorite for burgers and brunches, and Latin-Asian fusion restaurant Hispaniola (839 W 181st St at Cabrini Blvd), a sleeker operation, packs in locals. Reflecting the area’s ethnic diversity, Coogan’s restaurant (4015 Broadway at 169th St) hosts an annual “Salsa, Blues & Shamrocks” 5K race.
Expansive Fort Tryon Park, of course, is hardly a neighborhood secret. Home to the cozily upscale New Leaf Café and the Cloisters, it sits at the northern end of Washington Heights. To the south lies the smaller James Gordon Bennett Park, situated at the highest point in Manhattan. “In the summer, you can often find us there, because it’s shady and cool,” Rapp says. The park has plenty of swing sets and a jungle gym, and hosts a fall harvest festival and a Halloween parade.
A crop of new-to-the-area services cater to growing families. Some stressed parents work off steam at mother-and-baby classes at Hudson Pilates (836 W 181st St at Pinehurst Ave) or relax with a 30-minute facial at the Sava Spa (211 Pinehurst Ave at 186th St). But the area’s best amenity might be the warm, friendly atmosphere. “In the summer, families sit in lawn chairs on the sidewalk with a radio, and the old men hang out around a card table and play dominoes,” Rapp says. “It feels like a real neighborhood.”
Bottom line: The Upper West Side apartment of your dreams exists—just farther north than you thought.
