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Luna Park
In a sure sign that summer's on its way, NYC's largest amusement park is back for another season of rollicking good times. The Coney Island institution boasts more than 50 attractions, including the iconic Cyclone, the high-flying Air Race and the family-friendly Wild River. After trying your luck at dozens of carnival games, refuel with a burger at White Castle Express or cool down with a sweet treat from Coney's Cones.
The Bell House
This sprawling spot’s two bars—one nestled in an ornate front room, the other in the rear performance space—provide plenty of drinking options. Skip toxic cocktails in favor of one of 12 beers on tap—from Anchor Steam to Smuttynose—or a taste of more than 20 bourbons. The large rear performance space is a favorite for podcast recordings, intimate band gigs, and wild comedy shows.
BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! (at the Prospect Park Bandshell)
Thanks to BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn!, the Prospect Park Bandshell is to Brooklynites what Central Park SummerStage is to Manhattan residents: the place to hear great music in the great outdoors. Huge names routinely perform all summer long—often for free—from indie-rock royalty to hip-hop and soul veterans.
Smoke Jazz & Supper Club
Owners Paul Stache and Frank Christopher have created a jewel of a jazz joint. On weekends, folks line up around the block to hear a set by one of jazz’s remaining big names, and they are well rewarded: Low-lit chandeliers, comfy sofas, plush carpeting and unobstructed sight lines make it seem like the greats are playing in your living room. Early in the week, evenings are themed: On Sunday, it’s Latin jazz; Tuesday, organ jazz; Wednesday, funk. On weekends, internationally renowned jazz locals (George Coleman, Eddie Henderson, Cedar Walton) hit the stage, relishing opportunities to play informal gigs in their own backyard.
Gramercy Tavern
For the past nineteen years, there had been only one official chef change at any of Danny Meyer’s restaurants, and it was a success: The addition of chef Daniel Humm at Eleven Madison Park. Thus, the Gramercy Tavern handoff a few months ago, from founding chef Tom Colicchio to Michael Anthony (Blue Hill at Stone Barns), carries the rarity of a papal succession. Gramercy, after all, is the restaurant that transformed Meyer from a one-shop restaurateur to a full-blown impresario, made Colicchio a star and launched a citywide proliferation of casual yet upscale American eateries. On a recent visit, the place felt like a parallel-universe version of the old Gramercy: The farmhouse-style setting (a look that’s getting dated), with its decorative brambles, pinecones and intoxicating smell from the wood-burning oven, are all there. But Colicchio and his hearty, meat-heavy fare are not. In a significant shift, it’s delicate constructions of vegetables and fish that dominate now. The influence of Blue Hill at Stone Barns, a restaurant given to ingredients-worship, is evident as soon as the first course (of the main dining room’s mandated $76 three-course prix fixe) is rolled out. The broccoli soup was a light broth poured over dried shiitakes, airy sweetbreads and a runny quail egg. Each element appeared to have been prepared with care, but the interplay among them did little to elevate the dish. Meanwhile, a shellfish ragout, with baby turnips and a bitter escarole sauce, was a pun
Brooklyn Bowl
This bowling alley and live-music venue fully embraces the new mania for local nostalgia. The space takes its design cues from Coney Island with old freak-show posters and carnival-game relics, and all of the beer sold inside—by Sixpoint, Kelso and the Brooklyn Brewery—is made in the borough. This is a great place to kill a few hours with a big rowdy group: You can tackle a pitcher and the stoner-food menu from the Blue Ribbon team (delicious fatty brisket, Old Bay–fried chicken) laneside between frames. The plush tufted couches are the most luxurious alley seating we’ve ever seen.
Coney Island Boardwalk
Coney Island has had its ups and downs, but one thing has been constant for years: a series of dance parties on the boardwalk, with local veterans spinning soulful house, disco, reggae, Afrobeat, Latin rhythms and more.
Baby’s All Right
This eatery, bar and stage—located on a happening little Williamsburg strip—has already become a local musical institution in a few short years, with its lively schedule of au courant musical acts and DJs that range from experimental (Pharmakon) to the voguish (Ariel Pink). And the food's pretty good too.
Carnegie Hall
Since it first opened its doors in 1891, Carnegie Hall has been a mainstay of the New York music scene. George Gershwin, Louis Armstrong and the Beatles have all performed here, and to this day, artistic diector Clive Gillinson continues to put his stamp on the renowned concert hall. Whether you catch a show in the Isaac Stern Auditorium, Zankel Hall or the Weill Recital Hall, you're sure to be dazzled by the history and ambiance of the place.
Music Hall of Williamsburg
Run by local promoter Bowery Presents, this Williamsburg outpost is basically a mirror image of similarly sized Bowery Ballroom, one upping its Manhattan counterpart with improved sightlights—including elevated areas on either side of the room—and a bit more breathing room. With booking that ranges from indie-rock bands to hip-hop acts, it's one of the best rooms in New York to see a show.
Camp Hilltop
At this beautiful compound in the Catskills, campers choose from over 60 indoor and outdoor activities, including trapeze, laser tag, canoeing, and photography.
Saint Vitus
Once a mainstay of NYC’s downtown scene, true rock & roll clubs feel like a dying breed in the post-Giuliani era. But this Greenpoint drinkery—moodily decorated with all-black walls and dead roses hanging above the bar—reinvigorates the tradition with a New Brooklyn twist. Rock fiends make the pilgrimage to satisfy a yearning for Marshall amps and screaming guitar riffs; when there’s no show in the back room, the front bar serves as a sleek clubhouse for drinkers who prefer Black Sabbath to Lady Gaga as a boozing soundtrack. Nouveau headbangers don’t have to settle for the usual well shots and Buds: Taps dispense mostly craft beers from New York, like Captain Lawrence and Ommegang, and bartenders are competent enough at classic cocktails such as old-fashioneds and vespers.
Knitting Factory
The Knitting Factory finds its latest incarnation in Williamsburg (previous NYC locations include Soho and Tribeca), with a medium-size space divided in two by a huge glass window. There’s a low-lit bar in the front and an even dimmer stage in the back. The sound is great, the bookings even better.
Apollo Theater
RECOMMENDED: 50 best New York attractions Visitors may think they know this venerable theater from TV’s Showtime at the Apollo. But as the saying goes, the small screen adds ten pounds: The city’s home of R&B and soul is actually quite cozy. Known for launching the careers of Ella Fitzgerald, Lauryn Hill and D’Angelo, among others at its legendary Amateur Night competition, the Apollo continues to mix veteran talents like Dianne Reeves with younger artists such as the Roots and Lykke Li.
Yankee Stadium
RECOMMENDED: 50 best New York attractions The Bombers’ current field opened in 2009 to much fanfare and stands opposite the now-flattened original. It may not be the House That Ruth Built, but many elements of the new arena—the limestone exterior, the gatelike frieze around the top—mimic the old, while cup holders at every seat and a high-def scoreboard are noticeable improvements. A museum behind right field aims to hold signed baseballs from every living Yankees player, but the most potent relic wasn’t allowed to stay on site—in 2008 the construction staff jackhammered out a Red Sox jersey a rival fan tried to install in the structure’s foundation.
Deer Mountain Day Camp
Situated up in Pomona, NY, Deer Mountain offers kayaking, wall-climbing and mountain-biking courses.
Highline Ballroom
Highline Ballroom brings quality bookings to a part of town that's otherwise pretty barren, live-music–wise. The atmosphere can be slightly stiff (some of the fancier shows have table service), but everything from hardcore to hip-hop and classic prog regularly finds a home here.
French Woods Festival of the Performing Arts Camp
This camp comes equipped with all the trappings for a theater lover, including a pavilion stage, a proscenium theater, a theater in the round and a circus pavilion.
Camp Eagle Hill
One hundred acres of surrounding woodland provide campers with an ideal environment for overnight adventures and exploration.
French Institute Alliance Française
One of the largest Gallic cultural centers in the country, this language and cultural center has extensive offerings of theater, dance, music and performance throughout the year. Among its impressive facilities is the Haskell Library, stocked with French-language newspapers, magazines, DVDs and books.
The Nature Place Day Camp
The 200-acre camp is perfect for exploring the great outdoors. Kids get their hands dirty roaming and working in the farmland, gardens, fields and ponds—plus they master valuable farm skills such as harvesting crops and taking care of cute little chickens. Art projects, noncompetitive sports, hiking, music and a hilarious storyteller further round out the experience. Farm and Garden Days offer your children even more opportunities to help with the harvest and animal work. Ages 4–16.
The Ear Inn
When it opened in 1830, the historic Ear Inn was popular with colorful characters ambling in from the docks of the Hudson. The basic decor (dark-wood bar, wobbly tables and chairs, lots of retro ephemera) hasn’t changed much since, but locals continue to pack the place thanks to its relaxed vibe and historical charm. Free snacks such as fried chicken and sausages can be had weeknights from 4 to 7pm, mitigating any wallet damage wreaked by a few $6 pints of Guinness.
B.B. King Blues Club & Grill
B.B.’s joint plays host to one of the widest varieties of music in town: Cover bands and soul tributes fill the gaps between big-name bookings. The Harlem Gospel Choir buffet brunch, on Sundays, raises the roof; another regular buffet brunch presents Beatles cover bands (occasionally including family favorite Bubble Do Beatles).
Seaport Studios
RECOMMENDED: 50 best New York attractions This historic harbor is home to the former Fulton Fish Market, the Seaport Museum, the country's largest privately owned fleet of historic ships and a shopping mall with retail stores and restaurants. It hosts outdoor concerts during the summer, as well as a range of lectures and public programs.
Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM)
BAM, which showcases local and out-of-town companies, is one of New York’s most prominent cultural institutions. The Howard Gilman Opera House, with its Federal-style columns and carved marble, is a beautiful dance venue. (The Mark Morris Dance Group generally performs there each spring.) The 1904 Harvey Theater (651 Fulton St between Ashland and Rockwell Pls), formerly called the Majestic, has hosted the work of John Jasperse, Wally Cardona and Matthew Bourne. Each fall, BAM’s Next Wave Festival highlights established and experimental dance groups; in the spring, there’s an assortment of African and modern dance and ballet.