Steve Mirsky: Steve is a freelance writer specializing in culinary, destination, and outdoor adventure content. In addition to his own food and travel blog at www.gastrotraveling.com, he has recently completed two hiking guidebooks published by Pequot Press. Follow him on Twitter @MirskyS

Times Square Walking Tour

Remember when Times Square was far from a tourist destination…a place you’d never want to take the kids…with peep shows, grime, and scores of men down on their luck hitting a paper bag encrusted bottle? No? Well then, do yourself a favor and take the free Times Square Exposé Free Walking Tour sponsored by the Times Square Alliance. Times Square At Night Originally called Longacre Square, this neighborhood was dubbed Times Square in 1904, when as legend has its name was changed...

February 25th, 2010 | New York | Read More

Abraco: NYC’s Distinctive Coffee House

Picking out the best coffee shop is a highly subjective pursuit. You may like your cafe mocha bold with more java than sweet chocolate poking through. Preferences range from a light roast to a bold Sumatran espresso. But beneath that, the ingredients and barista determine the true flavor. As for me, I don’t care so much about the ambiance of a coffee house. Usually time is of the essence giving me little time to lounge using free Wi-Fi or savor extras like scones or muffins anyway. ...

February 22nd, 2010 | New York | Read More

NYC’s Most Unique Walking Tours

When you’re new to town and just have a couple days, picking from a panoply of must-see sights can be daunting. Sometimes your best approach is letting somebody else lead the way, giving an insider’s view on what this city has to offer. So lace up your shoes and get ready to walk because despite the fact that a gazillion double-decker open topped tour busses barrel down many a Manhattan street each day, sitting on your duff isn’t the best way to go. Big Onion Walking Tour My walking...

February 20th, 2010 | New York | Read More

Cafetasia’s Thai Fusion Bonanza

Feel like reliving your college years sans the bland lifeless cafeteria food? Then pay a visit to Cafetasia, a place where NYU students escape their mundane on-campus food offerings without spending too much of their drinking funds. With an ambiance combining the camaraderie of a university dining hall and the laid-back trappings of a downtown ashram, the overhead candle lights softly and unexpectedly illuminate the communal tables presided over by a smiling stone Buddha. Beyond this highly...

February 19th, 2010 | New York | Read More

Soho House

Soho House New York not only boasts sprawling bedrooms ranging from 350 to 950 sq ft at highly competitive rates, but offers nightly movies exclusively for guests in a private screening room, hearty breakfasts each morning in the dining area, and decadent perks at onsite Cowshed Spa. Playhouse 750 Square Foot Bedroom at Soho House Now available for bookings, you can take advantage of the following packages now through March 31st: Winter Warmer Package Winter in New York is bright, sunny, invigorating...

February 15th, 2010 | New York | Read More

Rouge Tomate Offers Sweet Love Saturdays

Relax..just because Valentine’s Day is right around the corner doesn’t mean that you’re losing out on a chance to treat that special someone. Michelin star rated Rouge Tomate has a promotion from now until February 27th. Called Sweet Love Saturdays, Rouge has partnered with Divine Chocolate, an eco-friendly cooperative of cocoa farmers in Africa’s Ghana, to provide guests who dine on Saturdays with a special box of Divine Chocolate and Passion Fruit Truffles as a gift from Executive Pastry...

February 12th, 2010 | New York | Read More

A Salt and Battery

A Salt and Battery brings you as close to “across the pond” as you’re going to get here in the West Village without taking a flight to London. Many flock here for the golden crisp battered fish and chips properly wrapped in British newspaper. Just don’t call the chips French fries and don’t ask for ketchup. This is Great Britain after all and only a good dousing of malt vinegar will do! Deep Fried Mars Bar...A Dessert That Simply Doesn't Shy Away From Decadence Run...

February 10th, 2010 | New York | Read More

NYC Restaurant Week

You’re in luck…Restaurant Week here in NYC has been extended through February 28th! Sure it’s kind of deceiving because this event always seems to extend beyond an actual week but it’s definitely a foodie bonanza well worth checking out for sampling specialities from over 190 restaurants. Normally out-of-reach places like The Libertine, The Sea Grill, City Hall Restaurant, Delmonico’s Steakhouse and Tribeca Grill (a participant since the program’s first year back in 1992) are...

February 8th, 2010 | New York | Read More

Kingdom of Navarra Comes to NYC

Navarra… sun-drenched fertile valleys, cool uplands, and comfortable year round temps make this region in Northern Spain perfect not only for culture hounds but also top quality produce and tasty wines. Bordered by France, Castilla, Aragon, and the Basque Country, its off the beaten path location keeps the ambiance unique and untrodden. Among the many local festivals celebrating Navarra’s rich cultural history, best known is the 9 day Festival of San Fermin in Pamplona. Immortalized...

February 6th, 2010 | New York | Read More

The Kitano’s February Is For Lovers Package’

Brought to you by NYC’s only fully Japanese owned hotel, the Kitano’s “February is for Lovers” package rises above the sea of Valentine’s packages offered at other hotels. And this one is good throughout the entire month of February! Cold Weather Seasonal Kaiseki Package includes: Accommodations for 2 in either a luxurious Junior Suite or one of the hotel’s exclusive Townhouse Suites A bottle of Mumm Cordon Rouge Champagne A full American breakfast for 2 in the Garden Café Restaurant And…...

February 4th, 2010 | New York | Read More

Mobay Restaurant

MoBay Uptown is a home cooking fusion of Cajun, Caribbean, Asian and Southern influenced cuisine at 17 West 125th Street in a cozy brownstone in Harlem. Prices are higher than usual for this type of food, but then again it’s far from being a paper plate takeout joint. Decked out with cozy booths, snug two-seater tables, and dangling star-shaped lights, the dining area is often caressed with the sounds of live jazz, smooth reggae or R&B on their tiny performance space. Inside Mobay Uptown...

February 2nd, 2010 | New York | Read More

Pod Hotel

If you plan on staying the night in Manhattan, it’s nearly impossible to do it without spending less than $200 per night. Bargains can be found but you’ll either have to cut back on the already closet-like living space, or stay in an outer borough neighborhood. With this reality in mind, The Pod Hotel is a perfect choice for hip rooms at reasonable rates. Inside Pod Hotel Room Sure the rooms are tiny and the bathrooms are either shared or reminiscent of the airline variety but that’s where...

January 31st, 2010 | New York | Read More

Grandaisy Bakery

Even before stepping through the door of Grandaisy Bakery on 73 Sullivan St., it helps to know that head baker, Cristóbal Julio Guarchaj, as a boy in Guatemala watched how his father, a baker, milled wheat using using large rotating stones powered by wind and water to pulverize the grain into flour. As he grew older, he mastered treadle, the intricate Mayan craft of fabric weaving. Why the history lesson you ask? Because Guarchaj’s acquired skills and nationality are both an anomaly as...

January 28th, 2010 | New York | Read More

A World of Caribbean Flavor in Brooklyn’s Flatbush

Exploring the West Indian restaurants and markets along Nostrand and Flatbush Avenues is like taking a mini vacation to the Caribbean without having to venture further than Brooklyn. This is a world of rotis, pones, macaroni pie, cou-cou, and mounds of tropical produce. Caribbean Produce Inside Flatbush Caton Market Concentrated roughly in a square mile bounded by Empire Boulevard, Nostrand Avenue, Cortelyou Road and Flatbush Avenue, just take the B or Q subway line to Prospect Park and head south...

January 26th, 2010 | New York | Read More

Fort Wadsworth

Underneath the Verrazanno Narrows Bridge, linking Brooklyn with Staten Island, sits Fort Wadsworth. One of Americas oldest military sites, this cluster of old granite and concrete fortifications actively stood watch over New York Harbor for almost 200 years. Funny that it’s easy for so many New Yorkers to overlook! View Overlooking Fort Wadsworth with the Verrazanno Bridge Towering in Background Today you can take ranger-led or self guided tours while enjoying panoramic views of NYC. Walking...

January 24th, 2010 | New York | Read More

IKEA Ferry Runs Year Round in NYC

Want in on a secret on how to get from Wall St. to Brooklyn’s Red Hook in about ten minutes?……for free? If you’re here during the weekend, then you’re in luck! Get yourself over to Pier 11 in Manhattan and hop aboard the New York Water Taxi heading over to the IKEA superstore. Hop Aboard the NYC Water Taxi Two things you should know. First is that historically, getting to funky Red Hook was an extremely long chore for Manhattanites and Brooklyn residents alike before IKEA...

January 22nd, 2010 | New York | Read More

Killmeyer’s Old Bavaria Inn

On the southernmost point of Staten Island and all of New York State for that matter, Killmeyer’s Old Bavaria Inn is a quick trip to the old country without buying plane tickets at euro prices! And winter is the perfect time to make the trek not only for their heaping Bavarian platters of knockwurst, weisswurst, and bratwurst sided with sauerkraut, mashed potatoes, and sweet stewed purple cabbage but most importantly, their outdoor beer garden, once-a-month Sunday pig roasts, and 9 thoroughly...

January 20th, 2010 | New York | Read More

Brooklyn’s Micro Museum

First off, this place is not a museum of small objects or a collection of galleries filled with old PCs. A storefront community arts center amid a dense array of boutique shopping on Smith Street, the Micro Museum has been renting out rehearsal space and booking an ever-changing roster of local installations and performance art since 1986. AC DC Window - A Solar Powered Installation at The Micro Museum The museum also has an impressive archive of microfilm and video art and an eclectic collection...

January 18th, 2010 | New York | Read More

Roberto’s Restaurant

At some point, regular visitors to NYC begin realizing that the best of everything this city has to offer isn’t packed on the island of Manhattan. Italian cuisine is no exception. Increasingly edged out by Chinatown, Little Italy’s restaurants are no match for the authentic neighborhood eateries in the Bronx’s Arthur Avenue District. A good example of this distinction is Roberto’s specializing in Italian country-style and handmade pastas. Roberto's Cuisine Find a spot at one...

January 16th, 2010 | New York | Read More

The Brooklyn Lyceum

It’s one of those things that I just stumbled upon, it was right under my nose but it took a guy handing out flyers and his utterance of the word “free” to command my attention. Steep stone steps led me to The Brooklyn Lyceum on 4th Ave. in Park Slope, once known as Public Bath #7. This solid wide arched Beaux Arts gem still retains traces of its past life with MEN and WOMEN etched above the two entrances and terra-cotta mosaics up near the roofline depicting water scenes. Inside the Brooklyn...

January 14th, 2010 | New York | Read More