Épicerie Boulud
Chef Daniel Boulud’s casual outpost is one of our favorite stops before or after Lincoln Center shows. My daughter gets a gourmet hot dog, I have a tasty salad or quiches, my son gets a hearty sandwich, we all end with colorful macarons. Counter service with limited seating; we like to go across the street to Dante Park (which usually has interesting public art) on sunny days – then come back for the artisanal gelato.
Kobra Street Art Gandhi & Mother Teresa Mural
Humanitarians Mother Teresa and Mahatma Gandhi Brazilian are depicted facing each other in street artist Eduardo Kobra’s colorful harlequin-pattern mural.
Kobra Street Art Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein is a NY-loving graffitist in street artist Eduardo Kobra’s colorful harlequin-pattern mural.
imagiNATIONS Activity Center
Solve puzzles, perform experiments, play state-of-the-art computer simulations and find out how corn is like a dog in this interactive, family-friendly space. Explore scientific principles behind Native innovations and technologies that are so ingenious, many remain a part of our daily lives.
Krispy Kreme Times Square Flagship
Get hot, fresh addictively delicious doughnuts 24/7 at Krispy Kreme’s Times Square Flagship store. The 4,500 square-foot shop features a doughnut-making theater, a Glazed Waterfall with digital projection, a giant conveyor belt that runs throughout the store and and a doughnut themed seating area. Choose from a variety of flavors, including an exclusive Big Apple Doughnut, filled with a Red Delicious flavored cream and dipped in a sweet, shiny red shimmer mirror glaze.
Levain Bakery
Everything is baked on-site throughout the day at this legendary bakery, from an array of rustic breads to the world-famous, super-gooey, six-ounce cookies in five flavors: Two Chip Chocolate Chip, Walnut Chocolate Chip, Dark Chocolate Chocolate Chip, Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip & Oatmeal Raisin (plus a gluten-free chocolate chip option).
Other options include sour cream coffee cake, brioches, whole wheat walnut raisin rolls are also yummy (and a little healthier).
Outposts also in Harlem, the UES, NoHo and Williamsburg.
Daily 7 am – 9 pm
Eataly NYC Downtown
The 40,000 square feet outpost of Italian marketplace Eataly is focused on bread, but you can also find delizioso pizza, fresh mozzarella, prosciutto, pasta, rotisserie chicken, chocolate, gelato and (post-pandemic) weekend kids cooking classes.
Choose from five restaurants, nine take-away counters (including gelato), two caffès, and one wine bar. Shop more than 10,000 high-quality imported Italian and local seasonal products spread over the f , including salt, extra virgin olive oil, dried pasta, fresh truffles, aged balsamic vinegar and a mix-and-math Venchi chocolate bar.
Watch fresh pasta shapes, gooey mozzarella cheese and other products being made.
Look for more than 500 signs that tell the story of different products, from ancient tradition to modern place in Italian cuisine, plus a cool pasta shape map of Italy. Shop for kid-friendly kitchenware and books.
Conservatory Gardens
Enter the magnificent 1894 Vanderbilt Gate to Central Park’s only formal garden, a six-acre oasis within an oasis with European charm.
Climb onto the wisteria pergola in the Italianate Center Garden overlooking a yew hedges-bordered large lawn and 12-foot jet fountain. To the north, the French-style garden offers spectacular seasonal displays of tulips and Korean chrysanthemums and a fountain featuring the Three Dancing Maidens sculpture.
In intimate English-style South Garden, Mary and Dickon from Frances Hodgson Burnett’s beloved children’s book The Secret Garden stand at the end of a small waterlily pool, bordered by trees, shrubs, and perennial and annual flower beds.
Friendly gardeners are often planting and happy to chat with young nature lovers.
Cafe Gitane
This bright, friendly French-Moroccan is known for its tasty avocado toast and couscous but we always get the all-day waffles. Table-service, expect waits during peak hours.
Angelina Paris NYC
Travel to Belle Epoque France at an outpost of an iconic Parisian tea room and dessert café founded in 1903.
Get pastries, macarons, the iconic Angelina hot chocolate and the signature Mont-Blanc (meringue, light whipped cream, chestnut cream vermicelli) to go, or sit in the gorgeous dining room for brunch (served all day), afternoon tea, sweet treats and savory brasserie classics: Niçoise salad, Croque-Monsieur, onion soup, or the Angelina Croissant filled with scrambled eggs and cheese, ham, or smoked salmon. Light and modern seasonal dishes, from seasonal vegetable soup to a vegan quinoa salad, include gluten-free and vegetarian options, but the hot chocolate, served in a dramatic presentation, is worth the indulgence.
Keep the Parisian vibes going at Bryant Park across the street.
Monday-Friday 8 am – 8 pm
Saturday-Sunday 9 am – 7 pm
Kitchen closes thirty minutes before close
Alice’s Tea Cup
Enjoy scones in rotating flavors as magical as the decor, sandwiches, salads and treats with optional fairy wings and glitter at a whimsical tea house inspired by Alice in Wonderland. Choose from hundreds of teas served in charming mismatching pots and cups.
Gets crowded on weekends; reservations recommended. Go early to beat the crowds (or take the scones to go for a Central Park picnic).
Also in the East 60s.
Wednesday–Sunday 11 am – 6 pm
Serendipity 3
Get the famous Frrrozen Hot Chocolate, a creamy secret blend of 14 exotic cocoas, and other decadent, over-sized desserts at this legendary restaurant and store with whimsical antique-store-meets-ice-cream-parlor decor. Heraty burgers, foot long hot dogs, mac ‘n’ cheese variations, salads and sandwiches are also available. A favorite of actors, artists and tourists for the last 67-years.
Minimum food or drink purchase of $16.95 per person so bring an appetite – portions are huge.
Daily 11 am – 11 pm
Max Brenner
Select from nine hot chocolates – Italian Thick, Oreo, Peanut Butter and more – at this huge cafe and store that feels like Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory, with tubes of liquid chocolate criss crossing the space. Choose from a variety of creative, high-quality chocolate concoctions to fo, gift or to eat on site.
Salads, paninis, pizza, cocoa spiced waffle fries etc. available on the extensive menu, but the real draw is the over-the-top desserts from marshmallow chocolate pizza to three types of chocolate fondue to a melting s’mores sundae to a syringe full of chocolate goodness. Lots of cocktails, including a chocolate peppermint martini, available for grown-ups.
Advance reservations recommended.
Mon-Fri 12 pm-11 pm
Thu-Sat 11 am – midnight
Sun 10 am–11 pm
Pick up chocolates & hot cocoa to go at the Times Square outpost (720 7th Ave at West 48th St).