It was a lazy start to the day, one where you couldn’t be in a rush even if you tried. Gary was watching ‘soccer’ on the tv and I was whiling away time in bed with the balcony doors open, enjoying the gentle breeze and sounds of summer in New York City.
It was Saturday and we only had one plan for the day: Smorgsburg. Brooklyn’s famous food market; the largest weekly open-air food market in America. Apparently, it attracts 20,000-30,000 people to Brooklyn each weekend which could only mean one thing: the food was crackin’. We were staying in the East Village so getting there was literally just a case of hopping on the subway over the water to Williamsburg.
The sky was a glorious blue and the heat was already ramping up when we arrived. Me and midday heat don’t usually mix but I was far too distracted by two things to care. The first being the sheer amount of different food stalls available – I wanted everything. And the second being holy shit the view. Smorgsburg is located right on the water so not only can you pick up food and go sit down by the beach, the view is of the NYC skyline – with the Empire State perfectly placed in the middle. Sexy food and NYC? Yes please and forever, thank you.
We picked up the Smorgsburg cups for $3 a pop which you could re-fill at any water point and make a cute souvenir to take home (great cups for using outside). After much deliberating, we started with mozzarella sticks from Big Mozz. They were kind of mozzarella sticks on steroids and I was here for it. We went and found some shade and munched them down whilst soaking up the festival-vibe. Then we shared (I stole some of Gary’s) a sandwich from a stall neither of us can remember the name of but it was full of lamb and dates and rocket, and was seriously tasty. We took this down to the water and hung out there for a while. I will never tire of that skyline. And then for pudding? Oh man, pudding! I wandered the length and breadth of the market before settling on #Baonanas. I wasn’t entirely sure Gary was gonna go for it because he’s a weirdo who doesn’t like bananas, but there was a blueberry option so we were all good. I don’t want to be dramatic – but these were like little pots of heaven. I’m not even entirely what I was eating but it was cakey, waferey, bananary, creamy and downright dreamy.
Once we were full and because we were pretending we were swish New Yorkers, we decided to head to a rooftop bar that I’d seen online (cough Instagram cough). It was actually on the roof of a hotel so you had to know it was there – we were specifically looking for it and still got confused. Eventually, we stopped and asked a security guard who turned out to be the guy responsible for letting people up so wayhey.
Lemon’s atop the Wythe Hotel is this little Mediterranean oasis with a view of the Manhattan skyline across the water on one side and Brooklyn stretched out below on the other. It made excellent people/view watching and we were very happy to sit drinking cocktails and toasting our one-week-wedding-anniversary.
After a brief trip back to our apartment for an afternoon nap, we then moved onto DUMBO. I just love that area of Brooklyn and it was a joy to get reacquainted. I love the bridges stretching across the water, and that incredible view of downtown Manhattan. I love all the nooks and crannies under the bridges; the random bars and flea markets. I love the perfect shot of the bridge and empire state on Washington street. I love all the people posing for photos; the tourists, the photoshoots, the weddings and proms.
After a little wandering, we stumbled across the Archway Lighthouse, the seasonal pop-up bar that’s in the Archway under the Manhattan Bridge. It felt very hipster (in a good way) and we grabbed ourselves some wine and beer and hung out there for a while, chatting about life and listening to the trains rumble overhead. There was that summer evening feel now, when the oppressive heat has died down and you’re left with the comfortable balmy air.
We planned to go to Juliana’s for dinner which we didn’t make it to on our last visit but, just like last time, we couldn’t be arsed with the queues. So, we went and grabbed food from Shakeshack and took it down to the waterfront. And this turned out to be a crackin’ decision because my word, we were treated to the most beautiful sunset. The sky was on fire as the city began to light up and I’m not sure I could have been more thrilled with my lot. The photos are some of my favourites from the whole trip.
Once darkness had descended properly, we took a slow walk back to Manhattan over the Brooklyn Bridge feeling sun-kissed and chipper.
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