New York, New York, it's a helluva town!

Hey party people (copyright, Jonathan Adler)! Mel here, guest blogging on 90th and KO! Now, you may be asking yourself, “What did Mel have to do to get a guest blogger gig? More importantly, how can I get one for myself?” Simple, just go visit KO, have a blast and start writing!

First things first – I have to give a huge thanks to Kristin and Michael for being such gracious and generous hosts. You could honestly not have been any better. KO even picked me up at the airport after a red-eye flight – that’s 5 am people! Now that is a good friend and a great host. After a quick cab ride to the apartment (there is no traffic at 5 am – apparently the city that never sleeps actually just power naps from 4 am when the bars close to 7 am when it’s time to start thinking about heading to work), I got to see the apartment in person for the first time. Either the crabs worked as a distraction or the apartment is just so cozy and charming that it doesn’t feel small. (Personally, I think it's the latter.) Kristin had a great itinerary planned for the weekend – every restaurant, activity, or store on it was someplace that I would (and did) love!

Our tour started on Friday with lunch in Brooklyn (and my first subway ride). The delicious traditional pizza at Grimaldi’s made up for the wait. Since it was raining, we took the subway back to Grand Central which is just beautiful. We tried out the Whispering Gallery near Oyster Bar – the ceilings are shaped in such a way that you can stand in one corner and whisper to someone in another – very cool! We walked to Rockefeller Center then on to Saks where we toured the 5 floors of women’s items, including the most gorgeous shoes. Just thinking about all those shoes sends me to my happy place!

After a delicious cocktail creation by master mixologist KO, sushi at Poke was delicious. Our first stop after dinner was one of Kristin and Michael’s favorite local bars and for all of you who think that New York is cold and anonymous; I’m here to tell you that you could not be more wrong. The bartender knows Kristin and Michael, knows what they drink – in a city of over 8 million people. Cold and anonymous? I don’t think so!

Lunch at Craftbar on Saturday was delish – thanks Mr. Colicchio! Fishes Eddy and ABC Home were very cool – full of everything you never knew you needed, some of it even reasonably priced! Here is a picture of the vase I picked up at Jonathan Adler – it suits my décor perfectly!

The Met was amazing - so many wonderful things to see. I was a little bummed that the costume collection was closed, but that just means I’ll have to come back! Dinner at Bondi Road was great. Not only did I get my Toohey’s New, I got what were probably the best french fries (chips) I’ve ever tasted. Crispy on the outside, moist and potato-y on the inside, they even tasted good when they got cold! Now on to the alleged blue drink alluded to in KO’s post. It sadly did exist, and it brought about the usual pain and suffering of all blue drinks. I’m blaming the Bad Idea Bears (from the musical Avenue Q). “Come on, drink it, it’s free. It would be rude not to.” “It’s not that blue, drink up!”

It’s never good when you know something is a bad idea, and yet you do it anyway. Next time the Bad Idea Bears want me to enjoy a blue beverage; I will tell them “Suck it!” (My favorite New Yorkerism – I’d like to work it into as many possible conversations as I can in my daily life.)

Brunch on Sunday was followed by a stroll through Central Park. The park was still wearing its winter colors, but because it was a “balmy” 53 degrees, people seemed to be out and about so there was lots of fun people watching to be had. Not to mention turtles, ducks, geese and squirrels!

Sunday night was Avenue Q on Broadway – a very funny show featuring puppets and definitely NOT meant for children! Dinner at Balthazar was scrumptious, and totally reminiscent of a Parisian restaurant. Plus the celeb sightings!

Monday we enjoyed a “Midnight Treat” at the local dinner before heading off to the Fashion District for the P-Run tour. The fabric and notions stores are amazing. There are so many selections it makes your head spin! After hitting the highlights, including Mood, Parsons, and the Atlas apartments (here’s me at the doors to the Atlas apartments),

it was off to Soho for some power shopping. I was able to pick up some fun pieces for spring at Uniqlo (a Japanese department store with extremely reasonable prices, plus I got my trendy yellow piece!) and H&M where I found the classic black pencil skirt I’ve been looking for forever.

We strolled down (or is it up, I swear I had no idea which direction I was going the entire time I was there!) to Emmett McCarthy’s store (from Project Runway) – he had some very cute things, but somehow the $350 jacket that I loved just didn’t fit the budget. On the way back to Prince Street, we passed by Thom, the designer from Queer Eye. The pedicures at Bliss were, quite frankly, blissful (sorry, couldn’t resist)! I think we definitely got our money’s worth from the spa amenities. Dinner was great – I had scallops that were like butter, so delicious.

Sadly, Tuesday morning was time to head home, bright and way too early (I left the apartment around 7 am to get my 9 am flight). KO had to get back to work and fish and guests start to stink after three days, so I was pushing my luck! I just want to reiterate what a great time I had, thanks to Kristin and Michael and their wonderful hospitality. Thanks for making me so welcome and introducing me to such a wonderful, fun city. I can’t wait to go back for another visit! There are so many more things on my list now: Oyster Bar, Flatiron Building, Natural History Museum, Greenwich Village, new stuff at H&M and Uniqlo, the Costume Collection at the Met…