new york novice

Note: I apologize in advance about the slider functionality not working for the images 😔. Also, this visit happened in March 2025 but I was too busy and didn’t get the chance to write about my trip until now LOL

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purpose

During my last semester of college, I was interning full-time at Mercury (40 hr/wk) while also serving as one of Data 101’s head teaching assistants (20 hr/wk) alongside a reduced courseload. It was no doubt the busiest semester of my life, but I don’t have any regrets from taking on all that work.

One of my closest friends, Irene, was wrapping up her last semester of her masters program at Cornell Tech and I’ve never been to New York before, so the logical choice was to obviously work from Mercury’s New York office while simultaneously spending spring break there.

The trip was from 3/21/2025 to 3/29/2025, and this is what I ended up doing as a first time visitor to New York while working for some of the days (indicated with 💻). I actually planned on taking three days off from work but I ended up going into the office to get free breakfast and was too scared to leave after seeing everyone hard at work which resulted in me working as well LOL.

Huge HUGE shoutout to Irene for letting me stay over at her place while also taking the time/effort to help with planning for this trip alongside from school to hangout with me :’)

friday, 3/21

• Work
• Go to airport
• Flight from SFO to JFK airport

I had a red-eye flight so this was just a usual day of work and school, then I went to the airport.

saturday, 3/22

• Flight lands @ John F Kennedy airport
• Drop off stuff at Irene’s apartment
• Visit the Rockefeller area
• Brunch @ Black Seed Bagels
• Museum of Art and Design
• Snack at Central Park (Magnolia Bakery)
• Watch Moulin Rouge
• NBA Store + Bryant Park
• Dinner @ Sushi Hayashi

My flight landed pretty early so we had a full day of playing (a term used by my friends and I to denote hanging out, kind of like 玩 in Mandarin) ahead of us. After living in the Bay Area for all of my life and hating how terrible the public transportation system is there, it was refreshing to use the NY subway system. While it’s not as complex as Japan’s and I admittedly got lost once or twice in NY, it’s still extremely efficient and easy to use to get around NY. I believe you can get different types of transit cards depending on your usage frequency, but each subway ride is $2.90 no matter the distance which has its pros and cons. Within a week, there is a maximum limit of 12 paid rides (exact information here) so once that threshold is reached, each additional ride is free!

Irene was so kind and considerate to wake up early to meet me halfway to help me get to her apartment since I’m just a tad directionally challenged. Cornell Tech is a pretty small campus compared to our alma mater, Berkeley, since it’s located on Roosevelt Island but its facilities are new, close to one another, and the area is super safe since it’s somewhat of a residential area. Roosevelt Island is also a tourist attraction so a lot of people take the tram to visit the island, which was also a nice experience.

After dropping off my stuff, we visited the Rockefeller Area since I wanted to see Top of the Rock. We also got brunch at Black Seed Bagels since it’s within the area and we needed to save our stomachs for our dinner. A lot of people mentioned that going up Top of the Rock has really nice views (especially at night) but I skipped out on it since I’ve seen a lot of city views already. New York bagels are very famous and the ham bagel I got was pretty good, but it didn’t blow my mind.

Irene’s friend has a pass that allows her to get free admission to select NY museums so she graciously got us tickets to visit the Museum of Art and Design. If you know me, I’m not the biggest fan of museums (only because I’m very unknowledgable about history) but I thought this museum was nice, although pretty small since some of the exhibits were closed. Afterwards, I tried the famous banana bread pudding from Magnolia Bakery while we people watched in Central Park.

A key New York experience is watching a Broadway show and Irene luckily won reduced price tickets to Moulin Rouge. Maybe it was because of the early flight/lack of sleep, but I somehow managed to fall asleep through the entirety of the show… which is actually insane behavior. I literally cannot recall a single thing from that show 😭, literally paid for a nap.

We had some time to kill before our reservation at Sushi Hayashi, which is an all-you-can-eat omakase and drinks restaurant. We went on a little walk through the Midtown Manhattan area and visited the NBA store as well. I got a great deal on a Warriors flag for $5, then we chilled at Irene’s apartment for a bit before heading to dinner. I’m able to eat a decent amount, but I think my stomach got smaller because Irene ate more than me. That was also my first omakase experience and I think it was well worth the price, I was SO FULL.

sunday, 3/23

• Walk across Brooklyn Bridge
• Dumbo picture spot & Brooklyn Flea Market
• LOSE ONE AIRPOD
• Lunch @ Radio Bakery
• Prospect Park
• Brooklyn Botanical Gardens
• Williamsburg and Bushwick
• Kijitora matcha + Nippon Cha
• Strand bookstore + Barnes & Noble
• Dinner @ Soothr

The next day was visiting Brooklyn which started with walking across the Brooklyn Bridge. There were a lot of people going across but after taking our time, we eventually made it to Brooklyn and walked to the numerous photo spots. Along the way, we also stopped by the Brooklyn Flea Market which was interesting, but I was expecting it to be a bit larger.

Irene really wanted to go to Radio Bakery for brunch and as we were walking there, we ended up accidentally dropping one of my Airpods into a sewer drain 😭. We weren’t able to retrieve the Airpod but at least Radio Bakery was REALLY REALLY GOOD, definitely worth the wait and price points. I recommend getting the burrata sandwich, that focaccia bread was 👍 to eat in Prospect Park.

While already in Brooklyn, we visited the Botanical Garden which is large and pretty. We went in late March which is when a majority of the plants are still in dormancy, but we definitely saw the potential of the beauty in the garden.

Afterwards, we visited Williamsburg and Bushwick, areas known for thrifting but we didn’t end up getting anything except matcha lattes from Kijitora which Irene guzzled down so fast that she got another one from Nippon Cha. Actually insane behavior

We had a reservation at Soothr, a really popular Thai restaurant listed on the Michelin Guide, so to kill time, we visited the Strand bookstore and Barnes & Noble. The food ended up being solid and pretty filling, but I don’t think it’s worth the price point.

monday, 3/24 💻

• Work
• Lunch from Westville Hudson
• Hung out with my friend Sashrika

I visited Mercury’s New York office and ate from Westville Hudson for lunch which was okay to eat, but if that was my money, I wouldn’t spend it on that. Afterwards, I hung out with my friend, Sashrika. New York apartments are known for being small but it was only then when I realized how small the apartments actually are… SOOOO SMALL. At least that’s the one perk the Bay Area has over New York, larger apartments for the same price.

tuesday, 3/25

• Natural History Museum
• Lunch @ Chinatown (food crawl)
• Pier 35 + Two Bridges view
• Elevated Acre
• Financial District (+ The Battery)
• Staten Island Ferry (sunset time)
• Dinner @ Los Tacos No. 1

I took the day off from work since this was one of Irene’s more free days from school (shout out to Irene again making time for me). First, we visited the Natural History Museum instead of the MET since I’m not the biggest fan of art. The museum was pretty large and you can definitely spend a lot of hours there since there were so many floors. While going through that museum, I was inspired to review my AP World History contents since it’s cool to see how the world has changed throughout time in all different areas/aspects.

We were starving so we headed to Chinatown for our food crawl. Flushing is also known for having good Asian food but I wasn’t able to make it fit within this NY visit, but I’ll definitely go there the next time I’m in NY. Here are the places we went and my reviews:

• Mei Lei Wah: Pineapple pork bun
  • Review: 10/10
  • Short line if paying by cash
  • Pineapple pork buns are really warm, juicy, and yummy
• Jin Mei Dumpling: 15 dumpies for $5
  • Review: 6/10
  • The dumplings we wanted were sold out so we got boiled dumplings instead that honestly weren’t too impressive besides the price
• Wah Fung No. 1 Fast Food: Roast pork over rice
  • Review: 8/10
  • We waited for I think 1.5 hours here and I think there is a lot of value for the price if you end up buying a lot of food. We only got a small rice box to share since we were kind of full, but it was really good and nostalgic. Not too much fat in the roasted pork pieces as well.
• Sun Hing Lung: Rice rolls
  • Review: 6/10
  • Not bad but they were kind of cold
• Molly Tea: Authentic tea
  • Review: 8/10
  • Really strong tea flavor, and I especially like the design behind the drinking experience (sealed top with another lid over the plastic seal and a small straw to reduce leakage)

We brought some of our food crawl haul to eat at Pier 35 while looking at the Two Bridges view. We also waited for ages to sit on the swings at Pier 35. Before boarding the Staten Island Ferry during sunset time, we killed time by visiting the Elevated Acre and walking through a portion of the Financial District. Going on the ferry was a pleasant experience since you get to pass by the Statue of Liberty, but it was a bit chilly with the ocean breeze. To end our day, we ate at Los Tacos No. 1 which was pretty yummy, but I still think that the tacos are a little overpriced.

wednesday, 3/26 💻

• Breakfast from Juice Vitality
• Work
• Lunch from Thai Diner
• Dinner @ Cho Dang Gol
• Walk around Koreatown + Times Square
• Watch Hadestown

I had work today and we got a surprise acai bowl order from Juice Vitality which was REALLY GOOD since it was actually my first acai bowl and I was so fruit deprived. I also tried Thai Diner for lunch which is supposedly really popular but my DoorDashed order wasn’t very impressive. I left work a tad early to eat at Cho Dang Gol which is a very popular restaurant in Koreatown. The restaurant was full within a few minutes of it opening and the food was definitely very filling and good. I expected Koreatown to be pretty large but it’s actually a small section (like two streets) so we ended up walking through Times Square before our Hadestown show. Irene is the biggest Hadestown fan (she has watched it seven times as of 10/12/2025!!!!!!) and we had booked close seats to have an even better experience watching the show.

After seeing how I failed to stay awake while watching Moulin Rouge, I told Irene to slap me if she saw me doze off while watching Hadestown. I was able to stay awake for the first half of the show, and then it kind of went downhill after intermission. There was a sad/quiet scene and Irene said that I made a semi-loud snore sound which received a large side-eye from our seat neighbors… one of the most embarrassing moments of my life. I don’t know, I just fall asleep really easily when watching something, spanning from basketball games which I enjoy to class lectures. I think my attention span is just destroyed after COVID-19 and online learning.

Since I only watched half of Hadestown and was awake for some sections of the second half, I felt terrible since I didn’t fully watch the show and it’s Irene’s favorite. In a way, I felt kind of disrespectful and I also am a fan of Greek mythology so this show was interesting to me. After our post-show analysis (which I couldn’t contribute much to), I realized how much I had missed out on and I also was annoyed at how I had spent so much money on another nap. We waited to get autographs from the cast and there was also a group of teenage girls who were so loud and not respectful of others’ spaces which made me very angry.

thursday, 3/27 💻

• Work + intern event
• Lunch from Bondi Sushi + Sunday Morning
• Shop in Soho area
• Hung out with my friend Ashley
• Washington Square Park
• Dinner @ L’industrie

I had work and ate sushi from Bondi Sushi for lunch, and had ¼ of a cinnamon roll from Sunday Morning. There was also an intern event where I got to meet most of the other interns in-person for the first time, and we made truffles which was pretty cool to learn about and was overall a fun experience.

Before meeting up with my friend, Ashley, I shopped in the Soho area at Uniqlo and GU (sister store of Uniqlo). Afterwards, we met up at Washington Square Park and got pizza at L’industrie in West Village. We somehow got two extra slices of pepperoni pieces since they messed up our order lol. I thought the burrata pizza was really good, but the price for a slice is a bit high. Afterwards, we went to Ashley’s apartment which also reaffirmed the smallness of NY apartments.

friday, 3/28 💻 (fake)

• Explore by walking up 5th Avenue (New York Public Library, Grand Central Terminal, Bryant Park, Empire State Building)
• Lunch from Carrot Express
• Work half day + interview
• Madison Square Park
• Grab standing tickets
• Dinner @ Joe’s Steamed Rice Roll
• Watch Hadestown again

This was a fake day of work because I only worked for about half the day. I tried Carrot Express and although it didn’t have the best appearance, it was surprisingly really good. While walking to work, I visited the New York Public Library which looked similar to Doe Library at UC Berkeley. Grand Central Terminal was also along the way which was impressive to see, but I think I would get lost if I was trying to actually navigate through there. Bryant Park and Madison Square Park looked like most of the other parks I visited in New York, and walking up 5th Avenue allowed me to see the Empire State Building which was pretty cool.

I was pretty disappointed in myself for sleeping through Hadestown so at work, I searched online on ways to buy discounted/last minute tickets to Broadway shows. Apparently, some shows sell standing tickets for a discounted rate a few hours before the start time and surely if I’m standing, I wouldn’t be able to fall asleep… I told Irene this, and it’s actually crazy how she was down to watch Hadestown again (this was the fifth time I believe). We rushed to get standing tickets and before the show, we ate dinner at Joe’s Steamed Rice Roll near Central Park which was yummy. Also during work this day, I had an interview LOL.

Irene wanted to note down any thoughts/observations she had during the show so we were in search of a pen, which caused us to be almost late to the show so we had to run to get there in time. We were sweating so much but luckily, we made it! I was very proud of myself for not falling asleep throughout the entire show and I definitely recommend watching it. I’ve listened to the soundtrack so many times and definitely know most of the lyrics. It was also funny seeing the amount of notes Irene had written over a page in her Playbill.

saturday, 3/29

• Central Park
• Hudson Yards & the Vessel
• High Line Park
• Chelsea Market
• Eat brunch from Apollo Bagels + Veniero’s Pastry @ Pier 57
• Walk through Little Island
• Uniqlo
• Katigiri for quick lunch
• Flight from JFK to SFO with Irene

Even after days in New York, I hadn’t visited Central Park yet but there were still a few places I needed to visit before leaving. To optimize, the plan was for me to visit Central Park, Hudson Yards & the Vessel and High Line Park before meeting Irene at Chelsea Market where she already picked up goods from Veniero’s Pastry and Apollo Bagels (classic smoked salmon bagel and tomato cream cheese bagel)

We walked to Pier 57 where we ate our haul. I didn’t expect the tomato cream cheese bagel to be that good, but it literally changed both of our lives. IT WAS SO UNEXPECTEDLY DELICIOUS. We were really stuffed so we walked through Little Island to help with digestion, and also picked up an order from Uniqlo before grabbing some food from Katigiri for lunch. It was starting to get hot in New York and while we were riding the tram to Roosevelt Island, there was a mom with pizzas on her stroller and a random guy started singing “mozzarella -ella -ella -ella” which made us both die of laughter. The flight back to the bay was comfortable, but that last day with heat and humidity really made me reconsider on whether I wanted to relocate to New York in the future lol

conclusion

New York met all of my expectations of being a place with so many things to do, pricey but in general better tasting food than SF and Seattle, and really small + expensive apartments. I think my lack of friends/acquaintances there makes me the most hesitant towards relocating to NY but I’ll definitely visit there in the future!