The Best Places to Eat in New York City

In New York eating out for every meal is essentially the only option, so throughout my 6 days in New York this year I was happily able to try many different restaurants and cafes and thought I would share some of my favourites. Read my New York Shopping Guide here.

SERENDIPITY 3, Upper East Side

Serendipity 3 has to be my favourite restaurant I visited in NY, famous for it's amazing frozen hot chocolates the restaurant also has a huge menu of savoury food and other desserts. The restaurant itself is small and quaint and also sells small kitsch novelty gifts. The portions are huge and the lemon chicken I ordered was the perfect mix of sweet and sour, and the frozen hot chocolate is so good that I drank the whole thing that judging by the amount of straws is definitely meant for more than one person! Serendipity is located on the Upper East Side, just off of Lexington Avenue and it was also frequented by Marilyn Monroe and Andy Warhol before he was known, so you certainly can't go wrong with a trip here! 

SPRINKLES CUPCAKES, Lexington Avenue

Sprinkles was definitely on my list of places to visit in NYC, not least because of it's amazing pink Cupcake ATM which allows you to buy and watch a cupcake be delivered to you at any time of day or night like a vending machine. The cupcakes are delicious (the red velvet I had was particularly good) and the flavours vary depending on the day you visit, and the store is also located close to some of my suggested shopping destinations. 

MAGNOLIA BAKERY

Another sickeningly sweet pick to visit is Magnolia bakery, which is mostly famous for its appearances on 'Sex and The City'. This means that there may be quite a queue to visit one of its several stores across NYC but it's definitely worth the wait! I visited the branch at Woodbury Common which was far less busy than the central New York locations, so if your visiting the outlets be sure to go here! 

LA NONNA, Little Italy

La Nonna in Little Italy is a classic Italian owned restaurant that has a variety of Italian dishes made the traditional way, and the prices are fairly reasonable for a quick lunch stop. It's also right near one of my favourite New York boutiques, Mulberry and Grand, on Mulberry Street which has some lovely gifts and stylish pieces. 

BUBBA GUMPS SHRIMP CO, Times Square

If you're a fan of Forrest Gump or shrimp then no trip to New York would be complete without a meal here! Right on Times Square it's a great place for dinner after a day of exploring Times Square, and we were lucky enough to sit right next to the window which looks right out over Times Squares bright lights. The portions are absolutely huge so I suggest sharing rather than making the same mistake we did of ordering a huge shrimp platter each!

HARD ROCK CAFE, Times Square

Again another classic American restaurant, the Hard Rock cafe may not be the most unique restaurant but we actually ended up here twice as it was the perfect central late night spot to eat after a long day out and about,  and it also has a great late night atmosphere. The food here is the typical variety of American dishes that are served in all Hard Rock cafes across the world, but for dessert I recommend the apple cobbler (again another one to share!).

DEAN & DELUCA, 8th Avenue

Lastly, Dean & Deluca is the perfect place for a quick coffee or lunch and this one is also located on the corner of the New York Times building so it's perfect if you want to catch a glimpse of that. 

That's it for my lengthy New York Eating guide (I can clearly talk about food for a long time!), let me know your favourite New York restaurants if you've been or which of these you would most like to visit. Also make sure to check out my New York Shopping Guide here, and keep an eye out for my last NY guide which will be my favourite things to see and do in the city.

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The Best Places to Shop in New York City

In October this year I visited New York City for the first time and absolutely loved the city and it's never-ending list of things to see and do. So I've decided to create three travel guides including the best places to shop, eat and see, starting with this post featuring my favourite NYC shopping spots.

MACY'S

Macy's on West 34th Street is an absolute must visit, it's the largest department store in the world so I recommend either choosing certain departments to visit, or dedicating an afternoon to browsing if you really want to see everything. 

FIFTH AVENUE

The world famous Fifth Avenue is renowned for its countless number of designer shops and boutiques, you can't step a few feet without seeing a huge designer name like Yves Saint Laurent or Henri Bendel. One of my top picks to visit along 5th Avenue is Aritzia which is a slightly more affordable, although still pricey, fashion boutique filled with high quality on trend pieces. The other is without a doubt one of my favourite NY department stores, Bergdorf Goodman. Bergdorfs is split into two stores across the street from each other, one for womenswear and one for mens. The womenswear store is filled with amazing high end brands, although my favourite part of the store is the extensive beauty hall downstairs. The beauty hall has all the premium beauty brands you would expect including Charlotte Tilbury, Tom Ford and La Mer so if your planning to buy any premium beauty items this is definitely a lovely environment to do so in.

BIRCHBOX, SOHO

You probably know Birchbox as the monthly beauty subscription box, but their store in SoHo allows you try and purchase the products they send out without subscribing to the service. The store also has many brands that aren't available in Sephora, and this is the only place I saw certain brands like Jouer and Sigma in my whole time in NY. It's located in SoHo which has really interesting stores and art galleries to visit so it's certainly worth taking a trip there. 

LEXINGTON AVENUE

The main reason that this location is included in this list is for Bath & Body Works, the B&BW Store here is the only one reasonably near to central Manhattan so it's worth walking here, and I also recommend visiting Sprinkles Cupcakes which is also on Lexington Ave whilst your there. Bath and Body Works has a huge selection of scents and is unlike any store we have in the UK, it's also much more affordable than our main brands like Yankee Candle. Lexington Avenue also has a great Sephora that's a lot less busy than the ones dotted around Times Square so you can shop much more peacefully than in the crowded stores. 

WOODBURY COMMON PREMIUM OUTLETS

Woodbury Common is located around an hours coach journey from Manhattan, but it's worth the trip if you want some major discounts on designer brands. It has huge names from Dior to Jimmy Choo. I also picked up some amazing Kate Spade items that had a huge 60% discount, as well as Levi's t-shirts and a classic Tommy Hilfiger navy jumper. The coach departs from the Port Authority bus terminal, which was conveniently right near our hotel but if you have money to spare I would definitely recommend organising your own transport home.

Be sure to let me know your favourite New York shopping destinations so I know for my next visit, or if you're planning a trip to NYC soon! Keep an eye out for my other New York guides, which will include the best places to eat and the best things to see and do.

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Christmas Stocking Fillers For Her

With just over a week left until Christmas Day I thought now would be the perfect time to post my last Christmas Guide, just in time for all the last minute presents you have left to buy! Be sure to check out my other gift guides including my Beauty and Fashion Lover's Gift guides. Follow my Pinterest for more gift ideas and let me know which of these is your favourite!

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Pampering Christmas Gift Guide

The next of this years Christmas gift guides if full of some of this years best pampering gifts! This type of gift is perfect for someone in your life that deserves to treat themselves to a pampering session, perhaps your mum or even someone who you are stuck for ideas of what to buy them! Be sure to check out my Beauty and Fashion lovers gift guides posted below, and follow my Pinterest for more ideas!

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