The New York City Traveler

Didn’t think the words gourmet and doughnuts could possibly go together? It’s entirely possible at the Doughnut Plant located at 379 Grand St. in Manhattan’s Lower East Side. Flavors like Vanilla Bean, Roasted Chestnut, Cranberry, and their rich Valrhona Chocolate are all made with no trans fats, preservatives, artificial flavorings, or eggs. Glazes are concocted on site using seasonal fruit, and fresh roasted nuts instead of loads of icky sweet sugar and corn syrup. The flour is custom milled to exact specifications and the fry oil is changed daily. Twice a week, owner and founder Mark Isreal visits the local greenmarket for seasonal glaze ingredients like strawberries, white peaches, ginger, pumpkin, and apricots. These yeast-raised morsels are lovingly covered in a handful of rotating flavors including seasonal specialities like roasted chestnut in November, rose petal around Valentine’s Day, lime doughnuts for St. Patrick’s Day, and a blueberry striped version during baseball season. Being a jelly doughnut freak, their signature Square-shaped variety filled with organic raspberry or strawberry are my favorite. Porthole windows cut into the wall separating the shop and kitchen give you firsthand viewing of the rolling, dipping, and glazing action. Mark began making these doughnuts in his apartment using his grandfather’s century old recipe delivering them on his bike to small downtown cafes. Now, donuts usually last until 2 p.m. in his store so if you miss them here, they are also sold at Zabar’s, Citarella and Dean & DeLuca.

More information on PlanetEye: Doughnut Plant

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Established by a collective of political activists and artists about 20 years ago, The Castillo Theatre on 543 West 42nd St. is still the place to go for cutting edge avant garde productions that continually redefine modern theatre in this country. All subjects are on the table including gender identity, the shortcomings of American democracy; the rise of fascism and communism throughout the world; and the legacy of slavery and racism. Genres include the American musical, vaudeville, choreo-poems, historical dramas, hip-hop, and improvisational comedy. Showing Saturdays December 6 & 13, 2008 at 7:00 PM This Is Your Ridiculous Life, an …read more

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Remember when Times Square was far from a tourist destination…a place you’d never want to take the kids…with peep shows, grime, and scores of men down on their luck hitting a paper bag encrusted bottle? No? Well then, do yourself a favor and take the free Times Square Exposé Free Walking Tour sponsored by the Times Square Alliance. Originally called Longacre Square, this neighborhood was dubbed Times Square in 1904, when as legend has its name was changed when the New York Times headquarters was built at the intersection of Broadway and 7th Avenue.  Today over 26 million people visit …read more

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So what the heck is stir brewed? It just happens to be arguably the best coffee in NYC! It’s difficult for New Yorkers to give a definitive answer on which shop offers the best coffee. Some are better than others for different reasons….heck, your absolute favorite coffee shop may go out of business in a year and the next best place is two train rides away…from everything else that you do. So that being said, there are definitely some independent coffee purveyors that consistently stand above the rest. I most recently raved about Oren’s but if I have to pick …read more

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This guest post comes from Mary Jo Manzanares, Travel & Culture Channel Editor and blogger at Flyaway Cafe.
 
Although you’ll find C.O. Bigelow products sold in other stores, there’s nothing like visiting the original store in Greenwich Village.
Founded in 1838, C.O.Bigelow’s is the oldest continually operating apothecary-pharmacy in the country.  That’s 170 years!
C.O. Bigelow’s is located at 414 Avenue of the Americas (between 8th & 9th Street) in Greenwich Village.  It’s is accessible by subway (West 4th or Christopher stop) and the PATH (9th Street).
The store still fills prescriptions at the back of the store, but as you work you way …read more

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You’ve just arrived at New York’s busiest airport and you need a quick infusion of good home cooked food to supplement that bag of complimentary peanuts you ate on board hours ago. You need to rustle up some real vittles…preferably some local cuisine that’s always so hard to find in an airport. Sure, it may not be the best soul food in NYC, but Sylvia’s definitely stands miles above the panoply of chain restaurants located in terminal 4. Operated by the original flagship restaurant in Harlem, steaming plates of fried chicken, ribs, pork chops, and corn bread are served up …read more

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This is a guest post from Mary Jo Manzanares, b5media’s Travel & Culture Channel Editor and travel blogger at Flyaway Cafe.

I have many favorite places to visit when I’m in New York. There are lots of great places for shopping, eating and drinking, and just wandering around. One of my very favorite places, however, is a quiet oasis in the otherwise frenzied pace that is Manhattan — the New York Public Library.
I’d seen the library in movies long before I saw it in person. It was featured in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Escape From New York, and the library’s basement was …read more

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This guest post is from Mary Jo Manzanares, b5media’s Travel & Culture Editor and travel blogger at Flyaway Cafe.

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), often called “The Big Board,” is the largest stock exchange in the world by dollar volume and ranks second in the number of companies listed on its exchange.
The exchange is located in Manhattan at 11 Wall Street (between Broad & New), but actually consists of five building, or “rooms,” that are used for trading. The main building (18 Broad Street, between Wall Street & Exchange Place) is a National Historic Landmark.
The roots of the NYSE reach …read more

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Today’s guest post is from Mary Jo Manzanares, Travel & Culture Channel Editor and travel blogger at Flyaway Cafe.
United Nations Day, October 24th, was first declared in 1948, and honors the anniversary of the effective date of the Charter of the United Nations. This day is devoted to promoting and celebrating the aims and achievements of the U.N.
The United Nations Headquarters is located along the East River, at 760 United Nations Plaza, on First Avenue between 42nd & 48th (map it). The complex consists of the Secretariat Building, the domed General Assembly Building, the Conference Building and the Hammarskjold …read more

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If traveling to the Kingdom of Bhutan and exploring the Himalayas is on your must-do list but you now find yourself in NYC, do the next best thing and check out The Dragon’s Gift at the Rubin Museum. Happening now through January 5th, this is a groundbreaking exhibition of rare religious Buddhist art focusing on ancient ritual dances. 87 works feature intricate paintings and images created using applique and embroidery framed in brocade, called thangkas; gilt bronze and wooden sculptures; and ritual objects ranging in date from the 8th to the 20th century. Because most of these objects come from active …read more

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