the grooviest grid

The newest kid on the block – and one of the grandest too, the space used to be the marble-carved Jarmulowsky Bank. It’s a lesson in detail too. Instead of turning to a big-name interior designer, they’ve celebrated and supported the best of the neighbourhood (falling in line with another LES favourite, The Ludlow, who keeps things cool, calm, collected and certainly understated). Warm cookies from a bakery around the corner put the pillow mint to shame while the mini-bar is a mini-mart of fizzy drinks and sweet popcorn. Public spaces see whimsy wallpapers (with the second-floor lounge framing an abstract Gucci wonder), jewel-tone painted tin panelling and a gingham-curtained restaurant downstairs that’s so popular it’s almost impossible to book for pancake stacks at Sunday brunch. A refreshing stay – in a similar vein to the independent hotel scene of the city (no links to big hitters here) and with enough credentials to stand on its own. 

By day, Little Canal is an order at the till, find a seat type of coffee shop. Less rush, more sit and sip with a cortado and a croissant. Those who are particularly hungry this early in the morning can order the mighty breakfast burrito stuffed with soft-folded eggs, black beans and pink pickled onions. It claims territory on the corner of Dimes Square so grab a street-facing window for quick-fire people watching. 

It’s the age-old question – where can you find the best bagel in New York? There are a few long-living legends and Russ & Daughters, the East Houston stalwart, very much lives up to the hype. It’s equally about the experience: squeeze in, find a place, pull a paper ticket tab, wait to be called and order the full spread: lox, schmear, capers, onions and jelly rings from the sweets counter.

Only the coolest spot for pizza in all of New York. A big claim, yes, but it’s easily one of the very best. Line up in the revolving queue of baseball-cap totting and varsity jacket-wearing thirtysomethings who need their fix of the hotboi (pepperoni, jalapeños and hot honey). Inside, old-school hip-hop blasts while sizzling pizzas fly out of the oven to tables who know very well the best way to beat the wait is to book a table first. 

Like a Portuguese wine bar, the best seat here is at the counter. Small plates of spicy mussels, grilled bay scallops and crispy fried rock shrimp are top dishes to kick off with, but bigger and bolder seabream a la plancha or half chicken piri piri often appear on the rotating mains menu. Want to fit in? Longingly float around outside waiting for a table with a vermouth and soda, then dunk chunky ripped pieces of bread in all the buttery juices of your meal all night long. It’s the move.

Take a Parisian wine bar and put it right on Canal Street. The French tabac-inspired space sees natural wine drinkers spill out onto the streets when the sun shines while the colder months mean munching on crispy radishes with butter and crusty baguettes with a Smash, a shaken drink of Fernet, sweet vermouth and lemon over ice. Nab a few merch matches and business cards when you stumble out.

The hip Brooklyn neighbourhood of Williamsburg deserves more than just a mosey about in, but to get the legs stretched head, or bike, over the East River. Views stretch all the way up the FDR and round the tip to the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges too. 

Go back in time, to the stories of immigrants and migrants who came to New York to fulfil hopes and dreams of a new life. Across six abandoned (now carefully restored and preserved) apartments (for which over 7000 people lived between 1863 and 1935) enthusiastic guides take you on a tour of real people's lives. It’s eye-opening. 

Part cinema (indie films and archival viewings are their speciality), part candy shop, book shop and restaurant, Metrograph brings back the best of the Nickelodeon (and it’s certainly far from the prices). There’s always a strong roster of oldies and more up-and-coming director debuts that solo watchers, cute couples or long-time New Yorkers like to come and watch by claiming a red velvet seat and a box of Milk Duds for snacking.

This teeny tiny jewellery shop is a colour trip. Bold and bright shades deck out walls from front to back while shelves of quirky shapes and styles are the main attraction. Cherry, chilli pepper and shrimp cocktail earrings keep things kitsch while piglet lockets and cartoon hamburger necklaces add more chintz. Bags of beaded puppies, I <3 NY and a bowl of fruity cereal sell out often. 

Don your tightest top and brown cord bell bottoms for a game around the animal-print pool table with a Spanky in hand. The mezcal, passionfruit cocktail is much-loved on a Thursday night when retro wannabees slip down to the rec-room basement (the theme is that’s so 70s) to dance all night. Upstairs, if you haven’t lined the stomach, there’s a restaurant menu that nods more to pub grub burgers than black forest gateau.