New York City Restaurant Week and other great value summer events
NYC Restaurant Week Summer 2013 is on now and running until 16th August 2013, offering diners fantastic deals on meals at almost 300 participating restaurants. During Restaurant Week, three-course prix-fixe meals are priced at $25 for lunch or $38 for dinner excluding beverages, gratuities and taxes. Offers are valid on weekdays, with Saturdays excluded and Sundays optional, meaning Restaurant ‘Week’ in fact offers 20+ days of fantastic value dining at some of the city’s top establishments. Bookings are open now at nycgo.com/restaurantweek.
NYC Restaurant Week was created in 1992, making it the first and largest dining programme of its kind. Fans of celebrity chefs can choose from restaurants by Daniel Boulud, Gordon Ramsay, Jean-Georges Vongerichten and David Burke, amongst others, or dine at restaurants which have participated since the inception of Restaurant Week – for instance Delmonico’s, Gotham Bar & Grill, or The Russian Tea Room. Other participating restaurants include the Atlantic Grill at Lincoln Center, Blue Water Grill, Brasserie 8 ½, Butter Restaurant, Carlyle Restaurant, Cipriani Wall Street, Fig & Olive, Gramercy Terrace, Nobu New York, Palm Tribeca and Tribeca Grill. A full list of participating restaurants can be found at nycgo.com/restaurantweek, where online reservations can also be made.
“New York City is the food capital of the world, and through NYC Restaurant Week, we are proud to give New Yorkers and those visiting the city the chance to savour meals from some of our finest restaurants for a discounted price,” said NYC & Company CEO George Fertitta. “Participating restaurants get to showcase their fare to a new audience, and diners get to enjoy a new dining experience—or their favourite place—without breaking the bank.”
This year, Google Maps is a first-time participating sponsor of NYC Restaurant Week. Guests can use Google Maps to get directions, reviews, and preview dining destinations with Street View and Business Photos.
Summer is one of the best times to visit New York City, with NYC Restaurant Week coinciding with a busy calendar of free events, performances and exhibitions taking place across the city. Highlights include:
Free concerts. From R ‘n’ B and pop to opera, blues and jazz, free outdoor musical performances will be held across the five boroughs this summer. Highlights include the Met Opera Summer Recital Series (16th July – 1st August, all five boroughs), Martin Luther King Jr Concert Series (15th July – 19th August, Wingate Field, Brooklyn) and the Seaside Summer Concert Series (12th July – 21st August, Coney Island, Brooklyn). For full listings, see nycgo.com/articles/free-summer-concerts-2013
Free movie screenings. Family films, classics and new releases are amongst the films being shown at venues and in festivals right the way across New York City. Screenings coinciding with NYC Restaurant Week include Men in Black III (29th July, Coney Island), Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2nd August, Intrepid), Goodfellas (6th August, mad46, The Roosevelt Hotel’s Rooftop Lounge) and Rocky (15th August, Brooklyn Bridge Park). For full listings, see nycgo.com/articles/free-outdoor-summer-movie-screenings-2013
Governors Island remains open to the public each summer weekend until 29th September 2013. Events include hands-on workshops for children, public artworks, Jazz Age lawn parties, vintage baseball games and a festival of vintage carousels and carnival rides. The island is reached via a free ferry service from Lower Manhattan. See govisland.org
Beach season is underway now and beaches along New York City’s 14 miles of sandy coastline are open for swimming when lifeguards are on duty. Options include Brooklyn’s Coney Island, which is also home to a famous boardwalk and funfair; Rockaway Beach in Queens which is popular with surfers; and Orchard Beach within Pelham Bay Park in the Bronx. nycgovparks.org/facilities/beaches
Shakespeare in the Park. The Public Theater’s free annual theatrical event stages its second production of the summer, Love’s Labour’s Lost, a New Musical, from 23rd July – 18th August 2013. shakespeareinthepark.org
Summer Streets sees the sounds of honking horns and idling engines replaced by pedestrian chatter and bicycle bells as Park Avenue and connecting streets are closed between Brooklyn Bridge and Central Park from 7am to 1pm on Saturday 3rd, 10th and 17th August. Special events take place on the streets as they’re closed to motorised traffic. nyc.gov/html/dot/summerstreets/html/home/home.shtml
The Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival is an annual sporting and multicultural event held on Meadow Lake in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens. This year, the festival from 10th – 11th August 2013 will see more than 120 dragon boat teams from across North America competing on the water, accompanied by Chinese food and performances for spectators to enjoy for free. hkdbf-ny.org
This is only a small selection of the hundreds of vibrant events and openings across New York City’s five boroughs this summer. For all the latest summer news from New York City and even more great-value activities and ideas see nycgo.com/summer and NYC & Company’s blog, A British Guide to NYC, at nycgo-uk.tumblr.com.
