Good afternoon, everybody. Welcome back to my journey. Today we are going to Central Park. I’m going to take you through pretty much the start of Central Park all the way up to go have lunch at my favorite restaurant in the Upper West Side. It is one of my favorite restaurants in New York City as well. It’s called Tavern on the Green. They have the best burger in the city in my opinion, and honestly, I’ve still not found a better one. So, let’s go and explore.
Juicy smashed cheeseburger with melted American cheese, toasted bun, and crispy edges, photographed in a classic New York City burger jointThe Reality of Moving in New York City
It’s about a week left until we are leaving New York City. Not permanently, though. We will be back here either at the end of this year or early next year, depending on the rent market in New York City. Usually, rent is a lot cheaper during the winter time because nobody wants to move during the snow. I am very excited to see what apartment we end up with, but we’re not going to know until probably a lot closer to that date.
In New York City, you don’t really know the apartment you’re going to get until three weeks before. Unless you’re going to move into a luxury building, where you can kind of see what’s going to open up further in advance. But for the most part, once a listing goes up and it’s a good rate, they’re gone in pretty much two days. So, you got to kind of be on top of it, have all your documents ready, and make sure you qualify.
One thing about New York City that I learned once I moved here is you have to make 40 times the rent to qualify for this apartment or any apartment in Manhattan for the most part. I don’t understand how some people can do that. That’s why we started out with a studio because as a joint income that it’s the most reasonable way to qualify for an apartment. They’re a little bit more lenient because we’re in a building where, instead of having a landlord, we have an actual building owner. So, the qualifications are a little bit different. But I would say 85% of apartments in New York City, it’s going to be you got to make 40 times the rent or your guarantor has to make 80 times the rent.
The Journey to Columbus Circle
We are off to the train. Taking the C train. We have about two more stops. Actually, no, we’re going to get off at 59th Street. The train is actually not very crowded today, which sounds surprising. It is loud all the time in the train, but for the most part, it’s actually not too busy today.
We are off at 59th Street. So, Columbus Circle, that is going to be that mall I talked about when I was at the Hudson Yards the other day. We’re not going to go inside that mall today; I’ll save that for another video. But that is the other mall that a lot of people go to in New York City. It’s going to be smaller, but still has a lot of luxury stores to it, and it’s right next to Central Park.
We are out of the subway now and walking to Central Park. It is so bright. There’s always a lot of food carts in New York City, and a lot of halal hot dogs. I have been here three years and I’ve never tried any of them. Street food is just not for me; only in Japan.
That globe right there kind of reminds me of Universal Studios. And that tall building at the very top, that’s actually a residential building. It is now the tallest building in New York City, and I think in the US as well. I have never been inside it, and I don’t know anyone that lives in there, but it’s pretty cool. I don’t think I could live in there; it’s too high up for me.
Entering the Park
So, this is going to be the front of Central Park when you first enter on that 59th Street Columbus Circle. And you have that statue up top. There’d be no New York without a Mr. Frosty. I have been a Mr. Frosty. It is overpriced ice cream, but it is good, especially when it’s hot out.
The entrance to Central Park at Columbus Circle, showing the monument and surrounding activity.You can always get driven around Central Park if you want. They have those pedicabs all around the front of Central Park. And here is going to be the front of this statue. It’s nice, with a cute little water fountain. It kind of gives you that “I’m in Rome” energy, besides the music you can hear behind me. I actually haven’t paid that much detail to this statue until just now. I walk past it all the time because I come to Central Park a lot to walk.
Now we’re off to the nature. A lot of people do yoga here, have book clubs, read, and lay out. It’s not really a lay-out kind of day, but a picnic would be nice. However, we are going to Tavern on the Green, so no picnic today. You’re going to see why Tavern on the Green is really that great.
It’s actually a really peaceful day in Central Park right now. There’s not a lot of people. You can always get a Citi Bike and ride it around this area. Most of Central Park you can’t drive in, but they have these areas where you can get driven around by one of these guys here, or you can have a scooter or a bicycle. It’s just a nice safe way to get your exercise in.
The Upper West Side Appeal
If you have not known by now, summer in New York is my least favorite season. I’ll keep saying it’s hot. It is hot. And I’m dressed not appropriately for this weather because we’re eating at Tavern on the Green and half my clothes are packed. 80% of my clothes are packed. So, we are here in a long sleeve, very light shirt, but still very hot. But the fall and the winter in New York are spectacular.
So when you’re walking through Central Park, if you look to the left, that’s going to be the Upper West Side. That’s kind of the area that I’m hoping to move to. I love the Upper West Side. It is very calm, a lot less hectic than where I currently am. But if you walk directly across Central Park, it’s going to be the Upper East Side. Now, the train access there is not the best and the streets are extremely spread out. So, for me, it’s not what I would like. It is a nice area and they have great food and really nice shopping. It is a little bit cheaper, but the Upper West Side is for me.
Tavern on the Green: The Main Event
And now there is Tavern on the Green. That is the front of Tavern on the Green. I like going through the side entrance. Actually, maybe this is the side entrance and I’ve been going through the front, but I’m vice versa. One of them is the front entrance, one of them is the side entrance.
The charming exterior of Tavern on the Green in Central Park.It says “Take Out.” I lied. That is Tavern to Go. So, if you want to get your food to go, that is probably why I went the correct direction the other times. This kind of looks like the front, but if you want to get any of the food to go, you can come up here and just order it. The food is so good. I don’t really recommend getting takeout just because it’s not going to be as good.
We’ve made it. We’re here. Got Tavern on the Green. Best burger in New York City. They have really good salads as well. And also my favorite birthday cake slice. It’s not my birthday today, but we’re still going to ask for it because it’s that good. I got to show you guys why it’s so good.
It’s a lot cooler in here. When you first come in here, there’s going to be a lobby area where you’re going to wait to be seated. Usually, it’s not too crowded when you have two people or maybe even four people, but I know bigger families have to wait a little bit. It doesn’t look too crowded today. I believe at night they have a piano player for dinner.
The elegant interior of Tavern on the Green, showing the dining area.They have an open kitchen concept, so you can actually watch everyone cook, which is really neat. Then there is a full open glass view which is super pretty.
The Menu and The Food Review
We have a lunch menu. I already know what I want. I’m getting a burger and a salad. But I’ll show you the options. They change their menu not too frequently, but there are certain options that they kind of switch out, especially for dinner.
The honey roasted fig I’ve had before. It is very good. I’m not a big fig person, but the goat cheese is spectacular here. The beets are incredible. If you like beets, I’m actually a very big beet salad person. I wasn’t my whole life, but if you catch on to the trend, I promise you, you might actually like it. Most restaurants do a pretty good job at it.
And that’s the burger. That sounds very basic, but I promise you it is not. The blend of the burger is incredible. Their cheese is incredible. And I always switch out the fries for truffle fries.
I just think the glasses here are really cool because they actually have the Tavern on the Green Lamb on it. It wouldn’t kill them to put the AC on because I’m scorching in here. I was hoping to cool off a little bit, but it’s still hot. This is my last time having this burger for 6 months, so I’m very excited and also sad.
The Salad: This is going to be the Cobb salad. They actually give you deviled eggs instead of hard-boiled eggs, which is a really nice touch. I don’t always love hardboiled eggs just because the yolk is too hard for me. So, this is kind of like a nice little touch that they do. Avocado, bacon. You always get the blue cheese on the side because Danielle doesn’t like blue cheese. It’s a very acquired taste, so I understand.
The Burger: Now, this is going to be the burger with the truffle fries. It really is the best burger. I know it looks basic, but I promise you it’s not. It’s so good. It is so juicy. And the cheese, I don’t know what type of American cheese they use, but it’s the best American cheese I’ve ever had. 11 out of 10.
A delicious burger with truffle fries from Tavern on the Green.The Fries: They’re okay, though. It’s a little cold. 7 out of 10. I rate it now down to a six because everything else was a 10.
Usually, when you come here the waiter will ask you if you want to substitute the cheese or bacon or anything. Don’t do it. It’s not worth it. Switching the cheese for like a white American or white cheddar takes away from the whole entire burger. You have to get the American traditional cheese that comes with it. Don’t change anything on it. Get it medium or medium rare. It is really that good. I promise you. If you don’t like it, let me know, and we can have a debate about it.
The Birthday Cake: Lucky for us, we are celebrating Danielle’s birthday. Her birthday was 3 weeks ago, so that way we’re celebrating a little bit late. This is actually the birthday cake. You can actually order it on the regular menu. I think this is a smaller portion of it, but it is really that good. So, you can order a regular one, but if it is your birthday, this is what they bring out to you. But either way, I highly recommend ordering that. It is so good. If you love sprinkles, because I’m a sucker for sprinkles, it is the best cake.
A slice of birthday cake with sprinkles from Tavern on the Green.The Gift Shop Tour
Now that we finished eating, I want to show you the store. They sell all these little antiques here. They have a crocheted hot dog and a mug. I actually own this mug here from the first time I was here.
Let’s go ahead and go into the store. It’s very tight in here. They have these bookmarks, playing cards. It’s actually really cool. I don’t know what the cards look like, but the box is cool. They have a vintage puzzle and these cute little chocolate things, little chocolate eggs.
They have this little mouse thing where you kind of put your mouse to sleep. That’s really cute. This is actually one of my first hats I got when I moved to New York City. Fun fact, it really is. I just think it’s so cool. It has that kind of vintage look to it.
They have this ornament here that I haven’t seen before. It’s very fragile, but look at the details of this. Now, if you’re a candle fan, Lafco is actually some of the best candles I’ve had. Champagne is a great scent. And the lamb. Why have I never seen this lamb before? The lamb is actually made from alpaca fur. That is so cute.
Inside the gift shop at Tavern on the Green, showcasing various unique items.Back to Central Park: Navigation and Nature
That is all for Tavern on the Green. And now we’re going to head back out to Central Park. I don’t know if you can see, but it’s lightly raining right now. I don’t know why; it didn’t say it was going to rain today. It’s one of my least favorite things when I lived in Florida. It’s every single day you’d look at the weather and it said “40% chance of rain.” I later found out that it doesn’t mean it’s a 40% chance of rain, it means 40% of the area of that specific area is going to rain. So you never know which cloud is going to go over where you’re at.
Here is the Central Park map. This is going to be everything in the Harlem area here. But we’re going to go to this lake here and then I’ll show you the Bethesda Terrace and the Fountain. The Ramble is one of my favorite places to walk around. So, we’ll make a little bit of a detour there to show you that area and then I’m going to head on home.
A detailed map of Central Park, highlighting key areas and paths.This is how big Central Park is to give you perspective: it goes all the way up to 110th Street and it starts at 60th.
Pro Tip for Getting Lost: So, a fun fact, there’s going to be a bunch of these light posts around Central Park. If you get lost, they have these numbers on it. This one says 7233. I think it means a specific location that you’re at, so you can actually find your way back to where you need to go, like back in the day before iPhones and everything. But, they have these labeled on so you can know exactly what part of Central Park you’re at, which is pretty cool.
The Lake and The Secret Turtles
Over here is going to be the lake. In the summertime, a lot of people like to take the little rowboats out, which is really pretty and romantic. I don’t see any out right now. I wonder why. It is summer. Maybe because it’s a weekday.
We’re going to go down to the lake here. You see the turtle? We have some turtles. Oh, look at them. I will try to zoom in so you can see the turtles. You can only see his head, but there’s a bunch of them. It’s really cute. There are three right here. They are pretty big.
Turtles basking in the sun by the edge of a lake in Central Park.I think these are an invasive species. I don’t think they’re supposed to be here. I’m pretty sure they’re red-eared sliders and that means that they’re an invasive species. So, I think they kill the natural wildlife because they don’t have a predator. So they overeat, which hurts other animals, but they’re really cute.
There’s a lot of them. I would say there’s probably like five over there. Six, seven, eight, nine, 10. 10 turtles just in this one spot. So I can’t imagine how many are actually in this whole lake area over here. So you can see they’re hungry, but I don’t have food for them. But there I counted about 17 turtles over here looking for food.
So, now is the spot to find turtles. At least for right now. So, if you want to find turtles, go to the light post. That’s 7237, I believe.
The Ramble and Belvedere Castle
So, now we’re going to go over to the Ramble area, which is where a lot of people hike. It’s going to be a lot more scenic for nature specifically. They have a castle up there.
So, this is the start to the Ramble over here to the right. To find your way here, this is light post 7725 to get to the Ramble. And then you’re going to make a right to this bridge over here. Now, this bridge is not normally this empty, and for some reason, it’s empty today.
We’re going to go across this little rock formation bridge. You can actually go through it. So, there’s a little tunnel you can go through, which is another direction to take you. Still up the Ramble, just another area. Look at all these trees. Where else can you get the photosynthesis of trees and fresh air? Nowhere in New York City, I’ll tell you that. This is the spot for you.
We’ve made it here to Belvedere Castle. I don’t think there’s any relation to the Belvedere vodka. They won’t be serving that there. But that is what it’s called. It is very small, but it was built in 1872. You can see it was restored officially in 2019. So, it is very old, but you can walk up there and get other nice views.
Belvedere Castle perched atop Vista Rock in Central Park.And then over there is going to be the Shakespeare in the Park right over there. We finally found some birdies. I did not see birds earlier. I’m going to try to get a little closer. They do not want me to get closer, which is understandable. I am a scary human.
Final Thoughts
All right, I’m headed out of here because it is way too hot for me to be out here in these clothes. I think I’ve burned that whole burger off in calories from this walk and sweat just to get here. It is the last day of Central Park, so we are going to explore and show you around.
Thank you for tuning in on this journey through Central Park and Tavern on the Green and my last week here in New York City until the end of the year or next year. I hope you guys have a great rest of your day and talk to you soon.