My First Visit To New York – New York Adventures

Last weekend I visited New York for for the first time! Exploring New York was something I’ve been wanting to do for so long and I’m glad I was able to finally go! I experienced my first NYC visit with a couple of my dearest friends and had a jam packed itinerary with LOTS of great food, shopping, and adventures!

Day 1 – Priyanka’s New York Adventures

Hotel

First thing first, we checked into our hotel. We stayed at the Courtyard by Marriott in Midtown East. I enjoyed my stay thoroughly, the staff were beyond kind and the location is perfect with a Walgreens right next door for your snacking needs as well as stocking up on things you may forgotten to pack like me. I forgot to pack mascara and picked up my holy grail drugstore mascara at Walgreens – . Another thing I loved about the location of this hotel is that it was right next to the subway entrance. Plus it was really close to a ton of places we wanted to visit. Talk about convenience!

I also enjoyed their lounge – it was so spacious and was a great place to relax!

Lunch

Our first order of business after checking in was FOOD. We chose to eat at Totto Ramen, a place one our friends highly suggested we check out. I ordered an Iced Oolong Tea and Spicy Chicken Ramen.

Both were SO delish, it had me craving ramen again the next day!

Shopping and Chill

Later that afternoon we explored the Rockefeller Center and shopped and sipped. We did a bit of relaxing at BH Kitchen and Bar where we had some delicious snacks like their onion rings, pretzel, and vanilla bean ice cream + whipped cream on a warm cookie.

More Shopping and Chill

After our afternoon adventures we went back to the hotel for some rest and then resumed shopping. One of the places we visited was InnisFree and the beauty blogger in me was SO EXCITED. InnisFree makes some of my all time favorite sheet masks and I am a huge fan of their Pore Clearing Clay Mask with Volcanic Clusters. I picked up some favorite sheet masks of mine along with a bunch of other goodies – stay tuned for my haul I’ll be sharing soon!

For dinner we got Go Go Curry for takeout. I haven’t tried any Japanese food besides ramen so this was new to me. I opted for the Tofu Curry and was hooked! It was so flavorful and I definitely miss it. We also picked up Insomnia Cookies for dessert. I LOVE their cookies, especially their Peanut Butter Cup and Mint Chocolate Chip flavors.

Day 2 – PRIYANKA’S NEW YORK ADVENTURES

Brooklyn

We spent the next morning in Brooklyn. We got our morning pick me up at the Roastery and made our way to the bridges. We didn’t have time to walk across Brooklyn Bridge this time around but I do hope to do that on a future trip! Our morning in Brooklyn was so fun and relaxing, it was a bit quieter where we were a nice escape from the constant noise and busy places we were around the previous day.

Eataly

The Eataly NYC Flatiron was our next stop. We had a reservation at Serra Fiorita by Birreria and it was just as beautiful as I had seen in the Delish article I discovered them from. It was so bright and colorful!

We ordered their Pane Otto and Spring Cheeses as appetizers and they were both pretty good! For my entree I ordered their Insalata Mista with chicken. I also had their Spritz Viola to drink. For dessert we split their Tiramisu and I also ordered a Original Menta Fernet, Vittone Lombardia.

All in all, I’m glad we went, Serra by Birreria is beyond beautiful and has a great ambiance like a lot of reviews stated, the food isn’t the best. It isn’t terrible by any means but don’t expect the most delicious meal of your life.

Wicked

Before we did some more relaxing, we stopped by the second InnisFree location, this one being at Union Square. Both locations are so beautiful and the staff were beyond helpful and kind! Later that evening we saw Wicked at Gershwin Theatre.

Wicked was the first broadway show I ever saw and one of the best experiences of my life. It gave me a whole new appreciation for theater!

More Food

For dinner we picked up Halal Guys and Pizza. Both were delicious but unfortunately we didn’t pick up the Original Halal Guys like we thought – it was still good but not as flavorful as the OG we had the next night! Pizza was DELISH though, nothing like NYC pizza!

Day 3 – PRIYANKA’S NEW YORK ADVENTURES

Doughnut Plant

We started off the morning visiting the Doughnut Plant. We tried a variety of doughnuts and all came to the same conclusion, the blueberry doughnut was the best! I adored the decor of the wall of various doughnuts!

Shopping and More Food

Because why not?! We did some more shopping, one of the places being the Fresh Beauty Store. It was so beautiful, I couldn’t get enough! I picked up their new .

While our shopping ventures, we came across the Nutella store and I HAD to go in. And once I saw an Affogato on their menu, I HAD to have it. I had no say in the matter. Affogatos are a must and this one was DELISH! A scoop of their vanilla gelato + espresso + nutella drizzle. A+

In the afternoon we made our way to the Kati Roll Company where I had their Unda Chicken Kati Roll and it was the best Kati Roll I ever had. It’s one of the foods I miss the most!

Pommes Frites was in the same vicinity so of course we had to stop and eat some fries right after the kati roll.

And then we stopped by Boba Guys before we headed to the Highline. I got their infamous Strawberry Matcha Latte! It was good and thankfully not as sweet as I expected!

Highline and Vessel

We spent the latter part of the afternoon walking The Highline and saw the Vessel. After all that walking, we definitely needed major rest before hitting up Times Square.

Times Square

I wish I had more energy for Times Square but I was so exhausted from our morning and afternoon adventures. We went to several stores like the Disney and Line stores and got some pizza before making our way back to our hotel. Before going back though, we went to the ORIGINAL Halal Guys and picked up some platters. I definitely tasted a difference in the chicken, it was much more flavorful and juicy than the other cart we had gone to.

Day 4

Our flight was in the afternoon so we didn’t have much time to do anything except grab breakfast. We went to Ess-A-Bagel where the line was super long but worth the wait! I got an everything bagel with bacon, eggs, cheese, and tomatoes. It was really delicious!

Overall Experience

I’m so grateful to have had the experience I did on my first visit to New York! Our hotel was conveniently located right outside the subway entrance and walking distance to a lot of places we wanted to visit. I also want to thank everyone who continually told me to wear nothing but walking shoes. I can’t imagine having worn anything else.

My highlights were definitely Wicked and all the good food! I also thoroughly enjoyed everything else we did. I seriously cannot  wait to go back!

Have you been to New York? What are your favorite places to visit and things to do there?