Continuing my series of ‘One way to do…’ this is a Christmas special. We arrived in New York on board Queen Mary 2 on 19 December as part of our Caribbean Christmas and New Year cruise. On the occasion of this visit New York was just a one day visit and for that purpose we were classed ‘in transit’ and were therefore free to leave the ship at our earliest convenience once US clearance had been given. Indeed we were off and cleared through US Immigration minutes before 8.00am.

We headed through Brooklyn towards the Carroll Street Subway Station and on our way began to get a flavour for how the Brooklyn residents decorate the exteriors of their homes…

…and by  8.45 were enjoying a coffee on the southern side of Central Park.

There was a reason why we were in Central Park: we were on a mission.  My wife had read the story of Balto, an heroic Sled Dog who had been honoured with a memorial site in Central Park. The mission was to find Balto.

Our first stop however was to watch the skating, a very traditional New York setting at this time of year…

It took us around  15 minutes and there, close to the Fifth Avenue side of Central Park we found Balto…

…and Mrs SR’s day was complete…

Anyone interested in reading Balto’s story, I here add the link…

http://www.centralpark.com/guide/attractions/balto.html

As we exited Central Park on the Fifth Avenue side I spotted a military memorial, the 107th Infantry Memorial…

…of which a detailed history can be found at…

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/107th_Infantry_Regiment_(United_States)

crossing Fifth Avenue we headed east across a number of blocks to Lexington Avenue, passing a number of traditionally well decorated New York homes…

before indulging in a little retail therapy in Bloomingdales, also on Lexington Avenue…

One retail outlet we passed earlier but decided to give a miss to was Tiffany’s….

Any wonder they were well decorated for Christmas? Not even my bank balance could stand too long in there, but the decorative exterior was sublime.

We now headed in the direction of  Park Avenue, with a view to stopping off at  the Waldorf Astoria. But first we came across St. Barts Midtown Episcopal Church…

with a traditional New York Christmas Street market along one side…

Arriving at the Waldorf Astoria we treated ourselves to coffee and pastries at their Crave Coffee shop and while there recruited another kind guest to snap our picture with the Waldorf Astoria’s Foyer Christmas Tree…

Our final destination for this day was to experience Grand central Terminal, its food courts and in particular, The Grand Central Oyster Bar.

New York’s Grand Central building is a visit in itself and it was interesting to see how Apple had managed to fit it’s new 23,000 square foot store overlooking the main concourse. This picture was actually taken from the Apple Store…

If ever there is any doubt as to the quality of food and US citizens eating habits I would recommend  any visitor to Grand Central Terminal to take a walk on one of the lower concourses where there is to be found one of the most amazing food courts and Deli Markets that I have ever witnessed…

***

By this time we had covered some ground and our Queen Mary 2 breakfast  seemed but a distant memory. We are great lovers of seafood having ourselves owned a seafood restaurant in the UK.   Where better to satisfy our appetite than to visit another Grand Central concourse area and sample the seafood fayre on offer at one of New York’s most famous eating venues – The Oyster Bar and Restaurant at Grand Central…

http://www.oysterbarny.com/

 

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Needless to say Mr and Mrs SR indulged their gastronomic delight in this outstanding restaurant, here’s  what we sampled, but first the amazing Choices of Oysters on offer…

And Wow! What a comprehensive Menu to choose from…

No competition when it came to a starter, oysters every time. I chose what was simply called The Medley….

…half a dozen oysters from three different coastal locations.

As a main course I chose the Pan Roast Ipswich Clams….

 

These soft-shell clams are truly delicious. But are Ipswich clams always from Ipswich? My inquisitive nature discovered that it’s no secret among seafood suppliers and restaurants that most of the soft-shell clams currently sold as ”Ipswich” clams — even in Ipswich — in fact come from Maine, where muddy tidal flats like those along the Damariscotta River and in Sagadahoc Bay yield a delicious harvest.

For her main course my wife chose the Peconic Bay Scallops….

 

These beauties really are found close to New York and for decades they were known as “the jewels of the Eastern Long Island fishing industry.” Their distinctive shells even became the official New York State seashell in 1988

The bill including a good bottle of Pinot Grigio ($38.00)  came to $109.64 and did not include the tip of $20.00 (The service was great and the waiters certainly knew their seafood)

It is difficult to impart either the atmosphere, buzz  and full experience with a few pictures but this restaurant is certainly well worth a visit or, in our case, a return visit.

We returned to the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal via the New York Subway, two very satisfied bunnies, having had just another great day in the Big Apple.

God Bless America and thank you for the great visits. We will be back soon.

 

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