Murray Hill

The Murray Hill/Gramercy area of New York is one of New York’s largest studies in contrast. On one hand, there are massive housing and hospital complexes that take up several city blocks; on the other hand, there are narrow alleys and small, gated parks of unparalleled beauty. Add it all together and we get (ho-hum) just another brilliant slice of New York.

Murray Hill’s contrast, for instance, can be found by checking out lovely little Sniffen Court, one’s of Manhattan’s finest residential alleys, and then walking south to teeming Kips Bay Plaza, a set of two parallel housing towers designed by I.M. Pei. Or by watching kids play in St. Vartan’s Park, then walking south on First Avenue to gaze at the humongous NYU and Bellevue Medical Centers (by which time, the “hill” portion of Murray Hill has evaporated). For the hill itself, head to Park Avenue and Lexington Avenue in the upper 30s–from there, you can get a sense of why this area is so-named (our unofficial guess is that Park Avenue and 38th Street is about the highest point in these parts). Then walk the side streets in the East Thirties to see some really prime real estate, as well as consulates, hotels, and lots of other stuff you can’t afford.

Moving south from Murray Hill, the neighborhood changes rather dramatically in the East 20s. You first encounter “Curry Hill” on Lexington Avenue in the upper 20s, a fantastic strip of Indian restaurants and groceries.

The area changes again south of 23d Street, becoming one of New York’s loveliest residential neighborhoods, Gramercy Park. The park itself is gated, controlled and accessed by those who actually live around it. For the rest of us, we’ll just need to be content with looking in at the park through its wrought-iron gates and staring at incredible period architecture facing the park.

But the aforementioned contrast is still alive and kicking down here, because a few blocks to the east of warm, intimate Gramercy are the hulking Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village housing complexes, which together comprise over 11,000 residential units.

MY FAVOURITE RESTAURANTS IN THE AREA:

Jaiya Thai (Thai) – East 28^th Street and 3^rd Avenue

Bhatti Indian Grill (North Indian)– East 27^th Street and Lexington Avenue

Sushi Samba (Sushi and Japanese) – East 20^th Street and Park Avenue

Barbounia (Mediterranean) – East 20^th Street and Park Avenue

Shake-Shack (Burgers & Milkshake) – East 23^rd Street and Madison Avenue, inside the Madison Square Park

Dos Caminos (Mexican)– East 27^th Street and Park Avenue

California Pizza Kitchen (Pasta and Pizza) – East 30^th Street and Park Avenue

Turkish Kitchen (Turkish) – East 27^th Street and 3^rd Avenue

Vezzo (Italian) – East 31^st Street and Lexington Avenue

Penelope Café (Bakery and Café) – East 30^th Street and Lexington Avenue (BEST DESSERTS!!!)

 

PARKS in the Area:

Gramercy Park

Madison Square Park