New York City (February 2020)


My spouse and I visited New York City in mid-February 2020 over the long President’s Day/Valentine’s holiday weekend. We stayed for two nights at the Homewood Suites Midtown, a property that we ended up liking very much because of our spacious junior suite. We stayed there because it was within a few blocks walk to Madison Square Garden, where we had tickets to the Eagles Hotel California Tour (awesome!) on Saturday night. We ate near the hotel at the Houndstooth Pub, Doylers Irish Pub, Legacy Records, and The Deco, as well as near MSG at Piggyback (an Asian sister restaurant to the LES’s Pig and Khao where we dined a few years ago). Once again, we were successful with winning Broadway lottery tickets to a just-opening show called SIX at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre, a musical comedy about the six wives of King Henry VIII. We ate at a restaurant called Dutch Fred’s before the show. Our second visit of 2020 to NYC was a total success!


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New York City: Homewood Suites Midtown Manhattan Times Square South (February 2020)



My spouse and I stayed at the Homewood Suites Midtown Manhattan Times Square South for two nights over a long weekend in mid-February 2020. We reserved our stay online using the Hilton HHonors website. Although we are Diamond members, we did not receive any kind of an upgrade (such as to a higher floor; in fact, we could not have been on any lower of a floor!). 

The Manhattan Homewood Suites property is located on West 37th Street in Chelsea. We chose this property because it was located between Port Authority (where we parked our car) and Madison Square Garden (where we had tickets to see the Eagles Hotel California tour). Many shops and restaurants are located just steps from the hotel, although the shops are more of the souvenir variety and the restaurants are more functional than destination dining. (We ate at the full-service Houndstooth Irish Pub nearby, which was better-than-expected; see our separate review. We also had some food at Doylers Irish Pub at the Hilton Garden Inn just a few doors away; see our separate review.)

Public spaces include a high-ceilinged lobby, with areas for the front desk/pantry store, overflow breakfast seating at regular-height tables, one high-top communal table with charging ports, a two-sided gas fireplace, a wall with a lovely glass waterfall feature, and some comfy lounge seating. Three elevators whisk guests to the floors above. There is some narrow outdoor space through the rear of the building, as well as an area that overlooks the basement-level fitness center. A buffet breakfast area that can be closed off doubles as luggage storage in the afternoon and evening. The hotel offers a rooftop terrace in warmer weather. 

Our studio suite was located on the second floor, which has a sort of atrium feature because it is open to the lobby below. Our room overlooked West 37th Street, and although initially we wished that we had been assigned a higher floor, the second floor proved interesting because we could watch the pedestrian and vehicle traffic on the street below from our own private floor-to-ceiling window. We entered our room near the bathroom, which was an acceptable size for one person at a time, including a small sink vanity, toilet, and a long but narrow standing shower (no bathtub). An adjacent closet offered plenty of storage space, including a hang bar and shelving unit as well as space to hold our suitcase on a luggage rack so that we could then close everything away behind doors; the closet even had a light as well as a large safe, iron, and tabletop ironing board. The main room contained a small kitchenette at one end (with an apartment-sized refrigerator/freezer, small sink, microwave, two-burner stovetop, and tiny dishwasher, as well as the cups, plates, utensils, and cookware necessary to prepare a simple meal). A king-size bed occupied the middle of the room (across from which was the wall-mounted TV), small chest of drawers, desk (with a roll-out extension below it), with an end table and small sofa with ottoman (which unfolded to expand the surface) near the windows. We liked the layout of this studio suite because of the extra space and comfort it provided. (Note that there is no door between the living and sleeping areas in the junior suite.)

We enjoyed our stay at the Homewood Suites Midtown Manhattan Times Square South, and we would stay there again.










New York City: The Deco (February 2020)



My spouse and I visited The Deco for lunch on a Monday morning in mid-February 2020. The Deco is open daily for breakfast, lunch, and early dinner (it closes at 5:00 pm on weekends and 7:00 pm on weeknights). We visited at 11:00 am when it was still very quiet, but we can envision it becomes a bustling spot at lunchtime when the nearby office workers stop in for a bite. 

The Deco is a 9,000-square foot dining hall/upscale food court located on West 39th Street between 8th and 7th Avenues in Midtown South/Garment District. It occupies the street level (technically a few steps up from the street) of an office building on a street filled with tall buildings, most of which have fabric shops on the ground level. Inside, eight food vendors line the perimeter, with a fancy bar positioned in the middle. (The bar was not yet operational when we visited.) Guests can sit at stand-alone tables, at tables that share a banquette on one side, on lounge furniture, or at the bar itself (when it opens). Décor is inspired by the 1920s Art Deo period; the stunning cobalt blue bar with brass accents provides an attractive focal point. 

Food vendors include Antojitos Caseros (Mexican), Huli Huli (Hawaiaan rotisserie chicken), Mani in Pasti (pizza), Mademoiselle (French bakery café), Little Tong (Chinese), Papa Poule (French rotisserie chicken), and the still-to-open full-service Deco Bar. We sampled dishes from the Beach Bistro 96 (Brazilian) and Nansense (Afghan), including a fejoida bowl (a multi-component dish of rice, beans, meat, collards, and cassava flour that reminded us of a trip to Rio de Janeiro that we had taken years ago) and a kebab bowl (with meat, rice, vegetables, and bread). We ordered and paid separately at each vendor (using a credit card), and each seller brought our food to our table when it was ready (however, we think that they must use a buzzer/beeper system when it gets more crowded so that guests return to the counter to pick up their own food rather than sparing busy staff to deliver food).

We enjoyed our experience at The Deco, and we would return if we were in the area at the appropriate time.