This neighborhood information is curated by considered one of our New York City–primarily based editors who calls it dwelling.
The West Village is dwelling to me, even when it is not the handle on my fuel invoice. I’ve lived throughout New York City in the final 12 years, however as a homosexual New Yorker, I endlessly really feel a pull to this slice of Manhattan, the place a lot of LGBTQ+ history is anchored in locations like the Stonewall Inn, Julius’, and Marie’s Crisis. Sure, there’s extra to the neighborhood than simply homosexual bars then and now: cultural institutions like the Village Vanguard jazz bar and the Church of St. Luke in the Fields; taverns and theaters over a century previous; the stylish retailers and au courant eating places on Charles, Jane, Perry, and the like. But queer life and legacy are inextricable from what makes the West Village so nice. It’s that dwelling historical past that I hope to share in some small method with you, expensive reader, by way of this perfect-day itinerary in the West Village.
Matt Ortile
Matt Ortile is an editor at Condé Nast Traveler, the place he covers LGBTQ+ journey and moral tourism, amongst different subjects. Additionally, he’s the creator of The Groom Will Keep His Name, a memoir about shifting to the US as a homosexual Filipino immigrant. He has lived in New York since 2014.
A notice on how I’m geographically defining the space: The West Village is bounded by the Hudson River to the west and 14th Street to the north. Depending on who you ask, it stops at both Greenwich Avenue, Seventh Avenue, or Sixth Avenue to the east; and both Houston Street or Christopher Street to the south. The larger the West Village, I say, all the higher. For this information, I’ll lengthen its southern and jap boundaries to Houston and Sixth, respectively. Other common eating places and museums like Pastis or the Whitney really feel an excessive amount of like they belong to the Meatpacking District, a micro-neighborhood with its personal distinct really feel, and so don’t seem right here, though I dearly love each and counsel you examine them out too.
As for the way to use this information, these timestamps are a free suggestion. This is de facto simply an intensive record of the cafés, eating places, retailers, bars, theaters, and companies in the West Village that I dearly love and suggest to every one, whether or not customer or native. You gained’t want reservations for all the things (some solely take walk-ins), however making an appointment is at all times really useful in this city the place it may well generally really feel such as you’re you’re nobody with out Resy Global Dining Access. And do what you’ll be able to to assist the of us you meet right here—it is thanks to the artists, creatives, and entrepreneurs who preserve the West Village native and funky, directly stylish and traditional. Here’s my slice of the West Village.
9 a.m. Wake up with the village at a café
One of my favourite issues to do in the West Village is watching it get up. I like the enterprise homeowners opening up store, servers bringing out tables to the sidewalk, children with nannies hitting the playgrounds, cute {couples} dragging themselves away from bed for a bagel and a espresso from Blackstone on Hudson. There are loads of takeaway choices, however you need to deal with your self to a quiet second earlier than a lengthy day by parking at considered one of the cafés in the neighborhood and observing the morning scenes unfold.
Snag the window seat at charming Paquita on West tenth and order a pistachio financier and a pot of considered one of their many teas and tisanes; sit on the sidewalk at Fellini on Seventh with an espresso and provides your greatest impression of a Roman flâneur; or seize a matcha and a contemporary bouquet of flowers at Rosecrans on Greenwich. For what it’s price, all three are open all day, up to no less than 8 p.m., in order that they’re best pit stops at any time. If you’re a breakfast particular person, get your carbs and eggs in at Café Cluny on West 4th, a Parisian bistro with a nice brunch (spot your favourite celebs in the eating room, both as their pencil caricatures held on the partitions, or in the flesh); or ad hoc : cafe, tucked into the basement of a constructing on Christopher and Gay Streets, which does espresso, sizzling sandwiches, and an array of twee dwelling items.
11 a.m. Get acquainted with the village’s historical past
The West Village is considered one of the most quintessential Manhattan neighborhoods, thanks in no small half to how typically it’s depicted in movies and tv. Yes, there’s Carrie Bradshaw’s house constructing from Sex and the City on Perry Street, in addition to the one from Friends on the nook of Bedford and Grove. (You can’t miss both web site; stroll by and also you’ll see vacationers crowding the sidewalks to snap selfies, a lot to the chagrin of the residents.) But there’s a lot extra historical past in these streets that offers the West Village its uniquely New York character.
Whenever I’ve mates in city, I deliver them to Christopher Park, a tiny triangle of inexperienced certain by Christopher, Grove, and West 4th Streets. Call it woo-woo, however I actually do really feel the weight of LGBTQ+ historical past at any time when I come by way of: The Stonewall Rebellion, a cornerstone occasion of the homosexual liberation motion, started in this space on June 27, 1969. Yes, the park sits proper throughout from the Stonewall Inn and the comparatively younger Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center. The latter opened in 2024 with a compact museum and a calendar of cultural programming; the former is nice for pre- and post-dinner drinks.