We discovered the Scene by Laurie blog over Twitter, and loved its mix of travel writing and New Yorkology, with posts on subjects as diverse as The Incredible Cakes of St Petersburg and the Wackiest New York Restaurant. Blog creator Laurie DePrete was kind enough to take time out from her globetrotting to answer a few questions about her home city.

How long have you lived in New York?

I came to New York immediately after graduation to work on Madison Avenue and fell in love. During the years, I’ve lived all over: Upper West Side, Upper East Side, West Village, Park Slope, the Bronx, Long Island, Westchester and even across the Hudson River in Hoboken.

There was one time when I ventured out, but New York pulled me back. It was after my first year here and a friend and I decided to travel around the US on a quest to find the best city to live. We covered all but six states, stopping along the way to check out different places, several for extended periods of time, to make money to continue traveling. In the end, it was NY that won. It’s not that I don’t love other cities in the US and abroad, I just think New York offers more diversity than any other single place.

You love to travel, but also write extensively about cool and unusual places you’ve discovered in New York..what are your favourite recent discoveries?

A fellow travel blogger took some of us to Momofuku Ssam this last weekend and the food is sublime, particularly the pork buns which literally melt in your mouth. Summit Bar on the LES was also a great recent find. It’s in an old tenement building, they play a mix of old and new music (we were shazaming all night) and the bartenders are fun.

Also I’m looking forward to the opening of 4food. They’re on a mission to de-junk NYC by starting a healthy fast food revolution and they’re employing some pretty cool social media tactics. For instance, you’ll be able to create your own menu item and the more popular it becomes the more rewarded you are with discounts.

And what are your all-time favourite places in New York?

My favorite place is Central Park at all times of the year. There’s a ton you can do, from softball to tennis to concerts in the summer, ice skating and sledding in the winter. I also really love the Botanical Gardens in the Bronx, it’s beautiful and there are amazing exhibits throughout the gardens. Fave burger joint is Shake Shack, fave bar is Wilfie and Nells, fave jazz club is Smalls, and fave place to play is Fat Cat (dive joint with jazz and ping pong!!).

What lesser-known places/restaurants/sights would you recommend to people visiting New York?

For museums it’s the Cloisters, a wonderful oasis of peace and tranquility with Medieval European art and gardens, beautiful archways and corridors and it sits in Fort Tryon Park overlooking the Hudson.  If you like art, hit the galleries in Chelsea, the LES or Dumbo. They feature cutting edge artists and are free to visit.

For neighborhoods, I recommend checking out the LES, it seems less popular with tourists but there are tons of bars and restaurants. Also try to fit in a visit to Brooklyn. A walk over the Brooklyn Bridge is fun and the views amazing. On the other side explore Dumbo and the waterfront, Brooklyn Heights or Park Slope.

To see different views of the city in addition to the Brooklyn Bridge there’s the free ferry to Staten Island, bike riding along the west side, or kayaking along the Hudson River (free at several piers along the west side).

For booze, entertainment and food: The Back Room on the LES is a cool speakeasy without the crazy cocktail prices; the Upright Citizens Brigade is $10 for an hour of hysterical improv; and food trucks are the new thing and popping up all over. You can get everything imaginable. One of my favorites is the Wafles and Dinges truck.

Here is a post I wrote about a few more of my favourite restaurants in New York.

Read more…

The High Line is an elevated ex-freight railroad in the Meatpacking District that has been turned into a park/green pedestrian walkway. It’s been open for about a year now and garnered much praise, both for the innovative use of space, and because it’s a lovely, free way to see the city from a whole new perspective. Photographer Rhiannon Wilkey has kindly let us repost some shots she recently took on sunset stroll down the walkway.

Flowers on the High Line

A view of 14th Avenue

City Sunset

Infamy, street markets and German sausages – it can only be our weekly roundup!

New Lists

Broadway Market Forever – We love London’s hippest food and fashion market so much, we made a list of the best stalls, pubs and restaurants it has to offer.

Street Food: Eating on the Go: New York is the city that never sleeps and in order to keep up with it’s fast talking, fast walking citizens, the city has some of the best ‘fast food’ restaurants. From Currywurst to dumplings, sherylnyc shares some of her favourite places to grab food while on the go.

New Places

Viajante – Foodies have been flocking to Bethnal Green to sample Nuno Mendes’ fantastic taster menus.

Filthy McNasty’s – Plenty of character and plenty of characters in this infamous East London venue.

The Standard Grill – The hottest grill in NYC right now. In terms of coolness, literal temperature of cooker unknown at time of writing.

Kurz and Lang - A small outlet of German sausage greatness in Clerkenwell.

Mews of Mayfair – An elegant wine bar in a refined part of town.

New Twins

Kurz and Lang and Weschler’s Currywurst and Bratwurst – Germanic food to go.

Vinopolis and City Winery – learn to distinguish between ‘the finest wines available to humanity’ and ‘the cheapest wines available to be bought at a corner shop at 2am’.

The Peasant and Back Forty - No longer will you be forced to make the choice between ‘gastropub’ and ‘real ale pub’ as these bars excel in both areas.

Photo by newyork808 used under a Creative Commons License

Mrfionn is Metrotwin’s newest contributor and boy, has he got off to a flying start! You can follow him on twitter and check out all his great recommendations and lists here.

How long have you been a Londoner for?

Almost 5 years. I spent 3 years living North Gower Street in Euston, right by Drummond Street, a mecca for Indian veggie restaurants of a very decent caliber. I then spent half a year in Highgate before deciding a move back to NW1 and Camden Town.

Where are your local hang-outs?

I’m always content to hang out anywhere that serves Belgian beers, so depending on the current location I’ll gravitate towards bars I know I’ll find them. For example if I’m in Covent Garden I’ll go the Low Lander Grand Cafe, or if I’m in Borough Market I’ll go to the Rake. Exceptions to this would be the likes of Trisha’s in Soho which just have a rocking scene going on. Other favourites would be places the The Hoxton and Shoreditch House in East London.

You’re a bit of a wine buff, what are your favourite wine bars in London?

My favourite bar to drink wine in isn’t even a bar. It’s an off license called The Sampler on Upper Street. There you can sample 70 odd wines on any given day and these change as the bottles empty. You can even pop a bottle of bubbly and since their selection of grower champagnes is almost unrivaled in London it’s always a good option. There’s a big table down the back of the shop where you can sit and enjoy whatever you choose!

Describe your ideal day in London.

My ideal day involves a morning of browsing one of the food markets for all the necessaries for dinner, whilst sampling various market delights along the way. Follow that up with a glass of Belgium beer, an afternoon kip and finally a jog in the park would wrap up the afternoon nicely. I like to slow cook when I have time so I’d happily pass the evening in the kitchen, and then follow up with night of fine food, fine wine and friends.

If you could only eat at one restaurant for the rest of your life, where would it be?

For me if I had to eat in only one restaurant for the rest of my life it would be The Ledbury in Notting Hill. It’s a incredible restaurant that’s got better and better since first opening, going from a new restaurant to a two star michelin in less than 5 years. I’ve enjoyed a few four or five hour lunches which have all been memorable! (As for a very close second, I would say Tayyabs)

What is your favourite underrated London landmark/place?

At this moment Broadway Market is my favourite London place. It’s got a buzzing atmosphere, so much quality food on offer and plenty of street music to give it all a soundtrack. The unending number of high quality food stalls is dazzling. Couple this with a super selection of fine cafes and bars and a few hours passes very quickly. Underrated, in the mainstream, in a shameful way.

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What places do you think are overrated?

Oxford Street is hugely overated. And even at that, overated is generous. I find the street to be a dive. Also some areas in east London are totally overrated, like Curtain Road. Many of the bars there are now just Soho esq which isn’t good. Strict door policy and boring dress code seem all too important…

What is your favourite London-based book (or film)?

I have bias here but my favourite London-based film would be Sweeney Todd, mainly because I spent over half a year working on it out in Pinewood Studios. Even though none of it was shot on location, the film really captured a London look and an atmosphere which is quite unique.

I’m quite sure the city of London and possibly the world in general, would be a much more pleasant place without them.

Photo of Broadway Market by mbiddulph used under a Creative Commons License

Following up my post from last week on our five top tips for July activities in New York, here are the best things (in our opinion) going down in London Town next month.

The Lovebox Weekender

We mentioned Lovebox before in our London Festival Round Up, but it’s always worth a spot of repetition as this is a great weekend of music and partying  in East London’s Victoria Park from 16th – 18th July. Big name acts such as Dizzee Rascal, Grace Jones and Roxy Music are all playing, and the central location means it’s easy as pie to get to, and you can go home and shower at the end of the day!

Summer Screen at Somerset House

We extolled the greatness of outdoor cinema at Bryant Park in our New York round up, but Londoners are also able to experience an al fresco evening of film, thanks to Film4’s ongoing summer collaboration with Somerset House. Generally London summers are a bit more unpredictable than New York ones, but with the typical short-term memory of one writing a blog post during a heatwave, I can only imagine gorgeous summer evenings for the period of 29th July – 8th August, when films will be screened nightly.

Pride 2010 Parade

This year it’s the 40th anniversary of the Gay Liberation Front, so the annual LGBT march through Central London will be bigger than ever, and have a 1970’s disco theme in honour of the pioneering group of activists. Old Compton Street will naturally be one big party zone, but Trafalgar Square will also host performances and speeches on specially constructed stages, and there will be stalls and activities to boot. The parade itself starts at 1pm at Baker Street and ends up at Trafalgar Square at 3pm. It’s loud, it’s proud…it’s perhaps not the day to take your grandmother on a sightseeing trip around Central London, but boy will it be fun!

Ben and Jerry’s Sundae on the Common

This is a nice family festival taking place on Clapham Common on 24th and 25th July. Yeah, it’s basically a massive ad for Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, but a) there are loads of bands are playing b)lots of fairground rides and family-friendly activities and c) free ice cream! What more do you want?

Kerala Carnival 2010

Kerala is a vibrant state in South West India, known for its fantastic cuisine, easy-going nature and for being a bit of a tropical paradise. It’s very popular with travellers, but now Londoners can experience the best of the region without even leaving the city. On 7th – 8th July, the South Bank is being transformed into one big carnival;  a Keralan temple will be erected by the banks of the Thames and there will be music and dancing and stalls selling Keralan foods and handicrafts. For a day out in London with a twist, we definitely recommend a visit.

Photos by robonline and anemoneprojectors via flikr used under a Creative Commons License