Weekend Reading: New York Edition
NYC's best day spas, where to sip outside, and more courtesy of Found NY.
Today's content is courtesy of our friends at FOUND NY, a new twice-weekly newsletter for people with good taste in and around New York City. Subscribe here.
Pooling resources: Day Spa Report (part I)
Four NYC day spas, presented in ascending order of entry price:
Bathhouse (Williamsburg): More of a party/social scene. If that’s your thing, book early; it sells out a month in advance.
Entry price: $45-$70 for a day pass.
What's inside: Nice locker rooms. Pools: one body temp, one cold plunge, one (usually crowded) hot tub, all small-ish. Saunas: one dry, one less dry, both run larger. And the one steam room: fine. Heated marble slabs are great. Bring a face mask and sprawl out.
Food: The on-site restaurant is expensive and blasted with cold air, which doesn’t really make sense because everyone is in a bathing suit. And the food is so-so. Can’t recommend.
Great Jones Spa (Noho): Less scene, more spa (and more adult). The somewhat dated environs and facilities remain clean and well-kept.
Entry Price: Two-hour passes $70, based on walk-in availability; if you spend $100 on spa services you’ll get two hours in the spa as well.
What’s inside: Large hot tub, small cold plunge, large sauna, fine steam room.
Food: Tea and snacks free of charge (best are the adorable wax bags of tortilla chips, nuts, and dried fruit). Jolene and Il Buco Alimentari are both solid post-spa meal options down the block.
World Spa (Mapleton, Brooklyn, above): Huge, amazing new facilities deep in the heart of Brooklyn.
Entry Price: Weekend passes are ~ $120 for 4 hours, and weekday passes are ~$90 for the full day.
What’s inside: Best lockers, tons of rooms, clean, excellent huge pools. Not a ton of products, but they do have the usual shampoo/conditioner, body lotion, and good-quality hair/swimsuit dryers.
Food: The restaurant in the spa has both booze (cocktails are strong) and ample fish/veggies. Regarding the $18 fruit platter: No idea where they're getting their fruit from, but it's excellent and hard to finish. Consider pairing with a visit to the original Di Fara.
Bonus pro tips:
On weekends, go early, 10-11 a.m. It gets jammed in the afternoons. Weekdays are far less hectic.
Perfect plan: Cut out of work early, get there at 5-5:30 p.m., and have dinner. You'll have until 9:15 p.m. when the spa areas close (the building closes at 10).
Place your food order with the manager wandering around with an iPad — it'll show up faster.
Aire Ancient Baths (Tribeca): Spendy, but absolutely worth it. A tightly capped number of spa-goers at once and a no-talking policy put a fine point on the indulgence.
Entry Price: ~$150 for 90 minutes
What’s Inside: Locker rooms are very good, and products are excellent. Spa itself is stunning — only candle lighting, and fantastic pool choices. The saltwater float pool is a favorite, the hot tub is awesome, cold plunge pools aren't too cold, and the larger pool out the back, just under body temperature, is a good place to start a circuit. The steam room is perfect, and you won't find better service, but beware: You get exactly 90 minutes. Use them wisely.
Food: None. It is, however, dangerously close to Frenchette Bakery. –Kim Mackenzie
GETAWAYS • Paris Report
Getting shelled by a French 75
French 75, the French version of the classic champagne cocktail, is making a comeback in Paris this Spring, nudging out the long-running summer favorite, the Aperol Spritz — a French snub to the Italians. Named after a French artillery cannon, the cocktail was first poured in 1915 at Harry’s New York Bar, a musky gin joint still frequented by locals and travelers.
The recipe: Mix simple syrup with lemon juice, a drop or two of absinthe, a shot of gin, brandy, or cognac and shake with ice. Top off with champagne. Garnish with a lemon twist.
Bonus: At Harry’s, pair with a crunchy, freshly prepared French hotdog with a steamed bun and hot mustard. Be patient.
→ Harry’s New York Bar, 5 Rue Daunou, 75002. –Brad Inman in Paris
RESTAURANTS & BARS • Friday Routine
The lure of a patio in summer
John McDonald, Mercer Street Hospitality (Bar Tulix, Lure Fishbar, Hancock St., Bowery Meat Company, Smyth Tavern, Galerie Bar, Butterfly, Bistrot Leo + Lure Chicago).
Neighborhood you live in: Soho
It’s Friday afternoon, how are you rolling into the weekend?
I’m up early with my two boys. Once they're off to school, I'm figuring out the most pressing project to tackle. At the moment, I’m focused on developing various improvements to the Bar Tulix and Lure Fishbar outdoor seating. Lure's structure was a new approach, entirely (see above).
Any restaurant plans this weekend?
Saturday, I almost always do brunch at Hancock St. on the patio if it’s nice or, if not, inside at Bar Tulix or Lure. Weekends are busy and typically chaotic, and when I eat with my kids, I need fast and flexible service. If I’m at someone else’s restaurant, that’s not within my control. For dinner I want to try Bar Mario in Red Hook.
How about a little leisure or culture?
Maybe a long bike ride and then the Tin Building to explore the wide range of food options. As for art, I want to check out the new Warhol show at Brant in the East Village.
Any weekend getaways?
I'm hoping to get up to INNESS and/or one of the Adirondack resorts that have recently opened up. Last weekend, we stayed with friends in the Springs East Hampton. On the way out, we stopped at Armin & Judy for its exceptional bread and pastries. And I also did a great breakfast at the beautiful, new Tutto Caffe in East Hampton.
What was your last great vacation?
Earlier this year I took a trip to Vancouver with a business partner to do a thing called 29029 Everesting. Having this much time focused on one goal without any real distractions was a mental vacation that would not occur resting on a beach.