Second choices aren't always second best. 

The room itself is filled with people taking selfies, sticking dots on themselves and others, and taking more selfies. 

When you hear the name 'the Ivy' your mind immediately goes to decadence and opulence. And then to expensive. The Ivy Chelsea Garden ticks the first two boxes but not necessarily the latter. 

I am back in Londres for the summer, and so will be posting reviews and whatnot from this side of the pond.

I couldn't really name this a restaurant review because in an attempt to quench our hunger, and alleviate our damaged student bank accounts, we shared only a few appetisers. Also, Gallow Green is so much more than just a restaurant.

Situated on top of the McEveritt Hotel, home to the interactive show 'Sleep No More', the Gallow Green experience starts before you even enter a door. It's quite hard to find in the black of the night, hidden away on a quiet street in Chelsea, but also it takes the premise of a hotel. After being ID'd at the door you take the elevator up to the top floor, where on the way you can hear the music and background sounds of the 'Sleep No More' experience that is happening on the floors beneath you. When you step out of the elevator the quintessential telephone boxes and conductors stand make you feel like you have travelled back in time to 1950's England. Ascending another set of stairs is when you finally make it to Gallow Green.

There are a few different areas you can sit in but most tables are communal so the rest of the table could be filled with complete strangers. Unlike in Sleep No More where all the staff are actors, on the rooftop all the waiters are actually waiters. Our waiter was really nice, and unlike at some restaurants didn't push us to order more when we decided to share two appetisers between three. There was an enclosed space behind us where a birthday party was being held, which I would definitely look into if I came again with a larger party.


The best thing by far about Gallow Green, and in fact any rooftop in New York city, were the views. From where we were sitting we could see the Empire State building in all its majesty, not the worst thing to look at while you're eating.

A close second best thing was the decoration of the rooftop. Covered in all sorts of greenery, bunting and fairy lights it truly felt like a secret magical garden. Coupled with Etta James playing softly in the background made the perfect atmosphere for a perfect night.

After our quick tour of the highline, where for the first time I really noticed the exhibitions on display, we headed to the Whitney. (Not before we sat down and got our artistic skills on by painting small squares with a man who had made a make shift art gallery on the highline, I'm pretty proud of mine!)


I have a small confession to make. We lied. We pretended we were 17 in order to get in for free. I feel bad not supporting such a great institution, but at the same time we are poor college students which erases my guilt just a little bit. The day we went was actually the opening day of the museum, but because it was a Friday it was relatively quiet, unlike the block long ticket queues that lined the streets the day after.




There are two things about the Whitney that make it great. One, the artwork. Even though I'm an art history student I wouldn't want to bore you with my analysis of some of the great pieces housed in the Whitney, so you can see them below.

Two, the location. The location is no accident, and actually this article sums it up quite well. The great thing about the architecture of the Whitney is that it shifts this idea of a 'view' back on to the city. Although it is located right next to the Hudson, this is not where the focus lies, and in fact the only place I found that you can see the Hudson from is inside. Instead, their multi level terraces give you a superb view of the city. With less skyrises in Chelsea than in Midtown, you don't have to massively high up in order to enjoy the views. It may have been extremely windy when we went but that didn't stop us heading outside and taking some snaps. On a nicer day I think their outside cafe/restaurant would be a lovely place to eat at (and I rarely say that about institutional eating establishments).

It's not often that I venture into Brooklyn, but sometimes the 45 minute journey is worth it. One of those times was yesterday when the sun was shining, and the cherry blossoms were blooming and there seemed to be no better place to celebrate this than at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens.




Okay, so first things first, the Gardens were gorgeous. I don't think I've ever seen so many cherry blossoms in my life, nor so many perfectly kept lawns. We were quite lucky in choosing a day that was not overly hot so not only did this mean that we could enjoy the gardens at a comfortable temperature, but also that the gardens were not swarming with people. That's not to say that it wasn't busy though, on the first Saturday in May it was only to be expected that everyone else had the same idea as us.



Unfortunately, that's where the positives stop. Firstly, the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens charge for entry. Whilst I understand that upkeep and maintenance is expensive, it makes what could have been a relatively cheap day out that little bit more expensive. Secondly, and most annoyingly, is that the gardens seem to have a stricter grass upkeep policy than Oxford! Okay, so you can walk on the grass (some areas) but that's where the buck stops. If you're like us and decided that on such a beautiful day in such a beautiful place a picnic was only necessary, you will be sorely disappointed. The prowling security guards quickly told us to put away our cheetos and crackers (never thought they'd be illegal substances), and when we just got used to having a foodless picnic we were also told that we weren't allowed the picnic blanket we were sitting on (not great when you're wearing white trousers like myself). The afternoon would have been much more enjoyable if we were allowed to eat, but c'est la vie.



One thing that prevented our trip feeling completely wasted was that right next door to the gardens is the Brooklyn Museum. The weekend we visited was the closing weekend of the Wiley exhibition, something that we'd been wanting to see for a while. The Brooklyn Museum, unlike the Botanical Gardens, was free! It was a truly great museum, welcomed by music in the foyer, very open plan exhibits that allow you to get extremely close to the art works.

On the hottest day that New York has had so far this year, myself and my future suitemates decided to venture into Brooklyn for the famed Smorgasburg. Whether you've seen the infamous ramen burger on instagram, or read the raving review on Time Out, it is very likely that you have heard of this Brooklyn food market.

If you are an indecisive gemini like me, then Smorgasburg is actually quite dangerous. There are so many vendors selling uniquely different food; everything from lobster rolls to vegan kale sandwiches, from ice cream sandwiches to gooey cake, that it is hard to decide what to actually buy. Most vendors sold their items at quite reasonable prices, so much so that you could probably buy a few different dishes from multiple vendors. If you go to Smorgasburg, be wary that there will be a lot of queuing involved, especially for the more famous vendors, which on a hot day can be a bit of a curse.

Once the food was bought, we made our way to the river front of the park that the event was held on. It was such a warm day and it certainly felt like the whole of New York had crept out from hibernation. Sitting on the beach like water front whilst eating our delicious goodies was definitely the recipe for a perfect day. Although, I'm still trying to get the sand out of my shoes!


Saturdays in Williamsburg – 90 Kent Ave. (at N. 7th St.)
Sundays in Brooklyn Bridge Park – Pier 5

Hakkasan crispy prawn dumpling with plum sauce

Jouja