a few weekends ago katie came for a visit, and we got into all the shenanigans you would expect from a maggie-katie-veena buda besties reunion. keep reading for the full recap!

friday.

nepali bhanchha ghar. maggie and i often talk about our momo adventures, so that was katie’s request for lunch on friday. it worked well because maggie had limited time in between work calls, and it is close enough that we could come back home after and rest for a bit before heading out for the evening.

headless horseman. we needed a happy hour spot near union square, and headless horseman always fits the bill. my friend alexa and katie’s friend erica both joined us, and it was great to have a fun meeting of new friends.

the strand / rubirosa. alexa and i went to an author event at the strand while maggie and katie went to rubirosa for dinner. they raved about their dinner, and i loved getting to listen to jordan calhoun talk about the process of writing his first memoir.

village tavern. game 6 of the grizzlies-timberwolves game was on at 9, so after my event i walked over to village tavern to watch the beginning and wait for maggie and katie to join. it was overrun with youths, so we left around halftime to head somewhere new.

the stumble inn. i’m pretty sure maggie did a google search for “bars with tvs”, and this place looked promising. we met some weird people and had some strange interactions, but the grizzlies won and clinched the series so i was thrilled.

sparrow tavern. on our way home we decided to stop by the sparrow for a nightcap [it’s next door to my building] and made friends with rebecca the bartender.

saturday.

fred’s. after a slow start to the day we got ourselves ready and over to fred’s for lunch. i had my smoked salmon benedict and was very happy, and we were all well and stuffed by the end.

levain bakery. we all wanted something sweet and decided to pick up cookies before going for a stroll in central park. levain is always a great idea.

central park. we spent a good deal of time wandering aimlessly through the park, resting on boulders and people watching when we felt like it. we strolled down literary lane and saw the statue of balto and eventually made our way over to the east side to head somewhere new.

the malt house. once we got to greenwich village we didn’t have a specific place in mind, so while i picked up some postcards from a shop maggie and katie walked until they found somewhere that looked inviting. the malt house was the winner, and we loved sitting in their covered outdoor space and snacking on nachos and eavesdropping on the people at the next table over.

west village wander. we knew we generally wanted to walk toward the hudson river, but with no specific route in mind we chose streets at random and had fun discovering some new spots.

pier 45. we eventually made it to pier 45 on the river and took in the great evening views.

trattoria pesce pasta. by this point we were all ready for dinner, so we made our way back to pesce pasta which we had passed during our meander. we had a very delicious meal topped off with a shared tiramisu, after which we were all ready for bed.

sunday.

llama inn. after some debate we decided on sunday brunch at llama inn, and we were all very happy with our choice. the interior of the restaurant is beautiful, the service is great, we had the communal table all to ourselves, and the food was so good.

poetica coffee. maggie’s friend daniela was studying at a coffee shop close by, so we stopped in to meet her and have a little chat. katie and i have been hearing about daniela for years and vice versa, so it was great to put a name to the face.

bedford ave window shopping. from there we walked over to bedford avenue to peek in some windows and experience a hand scrub demonstration.

mccarren park. one of my friends had also been in williamsburg for brunch, so we met up with him in mccarren park and walked a few rounds around the track. it was a gorgeous day, and we wanted to take full advantage of the weather.

veselka. after a quick stop at home to freshen up, we met back up at veselka for pierogi and schnitzel. that place never disappoints, and i was glad to have a chance to use my $5 off coupon before it expired.

six on broadway. the big highlight of the weekend was seeing six the musical on broadway. it’s a rock retelling of the lives of the six wives of henry viii, and it is phenomenal. we were dancing in our seats through the entire 80-minute show, and i have been listening nonstop since.

bea. we wanted a nightcap after the show, and katie found this lovely bar for us. we made friends with danny the bartender and shared lots of hilarious relationship stories from over the years.

m & pizza. we all needed a slice of pizza before calling it a night, so maggie found this place for us. i joked with her only she would find the pizza place run by indians, but it hit the spot nonetheless.

if you’re keeping score at home, we visited astoria, jackson heights, union square, west village, upper east side, upper west side, nolita, greenwich village, williamsburg, east village, times square, and hell’s kitchen. my watch showed between 16,000-21,000 steps each of the three days katie was here.

rereading that has me exhausted all over again, but it was entirely worth every wrong turn taken, every dollar spent, and every blister and sore muscle to have this time together.

xx