Fun Fact Friday!

Friday is here! We have just finished our last full week in August. Enjoy the weekend and this fun fact…

Did you know…
J.P. Morgan's former apartment on the 31st floor in 14 Wall Street is now home to a popular French restaurant.

coffee coffee coffee

Sometimes you just need that cup of coffee in the morning to get you going. Luckily, here in NYC we have coffee shops just about on every corner. Of course there is always Starbucks as an option but what about all those cute original coffee shops that lie hidden around the city? These shops can be a great location to sit, read, get work done, meet people, and most importantly enjoy great coffee. Here is a list of 10 great coffee shops to check out to get a little more out of that morning cup.

1. Abraco
2. McNulty’s (West Village)
3. Porto Rico Importing Company (Greenwich Village)
4. Housing Works (Soho)
5. Zibetto Espresso Bar
6. Think Coffee (Greenwich Village)
7. Le Colombe Torrefaction (Tribeca)
8. Empire Coffee and Tea Company (Hell’s Kitchen)
9. Ost Café (East Village)
10. 88 Orchard (Lower East Side)

ANSWER TO TRIVIA TUESDAY: (Busta Rhymes is from Brooklyn)

Trivia Tuesday!

Happy Tuesday! This week our trivia Tuesday has to do with music once again. For all you hip hop lovers out there…let’s see if you know this one:

Which of the following rappers is NOT from Queens?
A. Mobb Deep
B. Nas
C. Ja Rule
D. Busta Rhymes

ANSWER TO PICTURE TRIVIA: (The top of the Bethesda Fountain, The Angel Of The Waters. Central Park, NYC)

Picture Trivia

It is the start of a great week here in NYC. Today we are going to do something new for our blog. This is a new type of trivia, including pictures! Take a look at the picture above and see if you can name the object, and place it within the city. Today our trivia has to do with statues. Statues are all over this city, each having their own meanings and beginnings. It is impossible to know what every statue means or why they are there, but they all have a purpose. See if you can guess the name and location of this beautiful statue…

Fun Fact Friday

Did you know that…

An average of 4.9 million people ride the New York City subway each weekday!

Greatest Hits of the City

NYC is one of the most highly populated cities when it comes to tourists. Especially in the summer, everyone wants to come check out the sites to be a part of it all. This top 10 list features what people come here to see the most. It also highlights some of the greatest parts about this city. I am sure you could guess most of these on your own…

1. The Empire State Building
2. Statue of Liberty
3. Grand Central Terminal
4. Rockefeller Center
5. Ellis Island Immigration Museum
6. Staten Island Ferry
7. American Museum of Natural History
8. Central Park
9. Metropolitan Museum of Art
10. Museum of Modern Art (MoMa)

ANSWER TO TRIVIA TUESDAY: (Requiem for a Dream. Great guess copeynyc!!)

Trivia Tuesday

NYC has been featured in many different films. People all over the world can recognize the sites on the big screen and automatically relate them to this lovely city. This trivia question has to do with one of the many movies shot here. Post your guesses and check back tomorrow for more!

Which movie starring Jared Leto is the community of Brighton Beach featured in?

Fun Fact!

Happy Monday and happy week! Here is a fun fact about our beloved city and how it came to be our “Big Apple”.

Why is NYC Called the Big Apple?
In the 1920s, a sportswriter for the Morning Telegraph named John Fitzgerald overheard stable hands in New Orleans refer to NYC's racetracks as "the Big Apple." He named his column "Around the Big Apple." A decade later, jazz musicians adopted the term to refer to New York City, and especially Harlem, as the jazz capital of the world. There are many apples on the trees of success, they were saying, but when you pick New York City, you pick the big apple.

ANSWER TO RIDDLE: (Smith)

Riddle Me This...

It is a cloudy, yet cool day in NYC. We have made it to Thursday, just inches away from the weekend. In hopes to make it go by a little faster, here is a riddle that is sure to challenge! Take a shot and wrap your head around it. Post here with your guesses!

A train goes between Chicago and New York. The brakeman, the fireman and the engineer are named Smith, Jones and Brown. (The names are not necessarily in order). There are also three passengers named Mr. Smith, Mr. Jones and Mr. Brown. Mr. Brown lives in New York. The brakeman lives halfway between New York and Chicago. Mr. Jones earns exactly $20,000 per year. Smith beat the fireman at their last game of golf. The passenger who lives in Chicago has the same name as the brakeman. The brakeman's next-door neighbor is a passenger on this train and earns exactly three times as much as the brakeman. What is the name of the engineer?

Did You Know??

Did you know…
New York City was the U.S. capital from 1789 to 1790?

ANSWER TO TRIVIA TUESDAY: (Harlem)

Trivia Tuesday!

It’s trivia Tuesday! Hope you are all having a fabulous week so far! This trivia question has to do with education, something that is very important and prominent here in NYC. Post your guesses and check back in tomorrow for some more fun ☺

18 of the 25 charter schools operating in Manhattan are located in which neighborhood?

Yumm

Food, food, food! When it comes to NYC, we’ve got plenty. This city is home to every type of food you can imagine. One food in particular, we just cannot seem to get enough of, is pizza. Whether it’s a slice you are craving or a whole pie, there isn’t a street without pizza close by. Some say NYC has the best pizza in the whole world, and with so many choices it can get very overwhelming. Here is a list put together by the Village Voice to help make it a little easier next time you are craving that mouth-watering slice.

Top 10 Best Pizza Places in NYC:
1. Totonno Pizzeria Napolitano (1524 Neptune Avenue, Brooklyn, 718-372-8606)
2. DiFara's (1424 Avenue J, Brooklyn, 718-258-1367)
3. John's (278 Bleecker Street, 212-243-1680)
4. Denino's (524 Port Richmond Avenue, Staten Island, 718-442-9401)
5. Grimaldi's (19 Old Fulton Street, Brooklyn, 718-858-4300)
6. Patsy's (2287 First Avenue, 212-534-9783)
7. Lombardi's (32 Spring Street, 212-941-7994)
8. Roberta's (261 Moore Street, Brooklyn, 718-417-1118)
9. Motorino (319 Graham Avenue, Brooklyn, 718-599-8899)
10.LaVilla (261 Fifth Avenue, Brooklyn, 718-499-9888)

Fun Fact Friday :)

We have made it to Friday of our first week with the new blog. We hope you are all enjoying it and encourage more to play, to show off your knowledge! Now we will leave you with a fun fact to think about. Have a sunny, safe, and relaxing weekend. With these few days off, go out into the city we love and enjoy what you see around you!

The Manhattan grid pattern produces an effect known as “Manhattanhenge” (like Stonehenge), on two days - around May 28th and around July 12th - sunset is directly aligned with the street grid pattern. This means the sun can be seen setting exactly over the centerline of every Manhattan street. A similar effect occurs during sunrise on two winter days, understandably less popular.

ANSWER TO RIDDLE: (The iPhone)

What Am I??

Any guesses for this little riddle?

I weigh 4.8 ounces, talk and sing. Turn me upside down, and I right myself. You can find me in SoHo and on Fifth Avenue. What am I?

Did You Know...

Happy hump day! It is the middle of our busy week here in NYC. Here is a quick “did you know” to keep you thinking and keep things moving.

As late as the 1840s, thousands of pigs roamed Wall Street to consume garbage - an early sanitation system.

ANSWER TO TRIVIA TUESDAY: (They Might Be Giants…great guess mshashoua!)

Trivia Tuesday

Welcome to the first trivia Tuesday! From here on out, Tuesdays such as this, will be set aside for questions regarding every aspect of NYC possible. There is sure to be a question for everyone, so use that expertise to show off your skills! For the music lovers out there, this one may be easy. Make sure to post a comment with your guesses so we can all play together.

Which quirky NYC-based band covered a song that includes the line "Even old New York, was once New Amsterdam"?

ANSWER TO MONDAY’S RIDDLE: (Because he is to short to reach past the 25th button in the elevator, so he has to walk the rest of the way up. But on rainy days he can use his umbrella to press the top buttons!)

First Monday Riddle

It is a beautiful sunny Monday here in New York City. As we start off our week with the new blog, we hope this helps to bring a little fun to each of your days. This first riddle is something light and humorous to kick things off. While you do not have to be a city “pro” to figure this one out, it may take some creative thinking. Check back tomorrow for our first trivia Tuesday and the answer to this downtown New York riddle.

A man works in downtown New York. He works on the 50th floor of a TALL building. Most days he takes the elevator to the 25th floor and then walks up. However on rainy days he takes the elevator all the way up. Why?