I had a positive experience at Irina's place. She left a subway map for us that was absolutely necessary. The bedroom and bathroom were very clean. The bathroom is quite large and comfortable for big city standards. The bedroom window faces Irina's backyard and beyond that an empty lot, so it has an open view. We barely saw Irina and her husband during our stay and most of the time it felt like we were alone in the house. I have read some complaints for the G train (the one that stops around the corner from Irina's place) but I found that it has good frequency and connections to other trains to get to different areas of Manhattan. For cheap eats there are two small convenience stores within 1-2 blocks, and for a sit down meal take the Church Ave G train to Bergen station (7-10 min ride) and there are lots of places there.