Daniella was away so her cousin Alfredo was our host. They were both quick to respond to any messages we sent. Alfredo was constantly checking up on us to see if we needed anything and very helpful for any recommendations!
The apartment was on the top floor of a 3 story walkup so the stairs weren’t too bad. There was only 1 apartment per floor so we had the floor to ourselves. The ceilings were quite high and had a painted tin ceiling which had a very interesting pattern on it. It had some cool artwork and drawings in it as well!
The 2 bedrooms were a good size and each had an air conditioner on them which was mandatory with the heat & humidity we experienced while we were there. 2 adults in a queen bed, teen in other queen bed and preteen on futon mattress which we setup in 2nd bedroom so we all had the A/C!
The long combined living room, dining room and study area offered a lot of room to spread out which was much better than a hotel room. This was great as we had 2 adults and 1 teen and 1 preteen in our family. They also had a medium sized, powerful, portable fan which we positioned to either cool the living room or dining room depending on where we were sitting.
The kitchen was small but had everything you need, a fridge, a gas stove which we used the surface elements not the oven due to the heat and a toaster oven. There was no microwave or dishwasher but that was fine with us. They had a French Press for coffee and other appliances such as a blender which we didn’t use. They had lots of utensils, pots, pans and other cooking items. The plates and glasses generally didn’t match but were all in good shape for the most part and added to the eclectic appeal of the place. They had some cooking herbs/spices and cold tap water in the fridge which tasted great.
We also bought a lot of bottled water while we were here. Best idea was to buy 2 16 - 24 oz (1 L - 1.5 L) bottles and when they were done refill them from 2 1 gallon (4 L) bottles which we bought from the East Village Farm and Grocery store.
The location was the best! Timeout the website had a list of 101 things to do in New York and there were so many good places to eat nearby like Hot Kitchen, Katz Deli, Russ & Daughter’s, Vanessa’s Dumpling House, Momofuku Noodle Bar, Clinton Street Baking Company, Big Gay Ice Cream and many more! You had some great bars nearby like 2A, Mcsorley’s Old Ale House and Freeman’s. You also had small grocery stores (3 open 24 hours) and larger grocers such as Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods nearby. All of these places were within easy walking distances of 10 minutes or less.
It was quite easy to walk down to the Brooklyn Bridge for the amazing views of Manhattan, or to the free Staten Island Ferry for amazing water views or walk up to Rockefeller Plaza to Top of the Rock or NBC Studios, stopping in stores to seek A/C or get a drink along the way. There was also a subway stop within walking distance which we used regularly to go to Harlem for dinner at Red Rooster and Amateur Night at the Apollo or go to the Bronx Zoo.
We thoroughly enjoyed our first stay here and would highly recommend Daniella and Alfredo’s place for its great location among other reasons and they were wonderful hosts!