NYC Celebrity Sightings

"You are sitting where President Clinton had lunch," declares the hand-written note above a booth in Katz's Deli, lower East side New York City. "Two hot dogs, pastrami sandwich, fries, diet ginger and decaf coffee".

Pause a minute to take it in: TWO hot dogs. PLUS a pastrami sandwich so thick with thin slices of hot spiced beef you can't get your mouth around it. Next to the note, there's a smiling photo of Clinton looking hale and hearty. He'd been in a two hour meeting at the famous grungy Jewish deli with a group of Congressmen and, according to the manager, schmoozed everyone.

Recently Clinton's been seen at West (Broadway and 84th Street) and he's also known to favour Sylvia's, a touristy soul food joint in Harlem not far from his office.
It was in one of the booths at Katz's that Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal met for the café scene in 'When Harry Met Sally'. "Yes, Katz's have what she had!" says another note on the wall, referring to Ryan's fake orgasm.

Celebrity spotting is part of the New York buzz. It doesn't matter what end of town you're in, you're bound to sight at least one or two. You don't have to go seeking them. They materialise in front of you.
One night I was sitting in the cosy lobby of the Algonquin Hotel, a charming hotel off Broadway well-known for attracting theatre and publishing types, when I looked up to find Tony Bennett suddenly standing in front of me embracing a fellow guest. His lovely warm smile filled the room. He lingered a minute or two then turned on his heel and went back into to The Oak Room to listen to the oh-so-debonair Peter Cincotti, the 19 year-old jazz sensation who's been wowing New Yorkers for the past few weeks.

Another night at Marseille, a noisy red hot restaurant in the Theatre district, I was chatting away to my companion when suddenly he looked up and exclaimed, "Hey, there's Marisa Tomei! I'm sure it's her. She was in 'My Cousin Vinny' and 'Someone Like You'. She's a Brooklyn kid, like me".

I turned around and saw a skinny dark-haired woman talking animatedly to her friends. Later, I bumped into her in the rather cramped Ladies Room. Jackie Mason and Linda Lavin also eat here and Kathleen Turner drops in for drinks. "In New York you get jaded by it," the blithe young Italian waiter told us. "I only remember the ones who were difficult".

Leonardo Di Caprio, it seems, is everywhere. He hangs out at Café Habana, a small nuevo-Cuban diner in SoHo. No pretensions here. The lime bar top is laminated, the stools silver and blue and floor lined with bathroom tiles. But the grilled corn topped with grated cheese and chilli powder and a squeeze of lime is tops and so is the clientele which includes Sheryl Crow, Lenny Kravitz ( who made a video there), Robert de Niro and Susan Sarandon (who lives just up the road in Elizabeth Street).

Di Caprio and De Niro also frequent Tribeca Bar & Grill (De Niro is co-owner), a large brick-walled bistro in the trendy Tribeca area. You can perch on a stool at the warm round bar in the centre of the restaurant, have a drink and eat your meal on a starched napkin. If you're lucky you might spot Tom Cruise (when he's in town) or Michael Jordan. De Niro's office is on the eighth floor and the Tribeca Film Centre shares the building.

 

As in Sydney, celebrities flock to what is new and hot, so if you've got money to burn you might check out the latest restaurants like Craft, Otto, 66 or the more communal less expensive Salt Bar.
Department stores are also good for surprise sightings. In the homewares section on the seventh floor of the very elegant Bergdorf Goodman store opposite the Plaza Hotel, you might see Arnold Schwarzenegger in amongst the $US5650 boxed antique Limoges sets or Meryl Streep hiding behind a hat.

Swish hotel lobbies (like The Mercer, SoHo, and the W hotels in Union Square and Times Square) are not only fun places to meet, but great for celebrity-spotting too. The W Hotel in Times Square is worth checking out for its interior design alone - and don't be perplexed if you feel you've stepped into a river when you enter the downstairs lobby!

And for those who like to be seen, then Blue Fin, the downstairs bar on Broadway is where to go. A sheer wall of glass from floor to ceiling ensures you'll be spotted at any time of the day!

FACT FILE

Katz - 205 East Houston (cnr Ludlow) Subway: Second Ave/Houston Street
Ph 212 254 2246

Sylvia's - 328 Lenox Ave between 126th and 127th Streets Subway: 125th St.
Ph. 212-996- 0660

The Algonquin - 59 W 44th Street
Ph. 212 -840 - 6800
Subway: 42nd St-5th Ave

Marseille - 630 9th Avenue at 44th Subway: Times Square Ph. 212-333-2323

Café Habana - cnr Prince and Elizabeth Streets, Nolita Ph. 212-625-2001
Subway: Spring Street

Craft - 43 E 19 St (betw Broadway and Park Ave) Ph. 212 780 -0880
Subway: Union Square

Salt Bar - 29A Clinton St (between Houston and Stanton Streets)
Ph 212 979 8471 Subway: Second Ave

Otto - 1 5th Ave at 8th St. Subway:
8th St/NYU. Ph. 212 674 2044.

66 - 241 Church St at Leonard St, Tribeca. Subway: Franklin St, Ph. 212 925 0202.

Tribeca Bar & Grill - 375 Greenwich St. Subway: Franklin Street. Ph. 212 941-3900

Mercer Hotel - 147 Mercer Street Soho Subway: Prince Street Ph.888-918-6060

W Hotel - Times Square, 1567 Broadway (47th St) Ph 212 918 1400. Subway: Times Square

Begdorf Goodman - 754 5th Ave
Ph 212 753 7300 Subway: 5th Ave-59th/60th Street

 

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