MUSEENYC / Neighborhoods / Upper West Side
Upper West Side
Two parks, the best food shops in the city, and the New York that families actually live in.
9 places on this page: 2 places to eat, 1 club or music room, 2 parks and spaces, 2 bars, 1 museum or gallery, 1 guide.
The Upper West Side is the part of Manhattan where people raise children, argue about the bagel place, and walk the same block every day for thirty years. It sits between two parks: Central Park on one side, Riverside Park running along the Hudson on the other, which means green at both ends of every cross street.
The Museum of Natural History is the anchor, and it is one of the best days out in the city with kids, dinosaurs and all. Lincoln Center, at the southern end, is the biggest performing arts complex in the country, and the plaza with its fountain is free to walk into at night.
The food shopping here is the local sport. Zabar’s on Broadway has been an appetizing store since 1934, and it is worth going in just to watch how fast the counter moves.
The walking is underrated. Riverside Park is emptier than Central Park and has the better sunsets, and the blocks of brownstones in the 70s and 80s are as handsome as anything downtown. Up at 107th Street, the Nicholas Roerich Museum is three floors of Himalayan paintings in a townhouse, free, and usually empty.
Where to eat in Upper West Side
Cuisines in Upper West Side: Jewish Deli, Caribbean
Where to go out in Upper West Side
Kinds of night in Upper West Side: Jazz
Upper West Side questions, answered
Where should I eat in Upper West Side?
First on our list in Upper West Side is Barney Greengrass — The Sturgeon King, on Amsterdam since 1908, with the same wallpaper and the same queue. We list 2 places in Upper West Side and have not scored them yet.
What's the nightlife like in Upper West Side?
Upper West Side has 1 room on this page, including Smoke Jazz & Supper Club (Jazz). A small uptown jazz room where the players are as good as downtown and the seats are easier.
Is Upper West Side worth visiting?
Yes — Upper West Side has 9 places on MUSEENYC right now: 2 places to eat, 1 club or music room, 2 parks and spaces, 2 bars, 1 museum or gallery, 1 guide. Everything on this page was chosen by people who live in New York, and nobody pays to be included.