Courtesy: The Muse
By Jae-Ha Kim
jaehakim.com
April 1, 2011
When my husband had to take a week-long business trip to New York, #SonOfJae and I tagged along. While he attended conferences, I put our child in a stroller and visited with friends, checked out the zoo and played in Central Park. Our homebase for the week was the Muse Hotel, which is located about a block from Times Square.
Our room at the hotel was small, but chic, and incredibly comfortable. There was one king-sized bed and a leopard-print divan, where our pint-sized two-year-old took naps. The staff was super friendly. When we mentioned that we had forgotten a charger for one of our phones, a front desk clerk told us she had a spare at home she could use. She lent us her own charger right then and there and said we could just return it to her when we checked out.
The hotel is located in a convenient area, so there’s plenty of things to see and do without hailing a cab. Even pushing a stroller, it took less than four minutes to walk from our hotel to Broadway and a few more minutes to reach Rockefeller Center. Central Park took a little longer to get to, since it’s about 1½ miles away. (Stop and have lunch at the Central Park Boathouse if you get a chance. The view is beautiful!)
When you travel, sightseeing is something many people enjoy. But when you’re traveling with a toddler, you need to make sure you include a few stops that are specifically for them. Our son loved the LEGO store. The Disney store also is a must.
New York is full of so many dining options. We enjoyed breakfast at the Red Flame, ate lunch in Koreatown — about two miles away from Times Square — and had dinner just down the street from our hotel at St. Andrews Restaurant & Bar. [Update: As of 2021, this eatery has closed permanently.]
#SonOfJae enjoying lunch in Koreatown’s Hanok Food Gallery (Photo: Jae-Ha Kim)
But our go-to restaurant was Margon, which is just a few steps away from the Muse. Everything we ate there was delicious and the staff was so friendly. They remembered what we had ordered the previous day and would ask if we wanted the same thing or try something new.
Just the facts: Muse Hotel, 130 W 46th St, New York, NY 10036 (212-485-2400). Our hotel room averaged about $225 per night.
From their website:
From our location in the hub of Midtown Manhattan, things are a little different right now. In place of teeming crowds and traffic jams you’ll find serendipitous moments, like strolling across New York City’s bridges for breathtaking views. Or biking through miles of peaceful “Open Streets” that are closed to cars. More than 40,000 acres of parkland offer grassy oases for sunbathing, picnics, scavenger hunts and other laidback relaxation. Fabulous fare is still in ample supply, and now you can enjoy meals alfresco as streets and sidewalks become breezy dining destinations. Even Times Square is playing along with digital billboards sharing messages of love and gratitude from artists around the world. This is a side of New York you just can’t miss.
Traveling with tots: After we had checked into the hotel, we went to a corner market and picked up some bread, peanut butter, jelly and fruit. These made tasty snacks for our child to munch on after a day of sightseeing.
