1. If you like cooking and can't seem to find the spices, etc. you need while out in the hinterlands, pay a visit to Kalustyan's on Lexington Avenue, about 26th or 27th.
https://foodsofnations.com/ (Just up from the Fighting 69th's Armory on the other side of the Avenue) If there's a spice, a curry, a whatever ingredient for cooking, they likely have it. All the foodies in NYC wind up going there at some point or another, as do most chefs. Also, if you like Indian food, that whole neighborhood is chock full of good, cheap (by NYC standards) Indian/South Asian restaurants. It seems every time I wind up in NYC I also make a stop there.
2. Union Square Farmer's Market, Saturday mornings. Pricey and it gets crowded, but if you get there early it's a good place to get a little something to eat.
3. Flying Tiger, a little shop on Broadway about 20th. It's sort of the old Spencer Gifts but with a Danish flair. It's a good place to get tsotschkes for stocking-stuffers and a place kids will get a kick out of.
4. Patisserie Claude. West Village institution, not quite the same since Claude handed it off, but still damn good.
https://www.yelp.com/biz/patisserie-claude-new-york5. If you fly-fish, the Urban Angler. They've moved (again) to 5th Avenue between 35 and 36th streets, the side opposite the Empire State Building. They're on the 2nd floor and it's a bit of a rigamarole to find your way in, but worth the visit.
6. And there's always Central Park. Great for walking.
Wear walking shoes and bundle up - this time of year the wind can really howl and make your life miserable.
Don't take a gun. (It's SOP for hotel people to call the police on you) Don't take a knife. Seriously. When it comes to knives, the police have intramural contests trying to flip them open with one hand and they get really good at it. If they can, then it's considered a switchblade and you're in serious trouble.
