Yesterday’s blizzard had two effects. Here is effect #1:
And here is effect #2:
This is the newly revamped MOMA, opened in November. Word on the street has been that it’s fantastic but that the wait is outrageous. This was confirmed when I walked past it last week and saw an enormous line and said, “The wait is outrageous!”
Today, though, I was going there to meet my Forms of Drama class for a tour. When I arrived I was shocked to see emptiness on the streets. Barricades where people usually wait were vacant. And yet the museum was open. Eureka! A snowy discovery.
And our tour was such a pleasure. We had a great tourguide (I think his name was Gordon?) who spoke eloquently on everything from Mondrian:
To installation art and beyond. Our group was surely captivated:
And the museum itself is beautiful. I love the new design. Very elegant, very simple* (simple is today’s buzzword) and very straightforward. The art stood out beautifully.
But then we were hungry. What’s near the MOMA where eight people can sit comfortably? Well the Carnegie Deli, of course, but that’s always crowded. But wait—it’s post-blizzard weather. Do you think…
And sure enough, we were sat right away. Normally there’s a huge line outside (it’s become something of a tourist trap) but not today. Delicious pickles and my favorite deli drink, Dr. Brown’s black cherry soda were served right away:
Of course a bowl of ethnically sound chicken noodle soup:
(Richer and chickenier than 2nd Ave. Deli’s, but somehow not as good).
Then Alex (my sassy classmate) and I shared a corned beef sandwich:
It was her first. She had a very “Annie Hall” moment. She asked if it came with lettuce, tomato and onion. Oh Alex. She joked: “Ladeedah.”
[Please tell me you’ve seen “Annie Hall.”]
[Random Woody Allen trivia: What Woody Allen movie features a table of borscht belt comedians sitting around a table at the back of the Carnegie Deli? Winner wins bubkis!]
Everything was tasty and dependable, but not as good as 2nd Ave. soup or Katz’s corned beef. Patty, the vegatarian, shared a tuna melt with Molly and later they felt ill. Did Carnegie make them sick?
I don’t know. But go on a snowy Sunday and there definitely won’t be a wait!
Well at least she didn’t put mayonnaise on it…
And the movie is Broadway Danny Rose!!!!!
how funny – i too was at moma this snowy sunday. and so our paths (nearly) cross once again…
Answer: Broadway Danny Rose… right??
When I visited NYC from Portland, Or. I found the pastrami sandwich at Carnegie grossly swollen — and I didn’t have anyone to share it with — and I thought grossly overpriced too. Tasty, though.
If you happen to return to Carnegie, I think the desserts are really the thing to try. They have something called the Hershey’s Fifth Ave. Bavarian Chocolate Cream Pie (I couldn’t remember the whole name, so I copied it from menupages), and it’s terrific. Just go, get pickles, get Dr. Brown’s, get pie, and have dinner elsewhere.