New York Fashion Week is never just about the fashion. It’s also about the breakfast dates, the blow-outs and the last-minute workouts squeezed in between shows. After so many seasons on the ground, we’ve gotten into a groove with our NYFW routine. We have favorite places to hit up each time we’re in town (shout-out to the Standard Grill for their amazing moules frites), but we also love to try a new hot spot with our fellow fashionistas. Speaking of which, making new friends and seeing the old might just be the best part of this fashion circus, so don’t forget to bring your business cards. This season will feel a bit different without Lincoln Center serving as HQ, but we still have lots of hidden gem along the downtown west side to call our own in between shows. Here, your guide to navigating NYC this week.
Your Guide To NYFW
Photo: @samahaya
Where to Get Connected
NYFW is one long schmooze-fest, so we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention our favorite places to score face time. Nothing beats the Soho House (as evinced by Lauren Sherman, Danielle Snyder and Leandra Medine, above) for its close proximity to Milk Studios and its tight, clubby atmosphere, but if you’re not a member (or don’t know one), the Empire Hotel, a fashion blogger favorite, and the Marlton Hotel in Greenwich Village both boast killer lobby scenes.
Photo: @sohohouse.
The Empire Hotel 44 West 63rd Street at Central Park West http://www.empirehotelnyc.com
Marlton Hotel 5 West 8th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues http://marltonhotel.com
Soho House New York (shown above) 29-35 Ninth Avenue between West 13th and 14th Streets https://www.sohohouseny.com
Where to Get Gorgeous
That mani-pedi you got at home before flying to JFK will probably not last 8 days. Your AM makeup definitely won’t make it to PM drinks. And using the hair dryer in your hotel room never scores points with the photogs lingering outside Milk Studios. Thankfully, Jin Soon Choi now has her own nail salon in the picturesque West Village (above, tending to Marc Jacobs) and Dream Dry’s NYC flagship is located conveniently between Skylight and Milk studios. No time to contour? Swing by a Triumph Hotel (including the Evelyn, the Iroquois and the Cosmopolitan) for a touch-up at their Pucker Makeup Studio pop-ups.
Photo: @jinsoonchoi.
DreamDry 35 West 21st Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues http://dreamdry.com
Triump Hotels Beauty Pop-Ups http://www.triumphhotels.com
Jin Soon Nail Salon 23 Jones Street between West 4th and Bleecker Streets http://www.jinsoon.com
Where to Get Fed
We hate to sound like your mother, but don’t forget to eat at NYFW! If you’re too busy to even grab a protein bar between shows, schedule meetings and catch-up sessions around mealtimes. It’s important in the chaos of each day to sit still for a moment and focus. Fortunately, we know just where to nosh with like-minded fashion folk. The healthy bites chain Sweetgreen recently opened shop in Tribeca, near Skylight Clarkson Square, perfect for an AM grain bowl. If you find yourself near Milk Studios at lunchtime, Catch NYC’s rooftop offers a delicious menu and fun power lunch scene. (Check out that view above.) And if you can’t get a table at Ralph Lauren’s Polo Bar on Fifth Avenue, try the Clocktower in Ian Schrager’s new and buzzy Edition Hotel.
Photo: @emmgroup.
Catch NYC 21 Ninth Avenue at West 13th Street http://emmgrp.com/restaurants/catch
The Clocktower at the Edition Hotel 5 Madison Avenue at East 24th Street http://www.editionhotels.com/new-york/restaurants-and-bars/the-clocktower
The Polo Bar 1 East 55th Street http://ralphlauren.com
Sweetgreen 413 Greenwich Street at Hubert Street http://sweetgreen.com
Where to Get a Workout
Nothing balances the craziness of fashion week like a good workout, if you can fit it into your schedule. Fortunately, Manhattan’s west side is packed with boutique studios and gyms to make fitness a snap, whether you want a quick cardio jolt or a nice long savasana pose. Gotham Gym is notorious for its supermodel fan base—see proof above in the form of Rianna Ten Haken—and conveniently close to Skylight Clarkson Square in Tribeca. Flywheel just opened a Chelsea cycling studio within a stone’s throw of Milk Studio, and Om Factory, located just north of Skylight in Midtown, offers aerial, acro and ashtanga yoga classes ‘round the clock. Because what good are the Spring 2016 collections if don't feel good in your skin first?
Photo: @gothamgym
Flywheel Sports 245 West 17th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues http://www.flywheelsports.com
Gotham Gym NYC 600 Washington Street between Morton and Leroy Streets http://gothamgymnyc.com
Om Factory 874 Broadway http://www.omfactorynyc.com
