City Island is a seaside town in the Bronx. Known for its fishing, seafood, and main street it is a self-contained working-class haven. The buildings range from late 1800's houses to 1960's storefronts, and you can smell the ocean everywhere on the island. Restaurants and local pubs dot City Island Ave, and even the few empty storefronts stay vibrant. 

This simple Manhattan salt house is shaped like a monumental grain of salt. The Shed is an effort by the city to make even their most utilitarian architecture into unique pieces of art.

A legendary basketball court in the West Village that is a popular destination for basketball aficionados, deflated hoop-dreamers, and gawking tourists.

Within an couple hours' drive of NYC, you can find lots of sleepy seaside towns. Not only can you get your soft ice cream and salt water taffy on, but you can still spot cool, hand-lettered signs and other relics of a past generation's amusements.

I love this excellent independent arthouse theater in the Lower East side. Metrograph projects archive quality 35mm and independent films. Tastefully decorated, there is also a candy store, bookstore and restaurant.