While the current trend in noodles may well be ramen, this bafflingly-named Japanese restaurant just ten minutes from my apartment specialises in udon. Unless you are my friend Diego Zambrano it will probably take you several visits to get through all the things you need to try on the menu - the gyoza are otherworldly, the sushi 'tacos' clever enough without being silly. New York has thousands of awful Japanese places; this is not one of them. It's super nice to come in on a Sunday night and eat at the bar next to curmudgeonly old guys barking at each other in Japanese.

A great way to escape the city...Especially amazing in Spring when the cherry blossoms are out. I love the Japanese pond, the famous NYers walk with plates for Arthur Miller or Lee Krasner and of course the green house.

The exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art can speak for themselves, but the Sculpture Garden there is the best backyard in the city.

Recommended by my friend and talented illustrator, Isabel Castillo Guijarro, this spot makes incredible cappuccinos and is in one of my favorite NYC buildings, the WoolWorth Building

Best fried chicken ever, and the speakeasy downstairs is incredible.