re: New York City first timer in December - All the reqs

I just got back from NYC last week. We stayed over in Brooklyn as its cheaper and near several things we like over there; some good breweries and a great distillery (widow jane), Brooklyn Botanical Garden and several great neighborhoods full of restaurants and bars that are full of locals. Red Hook area is really cool and more like Austin or Portland, Oregon than NYC. We spent an afternoon there at Widow Jane and a cool dive bar called Sunnys. And there is at least one other distillery and a brewery over there too plus restaurants and other shops. To get there from Manhattan you take a ferry from Wall Street that drops you right there. If you are staying near Times Square, Pizza Suprema near Penn Station is one of the best slices in NYC. I ended up going there twice as we caught the train to Connecticut from Penn Station. Also in the area but more in the West Village is Taco Majal which are Indian Tacos, very casual, get the roti tacos rather than the naan as they are more like tortillas. Just around the corner are 2 great craft beer places to grab a seat outside and people watch, Beer Garage and Blind Tiger. We always hit those 2 places. The High Line park is nearby and worth a walk but in December the plants may be dormant. This time, we took an architectural boat tour that circled Manhattan island and it was really cool to see Manhattan from that perspective, especially the northern tip of the island that is still very hilly, green and lush. There are some big parks up there I want to go to next time and the Cloisters medieval museum is up there. The boat tour was pricey but worth it. There are probably cheaper boat options but the architectural tour was limited to 20 people and had an architect pointing out things....and it had a full bar. I could point you to some funky, free art galleries if you are interested, such as the apartment that has been filled with dirt since the 1970s.....yep. Like someone said, if you are going to use the subways, get the 7 day metro card for $33 and is unlimited rides including buses for 7 days. Here is a good guide to using the subway that I read before I go to refresh my memory. Riding the subway