Work Trip to NYC

Work sent me to New York for one day. I tried to make the most of it. 

First stop was knocking something off a food bucket list of mine. I had always seen pictures of these giant corned beef or pastrami sandwiches from Carnegie Deli or Katz's Deli and wanted one. Last year, in preparation for a family NYC trip, I saw a video that recommended Sarge's Deli to avoid the touristy lines at Katz's. (Carnegie Deli opened in 1937 but closed in 2016 because the owner was tired of the grueling hours.) Sarge's was a great tip as I was able to walk in at 11 and get a table without waiting in line. 

I got the combination corned beef and pastrami on rye. It was everything I wanted it to be. Though it is too much meat and not enough Russian dressing. If I lived in New York, this would be a great thing to get to go and spread it out across several sandwiches. 

From there I went over to Edge, a newish observation deck that overhangs the building on the 100th floor.

This is the Vessel, next door to Edge.

Before the trip, I brainstormed a list of things to see, do and eat. One thing I wanted to do but knew I wouldn't have time was walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. I planned a full itinerary that included a trip to MoMA. Unfortunately, the work portion of the work trip took longer than anticipated and I wasn't able to go to the museum. I also didn't have time to go to Bar Piselino for Italian hot chocolate or Levain Bakery for big cookies. (In hindsight, since it turned out to be 7 hours between eating opportunities, I'm glad I picked the giant sandwich for lunch.)

In preparation for this trip, I watched this video on NYC pizza and had my heart captured by the opening frame:

So I went to Village Square Pizza to try it for myself. Here's a slice of pepperoni with hot honey:

Predictably, this was excellent. Especially when paired with a Lagunitas IPA. Also, you can tell I was full from Sarge's sandwich because I only ordered one slice. (Though this wasn't as good as the incredible Square Pie Guys pizza I had with Niraj in October. When I said that was one of the best of my life, I meant it with no exaggeration.)

With less than an hour before I had to get to Comedy Cellar, I stopped in to Blind Pig and got a quality beer. 

When I found out I was going to New York, the thing I was most excited about was visiting Comedy Cellar for the first time. 

I went looking to reserve tickets and found one line-up featuring Dave Attell. I went to book it and it was sold out already. I found a different lineup with Todd Barry. Also sold out. The best show that I could get tickets for had Colin Quinn as the recognizable name. Not a huge fan, but I was going for the overall experience, not a specific comic. 

Also, the location that I booked was the Village Underground location, around the corner from the MacDougal Street location. It's still the Comedy Cellar, it just doesn't have the cool sign. In my head, seeing the lit up sign was a key attraction, so I made sure to get a picture of it anyways. 

We walk in and they give us good seats. It's $14 with a two-item minimum. 

Mike Yard was the host and had the first set. Funny stuff and a good way to get started.

Gregg Rogell was out first after that and he was okay. The second comic was a guy from Texas and he was funnier but I didn't catch his name and he wasn't on the lineup. Then Colin Quinn came and was the worst of the bunch. He was trying out some jokes about Ukraine and just didn't seem like he had the right energy. 

Each of those comics did about 10 minutes each. I had heard there's the possibility of a famous comic dropping by, but I also was expecting someone on the B-list. Before the show they showed pictures of Amy Shumer and Pete Davidson, so I was thinking someone along that level of famousness. I thought Mulaney would be a big get but seemed unlikely. Also, I knew the lineup had 6 comics on it, so I figured we'd see 2 more sets and then maybe a surprise guest. 

So I was not ready at all for what happened next. 

Mike Yard takes the mic and says, "When you choose Comedy Cellar, you're making a good choice. Please welcome to the stage, Chris Rock."

There's like 5 seconds where we're all wondering, did he just say what I think he said. Is that a joke?

And sure enough, Chris Rock walks up on stage, less than 20 feet in front of me. 

We weren't allowed to take photos, but he did the whole set in a winter jacket, kind of like this:

He was incredible. Not only was he absolutely hilarious, but he did an entire hour. 

Because none of us bought tickets to a Chris Rock show, it didn't feel like paying to see someone famous in concert. It felt like bumping into a celebrity and getting to hang out with them for an hour. 

Absolutely surreal. Something I'll never forget.