A few days ago, I was scouting for office space around West 57th Street when I happened to walk by Stack’s Rare Coins shop… …and noticed what looked sort of like an ATM out front. Curious, I looked a little closer and realized this wasn’t any ordinary ATM… This ATM dispenses gold. Gold or silver,…
Last week, I was trudging through a very slushy midtown when I happened to turn onto 47th Street… …and walk past what has to be one of the strangest buildings in Manhattan: A six-story office building, the facade of 15 East 47th Street is completely obscured by a wall of brass-colored rings: Here’s a close-up….
This year’s holiday shopping suggestion is one of my favorite stores in New York, and I highly recommend a visit to everyone, especially if you’re searching for a one-of-a-kind Christmas gift. Located in the shadow of the Empire State Building, Fantasma Magic is tucked away on the third floor of 421 Seventh Avenue, and other…
So here’s a mystery. A few months ago, I got an email from reader Matthew J. advising me to check out Brothers Hardware at 26 West 38th Street. The shop is pretty unassuming from the outside… But go inside…
Last week, I was scouting office space in midtown, and I stopped by one of my favorite buildings on Sixth Avenue. At 850 feet tall, 30 Rockefeller Plaza is the 10th tallest building in New York… …which is why I love the little townhouse standing next to it so much. On an avenue lined by…
The other day, I was scouting the steps of the New York Public Library main branch. I’ve had to do this assignment a million times over the years for various movies and TV shows that want to shoot at the world’s most famous library, and I began thinking how sad it was to know a…
If this is your idea of a board game… …you really, really need to take a trip to one of my all-time favorite stores in New York City, The Compleat Strategist – the perfect place to find a completely original gift for that special someone on your list:
Last year for Open House NY (happening soon – get your tickets now!), I wrote about the 8th Avenue Post Office, and how 95% of it is completely vacant. I was recently there for a location scout, and while I was waiting for my contact, I noticed something I hadn’t on my first visit: this…
Each time I walk down East 43rd Street, I expect it to have been torn down: A beautiful Italianate marble building, 4 East 43rd Street has to be one of the few abandoned properties in Midtown. Nestled in amongst the skyscrapers adjacent to Grand Central, it has been decaying since I began my location scouting…
In these troubling times, it is refreshing to know that somewhere in the Socony-Mobil building… …Perched high above 42nd Street… …A masked avenger keeps a constant vigil over us. -SCOUT PS – The Socony-Mobil building at 150 East 42nd Street is one of my all-time favorite buildings in New York. Interesting fact: The raised patterns…