New York- I'll Have What She's Having

Ready to check out the Big Apple? Make sure to listen to this episode first! Jon and Jenn share travel tips on how to get cheap Broadway tickets and how to experience Central Park in a way you won't get overwhelmed. As many debate over the best pizza in the city, Jon and Jenn know the answer. In fact, they ate there two days in a row!

Also, how Katz's Delicatessen is a very intimidating place to order. But, they really do have some of the best food! Jenn also kept Jon from seeing John Goodman, which he is still bitter about.

Transcript from podcast:

Jon: Still waiting on [inaudible00:03] to get to us,

Jen: Two tickets.

Jon: Don't sing it, he's going to sue us. I told you, that's how it works. They go after these moms, pop podcasts shows,

Jen: I know right, that’s how they make their money.

Jon: Welcome, this is our savings starts tomorrow, my name is Jon, my wife, Jen is pouring the wine as she does every week. And then we just tell you travel stories of our adventures, some tips along the way, a lot of disasters as well. What are we drinking today?

Jen: So, we're double fisting today. We're having some Tangerine Emergency

Jon: Look at the legs on this thing. That's amazing.

Jen: We got a trip coming up,

Jon: Got to stay healthy.

Jen: You got to stay healthy. And we're also having a Trapiche?

Jon: Trapiche.

Jen: Trapiche.

Jon: From Malbec.

Jen: From Argentina

Jon: You know, what's funny about this is we were told once that when you get a bottle of wine, like red wine, there's something called the wells, it's the bottom of the bottle. And you're supposed to put your thumb up it as if you're goosing it. And the deeper you go.

Jen: The better the wine--

Jon: That's--

Jen: --Allegedly

Jon: This thing actually, it's like an Audi.

Jen: Yeah, there's no... you cannot put your finger up there at all.

Jon: No, It's close for business.

Jen: Its flat.

Jon: And I don't know if it's the wine or if it's the emergency mixed with the wine, but it's an interesting choice.

Jen: I know. It's probably not our better mixing.

Jon: No, we've had better.

Jon: Yeah. Can't wait to tell you all about New York, but first want to thank another one of our great sponsors who keeps the show going Commodore Express is actively hiring CDL A team drivers. So, Commodore Express essential Tennessee's premier refrigerated truckload carrier is actively hiring CDL A team drivers for our west coast weekly runs from the central Tennessee area. Our teams enjoy consistent weekly miles, full benefits, package, quality, home, family, time, and constant paychecks. We are an out and back operation, which allows you to run more miles if you choose simple and stress-free, they're a family-oriented company that takes pride in the way they do business, fairly honest and respectfully.

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Jen: Oh, that’s clever

Jon: I'll put it in our show notes as well. All right. Let's talk New York,

Jen: New York of all.

Jon: You gave me a hard time because we're landing in New York for the first time we see the plane actually goes like out over the ocean it banks and it comes back. And that's when you see the New York skyline,

Jen: Which is really exciting.

Jon: Gorgeous.

Jen: Yes.

Jon: And I decided to sing NYC from Annie.

Jen: I know why that song?

Jon: I don't know why it was the first one to pop in my head. You would think it could be like Sinatra? Some Jay Z. Alicia Keys

Jen: Oh yeah. I can totally see you dancing Jay Z,

Jon: But no, no, it was the Broadway hit show Anne.

Jen: If that doesn't explain everything.

Jon: I Know as we record this, there's a lot of New York that's different right now because of the pandemic. And there's closures happening. We have some friends who actually just canceled a trip because a lot of different rules are being put back into place. So, I don't know when you'll be listening to this podcast, but --

Jen: Yeah. I mean, definitely don't take [laughter/crosstalk03:58]

Jon: --Anything we say in this I would take as a parody. Yeah, exactly. I was really excited. Our first trip, we had never been to New York it's something we had always talked about. You land and then you have to like, wait after your two-hour, three hour or four-hour flight, you then have to wait, you know, one hour or two hour, three hours for a cab.

Jen: The line is insane.

Jon: And Ubers too, it doesn't matter what you're going to wait. And then once you finally get into it, then it's another one hour or two hours from the airport to New York.

Jen: To Manhattan.

Jon: Yeah, and you get to pass a really cool cemetery along the way. I don't know why that’s like a... It's huge.

Jen: Yeah. Madison square garden.

Jon: You get to pass that along the way.

Jen: I'm pretty sure.

Jon: I don't think we ever passed Madison square garden. You could have taken the subway also? Couldn’t you? It was just one of those things.

Jen: It was just very intimidating for us. Having never been there before, actually the first time I think we did take a cab because it's like, that's what you do.

Jon: Yeah, its New York.

Jen: Yeah. But the second time we took an Uber.

Jon: All I know is when we finally got to the hotel, which was in Manhattan and we pulled up in the cab and we got out and there was a hot dog stand right there.

Jen: Yep.

Jon: So, we are--

Jen: The dirtiest, the grimiest little hot dog stand.

Jon: And we're like taking our luggage out of the cab and as you're doing it and paying the cabbie, I'm already in line ordering a hot dog. I wanted a New York Street, food, hot dog so bad.

Jen: Yeah. Did you have diarrhea like the rest of the day?

Jon: Well, I did, but I don't know what that was from.

Jen: Definitely not from the dirty hot dogs stand.

Jon: It was good. They make it the right way too.

Jen: The bun was very soft.

Jon: Yeah. I love it. They make it like a Costco hot dog. They boil the meat. It's not grilled I enjoy that kind of a hot dog. So already I thought the trip was off to a great start because I got my hot dog. And speaking of food I guess our other thing, I want to two things, I wanted three things, five things. Wanted the hot dog.

New Speaker: Yes. Got the hot dog.

Jon: A New York pizza. I wanted the best pizza that New York had to offer. And we had a few people all say the same place. So, we're like, okay, that's the place we have to go. Which was called John's pizzeria. We went through that night.

Jen: Yeah. And then we went there the next night.

Jon: It was so good.

Jen: It was actually so good.

Jon: And what's really cool about John's pizzeria. There's a few of them. But the one we went to is like off of 44th and Broadway. So, it's like right down where the shows are happening. And it's this old gospel tabernacle church that turned into a crack den at one point. And then they bought it

Jen: And there's like stain glass around still from like when it was a church. Yeah. It's cool.

Jon: So, we did, we went there twice because we loved it so much

Jen: And nothing fancy on it. Like we got the margarita I think both times. Play the hits. Oh my gosh It was so... that sauce.

Jon: Yeah. It's more of a, like a sit-down restaurant. I mean, you can get it to go. The other kind is like the more like I'm a New Yorker I'm standing up and I'm folding it in half and I'm eating it. You know, I'm yelling at someone.

Jen: I love your impersonation

Jon: What'd you think of it? Hey, I walking here.

Jen: I apologize any new Yorkers that are listening to this that are offended.

Jon: I'm a man of a thousand voices.

Jen: That’s what I always say about you.

Jon: The One that I think like I, at least everyone says is the place to go. If you want more of that style is Joe's pizza.

Jen: Yeah, we had Joe's pizza too.

Jon: Yeah, of course we had all the pizzas

Jen: On a different trip and I liked John's better.

Jon: I like John's better, but I would not like poopoo Joe's pizza.

Jen: Oh no, no, no. I'm not poo-pooing Joe's pizza. But if given the choice I want John's.

Jon: Joe's is like one of those famous places where they have a bunch of headshots and then like newspaper clippings up on the walls and stuff.

Jen: But you just like grab a slice?

Jon: That's what it gets them-- Okay. I told you there was a few things I wanted to do. There was the hot dog. There was the pizza. I wanted to see a Broadway show.

Jen: Yes.

Jon: Now I think we kind of had two different thoughts here on this one, because I just wanted to see something on Broadway. I didn't care if it was a play or a musical.

Jen: Well, I guess I felt the same way.

Jon: No, you did it because there was a place during John Goodman who I love--

Jen: It sounded so boring.

Jon: --That I wanted to see,

Jen: I know, but it sounded so boring.

Jon: I brought it up like three times to like, let's go see this Broadway play

Jen: Do you remember what it was. It was like some period piece and it's just sounded like a snooze Fest

Jon: John Goodman from the Connors. John Goodman

Jen: I know and we're those people, well, Jon has made me that kind of person that like, we don't leave in the middle of a show, no matter how horrific it is. Let me just tell you what, over the years we've been to some doozies, like we do not leave people leave, we're still sitting there.

Jon: There’s been some art shows we've seen where we're the last ones in there.

Jen: Oh my God, But yeah. So, I'm like, I know I don't want to do that, that doesn't sound fun. I wanted to go to something like famous.

Jon: And I mean, obviously every shows there on Broadway, right? That's the whole point of New York, but tickets are expensive.

Jen: Yeah.

Jon: And we heard that there's this place you can go to, it's closed right now, again as of this recording, but it's called a TKTS so tickets and there's a few little offices or tiny little boxes across New York.

Jen: We went to the one, like at time square though, like.

Jon: We went to the real one.

Jen: Yeah.

Jon: And they do same-day tickets for shows at 50% off. So, you can see like a really cool Broadway show with like great seats. But you have to be willing to see whatever is just available and they haven't sold out. So most likely like, you're not going to get your [Inaudible09:53].

Jen: Hamilton’s.

Jon: Or Hamilton. No, one's not buying those tickets. You have to see those ones on the way out and we saw a Jersey boy,

Jen: Which initially I wasn't like... I think--

Jon: No.

Jen: --Either of us were really that excited about it.

Jon: No, I wanted the play.

Jen: Well, it sounded so boring...

Jon: So was Jersey boys, it sounded boring.

Jen: Well, yeah, it sounded boring.

Jon: It sounded boring.

Jen: It sounded...well we just didn't know anything about it,

Jon: But it was great.

Jen: It was so good.

Jon: And it was really -- I'd see it again.

Jen: I would totally see it again. If you haven't seen it, you should totally see it.

Jon: Yea anywhere not just in New York.

Jen: Yeah, anywhere.

Jon: That was the one thing like don't get me wrong. It was great. Like, I really enjoyed it. I feel like, you know, we get that Broadway across America. I think they're just as good.

Jen: I agree.

Jon: I don't know if like...

Jen: I don't again, I'm sorry New York people. I'm sorry people on Broadway.

Jon: Yeah. I mean, I think it's huge. Congratulations on making it there. But I think those touring companies are just as talented.

Jen: Yeah, they’re. Yeah. I agree.

Jon: All right, so there was the hot dog. There was the pizza. There was Broadway. I wanted to see the big park Central Park.

Jen: Yes.

Jon: It's huge.

Jen: We spent all day, literally all day walking around that park

Jon: We actually tracked our steps. We walked a marathon an actual 26.1 miles

Jen: It was insane.

Jon: It was a lot.

Jen: And we didn't even see all of it.

Jon: No, and well, here's the problem, much like our podcasts, it was a scattered day because we didn't have any cause we're terrible at planning things. So, we just show up at Central Park.

Jen: We got a bagel.

Jon: Got a bagel that morning, which you got to do because it's New York and you need to have a bagel.

Jen: They put a lot of cream cheese on their bagels.

Jon: I will say, I felt like the bagel is better in New York.

Jen: I agree.

Jon: Yeah.

Jen: But they put a lot of cream cheese.

Jon: I had to scrape some off.

Jen: Yeah. well yeah ok no. I mean I didn't scrape it off, but like, there was just a lot. No, but we got there like, as the park was like opening

Jon: 7:00 AM or something like that.

Jen: I know yeah.

Jon: And we go in and the next thing you know, Jen decides not like doing any research ahead of time.

Jen: Nope.

Jon: But just as we start to walk, Central Park and Central Park has been in so many different movies. So many of your favorites.

Jen: Yes.

Jon: Why then today of all days, you're asking about when Harry met Sally.

Jen: Yeah.

Jon: Every time we turned a corner,

Jen: Oh my gosh every time we turned a corner and there was like the tree lined walkway, I'm like, this is where they filmed that scene from Harry met Sally. And then we would turn another corner and I'd be like, no, this is definitely where it is. I think I said that like four different times,

Jon: We only about three quarters of the way through the day realized, hey, why don't we just take out our phones and look up where it is? Just so you know, so you don't have to do the same thing we did. It's called the mall. That's the name of the strip of trees “The mall". So now you can just tell your wife, who's dragging you all across the park "Sure this is it".

Jen: Yeah.

Jon: Or you can take her to-- It's like this path that's lined by two rolls of American Elm trees. And once you see it, you're like, oh,

Jen: Well, there's a lot of areas that look alike.

Jon: Yeah everywhere. The conservatory water where those remote-control boats are, that was like really cool.

Jen: Yea that was cool.

Jon: And then the Alison Wonderland statute was like right there. The bow bridge, which you see, Belvedere castle, which is this castle in the middle of the park. What's crazy is like, you're in the park and it's like going to Disneyland. Yeah. There's a whole section of like where there's a castle or whether it's a Shakespeare theater,

Jen: A zoo,

Jon: The zoo.

Jen: Yes.

Jon: There's well, Tavern on the Green is no longer open, but like, there's that, like there's so much to see. And then as you stand in the middle of the park and you look around, you see all these famous like skyline shots of like the Ghostbusters tower. And for some reason, I feel like you looked up instead of where the When Harry met Sally movie was filmed, you looked up where Taylor Swift's penthouse was.

Jen: Yep

Jon: And you were pointing that to me.

Jen: Yep.

Jon: So that's the research you did.

Jen: Just yeah.

Jon: Yeah.

Jen: Gold.

Jon: Yeah.

Jen: That's what I do

Jon: I also wanted to see the, of course the empire state building,

Jen: Of course,

Jon: We all want to see that. And it turns out that there's this really cool bar that is just down the street from the empire state building it's called the 235th rooftop bar. I think that's how you say it and you and I took a New York Pedi cab there.

Jen: Yes.

Jon: Which is a thrill of a ride.

Jen: Oh yeah. Oh yeah.

Jon: Well, I mean, he was, it was nighttime.

Jen: He was dodging in and out of traffic.

Jon: I'm going to say death wish he was looking to end his life that night. And he didn't care that we were in the back of that cab

Jen: No, I think he preferred it.

Jon: Yeah. He wanted someone to go with him and so it was intense. It was expensive too.

Jen: Oh yeah.

Jon: It's really expensive. Like a cab ride or an Uber ride is definitely cheaper than a New York Pedi cab, but there is something so cool about seeing the city that way. Like, it was fun. We didn't do it back. No, you were never going to get back ever again.

Jen: No, but that bar was super cool.

Jon: Isn't it cool. You walk in and you're just going to walking into this office building. And then you go up this elevator and when you get out, it's like this happening New York bar

Jen: Yeah. A big rooftop bar. There's couches, there's tables. There's yeah... it was cool. And then the view.

Jon: Yeah. You can look all around New York and you can see the empire state building. It is one of the best places to go to see the empire state building. I'm going to warn you that the cocktails are like $30.

Jen: Yeah, they were like the most expensive drinks we've ever had.

Jon: And that's even compared to Vegas.

Jen: Yeah.

Jon: Drinks were crazy expensive. Also, I wanted to post a photo on our Instagram page. I don't know what was going on with me that I look like I have crazy eyes and every photo we took, I don't know if we ask someone to take the photo and they were waiting too long and I was like, yeah, but I'm straining in my eyes.

Jen: I bet your also just exhausted.

Jon: That could be also it, I was not smizing, I was like not at a good place mentally, as we took those photos. Another place you have to check out in New York it's Katz deli. Oh, wait another thing from when Harry met Sally.

Jen: Yes. I love when Harry met Sally.,

Jon: It's that one scene, you know, the scene.

Jen: You know, the scene.

Jon: I'll have what she's having scene and they actually have a sign that points down to the exact chair.

Speaker 8: I love that. They filmed that at,

Jen: We had to wait in line to get in to Katz deli. And then it's like very, very intimidating to order from there counter.

Jon: It's like the it's like the Seinfeld episode, the soup Nazi episode. Like, you've got to know what you want ahead of time. They're not messing around and they are moving you through quick. And if you're like, let me just see, like, they start glaring at you.

Jen: Yeah. They'll seriously like, say like step aside and they'll take the person behind you. Like, it's very intimidating,

Jon: But it was good.

Jen: Was so good.

Jon: Bought a shirt, send a salami to your soldier. I wear that thing every day.

Jen: I've actually contemplated ordering stuff to have it delivered here.

Jon: Yeah. I mean, it was that kind of a place it's so good. And it's really cool. And we really, --

Jen: And their pickles were so good.

Jon: Yeah, all of it and actually truth be told we ate Katz deli and then went and had Joe's pizza.

Jen: Well, yeah,

Jon: Right afterwards.

Jen: Yeah. I had a horrific migraine that day, so,

Jon: You know, one of the things we wanted to do was see Saturday Night live while we were there in New York.

Jen: Oh yeah.

Jon: We didn't.

Jen: We got tickets though.

Jon: Not to SNL.

Jen: No, we got tickets to[inaudible17:56] Oh, it was umm.

Jon: Stephen Colbert.

Jen: Was it Steven Colbert

Jon: Yeah. We wanted tickets to the tonight show. We didn't get those either with Jimmy Fallon. And at the time, listen, we know that Stephen Colbert has like the number one show now, but he was like, it was like a flop of a show when it first started.

Jen: Yeah, we thought it was going to get canceled actually,

Jon: So, we didn't go.

Jen: I know hindsight. I wish we would've gone. Cause I actually am a big Stephen Colbert fan. I don't know why we really didn't push ourselves to go. It was late.

Jon: We just wanted to walk around times square, just walk everywhere. There's so much to see.

Jen: There's so much to see.

Jon: And you have to be there so early. But I do know with like SNL, like six months before you go, you can start getting in the lottery.

Jen: We tried.

Jon: Yeah. I know we did so I'm just saying like, if that's something you want to do, make sure you put that in your calendar ahead of time. You only one of my favorite places was Rockefeller center

Jen: That was cool. I'd love to go back there at Christmas time.

Jon: We always used to watch the today show.

Jen: Yes.

Jon: And you could see like, where are they shoot the Today show

Jen: Yes.! Like that's where it is.

Jon: Yeah.

Jen: Yeah, that was cool.

Jon: To me that was such a highlight we never got up early enough to go to the taping.

Jen: No.

Jon: We just saw where they tape.

Jen: Yep.

Jon: Yeah, and then also just like seeing where they do the ice skating in the winter time and everything like that. We took the subway twice probably.

Jen: Yeah, I feel like you got to like at least kind of experience that.

Jon: Yeah. It's smelly. It's loud and that's that. Times square we went there

Jen: Again--.

Jon: Reminds me of like the Vegas strip.

Jen: --I feel like you gotta at least like say that you went there, but

Jon: Smaller than you would think or bigger than you would think.

Jen: Oh, I guess it was exactly what I expected. Did you think it was smaller?

Jon: I did.

Jen: Really?

Jon: Yeah. We saw the naked cowboy.

Jen: Did we see the naked cowboy?

Jon: No that’s problem, now there's like nine of them.

Jen: Yeah.

Jon: Like if I was him, I'd be pissed, like I have been doing this for twenty years

Jen: It was like Vegas in that sense, like there were so many random people and--

Jon: Costume characters --

Jen: --That you could pay to take photos with, that I mean...

Jon: I don't want to take a photo with an Elmo that looks like it has ticks.

Jen: No.

Jon: Like mange is what it really--

Jen: I know there was a lot of that.

Jon: Yeah[inaudible20:13].

Jen: I didn't understand like why; yeah...

Jon: And then one other thing I wanted to mention the Big Gay Ice Cream shop.

Jen: Oh yeah. We did go to the Big Gay Ice Cream shop

Jon: That’s actually when we took the subway to the Big Gay Ice Cream shop, because we had heard that you had to go to it and it really is a fun place --

Jen: It is a fun place. And the whole neighborhood is cool to like walk... like that's where I would want to live If we lived in New York,

Jon: We would live right next to the Big Gay Ice Cream shop, yea we would. We want to go back. We always want to go back. We're never there long enough. We just can't afford to be there longer than two days at time. It is really one of the most expensive places to go

Jen: It is. just like hotel, drinks, food, all of it.

Jon: Yeah. Flights actually easy.

Jen: Oh yeah, flight is not bad.

Jon: But it's everything else that makes it just--

Jen: Expensive.

Jon: And the rooms are small when you stay at the hotel,

New Speaker: They are. Yeah, they are very small.

Jon: Be aware of that. So, there you go. That went quick, oh my gosh,

Jen: I know that was quick.

Jon: Thanks A lot. Thank you so much our podcast keeps growing. It's really fun and exciting and it's because of you. So, if you don't mind telling two friends--

Jen: Tell two, and then they'll tell two.

Jon: Exactly. That's how it works--

Jen: Or tell four.

Jon: You know, just take out your phone right now and select all your contacts and text them all about this podcast. And also make sure you're following us on Instagram. That continues to grow--

Jen: I know.

Jon: At a nice pace.

Jen: Please share fun photos.

Jon: Yeah.

Jen: I think.

Jon: Trust me, there's not gonna be anything. --

Jen: Real photos.

Jon: Yeah, there's no sexy photo of me. There's nothing about this body with like an open robe laying in a hotel bed. You're not gonna see it. I see some of those travel people do that. And I'm like, that guy is not having a New York hot dog when he gets out of a cab.

Jen: Or like pizza two nights in a row.

Jon: No not at all. But our Instagram is our savings starts tomorrow.