Dinner Spot Near Radio City Music Hall

Every year I get guilted into sending our daughter to the Christmas Extravaganza at Radio City Music Hall. I've gone twice, but now what I do is send her with a grandparent, and meet up with them for dinner afterwards. What that means though, is finding something in walking distance from the venue, because they are both starving, and it's past bedtime. If you've ever been around there, you know it's a zoo, and there are thousands upon thousands of families and shoppers who are in the same boat as you...so this is what I discovered. Little Brazil on W. 46th St. between 6th and 5th avenues (4 blocks down from Radio City), has a number of restaurants, and nobody is thinking about Brazilian, at least not in volumes. We like Via Brasil, and have gone there over the years--it's not the most epic meal you'll eat, but they make a mean caipirinha, have delicious stews and traditional fare (we just ask a lot of questions) and for kids that are picky there is plenty of rice and beans. I saw on NY Mag that people also like Emporium Brasil, and Ipanema. If you go on a weekend night, or are in a larger group, I would call ahead, although we just walked in on a weeknight. What's especially nice is that it feels like a special spot, which is exactly what you want after a special occasion.

Christmas Cheer

We did our annual trip to Rockefeller Center last week, and I think I've figured out the best way to do it. Always go on a weekday (way less crowded), go early-ish, know where you're going to dinner, and make it close and/or easy. The dinner nearby is probably the biggest challenge, since every Midtown place that you might want to go to is packed with theater goers at the hour you'd need to go. Or they're too expensive. Or both. You can do a couple of things--hop on the train and take it two stops down on the 6th Ave line, to 34th St. Walk two blocks to Koreatown, which is filled with fantastic Korean restaurants..my favorites are Kum Gang San at 49 W. 32nd, or Kang Suh. Just a block further, between 5th and Madison, on 32nd, is Hangawi . It's vegetarian Korean, and we love it for it's traditional approach--you take off your shoes when you come in. It's definitely more expensive and less raucous of an atmosphere as the others, so if your kids are wound up from too many Christmas cookies, don't come here.  For a more traditional Christmas vibe, there's the pub room at Keen's (on 36th St and 6th Ave), one of my all-time favorites. If you don't want to hop on a train, you could walk up to Menchenko-Tei, on 55th St, for some great Japanese noodles. (See my post on it here .) We were lucky enough to have Clara's grandma with us, and they went to Rockettes--so we took a break at Sardi's and had a drink upstairs. I love the bar up there--they have crocks of cheese and Ritz crackers that go perfectly with their delicious martinis. 

Doing The Nutcracker

I love Christmas, and took Clara to see the Nutcracker for the first time last year.  One of the big challenges though, is to figure out the meal situation before you go.  First, remember that the performance is 2 hours and 15 minutes, then plan accordingly. We had a 1pm performance, so we had a fast and delicious chicken soup (with dumplings) at Bouchon Bakery, on the third floor of the Time Warner Center. If you have a 5pm showtime, and you don't have to rush back for bedtime, a really good spot is Landmarc, also in the Time Warner Center.  They have a very extensive kids menu, much of it organic.