Chelsea Faves {NYC Fall 2016}

I was told by some locals that there are only about five days of fall in NYC. Then you basically jump straight into winter. From what I’ve seen (and felt…brr!), that sounds about right. Despite the cold temps, it at least looks like fall in the city right now. It’s so pretty!

Chelsea Faves {NYC Fall 2016}

One part of town that I’ve been spending a lot of time in is Chelsea, Manhattan. Here are some of my favorite spots and eats.

Westville Chelsea

Chelsea Faves {NYC Fall 2016}

{Niman Ranch hot dog, French fries, and sautéed kale}

Westville is one of the first restaurants I visited in NYC thanks to my friend Kelly. It’s turned out to be one of the places I frequent the most. I depend on them for delicious, casual, American fare. Mostly, I love that their food is always fresh, the staff is so friendly, and you get a ton of veggie options. There are dozens of standard vegetable options, and they typically add several more options on their daily specials menu. Did I mention the vegetable portions are nice and hefty? Also, they have a big bar area where I can almost always snag a seat to easily dine solo.

I love Westvile for brunch, lunch, and dinner. I haven’t had a bad meal here yet, and I don’t think I will. My favorite is still the crispy chicken cutlet with that delicious lemon-dill sauce. I switch up the sides based on how I’m feeling at the time, but I especially love the sautéed kale, soy glazed green beans, and brussels sprouts. And while I like to eat mostly clean food, every once in awhile I like a hot dog. But not just any hot dog will do. Westville serves Niman Ranch “fearless franks”, which are like upgraded hot dogs. I don’t have any fave menu items for brunch yet, but I’ll keep you posted. All the brunch dishes I’ve had have been great. I don’t have one I get on repeat just yet.

Westville NYC apple cider

Westville does have a bunch of great drink options too. Now that it’s fall, they have hot apple cider and an apple cider bellini. Nice!

MatchaBar Chelsea

Chelsea Faves {NYC Fall 2016}

As you know, I love my matcha lattes. And I’ve gotten into them even more in NYC. MatchaBar has quickly turned into my favorite, and I recently discovered a new drink combo. The maple cinnamon matcha latte is my new jam. The flavors are very fall like, and I love how they all taste together in a delicious, steamed, beautifully green drink.

On top of discovering my new favorite matcha latte, I recently tried a new milk – macadamia nut milk. I didn’t even know you could steam that. Actually, I didn’t know this product existed. But, it tastes really good, and is a nice alternative to almond milk. MatchaBar let me sample a bit of the milk before committing, and it’s a little sweetened but less so than your average vanilla soy milk.

Rock Star Crystals

ANYA Studio NYC

{The beautiful front studio of ANYA (where I do anti-gravity yoga classes) – love the plants and crystals lining the windows!}

After seeing beautiful crystals on display at some of my favorite yoga studios, I was inspired to find some of my own. Rock Star Crystals is literally across the street from Chelsea Studios (where Mitchell Wayne classes typically held – see next section). So, I’ll pop in before class if I get there early.

Chelsea Faves {NYC Fall 2016}

Rock Star Crystals is the real deal when it comes to crystal shopping. They have the biggest collection of crystals I’ve ever seen, and the staff is not only super knowledgeable but very friendly too. I was originally interested in crystals because of how beautiful they are, but I’m also just scratching the surface of their healing properties.

There are crystals available in all shapes and sizes and for all budgets. From tiny tumbled stones for a mere $1-6 to multi-thousand dollar pieces, there’s something for every crystal lover. And like I said, the staff is really helpful, so even if you have no clue where to begin, just stop by and ask them for help.

Mitchell Wayne Productions

I first discovered Mitchell Wayne Productions in February of this year. Their classes quickly became a fave, and I love starting my week with them learning a sassy Britney routine. From Britney’s actual choreo to Mitchell’s original choreo, it’s always a fun time. I can’t even tell the difference between the two, the choreography is that good!

I’ve also had the good fortune of becoming friends with not only Mitchell and Annette but with other class participants. This is a big deal to me because of my background teaching dance fitness. Especially since our dance fitness classes were so community-oriented. Not gonna lie, it was really hard going into classes and not knowing a single person at the beginning of this year. I’m so grateful for smiling faces and big hugs before and after class. It’s also fun to hold down the front row with my dance peeps.

In the Mitchell Wayne Production classes, I feel like I can really let loose and be myself. That paired with Mitchell’s encouraging words really get my week started on the right foot. I’ve blogged extensively about M Wayne Pro on my ClassPass recaps, so check those out – especially if you want to see videos from class! Click here to view my ClassPass posts.

Just visiting NYC? You can easily do a drop-in – just shoot them an email. Simple, right? Tell them The Chic Life sent you!

Row House Chelsea

Chelsea Faves {NYC Fall 2016}

I also recently went way out of my comfort zone to try a new workout on ClassPass – Row House. I first met a couple members of the Row House Team at the Gilt City Fit Day event. I learned some of the rowing basics there when I did a demo of the rowing machine.  I may have attended that event for free, but Row House would have impressed me either way. What caught my interest most was that rowing is a low impact workout that is great for muscle toning, especially in the legs. I also appreciated how friendly the team was. I added Row House to my ClassPass favorites with the intention of taking a full class soon thereafter.

It took a little longer than I had expected, but I finally went for a full class at the Chelsea location this week. I felt instantly welcomed by all of the staff and even got to see Scott who I’d met at the Gilt City event. Eric was the instructor, and he made sure I was okay throughout class. I’ll blog more about class in my ClassPass recap, but this was a great experience. I could see myself trying to hit up Row House once per week. It was a tough workout efficiently fit in only 45 minutes. You get to compete with yourself and go at your own pace. And I already feel like I belong, which is a nice bonus.

Chelsea Faves {NYC Fall 2016}

Work Week Efficiency Bonus

Both workout classes are a short walk to Whole Foods, so you can easily pick up post-workout groceries (or hit up the hot food bar) right after for a quick and easy dinner.

Coming Soon

Side note: I have a couple fun Thanksgiving posts coming your way soon, including a themed Thanksgiving post! Bet you can’t guess what the theme is. Unless you follow me on Snapchat (thechiclifeblog), since I already snapped about the themed dinner. Stay tuned!

Thanks for stopping by!

2 thoughts on “Chelsea Faves {NYC Fall 2016}”

  1. Thanks for mentioning ROCK STAR CRYSTALS in your Chelsea review. We hope you stop in often to relax and tune-into all the Crystals during 2017. Our stock is always changing, so there will always be new Crystals waiting to say hello. Best Wishes!

    Reply

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