Jo-Anne Elikann was born in Brooklyn, grew up in Queens, and lives in Manhattan. A freelance writer, artist, and photographer, her proudest achievement is having raised six children in an NYC apartment. She's a New Yorker through and through; a lifelong explorer of its incredible nooks and crannies. Susan Lusk has had a long career in publishing as an art director, magazine designer, book editor, author, photographer, and indie publisher. She co-authored 111 Shops in New York You Must Not Miss with her partner Mark Gabor. Born and bred in New York City, she never tires of exploring it to unearth new little gems hiding in plain sight.

The Afro Archives Black gold on Malcolm X Boulevard | 10 The Algonquin Lounge Legendary literary lair | 12 Alice Austen House Photographic memory | 14 AsiaStore at Asia Society Museum within a museum | 16 B&H Dairy Restaurant Comfort food from the old country | 18 The Back Room Tabooze in a teacup | 20 The Batman-Poe Connection Partners in crime? | 22 Berlin Wall Fragments Art of Freedom | 24 Bloomingdale’s Retro Restroom Powder your nose in a Deco ladies’ lounge | 26 Bohemian National Hall Reality Czech | 28 Bowne & Co., Stationers Making a good impression | 30 Building 92 The Navy Yard goes green | 32 CBGB’s Fashion Makeover From punk hall to posh haberdashery | 34 Chaim Gross’s Village Studio The way to a man’s art | 36 Championship Play On the world’s largest chessboard | 38 The Chelsea Hotel If the walls could speak, the tales they’d tell | 40 Chess Forum A place to check with a mate | 42 Chico Murals Transformative street art | 44 The Chinese Immigrant Experience MOCA, an American story | 46 Chrysler Building Lobby A triangular gem | 48 City Reliquary Persistence of memorabilia | 50 Coney Island Circus Sideshow Weirdness and wonder | 52 Croquet in the Park A wicket way to spend the day | 54 The Dakota Storied stories | 56 The Dinner Party A seat at the table | 58 The Drag Show at Lips Boys will be girls | 60 The Dream House Frequencies in sound and light | 62 Driving Along the Hudson The Golf Club at Chelsea Piers | 64 Duke Ellington Stands Tall Tribute to a jazz pioneer | 66 The Dyckman Farmhouse Dutch treat | 68 Eddie’s Shoeshine & Repair Shoe love | 70 The Elevated Acre Retreat from the street | 72 Elizabeth Street Garden Offbeat urban oasis | 74 Enoteca Maria Because nobody cooks like Nonna | 76 Essex Market Snack yourself silly | 78 Fanelli Cafe The real deal | 80 FDR Four Freedoms Park A dream that wouldn’t die | 82 Film Forum Screen gems | 84 Fishing at Sheepshead Bay Salty dogs and striped bass | 86 Float Your Boat Waterways in the park | 88 Flying Lessons With no wings attached | 90 Ford Foundation Atrium A refuge from the urban jungle | 92 Fragrance Garden Indulge in sense-sational delights | 94 Gertrude Stein Statue Buddha in Bryant Park | 96 The Gospel Truth Sunday services in Harlem | 98 Governors Island Not that far from the madding crowd | 100 Grate Sound Times Square humdinger | 102 Greenwich Locksmiths Captivated by keys | 104 Green-Wood Cemetery Heaven here on earth | 106 Hall of Fame for Great Americans Big men and women on campus | 108 Hangman’s Tree Swinging in Washington Square | 110 Harriet Tubman’s Skirt Towering freedom fighter | 112 Henderson Place A secret street | 114 The High Road to a Tibetan Retreat Elevate your spirits | 116 Housing Works Bookstore Cafe & Bar Settle in for a good read | 118 Hua Mei Birds Sweetly tweeted symphonies | 120 Irish Hunger Memorial The persistence of memory | 122 Jane’s Carousel A real survivor | 124 Jefferson Market Library A castle with a clock tower | 126 Katharine Hepburn Garden Tribute to a passionate gardener | 128 Keith Haring Mural Whimsical swims | 130 Let There Be Neon It’s a gas! | 132 Library Way Words of wisdom underfoot | 134 The Louis Armstrong House Museum Satchmo’s home sweet home | 136 Mahayana Buddha Meditation amidst chaos | 138 Manhattan Art & Antiques Center One of New York’s better kept secrets | 140 Manhattan Night Court A nice place to visit but … | 142 Marjorie Eliot’s Sunday Salon Love, and all that jazz | 144 Merchant’s House The Tredwells at home | 146 Mmuseumm A microcosm of the macrocosm | 148 Morris-Jumel Mansion George Washington slept here | 150 The Mossman Collection Lure of the lock | 152 Mount Vernon Hotel & Garden A country escape, inside the city | 154 National Museum of Mathematics A math playground | 156 Nevelson’s Chapel of Tranquility White Light | 158 The News Building Superman worked here | 160 Nicholas Roerich Museum Art and ancient wisdom | 162 Nuyorican Poets Cafe Breaking barriers | 164 The NY Earth Room The complexity of simplicity | 166 The Old Synagogue From Ellis Island to Eldridge Street | 168 Paley Center for Media The shows must go on | 170 The Panorama of NYC The not-so-big apple | 172 The Park Avenue Armory Building excitement | 174 Pastrami Queen Love at first bite | 176 PDT Speakeasy Beyond the telephone booth | 178 Rats on the Ropes Odd façade of the Graybar Building | 180 Red Hook Winery Fermenting a great idea | 182 Romantic Viewpoint Enchanting esplanade along the river | 184 The Russian-Turkish Baths Rub-a-dub-dub | 186 Scandinavia House From gravlax to Garbo | 188 SeaGlass Carousel Swim with the fishes | 190 The Slave Galleries A screaming silence | 192 Small Dog Run Go to the dogs in Carl Schurz Park! | 194 Smorgasburg Eat, drink, and be merry | 196 SoHo Sidewalk Surprise Watch your step! | 198 St. John the Divine’s Calamitous Columns The End of New York | 200 Stone Street A taste of the high life | 202 Sugar House Window Relic of a notorious prison | 204 Sweet Pickle Books A most dill-icious bookstore | 206 Transit System Art Surprise – the subway’s an art gallery! | 208 Tudor City Utopia, ten minutes from Times Square | 210 Under the High Line Top-level art from the ground up | 212 Urban Squats & Gardens Otherwise occupied | 214 Visible Storage at the Met Hidden riches | 216 Wave Hill Tranquility on the Hudson | 218 The Wedding Garden A photo op for the happy couple | 220 Weehawken Street A shady lane with a shadowy past | 222 The Whispering Gallery Cool acoustic oddity | 224 White Horse Tavern Manhattan’s most haunted pub | 226 Winnie-the-Pooh Friends forever – even longer | 228 Yorkville’s Glockenspiel Where time stands still | 230