10 Cool Under-The-Radar Activities In NYC
Hailed as ‘the city that never sleeps,’ New York City offers round-the-clock entertainment for early birds and night owls alike. From gender-bending theater to private concerts, the city’s under-the-radar entertainment makes the case for skipping the standard brunch and Broadway this weekend. Here are 10 under-the-radar activities for unique New York City fun.
Sofar Sounds’ Intimate Concerts
International entertainment company Sofar Sounds brings the best under-the-radar music acts to your own backyard – literally. With the help of Sofar, private apartments and local businesses are transformed into intimate concert halls showcasing the hottest before-they-break bands and artists.
Step aside, Shakespeare in the Park: Manhattan Shakespeare Project’s gender-bending theater performances are the hottest tickets in town. Reinventing classic Shakespearean works including Romeo and Juliet and The Taming of the Shrew, this all-female Shakespeare company brings the bard into the 21st century.
1. Bembe’s Calendar of Creative Events
Bar, Nightclub, Pub Grub
2. Syndicated’s Dinner-and-a-Movie Experience
Gastropub, Pub Grub
3. Mehanata’s Sub-Zero Vodka Drinking Room
Bar, Nightclub, Pub Grub
Brooklyn’s Food Book Fair
For foodies seeking a peek inside the kitchen, Brooklyn’s Food Book Fair delivers three days of literature, libations, and more. Authors, chefs, and restauranteurs converge at this culinary culture fest to trade tips and explore the food industry from different perspectives. Serving on-site refreshments from Brooklyn Brewery, Farm to People, and Four & Twenty Blackbirds, the fair’s food line-up will satisfy your expectations-and your appetite.
4. Cake Shop’s Reading and Music Series
Bar, Gastropub, Pub Grub
5. Bunna Cafe’s Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony
Restaurant, Cafe, Ethiopian, Vegan, Vegetarian
Immerse yourself in Ethiopian culture at Bunna Cafe, a Bushwick eatery offering flavorful vegan cuisine and free ethnic entertainment. The traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony, performed live at the cafe several nights a week, entails an elaborate process of roasting, grounding, and brewing which results in rich and spicy bunna, or Ethiopian coffee. At Bunna Cafe, dinner is the show as the captivating coffee ceremony is followed by complementary bunna for all patrons.
6. Bluestockings’ Feminist Book Club Meetings
Bookstore, Store
Sunday Dinner’s Unique Dinner Parties
Recalling the sit-down family dinners of your youth, Brooklyn’s Sunday Dinners hosts a weekly themed dinner party with an exciting yet unusual guest list. Open to anyone who wishes to attend, this event takes the idea behind a restaurant’s community table and runs with it – all the way to a private Brooklyn apartment. A great way to meet new people, Sunday Dinners’ guests are invited to bring food to share, ingredients to cook with others, or their own company.
Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.
Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.
Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.
Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.
We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.