It’s been almost 20 years since Sex and the City debuted on television and even though the series has already come to an end for a long time, Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte are characters who still live in the memory of those who followed his adventures in New York.
And if the two movies released after the end of the series are not enough for you, maybe a gastronomic tour in New York can help you. A few days ago, I received from Cable TV a map showing dozens of restaurants, bars and cafes where Carrie and her friends have been. Some sposts remain the same and others were replaced.
21 Club – Season 6 Episode 11, “The Domino Effect.” – Carrie and Big visit the 21 Club Bar Room, where Carrie learns about Big’s heart surgery—what he calls “a little heart thing.”
Balthazar – Season 1 Episode 5, “The Power of Female Sex.” – Carrie and Samantha have a difficult time getting a table at a crowded French restaurant (known as Balzac on the show), but they ultimately succeed after Carrie offers the hostess a tampon in the bathroom.
Blue Water Grill – Season 3 Episode 1, “Where There’s Smoke…” – Charlotte brunches at this Union Square favorite with Arthur, her seemingly perfect date who ends up getting in fist fights with fellow restaurant patrons. The rest of the SATC ladies also dined at Blue Water Grill, gossiping on the patio over lunch.
Brasserie 8 ½ – Season 4 Episode 2, “The Real Me.” – This midtown Manhattan French dining spot is where Carrie and Stanford hang out and happen to see an old friend who recruits Carrie to be in a New York fashion show.
Bubby’s High Line – Season 3 Episode 18, “Cock-A-Doodle-Do.” – This meatpacking district spot is where Samantha make amends with her noisy neighbors and invites them up for a rooftop party.
Buddakan – Sex and the City, the movie– Carrie and Big’s rehearsal dinner in the first SATC movie is held at Buddakan in Chelsea, where Miranda argues with Steve outside and then snaps at Big inside, causing him to get cold feet the night before the wedding.
Cafeteria – multiple episodes – This Chelsea spot was a regular lunch spot for Carrie and friends.
Cipriani Downtown – Season 3 Episode 3, “Attack of the Five Foot Ten Woman.” – This Soho restaurant is where the SATC girls see Big and Natasha’s wedding announcement in The New York Times’ wedding section. Cipriani was a favorite among the gal pals for Sunday bellinis.
The City Bakery – Season 5 Episode 6, “Critical Condition.” – Carrie and Samantha run into Nina Katz (aka “Face Girl”), the woman Aidan dated after Carrie, at this City Bakery.
The Coffee Shop – multiple episodes – This Union Square spot is one of the many coffee shops Carrie and the girls visit throughout the SATC series.
Da Marino – Season 2 Episode 8, “The Man, The Myth, The Viagra.” – Italian eatery Da Marino is where Big calls Carrie his girlfriend for the first time and serenades her. This Midtown West Italian institution is currently closed for renovations, but as of summer 2016, say they will open soon.
Eleven Madison Park – Season 2 Episode 18, “Ex and the City.” – Big and Carrie meet for dinner as friends, and Carrie learns that Big got engaged to Natasha.
Grand Bar & Lounge at The Soho Grand Hotel – Season 4 Episode 15, “Change of a Dress.” – is where Richard holds his charity fundraiser, and where Samantha learns Richard is sleeping with other women.
IL Cantinori – Season 4 Episode 1, “The Agony and the ‘Ex’-tacy.” – is where Carrie’s 35th birthday party was—where she’s stood up by the girls and Big, leaving her all alone at a table for ten.
Joe’s Pub – Season 5 Episode 6, “Critical Condition.” – Stanford and Carrie attend Stanford’s boyfriend’s show, but Carrie can’t stop thinking about her upcoming book review.
The Loeb Boathouse Central Park – Season 3 Episode 18, “Cock-A-Doodle-Do.” – Carrie and Big meet for lunch at the Boathouse in Central Park, where they both fall in the lake as he tries to kiss her.
Magnolia Bakery – Season 3 Episode 5, “No Ifs, Ands, Or Butts.” – Carrie tells Miranda about her crush on Aidan while the two eat cupcakes outside of Magnolia Bakery.
The Mercer Kitchen – Sex and the City, the movie – Carrie and friends dined at the Mercer Hotel’s Mercer Kitchen in the first SATC film.
The Modern – Sex and the City, the movie – Carrie shares the news of her engagement to Big with the girls, and Charlotte announces the happy news to the entire restaurant, leading everyone to cheer.
Monkey Bar – Season 4 Episode 3, “Defining Moments.” – Carrie and Big go to a jazz show together as friends and meet jazz musician Ray King. Ray gets a tad flirty with Carrie, and Big’s jealousy shows.
Onieals – Season 4 Episode 5, “Ghost Town.” – Steve and Aidan’s fictional bar, Scout, is actually Onieals. Carrie drops off a congratulatory Mulberry bush as Scout is located on the fictional Mulberry Street. Later in the episode, Carrie and friends attend the opening for Scout and Carrie and Aidan share a moment outside the bar.
Pete’s Tavern – Season 6 Episode 14, “The Ick Factor.” – iranda proposes to Steve outside of Pete’s.
Russian Samovar – Season 6 Episode 12, “One.” – Carrie and Aleksandr have their first date, quite late at night, at Russian Samavor.
Slate – Season 4 Episode 10, “Belles of the Balls.” – Carrie and the girls—and Steve and Aidan—play pool here.
Starbucks – Sex and the City, o filme – Carrie holds interviews here for a personal assistant and meets “Louise from Saint Louis” (Jennifer Hudson).
Sushisamba – Season 5 Episode 1, “Anchors Away.” – Richard and Samantha meet here for dinner. Samantha is still angry with Richard for cheating on her, though, so she tosses a dirty martini in his face and walks out.
Tao – Season 4 Episode 3, “Defining Moments.” – Carrie, her jazz musician date, and the girls hang out at Tao and Carrie runs into Big’s date in the bathroom.
Tortilla Flats – Season 4 Episode 6, “Baby, Talk Is Cheap.” – After Carrie sees Aidan at his bar’s opening, she realizes wants him back and arranges a double date with Steve and Aidan at Tortilla Flats.
All seven of the NYC spots you see below are located at original SATC filming locations. However, they’ve been replaced with new businesses. So while you won’t see these new dining and drink spots in any SATC reruns, you’ll likely still notice a few similarities.
Arlington Club (formerly Payard Patisserie & Bistro) – Season 3 Episode 3, “Attack of the Five-Foot-Ten Woman.” – After Carrie pays a visit to Manolo Blahnik, she meets Charlotte for dessert at Payard Patisserie (now the Arlington Club), where Carrie says has “the best desserts in New York.”
Casa Mono (formerly Irving On Irving) – Season 5 Episode 2, “Unoriginal Sin.” – Formerly Irving on Irving, this Irving Place restaurant is where Carrie and Charlotte watched men on the street passing by to see how many men in 100 they would sleep with.
Cognac East (formerly Lumi) – Sex and the City, the movie – Just after a very pregnant Charlotte sits down for a meal at Lumi, she sees Big on the other side of the restaurant. She runs outside to avoid him and Big follows her out, where Charlotte proceeds to yell at him, “I curse the day you were born!” and then goes into labor.
Distilled Ny (formerly Layla) – Season 2 Episode 2, “The Awful Truth.” – Before this West Broadway spot became Distilled, it was the Mexican restaurant Centrico and before that, the Moroccan restaurant Layla. Layla is where Big (her ex at the time) attends Carrie’s birthday party.
The Edison Ballroom (formerly The Supper Club) – Season 5 Episode 1, “Anchors Away.” – What was once home to The Supper Club inside the Edison Hotel is now The Edison Ballroom. This event space is where Carrie and friends partied with the sailors during Fleet Week.
Liquiteria (formerly Gray’s Papaya) – Season 5 Episode 5, “Plus One is the Loneliest Number.” – Carrie eats a hotdog from Gray’s Papaya after her book party.
Rin Thai (formerly Krispy Kreme Doughnuts)- Season 5 Episode 4, “Cover Girl.” – After their Weight Watchers meeting, Miranda and Tom take a trip to Krispy Kreme (now Rin Thai) to indulge in doughnuts.
Laura Peruchi is a Brazilian blogger, author, and entrepreneur. She has lived in Manhattan with her husband since 2014. Since then, she has shared on her blog varied content about the Big Apple. From travel tips, including unusual things to do, shopping tips, etiquette, restaurants, and a lot more, her blog has become a reference in Portuguese (also available in English) for anyone planning a trip to New York City.
