US help.

[klanse]

Then when I visit every city, I will always try their coffee. I'll be going to Philz Coffee. Looks really cool and hip compared to the act cool and hip people in our Starbucks and CBTL branches.

If you are a coffee lover, Philz is a must!!! One of the best in SF.
My personal favorite - Mint Mojito iced coffee, Jacob's Wonderbar

 

[GenuineSeller]

Any cheap accommodation in NY to recommend for 1 person? No shared Dorm, prefer near the subway station

When are you going? Someone mentioned that she got W Hoboken in New Jersey at US$115 via priceline.com. You might want to try your luck...

From the reviews in tripadvisor.com, it seems to be a very nice hotel to stay, by the Hudson River, overlooking New York city Skyline.

I will be staying there soon.

 

[martintylor]

When are you going? Someone mentioned that she got W Hoboken in New Jersey at US$115 via priceline.com. You might want to try your luck...

From the reviews in tripadvisor.com, it seems to be a very nice hotel to stay, by the Hudson River, overlooking New York city Skyline.

I will be staying there soon.

I be going in mid Sept. USD115 kind of steep, is this the normal price in NY?
Also is there a train or bus service to the premium outlet ?

 

[GenuineSeller]

I be going in mid Sept. USD115 kind of steep, is this the normal price in NY?
Also is there a train or bus service to the premium outlet ?

Initially I was planning to stay at Manhattan, New york City.... price is way too high...i ended up choosing New Jersey....W Hokoken hotel normal rate is US$259....it's walking distance to the train/subway.

Premium Outlet mentioned in earlier thread....it's at least 1hr's drive from NYC. I intend to drive there...

 

[martintylor]

Initially I was planning to stay at Manhattan, New york City.... price is way too high...i ended up choosing New Jersey....W Hokoken hotel normal rate is US$259....it's walking distance to the train/subway.

Premium Outlet mentioned in earlier thread....it's at least 1hr's drive from NYC. I intend to drive there...

Its a 4* hotel and there is no more USD$115 promo. So Premium Outlet can only drive, no other way to get there?

 

[stormcontrol]

Its a 4* hotel and there is no more USD$115 promo. So Premium Outlet can only drive, no other way to get there?

It's the Woodbury Common Premium Outlet. Google the official page, they have travel directions for all modes of transport. IIRC there are buses and weekend train option.

 

[GenuineSeller]

Its a 4* hotel and there is no more USD$115 promo. So Premium Outlet can only drive, no other way to get there?

www.priceline.com is a website for bidding for hotel rooms, car rentals etc.

I used it in 2004 for my personal US trip and saved a lot.... these days didnt use it as my travels are mainly for business. The US$115 rate was the bidded price for that hotel....

So when it's closer to September...you can try bidding for it.

 

[genie47]

If you are a coffee lover, Philz is a must!!! One of the best in SF.
My personal favorite - Mint Mojito iced coffee, Jacob's Wonderbar

Will do. Now trying to convince wife to get tix for Beach Blanket Babylon. Hilarious from what I see from Youtube.

 

[DarthKool]

hey folks

i'm going to Philly for a week and will also will drop by NYC for a few days (~3 days). quite a last min arrangement (work-related)...

it's my 1st time to US and i have the following queries. good if u can help me:

1. how do i get a pre-paid SIM card that comes with data plan? browse around and seems like only AT&T offers that? how do i check if their SIM cards are compatible with my fone (Xperia arc)? are their pre-paid data package reasonably priced?

2. wanting to do some tech shopping more than anything... ipad 2... laptop (thinkpad)... hdd (or ssd actually)... lol may i know where can i find good deals in retail stores? or outlets?

3. if buying coach bags, kate spades for my frenz... where in NYC or Philly can I find the outlets?

4. are there any unlimited day-pass for transport in NYC? for buses, tubes, etc.?

thanks in advance if u can answer the above for me.

not too sure on pre paid, but there are free wifis at public parks in nyc lol

for tech shopping in nyc, best bet is BH photo and J&R, widest selection, but take note of nyc sales tax, but should still be cheaper than sg. but ultimate USA shopping is found online lah.

nyc has a 7,14,30 day unlimited pass usable on both subway and bus. if u take 4 or more trips then is worth it.

for those in nyc but wanna go to woodbury outlet with no car, there are many cheap bus services in chinatown.

also for 3G, i think except for iphones, no other non-usa phones can access ATT or TMobs 3g frequency.

 

[genie47]

Landed on SFO at 1045. Got air congestion. ANA and all the US airlines don't pay EAP. Hahaha. Supposed to be 1015 but was sent to a holding pattern. Wife first time saw a plane pass while we were flying round and round. She said looks very frightening.

Then got customs congestion. Lots of Japanese coming for vacation in SF. Took 1 hour to clear.

First thing got hungry and went to Swan's Oyster Depot to eat. Ordered the oyster combination plate which got 4 kinds of oyster. Name also forget already must refer to photo of menu board. Order combination salad and their famous clam chowder. Their clam chowder is not like the stuff you commonly find. More clam than the potatoes or flour.

If you go there be reminded. This is a dive not a restaurant. They also very food Nazi. You cannot go there act like king/god kind of customer. They will F*** you deep, deep. They reserve the right not to serve you and will gladly send you away. I will explain next time. Wife now very tired and sleeping. They accept only cash. Burned USD61 for the food there already but very fresh seafood boiled in ocean fresh seawater. Oyster also very fresh.

Then we walked from Swan's along California St to Grace Cathedral. It is opposite the Masonic Temple. Took pics of the cathedral, they stared down SF downtown financial/Union Sq district from Jones, Taylor and Mason St. Damn steep but we managed to walk down Mason to Market St. Damn SF visitor center closed at 3pm. We arrived 4pm so didn't receive our City Passport to travel freely on the Muni and Cable Cars.

So we walked back to our hotel in Chinatown climbing up Stockton St. A little easier. So you can walk SF streets.....provided you are not having serious health issues. Temp here is 10-12 but very windy so I would say, itis 5-8 with winchill. Planning to go out at night to see the Coit Tower. Temp may drop to 2-5.

 

[genie47]

OK about the Oyster Depot food Nazi behaviour. My friend and I know about them and were very careful. A long line built up just to go into this place to eat. They don't have tables. Just a bar. So there are 3 of us. Have to wait for people to vacate seats to come in. So 2 people left at the very most inside of the dive bar. Then one person left around the centre. So can just go inside, take the center stool and bring it over to the inside to have 3 stools and squeeze? Think again. You move anything here, they will F*** you deep deep and blacklist you and send you to the back of the queue. Eh, waited around 30 min, I thought we better behave.

So how? Act blur and insist you want to sit together. Then one of the bar attenders suggest we take the center stool and bring it inside. Then we did so. Solved this problem. Then that's the end? Nope.

Sit down already, you cannot act like king/god kind of customer. I have to wait for them to serve me. So we just sat there until one guy asks, anyone gotten to us yet. Say no and then they will ask what we want then we order. No receipts, not order pad, no nothing. So verbally ask for the items and they send it to you. You cannot ask them to serve you or "demand some service here" kind of attitude, they got a lot of people waiting to come in to eat and they will not kowtow to you. You walk away, there are many more customers waiting to come in. I won't say that their attitude towards service it bad but they don't like that kind of nonsense. Having worked from service before, I can say there are some customers I just don't like to keep and they will not keep you as one if they don't like you. Wish I can do that and my boss can justify this kind of action without remorse. Employees first attitude.

Quite an experience in this restaurant. The energy level is very high. People talking, the bar attenders taking orders. Very busy and you can see they are stressed but they burn it off joking and telling us to have a nice day.

Oh yes I also witness their fierce attitude as well. Not to customer but to a bum harassing the customers. Wah! The attender came out and told the bum, "I can smell you from inside the kitchen, so why don't you get LOST!" After that, the attender told customers loudly this has made his day when the bum left and all the customers laughed.

There is a sign in the kitchen door that says "The beatings will continue until objectives are achieved." The dishwasher we heard spoke in Cantonese so we chatted up with her. She came directly from Guangdong and not HK. Got some insights and realized the Japanese will come first thing in the morning queuing before they open and have seafood for breakfast!

Busy, incredible and an institution of SF not to be missed.

We slept and then woke up late to go to the Golden Gate Park to take pictures at night setting off at 10pm. First we took pictures of the Oakland Bay Bridge from Treasure Island. There is a hotdog stand there and had a hotdog. Polish hotdog. Lots of Sauerkraut. Very cold due to the winds. Around 2-3 after windchill. It is summer and Earnest Hemmingway is correct to say that SF has the coldest summers he knew.

We need to eat because we slept and didn't have dinner so went to Mel's Diner on Lombard St. Another institution by itself. Like Billy Bombers but way much better in service and attitude. The portabello burger is great. Really grilled and you can taste that grill taste on it.

Came back around 2am and slept. I think only 5hrs. It is close to 8am in SF now. The police and EM sirens were loud and as they went by. A real city.

 

[Erwinlow]

What's EAP?

Diddn't try Mel's Diner. Tried Lori's Diner twice. So-so I felt. Stayed at Mason/Geary Street 2 months ago. At night damn noisy all the ambulance/police car ;/

 

[genie47]

EAP= Electronic Air Pricing Hahahahaaha

 

[vernon_wmk]

if you are still in SFO, try the morton's. The steaks are much more flavourful and done right (temperature wise) than the local branch, not to mention the cheaper pricing. If you go to Vegas, try Gallagher's.

 

[genie47]

Last day already. Will be heading to SF but set reservation to dine in Paris Paris.

OK, places I have eaten. I went to Fuddruckers. Had buffalo and elk burger. Then that same evening drove all the way into Napa Valley to Yountville. Restaurant is Chef Michael Chiarello's Bottega restaurant. Very good Italian food. I liked the risotto the best.

Last night after visiting Alcatraz, went to Roys.

 

[genie47]

I can't believe I walked down The Strip from Luxor to the famous Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign in the blistering Nevada heat. Should have driven my rental vehicle. There is a place to park next to it to take pictures of it.

Anyway, the flight from SFO to LAS was uneventful but Southwest has the most spacious seats I encountered for a budget airline. Maybe not too uneventful. I was queuing up for some breakfast from a deli in the lounge when some guy came up to the cashier and said, "I want to tell you that this is the most god-awful scrambled eggs and toast I have ever tasted. You have harmed my body and wasted 10 minutes of my life. You should be ashamed for serving such crap." If Internet is serious, seems like everything can be serious in the USA.

The 737-700 flew over the Sierra Nevada. Those snow-capped peaks demanded photos.

 

[genie47]

When visiting Alcatraz, sign up for the Night Tour. Costs more but you do spend more time on the island. Make sure you are well bundled up. Even with a winter jacket, it was very cold as the wind blew into this door to the cells. Should have brought along gloves. The sunset through that door is perfect. Nearly froze my fingers off just to take the picture of the sunset.

The guide on the boat was good as she explained the island's history. The best part is when we touched the pier on the island when she said it so casually "Welcome to The Rock." The way she said it was so cool.

 

[cutiedoggy92]

has anyone taken jet airways to New york? its the 2nd cheapest flight option after china eastern

 

[Erwinlow]

if you are still in SFO, try the morton's. The steaks are much more flavourful and done right (temperature wise) than the local branch, not to mention the cheaper pricing. If you go to Vegas, try Gallagher's.

I had my share of Morton's in Anaheim. Morton's standards is always there.

 

[vernon_wmk]

Good for you. I had Morton's, Smith & Wollensky, Ruth's Chris, Gallagher's and Lawry's this time round. Had to give Palm and CUT a miss cos OD on steaks, lol.