NYC Midtown Shopping
I’m excited to present Lipstick Getaway’s decidedly (and deliberately) NOT comprehensive guide to NYC Midtown shopping.
As always, my goal is to keep things manageable, give you an overview, point out some favorites, then let you know where you can find out more information if you want.
Click here to go back to NYC Shopping Overview.
Click here to go to NYC Shopping: For More Info: Guidebooks and Websites.
I’ve grouped the Midtown shopping info into three sections below: Fifth Avenue; 57th Street; and More Midtown. Favorites are marked like this: **
Midtown: Fifth Avenue.
Fifth Avenue, between about 58th Street and 39th Street, is Manhattan’s main shopping district. It provides a mix of upscale and more moderate stores.
The luxury shops are clustered mostly between 51st and 58th, and include Bulgari, Cartier, Ermenegildo Zegna, Escada, Fendi, Gucci, Hugo Boss, Jimmy Choo, Salvatore Ferragamo, Piaget, Prada, Van Cleef & Arpels, Versace.
Department stores on Fifth Avenue include Bergdorf Goodman and Bergdorf Goodman Men’s (across the street from each other, @58th), Henri Bendel (btw 55th/56th); Lord & Taylor (@ 39th St.), Saks Fifth Avenue (@ 50th), and …
My absolute favorite, **Takashimaya(@ 54th). The merchandise in this elegant Japanese-owned department store – including apparel, home furnishings, accessories, travel items, garden/floral — is international in scope and reflects superb taste and beautiful design. You won’t find anything like this “back home.” While many items are expensive, others are surprisingly affordable, so don’t be afraid to look. Whatever you find will be special! Don’t miss the Tea Box Café for lunch or a snack.
More Fifth Avenue Shopping (starting at 52nd and heading south): The NBA Store (@ 52nd), one of those retail-as-theater extravaganza’s: **Mexx (@ 52nd) a German-based chain popular in Europe for reasonably-priced, decent quality trendy clothes (the flagship store is at Union Square); **H & M (@ 51st St, other locations Midtown West, Soho, and Harlem), a Swedish chain and THE place everyone flocks to for very inexpensive, hip, runway-knockoff clothing; **Anne Fontaine (in Rockefeller Center btw. 50th/51st, also in Soho), a Paris-based boutique specializing in the Perfect White Shirt; **Teuscher Chocolates of Switzerland (across from Anne Fontaine in Rockefeller Center) for the elegant, delicious chocolate creations; Coach (@Rockefeller Center); Forman’s (@ 46th), an off-price store with major American brands; Barami (@ 45th) for moderate suits, dresses, tops; also denim, casual, scarves, accessories; The New York Look (@ 45th).
Subway: Chances are your hotel will be in walking distance, so you may not need the subway. Bit if you do:
To start your Fifth Avenue stroll uptown (near 57th St), take the N,R,W to 5th Ave/59th St.
To start more near the middle, take the B,D,F,V to 47-50th Sts/Rockefeller Center.
To start more downtown (near 34th St) take the B,D,F, N,R,Q,W to 34th St/Herald Square (which also puts you near Macy’s, see Midtown West below).
For lunch or a coffee/tea break: I love the **Tea Box Café at Takashimaya (see above); also **Sarabeth’s Central Park South; for more information on theses and other restaurants, go to Lipstick Getaway’s Favorite Restaurants: Midtown East.
Midtown: 57th Street between Park and Sixth Ave.
A classic NYC luxury shopping stretch.
**Arche (a bit more west on 57th, btw Sixth/Seventh, other locations on Upper East Side, SoHo, and NoHo; very popular for for super-comfortable, cute, colorful spongy leather shoes); Barami (moderate, see listing under Fifth Ave above); Brewster Gallery; Burberrys; Chanel; Christian Dior; Coach; Daffy’s (an off-pricer with several branches, see listing under Midtown East below); Emporio Armani; Guy Laroche; Hammacher Schlemmer; Hermes, Jil Sander; **Kate’s Paperie (for beautiful stationary, wrapping paper, et., other locations in Soho, Upper East Side, and Greenwich Village); Kenneth Cole; Louis Vuitton, Niketown, **Otto Tootsie Plohound (fabulous, fashionable shoes in a range of prices, other stores in Soho and Flatiron), Prada (shoes only); Suarez Handbags (family-owned since 1938 and a NYC shopper’s favorite for top-quality Italian handbags, shoes, and accessories; not bargain-priced, but less expensive than the designer-name goods); Tiffany & Co; Turnbull & Asser (the finest British haberdasher, known for surprisingly friendly service); Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche.
Subway: .4,5,6 to Lexington/59 St; N,R,W to 5 Av/59 St; or N,Q,R,W to 57 St/7Av. However, you may not need the subway — you’ll be in the same area as for Fifth Avenue shopping above.
For lunch or a drink on 57th, try Brasserie 8 ½ (9 W. 57th, btw Fifth and Sixth Aves;); or walk another block down to grab a $5 burger and fries at the Burger Joint, a faux greasy spoon inside the lobby of Le Parker Meridien Hotel (118 W. 57th btw 6th and 7th Aves). For more info and other suggestions, see Lipstick Getaways’ Favorite Restaurants: Midtown West, and/or Midtown East.
More Midtown shopping:
West (i.e., west of Fifth Ave.): **Aerosoles (1260 Sixth @51st) for inexpensive, comfortable shoes that seem a little cuter these days; Barami (7th Ave. btw 36th/37th , see 57th St. listing above); Bolton’s (discount clothing store with branches all over Manhattan); Club Monaco (8 W. 57th btw. Fifth/Sixth); Felissimo (10 W. 56th St btw. Fifth/Sixth), a gift Emporium in a 4 story townhouse; **H & M (at Broadway/34th, and at Seventh Ave/34th, see listing on Fifth Ave above); **Lush (34th and Broadway), for lovely fresh handmade cosmetics, bath, and body products (I first found this store in London and now regularly order from them online; my daughter and I LOVE their bath stuff!); Manolo Blahnik (31 W. 54th btw Fifth/Sixth); **MoMa Design Store (11 W. 53rd btw Fifth/Sixth);; Macy’s (at Herald Square, 34th btw Broadway and 7th Ave.); another New York Look (570 Seventh @ 41st ); lots of stores in and around Rockefeller Center.
East (i.e., east of Fifth Ave.): Barami (Lexington @ 41st, see 57th St. listing above); Bolton’s (discount clothing store with branches all over Manhattan); Coach (Madison @ 44th); Daffy’s (Madison @ 44th, other locations all over — big loud discount clothing stores, the kind of place where you might score some great deals, even some designer labels, but you need to be up for hunting); Eileen Fisher (Madison btw 53rd/54th); Kavanaugh’s Designer Resale Shop (146 E. 49th btw Lexington/Third Av.); **Mary Quant Colour Concept (520 Madison Ave. btw 53rd & 54th St.; girlfriends of a certain age will remember Mary Quant as the creator of the mini-skirt; the store sells a colorful range of cosmetics, skin care, and a small selection of clothing. My all-time favorite NYC find was purchased here: a fun, funky, mod looking trench coat – I get compliments every single time I wear it!); Walter Steiger (417 Park @55th) for quality, luxury shoes.
