You know I don’t do Tik-Tok, right? I certainly understand its appeal, but, in all honesty, I find it to be the crack of social media. All that endless scrolling…
I don’t want to spend my hours doing that, not at this point in my one precious life.
Because of my Tik-Tok avoidance, I often am unaware of microtrends or more current cultural activities and offerings. Fortunately, I have some very hip and up to speed friends who share their Tik-Tok finds with me.
Case in point- Joyse Spa in Manhattan’s Chinatown.
OG Mary had discovered this place on her feed and was interested – $98 cash (+ gratuity) for a 2 hour appointment. Was I interested? Yes, indeed. Sign me up!
Appointments were booked and OG Mary and I planned a day in NYC. From early morning train departure, to late at night return to Albany, we filled our day with interesting and fun stuff.
We began at MOMA with the Frida Khalo/Diego Rivera exhibit. I had been excitedly looking forward to this show, but must say that I found it disappointing. It’s probably my own ignorance, but I had expected a much more comprehensive collection to be on view. I enjoyed the pieces that were available but, overall the show left me feeling flat. I imagine it would have been much more impactful if I had gone to the Met to see the related opera. Still, a few favorites:
After checking out a couple of other galleries at MOMA, we caught a train downtown for lunch. Destination: Joe’s Shanghai. I hadn’t yet been to their “new” location and was eager to fill my face with their fabulous soup dumplings.
We got lucky with our timing with our arrival at a lull, which meant we were immediately seated at a table just for ourselves. Often at Joe’s previous location, we would be placed at a large round table with other parties. I enjoy that type of dining experience, but it was nice to have our own space.
While the address and dining experience (and bathrooms!) were different, the food was, as always, terrific. In addition to the plates above, we enjoyed green beans and an order of excellent scallion pancakes.
We headed out to do a little shopping prior to our late afternoon appointments at Joyse, but as we walked up Canal Street we found ourselves at the modest entrance of the spa. On my impulsive prompt, Mary popped in to see if we might be able to move our appointments up to sooner than their scheduled time. We were in luck – they were able to take us immediately.
Joyse is a pretty basic spa, as far they go. It was clean, with thoughtful touches such as cups of cold water and rubber slides to replace exterior footwear, but it is by no means fancy. We weren’t there for New Age music and atmosphere, though. We just wanted a bit of pampering and we received that in aces.
We were shepherded to a room downstairs that featured two beds for a shared experience. After disrobing and getting comfortable face down, the magic began. The approximately 55 minute massage service featured oil, cream, hot stones and a warm towel wipe down and it was sublime. I had paddle boarded the previous day and my traps and shoulders received plenty of attention to soothe the muscles I had exerted on the lake the day before.
As the body work concluded we were provided with towel wraps, that we velcroed closed to ensure modesty, and lead upstairs for our second hour of sheer indulgence. This time, we were positioned face up with our heads comfortably supported above a sink. The next 40 minutes was a head spa experience unlike anything I’ve ever had before. My hair was brushed and my scalp was massaged. Then my hair was lathered with shampoo and rinsed (twice) before being slathered with conditioner. An arched copper pipe with numerous holes to allow water to deliciously pour over my neck and décolletage was turned on and my service provider gently wiped my face with the softest of cloths repeatedly before applying a sheet mask from forehead to chin. As the conditioner and mask soaked in and worked their magic, my shoulders and arms were massaged until I was an absolute puddle of relaxed happiness.
Our visits concluded with basic blowouts that left us feeling cute and ready for what might come next. I particularly appreciated the casual hands in my hair blow dry technique as opposed to the use of brushes. I find it to be much less harsh.
The $98 ($106 if paying by credit card) package was a great value and I wouldn’t hesitate to return here, perhaps even expanding upon the services with the addition of a feet massage. We left big tips and headed to Little Italy which, despite no longer appearing on the NYC map of immigrant enclaves, remains a vibrant, if not performative, ethnic neighborhood. We settled at a sidewalk table and ordered aperol spritzes to enjoy as we watched the always entertaining street theater of tourists and locals making their way down Mulberry Street.
The rain had finally begun as promised and we picked up a couple of umbrellas at a nearby bodega and began making our way to the west side. We didn’t really have a destination beyond Moynihan Station for our 9:35 pm train, but I learned that Mary had never been on the High Line, making that wonderful walk our chosen route to take.
But, first, there was dinner to be had. It was now about 6:00 and the rain had stopped without the appearance of the tornado threatened by my weather app. We were too late to slide into Via Carota without a reservation, but a spot on Bleecker, Suprema, looked promising. We grabbed a table and perused the menus, honing in on the NYC Restaurant Week special menu of 3 courses for $45.
We selected an order of artichokes, a Caesar salad, fettuccine with short rib ragu, bucatini à la caccio e pepe, a pistachio layer cake and tiramisu. We truly enjoyed everything, despite not finishing our entrees or desserts. The food was well presented and our meal was paced to be leisurely. Suprema was a good find and a more than adequate consolation for Via Carota – I’d happily return.
All that was left to do was access the High Line in the Meatpacking district and wander our way north on the lush garden paths of the previous elevated rail line. We walked as far as 34th Street where I had hoped we might catch the sunset over the Hudson, but the clouds had lingered after the rain and it was a very muted event.
Night began to fall and we at last entered the train station and waited for our ride back upstate, feeling satiated and satisfied with our day. Damn, I love NYC.
DelSo 