The Upper West Side is a district of Upper Manhattan, the central island borough of New York, bounded on the south by 59th Street, by Central Park to the east and the Hudson River to the west. Most consider that the Upper West Side continues up to 110th Street, where Morningside Heights (the site of Columbia University) begins.

Often called the city's quintessential neighborhood, the Upper West Side includes delightful residential streets, the twin-towered facades of the old apartment hotels on Central Park West and Riverside Drive, two of the city's best-known markets (Zabar's and Fairway) and one of its major museums (the American Museum of Natural History). Not all the old buildings on Central Park West have twin towers, and they are definitely not apartment hotels any longer, but mucho prime expensive co-ops, a form of ownership that is very popular in New York. The famous twin tower building would be the San Remo, including residents such as financial advisor and author Andrew Tobias.

The Upper West side contains the neighborhoods of Lincoln Center, Riverside Park (the western edge of the district, along the Hudson River) and Manhattan Valley. The Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, running from 59th Street to 72nd Street, contains the Juilliard School, Fordham University, and such other highly notable institutions as the Metropolitan Opera. Manhattan Valley, running from about 100th Street to 110th Street, is characteristically very much like Harlem to the north, being the poorest area of the otherwise generally affluent Upper West Side.

From west to east, the Upper West Side is oriented along Riverside Drive (12th Avenue), West End Avenue (11th Avenue), Amsterdam Avenue (10th Avenue), Columbus Avenue (9th Avenue), and Central Park West (8th Avenue). The 66-block stretch of Broadway forms the backbone of the Upper West Side and lies diagonally across the avenues; it begins at its juncture with Central Park West at Columbus Circle (59th Street), crosses Columbus Avenue at Lincoln Square (65th Street), crosses Amsterdam Ave. at Verdi Square (72nd Street), and then merges with West End at Straus Square (aka Bloomingdale Square, at 107th Street).

Attractions

Landmarks

 • Dakota Building, 1 West 72nd Street - this massive apartment building has been (and is!) home to many celebrities. Probably best known was the former Beatle John Lennon, who was gunned down outside the building on 8 December 1980 by a crazed fan named Mark Chapman. Lennon had been living at the Dakota with his 2nd wife, Yoko Ono, who still resides in the building. A monument to the former Beatle exists nearby in Central Park. The building has become a popular place of pilgrimage for many who admire Lennon.
 • Apthorp, 2207 Broadway and 390 West End Avenue, a beautiful early 20th-century high-rise luxury apartment building, takes up the entire square block between 78th and 79th Sts. between Broadway and West End Av. Its companion, the Belnord, takes up the square block between 86th and 87th Sts. between Broadway and Amsterdam. Both buildings were completed in 1908, at a time when the Upper West Side was still full of wide open spaces.
 • Time Warner Center, the new skyscraper on Columbus Circle (59 St. at the junction of 8th Av./Central Park West and Broadway) is the new home of Jazz at Lincoln Center and also contains some of the most expensive and critically acclaimed restaurants in New York, as well as a shopping mall.

Museums and galleries

 • New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West at 77th St - Tu-Su 10am-6pm. Americana inc Audubon's watercolors of birds. Adults $10.
 • The American Museum of Natural History , 79th St and Central Park West, Subway: B (weekdays only), C to 81st Street-Museum of Natural History, tel 212 313-7278, open daily 10am-5.45pm, suggested admission $13 adult - some of the exhibits are now a bit old and tired but the 4th floor and other parts are excellent. The 4th floor has the history of vertebrates with excellent exhibits on dinosaurs, pterosaurs, prehistoric mammals, etc. The most important museum of natural history in the United States, AMNH houses a wide variety of collections, including the popular Rose Center for Earth and Space and the remarkable and remarkably popular paleontology galleries. Allow for a full day, if not more, if you hope to see the entirety of the collection.
 • Nicholas Roerich Museum, 319 W. 107th St, (212) 864-7704 - Tu-Su 2-5pm.

Dining

Budget

 • Tom's Restaurant, corner of Broadway and 112th, close to Columbia University - the restaurant from the comedy series Seinfeld. Strictly located just outside the Upper West Side, this place is a shrine for many TV pilgrims; for the locals, just a diner.
 • Metro Diner on the corner of Broadway and 100th has everything you could look for in a diner breakfast menu.

Splurge

 • Per Se in the Time Warner Center is the New York outpost of Chef Thomas Keller of the French Laundry in St. Helena, which is in the Napa Valley of California. Chef Keller is one of the most famous and highly praised chefs in the United States. Call months in advance for reservations. No walk-ins admitted.
 • Sapphire Indian, Broadway between 60th and 61st Streets (near the Lincoln Center) - excellent Indian food served by knowledgeable waiters in this upscale restaurant. A bit pricey, but worth it.