Retro Fitted
A New York institution gets a
historic makeover
The 107-year-old Algonquin Hotel is a living
legend. It was home to the Round Table,
including charter members Dorothy Parker,
Robert Benchley, Edna Ferber and George S.
Kaufman, who lunched daily and talked shop
at the hotel. The group, which called itself the
Vicious Circle, led to the founding of a little
magazine called The New Yorker, produced
some of Parker’s wittiest sayings and gave rise
to one of New York’s earliest gossip columns.
The Algonquin recently celebrated the
90th anniversary of the Round Table with a
renovation that maintains and enhances the
integrity of the hotel’s original design.
ave
Date
FLUSHING MEADOWS
U.S. Open
the
Through
Sept. 13
Catch the excitement
of live tennis as the
greats battle it out in the
ultimate championship.
718-760-6200; usopen.org
MIDTOWN
New York
International
Salsa Congress
Sept. 2–6
Need to brush up on
your mambo skills? Is
your cha-cha a little
tired? Explore your pas-
sion for Latin dance and
music with intensive
workshops, fabulous
concerts and more at
the New York Hilton.
nycsalsacongress.com
CITY GUIDE
New York
The Oak Room Cabaret, which hosts the likes
of Harry Connick Jr. and Diana Krall, has been
outfitted with a new baby grand piano. Rooms
have been subtly updated, but the classic wallpaper of Ne w Yorker cartoons still adorns the
hallways. The lobby’s most inviting feature
remains Matilda, the Algonquin’s long-haired,
cream-colored cat, who is so popular that
she has her own e-mail address and a cocktail
bearing her name.
The hotel currently offers several special
packages, including the Writer’s Block, for
writers blocked either creatively or financially. Present evidence of your work-in-progress
(or its published form) and get 25 percent off.
212-840-6800; algonquinhotel.com.
Dressed to Thrill
Halloween is a
serious holiday in
New York City. The
biggest celebration
in the country, the
Village Halloween
Parade, boasts
puppets, jaw-droppingly elaborate costumes,
music and mayhem,
and is attended by
more than 2 million
people. halloween-
nyc.com.
“Halloween on
the Hudson” is a
three-hour, late-
evening cruise
around Manhattan,
with a live DJ,
booze, buffet
and, of course,
costumes. 212-
987-2628;
affairsafloat.com.
Looking for
something kid
friendly? Oct. 31
and Nov. 1, the New
York Aquarium at
Brooklyn’s Coney
Island presents
“Halloween at
the A-Scarium,”
showing off its
collection of sea
monsters. Kids who
dress in costume
get in free. Also
Oct. 31 and Nov. 1,
the Bronx, Central
Park, Queens and
Prospect Park zoos
scare up “Boo at
the Zoo,” where
animals such as
polar bears are fed
Halloween treats.
wcs.org.
DUMBO
Art Under
Bridge Festival
Sept. 25-27
More than 60 outdoor
works of art and video
installations cover the
streets of this Brook-
lyn neighborhood.
dumboartscenter.org/
festival.html
BROOKLYN
Chili Pepper
Fiesta
Oct. 3
The Brooklyn Botanical
Garden’s hottest event
all year features four-
alarm food, workshops
and performers ranging
from fire-eaters to
musicians such as
last year’s guest, Pete
Seeger. bbg.org
MIDTOWN
WBLS/WLIB
Circle of Sisters
Expo
Oct. 10-11
This event at the Jacob
Javits Convention
Center is dedicated to
women of color, with
speakers, authors,
spiritual services,
concerts and more.
circleofsisters.com
