Stopping at the US Open

The US Open Tennis Championships is a hardcourt tennis tournament held annually in Queens, New York City and is the fourth and final of the four Grand Slam tennis events, along with the Australian Open, French Open, and Wimbledon.  The tournament is one of the oldest tennis championships in the world and starts on the last Monday in August.

The tournament was first held in 1881 on grass courts at the Newport Casino in Newport, Rhode Island, now home to the International Tennis Hall of Fame.  In 1915, it was relocated to the West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hill, Queens and in 1978, the tournament moved to the newly-constructed USTA National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, Queens and, at that time, the court surfaces switched from clay to hardcourt.  The US Open is the only Grand Slam tournament that has been played every year since its inception.

We are passing through New York during the US Open and take the subway to Queens for a day at the tennis center.

US Open grounds

Celebrating the Power of Tennis

We wander the grounds,  enter a few of the stadiums, and watch some tennis.  The grounds have 22 outdoor courts:  four large show courts, thirteen field courts, and five practice courts.  The main court is the 23,771-seat Arthur Ashe Stadium, opened in 1997 and named after Arthur Ashe who won the men's singles title in 1968.  The next largest is the 14,061-seat Louis Armstrong Stadium, opened in 2018.

Courts

Arthur Ashe Stadium

Louis Armstrong Stadium

Tennis in action

In 2025, more than one million fans attended the US Open across the tournament's full three weeks and 832,640 attended for the two weeks of the Main Draw.

We visit on an early-in-the-tournament weekday with no major matches scheduled, giving us a great opportunity to explore the complex without the large crowds, have lunch, watch a few matches, and take the subway back into Manhattan.

Passing Through New York City

We're on our way back to one of our favorite places in the world:  Monterosso al Mare in Cinque Terre, Italy.  But first, we stop in New York City for a quick visit and a trip to the US Open tennis tournament.  We check into our hotel and stroll around the city, first heading over to the High Line, the 1.45 mile (2.3 km) elevated park, greenway, and trail on the former New York Central Railroad spur in western  Manhattan.  The High Line was inspired by the 4.7 km (2.9 mile) long Coulée Verte René-Dumont in Paris over which we strolled five years ago.

First we pass Vessel, a structure in the Hudson Yards rising 150 feet (46 meters) and consisting of 154 flights of stairs, 2,500 steps, and 80 landings for visitors to climb.

Vessel

We stroll the High Line for a mile or so, then head up to Times Square.

Along the High Line

Heading up to Times Square

Times Square is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street and is one of the world's busiest pedestrian areas with an estimated 50 million visitors annually.  The square is full of numerous huge digital billboards and advertisements.

Times Square

The sun sets and we continue northwest past Times Square over to one of our favorite restaurants in New York, Briciola on West 51st Street in Hell's Kitchen (Midtown West).  We start with octopus salad and burrata with tomato, followed by lobster ravioli, orecchiette with Italian sausage and broccoli rabe, and spicy shrimp with rigatoni.

Briciola

Starters

Main courses

After a great meal and a night's sleep, we stroll through the just-getting-started-in-the-morning city to Central Park and wander through the park.

Morning stroll in Central Park

Leaving the park, we walk down Fifth Avenue, admiring the store windows at Bergdorf Goodman, then past Saint Patrick's Cathedral and on to Rockefeller Center.

Bergdorf Goodman

Saint Patrick's

Rockefeller Center

We continue walking south to our hotel in the Garment District in the heart of Midtown Manhattan, a little more than 2 miles (3 km) south of Central Park.

Dining in Manhattan

As soon as we arrive in the city, we drop off our luggage at the hotel and head over to Briciola Wine Bar in Hell's Kitchen, on West 51st, near 9th.  They don't take reservations and have two rooms, one with a bar and the other with a long communal table where all the diners sit, eat, and interact.  We share a plate of Mozzarella and prosciutto and an octopus salad, followed by porcini risotto and garganelli with osso bucco and a side of roasted beets.  Wow!

 Entrance and dining room

Starters

 Risotto (with porcini), garganelli (with osso bucco), and roasted beets

The next night, we return, but instead of waiting for a table, we are guided to a sister restaurant, Laboratorio, 1/2 block away that has a similar menu with immediate seating.  We select the same starters as the previous night, but follow them with two pastas:  rigatoni with spicy grilled shrimp and pappardelle with slow-braised wild boar.  We add a side of mashed potatoes and share a chocolate fondant to finish..

 Starters

 Mains

 Side and desert

We try a new (to us) restaurant, Nizza, on 9th Avenue, between 44th and 45th.  The feast starts with the house bread served with ricotta cheese and grilled octopus (with chick peas, red onions, peppers, and fennel), followed by Sunday pasta (bucatini with meat balls and Italian sausage) and home-made fusilli with broccoli rabe and spicy pork sausage.  We'll be back to Nizza next time we're in New York!

Nizza interior, appetizer

 Octopus, bucatini and fusilli

Our last night, we head over to another new (to us) location, Don Antonio Pizzaria on West 50th between 8th and 9th, specializing in Neapolitan pizza.  We start with arancini (stuffed rice balls coated with bread crumbs and deep fried) and share two pizzas, one white (quatro fromaggi with buffalo mozzarella, gran cru pecorino, caciocavallo ragusano,  parmigiano reggiano, and crescenza BelGioioso ) and one red (diavola with tomato sauce, mozzarella, sopressata, and basil).  Another great meal!

Arancini

 White and red pizzas

Our first two lunches are at counters in Chelsea Market and Eataly.  At the fish market in Chelsea Market, we have a grilled fish sandwich and fish sliders.  At Eataly, we share a fresh-made mozzarella and a platter of assorted cheeses and charcuterie.  After lunch at Eately, we then go window shopping through all the markets (and buy some stracchino cheese and speck to carry home for one of our favorite risottos).

 Lunch at Chelsea Market

Lunch at Eataly

 Window shopping in the market at Eataly

For our last lunch, we meet a friend from out of town who is passing through New York for holiday visits (and formerly lived in the city).  She guides us to 44 & X (at the corner of 44th and 10th Avenue), another great find.  We share a bottle of Prosecco and dine on a smoked salmon, sour cream, and chive omelet and roasted chicken quesadillas.

 44 & X

We've dined spectacularly in New York and, once again, find small restaurants with spectacular food, tremendous people, fabulous ambiance, great value, and high quality.  This is just another reason to keep coming back.