BrickUnderground

Leonora Desar

Our West Village doorman loves the pork fried rice at Suzie's, and judging from how popular it is for deliveries, his building's tenants do too.

We recently chatted with a 52-year-old doorman who works in a Greenwich Village rental complex surrounded by some of the best restaurants and nightlife in the city. He's been a doorman for 30 years, having worked in Chelsea, on Central Park South and on Sutton Place before moving to the Village about four years ago.

Here’s what he had to tell us about his favorite (and less lavish) neighborhood staples, and what he once did to walk away with a $1,000 tip. 

Best thing about the neighborhood: The people.  It’s diverse, with a lot of different nationalities.  It’s a great place to be.

Worst thing about the neighborhood: I don’t think there’s anything I would change.

Best quick bite: I like Tre Giovani (Laguardia Place between 3rd Street and Bleecker) – I really like Italian.  I usually get pasta or chicken parmesan. 

Best restaurant: Suzie’s Chinese Restaurant (on Bleecker Street between Thompson and Sullivan). I love their pork fried rice. 

This $799k two-bedroom penthouse condo in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, has a gourmet kitchen plus low common charges and abated taxes. Con: no doorman.

Want to live in a NYC penthouse? You’re apparently not alone.

This week’s Open House Scorecard--the top 10 apartments StreetEasy users saved to their open house planners more often than any others this past weekend--contains more than the usual share of penthouses with top-o’-the-line finishes in the kitchens and bathrooms.

The penthouse in a full-service building in the Flatiron District -- on West 16th between Fifth and Sixth Aves -- boasts a renovated two-bedroom co-op for $2m. The chef’s kitchen has a stainless SubZero fridge and wine cooler, Miele dishwasher, and Viking gas range with an integrated Miele ventilation hood. The bathrooms also have high-end finishes, including Zuma soaking tubs. A terrace runs the length of the apartment, and maintenance is (relatively) low at $1,743. But even $2m won't get you a washer-dryer here.

This $3,950 one-bedroom DUMBO loft has an "industrial chic" feel that fits its neighborhood perfectly.

We’re kind of salivating over the openness of this $3,950 one-bedroom loft at 220 Water St. in Dumbo.

The unit is available starting June 1.

Pros: As the photo to the right shows, the space is airy and modern, with 14-foot ceilings, exposed columns and beams and high-end appliances. There’s individually controlled central air and heat in each apartment, as well as washer/dryers. The luxe building has a children’s playroom, pet wash and more. Plus, the neighborhood has the whole “industrial chic” thing down pat.

Cons:  The rent – nearly $4,000 for a one-bedroom (albeit a large and beautiful one) – is pretty high (though the building does accept guarantors). Plus, supermarket shopping is a bit tricky (and expensive) in DUMBO.

When you're looking for an apartment or writing out a monthly rent/maintenance/mortgage check with one too many zeroes, it can be useful to remind yourself why you're doing this in the first place.

In an UrbanBaby discussion entitled "Please remind why I live here in NYC?" the general consensus is that while housing is pretty much the worst thing (besides the homeless guy who tried to kick your dog this morning for no reason), there's a lot to savor too, including:

1. Brooklyn Botanical Gardens.
2. No matter how depressed you are feeling you will say hi to a minimum of 10 people per day and you are constantly running into people you know.
3. Best place to deliver a social justice lecture to your kids.
4. Awesome public transportation.
5. 500 restaurants located within a mile of any given apartment

I left Hell’s Kitchen seven years ago and moved back to the neighborhood where I grew up, Astoria, for financial reasons. This time, I didn’t go to my parents’ place, but my own two-bedroom apartment located in the Ditmars area, by Astoria Park.  It’s still a strange feeling to come back 'home' after 15 years of being away.

My old one-bedroom apartment was conveniently located on West 44th Street between 9th and 10th Avenues.  I loved being in the center of it all.

But I didn’t love my rent -- $1,650 a month. My current rent in Astoria is $1,250, and this is for a very large two-bedroom with seven closets, a lot of natural light and a small backyard! 

The transition to Astoria was a lot harder than I thought it would be. It took me three years to finally get used to the neighborhood, and accept the fact that I was no longer in Manhattan.

I hated being back where I grew up. It felt like I was moving backward and not forward. In the beginning stages, I thought it was just a dream and I would wake up and be back in my apartment, enjoying life in the city again.