Usually, Jenn and I try to hibernate in July in the city but given the mild temperatures and our desire to get back out more, we had a phenomenal July with great eats and a lot of memorable entertainment.

If I was going to describe July in one statement it would be the month that Jenn and I pushed to get back out and enjoy NYC. After three straight travel months, it felt great to spend most of the month at home. We kicked off the month with the long 4th of July weekend. We took Frasier for a beautiful morning run at Central Park (the photos don’t do it justice) and had a fantastic meal at Bad Roman, a new Italian restaurant in Columbus Circle.

One of the highlights of the month was the three Broadway shows we saw in July highlighted by Just for Us and Sweeney Todd (more on those below). It felt revitalizing to be back out seeing live theater again. We also spent a lot of time this month playing tennis. I went to New Jersey early in July to play for 3-hours, which spurred Jenn and I to go to Sutton East a few times throughout July. It was the first time Jenn and I have played tennis since the Maldives, and Jenn hasn’t lost a step. I’m not sure why it took us this long to go play tennis again but it’s been a really nice part of our July.

Another big change for us this month is going out to try new restaurants. We started to get into too much of a routine and finally branched back out in July. I mentioned Bad Roman already but on top of that, we also went to Raf’s (the new restaurant from the team at the Musket Room) and Nubiani a new Korean BBQ restaurant near the Empire State Building. We had higher expectations going to Raf’s given our love for The Musket Room and although I don’t think it hit the same highs it was a very good if not great Italian meal. Nubiani was a phenomenal KBBQ restaurant that served its food far too quickly. For that type of meal you want to enjoy the experience but within 30 minutes we had maybe ten dishes in front of us.

The month ended with a work trip for me back to Paris and London. That same weekend, Holly (Jenn’s cousin) visited while in Washington DC for a conference. Jenn and Holly hit the town, returning to Bad Roman, Katz, and trying out The Django jazz club. They seemed to have a great time while Saturday night (July 22) I flew to Paris and then took the train to London a few days later. It was a standard work trip (or as standard as they are becoming) but I still managed to get some great walks in and tried one of my new favorite restaurants in Paris, Colvert. I arrived back on Friday, July 28th, and outside of seeing Oppenheimer that weekend, we tried to keep things nice and relaxing.

TV WE WATCHED

Quality over quantity was the motto of July. We wrapped up the 3rd (and hopefully not last) season of The Great which somehow continues to be as witty and funny as ever. I cannot count how many times I’d sit back and marvel at the writing of that show. If there was one show that captured both Jenn and me this summer it is Hikack on Apple TV+. Admittedly a very dumb show, watching a 7-episode series staring Idris Elba on a hijacked plane is chef’s kiss excellent.

BOOKS I READ (OR LISTENED TO)

What an eclectic trio of books I read in July. All three books were excellent. Demon Copperhead may be my favorite book of 2023, a beautiful story of a young boy’s life raised in poverty in the US was one that I struggled to put down. Wool a science fiction book that they made into a TV show this year (Silo) was such a fun read. I don’t think it nails the ending but I had such a good time reading it and am now even more excited for the TV show. And finally Napoleon: A Life a book that I’ve wanted to read for years and finally did was just as good as I had hoped. It was a bit long-winded at times and spent more time explaining battle maneuvers then I needed but learning about Napoleon someone I knew next to nothing about made for a fascinating read.

MOVIES WE WATCHED

With the opening of Look Cinemas on 57th Street we’ve been going to the movies a lot more again, including three times this month. The highlight of the month was Oppenheimer which may be my favorite movie of the year (currently competing with Past Lives). The acting and cinematography were incredible, but more than anything I found the entire movie to be engrossing. I loved it.

Indian Jones and the Dial of Destiny was entertaining and the same could be said for Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part 1 which wasn’t as good as the last MI movie but still ultra-entertaining and a great two and half hours at the theater.

THEATER WE SAW

Have I mentioned how much I love going to the theater? We started the month off with the incredibly funny and talented Alex Edelman whose Just For Us was poignant and hilarious. The highlight of the month though was our latest induction into the world of Sondheim with Sweeney Todd starring Josh Groban who gave a performance I’ll never forget. Although not as good as Company or Into the Woods, Jenn and I left Sweeney Todd ready to listen to the sound track and now instantly buy any Sondheim show that hits Broadway.

We ended the month seeing Peter Pan Goes Wrong, the follow-up to The Play That Goes Wrong which was far superior. Although still enjoyable Peter Pan Goes Wrong felt like a bit of a re-tread on what we already saw. Still incredibly enjoyable and funny though.

GAMES I'VE BEEN PLAYING

I finished my first game of 2023. In early July I got addicted to Horizon: Forbidden West which I left half completed about a year ago and was able to pick back up and see it through to the end. What a great game, and it made me miss playing games more often. Luckily there’s Spider-Man 2 and Assassin’s Creed: Mirage coming out later this year.