LinManueL Miranda
LinManuel Miranda exploded onto Broadway with the 2008 Tony-winning musical “In the Heights,” an ode to Washington Heights — the diverse area of where he resides. (He grew up nearby, in Inwood.) Offstage, too, uptown was a muse for the 34-year-old, who wrote and starred in the show: “A good amount of ‘In the Heights’ was written in Isham Park,” says Miranda. Now, he’s starring in the musical “tick, tick . . . BOOM!” June 25 to 28 at New York City Center. This is his uptown New York. 1 Central Park, West 110tth Street and Central
Park West “[My wifee, Vanessa] and I were on vacation in thet Dominican Republic, and nd puppy jumped on her beach ng totally flea-ridden and cute . She bit my wife’s ankle, so we ht her back] and named her Towhich is Spanish for ankle. You ve an entirely different relationhip with parks when you have a dog. On weekends, Tobillo and I wwalk down to 110th Street, and here’s this great hill on the northwest corner of Central Park. It looks like there are hundreds of
dogs walking people around.” 2 United Palace, 4140 Broadway, near West 176th Street “Art deco doesn’t even begin to describe the United Palace, which is the second-largest theater in Manhattan, after Radio City Music Hall. I’ve been hosting a movie series there. We flew out Rita Moreno for a Q&A after ‘West Side Story,’ John Landis for ‘King Kong.’ [And] I’m going to line up some Broadway friends for ‘Guys and Dolls’ in September.” 3 Morris-Jumel Mansion, 65 Jumel Terrace “George Washington used the Morris- Jumel Mansion as a base while fleeing New York. I’ve had writing sessions and meetings for ‘Hamilton’ [my new show] there. Some writers go to the Berkshires — I go to 162nd Street.” 4 Vinateria, 2211 Frederick Douglass Blvd., at West 119th Street “My wife [Vanessa, a lawyer] and I are renovating our place in Washington Heights, so right now we’re renting in Harlem. I don’t think I’ve ever been around more great restaurants. Vinateria has more famous neighbors — Red Rooster, Lido — but that’s my favorite spot. The lady who owns it, her mom walks around greeting people, and she’s delightful. I don’t know either of their names, but it’s a nice family feel, and the
Bloody Marys are great.” 5 Carrot Top Pastries, 3931 Broadway, between West 164th and 165th streets “Carrot Top is famous for chees , but they make a really solid caféfé con lecheleche. I drink it like a 6-year-old would drink: with lots of sugar and lots of milk. I’m sure coffee snobs would not like me because I’m turning it into candy. I used to go to the branch in Inwood, and the ladies who worked there were really not very nice. If you earned a smile from them, you were doing all right.”
6 New Leaf, 1 Margaret Corbin Drive
“[My] special-occasion restaurant for a long time has been the New Leaf in Fort Tryon Park. My wife and I do Valentine’s Day there. It’s so removed from the rest of the city, you feel like you’re going to the country. We took [Panamanian singer-songwriter] Rubén Blades and his wife, Luba Mason, there for dinner one night, and it was surreal to see them experience an entirely new part of the city. Especially Rubén, who has chronicled Latino urban life so immortally in his music — it felt like a treat to show him a hidden corner of the world.”