Revisiting Hard Rock Cafe: This Time, in New York

When my aunt, uncle and cousins visited, I fully expected to be the ultimate New York tourist for a weekend. And what says "tourist" more than a visit to the Hard Rock Cafe?

Not that I'm complaining. Really, I'm not. After all, I use to drag friends and family (some more willing than others) to Hard Rock Cafes in city after city after city. Orlando, Nashville, Washington, D.C., even London ... no trip was complete without at least a visit to the gift shop. But I hadn't stepped inside one since Paul and I made a quick stop in Niagara Falls almost 10 years ago. It was time to revisit, so I put up no complaints when my cousin made the suggestion.

First of all, I was amazed at how large the Times Square location was. I've walked by New York's Hard Rock Cafe dozens of times, but it opens into a gift shop. The restaurant is down a flight of stairs, and the tables are set up on two levels facing a stage. There was no show when we were there, but there were plenty of TV screens playing music videos (and, at the bar, World Cup soccer). It felt a little like VH1 in the early days.

Paul, staring at music videos off screen

The restaurant had the requisite rock memorabilia, of course. In fact, Johnny Cash was giving me the finger from a poster on the wall throughout the entire meal. It's OK, you gave us a really awesome cover of "Hurt" (and a few other songs, I suppose), so I forgive you.

And the food? Better than I remembered. My french fries were crunchy and my barbecue burger was tasty. I shouldn't be surprised. When Paul and I went to Times Square's ESPN Zone restaurant with another tourist-friend, I got the best barbecue burger I'd ever eaten. So I guess tourist restaurants aren't so bad after all. But don't expect me to visit Bubba Gump Shrimp Company anytime soon.

The Naked Cowgirl of Times Square

Paul, Annette, my two cousins and I squeezed onto the neon bleacher seats in Times Square, resting our feet as we waited for the sun to go down and the square to light up even brighter.

Dave, however, went exploring. When we found him a few minutes later, we couldn't help gawking at what he had found: the naked cowgirl.

Times Square's naked cowboy is fairly well-known, although I've never seen him. Ms. Cowgirl, while lesser known, seemed to be pretty good at drawing a crowd -- and tips. You could have your picture taken with her for $1, with the bill going directly into her boot.

No takers in our group. We even offered to pay.

How Times Square Is Like Las Vegas (In a Bad Way)

Memorial Day in hot and sticky New York City -- not the best way to spend a long holiday weekend.

It wasn't all by choice. Tentative plans to spend a day at Fire Island or on a beach in the Hamptons were scrapped when Paul sprained his right ankle jogging before work Friday morning. And since we were going to be in town anyway, I decided to reschedule my appointment to get a small cavity filled and got a last minute slot on Saturday morning.

Between Paul's foot and my mouth, we were (as my mother would say) a couple of sad sacks all day Saturday.

On Sunday, however, Paul's ankle felt at least a little better, and I was again at 100 percent. So we decided to try to get half-priced tickets at the TKTS booth in Times Square for the Broadway show "Promises, Promises."

Few New Yorkers like -- and even fewer would admit to liking -- Times Square. I like it ... at night. The neon lights are mesmerizing, and I don't even mind the crowds so much.

The middle of the day is another story. We got there about 2 p.m., and the temperature must have been well into the 80s. The unforgiving sun made walking elbow-to-elbow with sweaty tourists even less appealing. There's just nothing redeeming about Times Square in the middle of the afternoon.

It's like Las Vegas. It sparkles at night, but I've rarely seen an uglier city in the daytime. That's when you go to the casinos ... except in Times Square you have a choice only between Olive Garden and the Hershey store.

In any case, the TKTS booth had sold out of the tickets we were seeking just before we got to the cashier, and the tickets at the box office were too expensive. We spent the afternoon in Central Park, followed by an evening of sushi. Not the Memorial Day weekend I expected, but not bad nonetheless.

Times Square: Take a Seat!

Times Square is now a pedestrian zone.

At the end of May, several blocks around Times Square and Herald Square became car-free. In their places are tables, chairs, and plenty of tourists.

Folding chairs in place of cars

I rarely drive in New York and never in Manhattan, so not being able to motor through the middle of the borough certainly doesn't bother me.

Even so, the lack of vehicles definitely takes away from the frantic feel that was part of the charm of Times Square when I was a tourist and not a resident. But as a resident, I think the pedestrian zone is a great idea-- the sidewalks (and streets) are crowded, but not packed. That means no more dawdling behind visitors who haven't yet learned that yes, you can cross the street even when the sign says not to.

That being said, I couldn't help but feel a bit of a thrill last weekend, walking right down the middle of Broadway. If the number of camera flashes were any indication, others obviously felt the same way.

And I have to admit that it was nice -- even relaxing -- to find a couple of empty chairs in the middle of the hubbub and take in the city right at its heart.