“I always dressed differently, in a way that I loved but no one else around me liked,” Batsheva Hay told Town & Country in 2021. The remark seems fitting for the founder of the cult fashion label Batsheva, whose prairie dresses have become synonymous with a certain brand of eccentric femininity. Finding her way there took time. Hay attended Georgetown Law School and spent years working at corporate firms. Then, in 2012, when she met the photographer Alexei Hay; the two married, and she left law behind. The couple settled into Orthodox Jewish family life on the Upper West Side and had two children. But her new life, filled with responsibilities that replaced the long hours and late nights of her 20s, made her itch for more.
Hay turned to clothing. “I wanted to feel good about myself as a woman, as a new mother,” she told AnOther magazine in 2020. She began making her own dresses in 2016, bridging Hasidic style with funky fabrics. Many took notice: the celebrity stylist Kate Young commissioned Hay to make a blouse for Natalie Portman, and fans soon ranged from Celine Dion to Cindy Sherman and Courtney Love.
A mainstay at New York Fashion Week ever since, Hay has also taken to the Upper West Side. “What I love about [it] is how chatty everyone is,” she says. “They have time to kill. They’re anonymous, and you can be too.” Here, she shares her favorite spots in the neighborhood she calls home.
Zabar’s
It’s all about the incredible smoked salmon, and the sawdust on the floor. There are great coffee beans, too. Only go sit at the cafe next door if you’re down to chat with the elders of the neighborhood. The houseware shop upstairs is great, too. (zabars.com)
Barney Greengrass
Best wallpaper award. If you’re someone who lunches, this is the place. (barneygreengrass.com)
CAFE LUXEMBOURG
This is my favorite of the Lynn Wageknecht/Keith McNally restaurants. It has the great brasserie feel without any of the tourists. It’s also the chicest restaurant in the city, in my opinion. Perfect for family celebrations or meals near Lincoln Center. (cafeluxembourg.com)
TARALLUCCI E VINO
Solid State Coffee is technically the best coffee in the neighborhood, but it gets crowded. This is a good place to get an espresso and possibly spot Matt Dillon. I have a soft spot for the Sensuous Bean because of its adorable name and the fact that it’s been there forever, but the issue is there is nowhere to sit. (taralluccievino.net)
NOI DUE GELATO
A Kosher gelato shop—it’s really good! Their speculoos flavor is the stuff dreams are made of. (noiduegelato.com)
New Plaza Cinema
I was devastated when the only art house movie theater in the neighborhood shut down a few years ago, but now it operates on weekends as a nonprofit from a townhouse on West 67th Street. I can’t wait to see Albert Einstein: Still a Revolutionary and other oddball films. Apparently, they have a temporary location for the summer at the nearby (and incredible) Museum of Arts and Design. (newplazacinema.org)
Grand Bazaar NYC
This quiet, unpicked-over flea market takes place in an elementary school yard every Sunday. There is a farmer’s market a block away, in front of the Natural History Museum, and these two stops make an A+ Sunday combo. (grandbazaarnyc.org)
Icon Style
The only cool vintage shop in the neighborhood. The owner is great and wears amazing 1950s rhinestone glasses. There’s also a fabulous selection of costume jewelry. (iconstyle.net)
Westsider Books
It’s amazing that a tiny rare and used book shop on Broadway still exists! And it has good stuff. The staff is sometimes grumpy and sometimes friendly. (westsiderbooks.com)
Central Park
Namely, the Sheep Meadow and Bethesda Fountain. I regularly sit in the Sheep Meadow by myself to decompress, or go with the kids for a picnic. Bethesda Fountain has constant entertainers, people taking engagement portraits, and turtles hanging out by the area that connects to the lake.
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