Hi there night owls, party animals and vampires. If you are like me you find yourself most productive in the middle of the night which can be a pain if everything is closed. Luckily I live in the city that never sleeps so there is an amazing amount of stuff you can accomplish in these hours.
Everyone can find a greasy diner that's open 24 hours but here are some great finds that you may not expect, you know, other than wreaking havoc on a Kinko's in the middle of the night.
Too busy to get groomed during normal hours? No worries head over to 24 Hour Hair Party on Madison and 28th street. A very chic full service beauty salon for when you need that 3am mani/pedi. http://www.hair24hours.com/
Fancy a massage? Ok, ok I know that indeed sounds incredibly shady but there are a couple of places in Koreatown that are not. Juvenex Spa and SPAdium on 32nd street are very clean and zen with a great staff. They have same-sex only hours so check before you go to see if you are allowed. (in all fairness I have only been there during normal hours, so perhaps it does seem shadier at night. Not sure.)
Why fight the crowds at lunch hour to get your errands done? With a 24-hr Duane Reade and Associated Supermarket all about town, you can certainly get some shopping done but you can also get a few other things done. Finally get that new iWhatever or talk to the geeks at Genius Bar about your sad, dying MacBook at the Apple Store on 5th ave. This flagship store is usually crawling with hundreds of tourists milling around dumbfounded as if they have no idea that you can buy Mac products online or a bunch of other stores, but being the only one open 24/7 normal people can finally go and get questions answered.
Now that you computer is getting fixed, how about your laundry? Either use a Fed-Ex delivery service at Slate (http://www.slatenyc.com) or walk into Baby Girl's Bubbles and either do your own or drop off dry cleaning at any hour uptown near Columbia University.
Get your work out on at Derek Jeter's 24-hour Fitness in Madison Square Park (or any of the other 24hr Fitness Joints for that matter)
Hungry? Well my favorite thing to do is log on to Seamlessweb and see who is still open to deliver to me but if you want to venture out for a good meal, head down to the East Village for Ukrainian grub and hipster watching at Veselka. The mac n' cheese and the beautiful Chelsea bar-goers bring people in to Cafeteria on 7th ave and 18th St all night. If you have a middle of night craving for French food, check out L'Express on Park Ave South for your Moules Frites. Sweet tooth? Go to The Donut Pub on 14th street.
So it's after last call and you still want to go dance and stay out? Check out Space Billiards Cafe (34 W 32nd street on the 12th floor). It's a K-town speakeasy of sorts but you can shoot some pool, smoke on the terrace, and order up Korean delivery. Not a bad option past 4am. Unless you want to ride the Staten Island Ferry back and forth at the ferry bar. :)
Not in NYC?? Unless you live in Vegas your options are limited but here are some funny things that you can check out after midnight:
Washington D.C. : Aside from a few 7-11s there is not much to do in the Capitol after-hours but oddly enough you can get your work out on at Knox Boxing and Fitness on 18th St NW
L.A.: If you are tired of getting your middle of the night grub at Mel's, check out 24/7 at The Standard West Hollywood. The people watching is much better.
SF: Head over to Van Ness for some indian food at Naan n' Curry or Tommy's Joynt for greasy food and biker sightings.
Miami: Become a member of Tan SoBe (http://www.tansobe.com/) and bronze 24-hrs a day (or I guess those few hours of darkness when you can't naturally tan outside). If it's a weekend odds are you are still at Space waiting for the next global DJ to start spinning and wondering why people are leaving. Oh yeah, it's 11:30am and you got there 12 hours ago.
