{"id":793422,"date":"2026-05-13T12:29:19","date_gmt":"2026-05-13T12:29:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/793422\/"},"modified":"2026-05-13T12:29:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-13T12:29:19","slug":"the-taylor-swift-superfans-guide-to-new-york-city","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/793422\/","title":{"rendered":"The Taylor Swift Superfan’s Guide To New York City"},"content":{"rendered":"

Before Kansas City (and its football team) stole Taylor Swift\u2019s heart, she was in a long-term, committed relationship with New York City. After moving to NYC in March 2014, she kicked off her album 1989 with a track wholly dedicated to the city\u2019s revitalizing energy, crediting it as \u201can important landscape and location<\/a> for the story of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n

The days of regularly spotting the Life of a Showgirl singer out and about in Manhattan may have ended, but despite Swift\u2019s recent penchant for the Midwest<\/a>, she still spends plenty of time in NYC. Of course, after over a decade of living in the city, she has compiled quite the list of go-to spots, from exclusive restaurants to quaint streets.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m a longtime Swiftie, but with one exception (more on that below), I\u2019ve never really gone out of my way to visit her favorite places \u2014 even though they\u2019re in my metaphorical backyard. This spring, I made it my mission to change that, devoting one week to a Swift-inspired itinerary with *range*, from a long morning walk in the West Village to late-night martinis at the Chelsea Hotel<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a full breakdown of this Swiftie\u2019s guide to NYC \u2014 and I promise that each and every location will get \u201cWelcome to New York\u201d stuck in your head.<\/p>\n

A Thursday Nightcap at Lovers of TodayHannah Kerns<\/p>\n

Lovers of Today is rumored to be the \u201cdive bar on the East Side\u201d referenced in \u201cDelicate,\u201d one of the most romantic songs on Swift\u2019s snake-themed album Reputation.<\/p>\n

Since moving to the city in 2022, I\u2019ve been a big fan of Lovers of Today. The bar is right across the street from Tompkins Square Park, tucked into a quiet street with a neon heart sign marking the entrance. The speakeasy-style lounge is full of specialty cocktails (with rock-and-roll names like Astral Plane and Handsome Devil) and plenty of cozy leather seats.<\/p>\n

The downstairs usually gets crowded, so I tend to walk through the back patio to get upstairs, which has a connected bar called 96 Tears. My go-to drink is an extra dirty vodka martini<\/a> \u2014 an order that\u2019s extremely hit or miss here. (I\u2019ve had some of the best and some of the worst, depending who is bartending.) This time around, I chose to get a Modelo on draft instead \u2014 safe and consistent, and not too heavy for a Thursday.<\/p>\n

Friday on the High Line & Dinner at The Waverly Inn<\/p>\n

Swift gave NYC\u2019s High Line \u2014 an elevated park, converted from a 1930s rail structure \u2014 a shoutout in \u201cCardigan\u201d on Folklore. In the track, she sings: \u201cI knew you \/ Your heartbeat on the High Line \/ Once in 20 lifetimes.\u201d As a Folklore stan, it only felt right to bring my heartbeat to the High Line for a pre-work morning coffee walk.<\/p>\n

That night, I kept the Swift theme going with dinner at The Waverly Inn, a cozy West Village restaurant where she\u2019s been spotted having dinner with Gigi Hadid<\/a> and a date night with Travis Kelce<\/a>. My roommate scored an 8:30 p.m. reservation for her birthday dinner, so we headed over there to celebrate with an impressive spread, including tuna tartare, Caesar salad, kale salad, burgers, and roast chicken. Martinis were the obvious choice for drinks. <\/p>\n

Saturday Night Drinks at the Chelsea Hotel<\/p>\n

Even though I live just 10 minutes away from the Chelsea Hotel, I\u2019ve never checked out the Lobby Bar \u2014 a travesty for a Swiftie like me. Swift sings about the spot in the title track from The Tortured Poets Department: \u201cI laughed in your face and said \/ ‘You’re not Dylan Thomas, I’m not Patti Smith’ \/ This ain’t the Chelsea Hotel, we’re modern idiots.\u201d (Thomas and Smith both famously lived at the hotel.)<\/p>\n

I had plans with a friend to grab drinks on Saturday night and asked if she\u2019d be down to make the Chelsea Hotel our first stop. Lucky for me, she was up for it. We put our names on the list and grabbed $25 (ouch) martinis at the bar. Less than 30 minutes later, we were led to an enclosed patio area in the back, where we continued to sip our cocktails and snack on the complimentary bar nuts. It was the perfect kickoff for our night out \u2014 lively enough to keep the energy up, and comfortable enough to enjoy ourselves. Plus, I peeped Bridgerton\u2019s Simone Ashley<\/a> on our way out. (It was the Saturday before Met Monday, after all.)<\/p>\n

A Sunday Morning Stroll by the Central Park Lake<\/p>\n

On Sunday, I headed uptown to see the Lake in Central Park. Swift references the landmark in \u201cThe Bolter\u201d to illustrate the romantic beginning of a relationship: \u201cWhen it’s all roses, portrait poses \/ Central Park Lake in tiny rowboats \/ What a charming Saturday.\u201d<\/p>\n

It may not have been a Saturday, but the vibes were still rosy. I was even debating renting a rowboat myself, but it was a bit too windy and chilly \u2014 way too brisk for a rowing workout on the water. Still, I spotted some couples braving the weather in the name of romance.<\/p>\n

A Tuesday Morning Meander & Breakfast at the Bus Stop Cafe<\/p>\n

I woke up bright and early on Tuesday morning and took the subway down to Tribeca to scope out Swift\u2019s Franklin Street apartment \u2014 the same spot she lent out to Sophie Turner<\/a> after the Game of Thrones star\u2019s divorce from Joe Jonas<\/a>. I scoped out the spot (no black SUVs were outside, so it seemed unoccupied) before heading north to the West Village.<\/p>\n

I got to Cornelia Street, where Swift used to rent an apartment, about 20 minutes later. After four years of living in the city, I think this is the first time I\u2019ve actually walked down the most famous Swiftie thoroughfare. For the occasion, I listened to \u201cCornelia Street (Live from Paris).\u201d As I strolled, I was pleasantly surprised to discover a restaurant and bar called Donna at the end of the block. (No, it\u2019s not named after Donna Kelce<\/a>, but still.)<\/p>\n

From Cornelia Street, I walked over to Electric Lady Studios, the iconic recording studio commissioned by Jimi Hendrix in 1968, which Swift frequents. She went there to record cuts for several albums, including Lover<\/a>, Evermore<\/a>, and The Tortured Poets Department<\/a>.<\/p>\n

From there, I headed to the Bus Stop Cafe, an all-day breakfast spot in the West Village. Fans think that Swift referenced the restaurant<\/a> \u2014 which strikes a perfect balance between sunlit and cozy \u2014 in \u201cThe 1,\u201d when she sings, \u201cI thought I\u2005saw\u2005you at the\u2005bus stop, I didn’t though.\u201d The caf\u00e9\u2019s service was great, and their BLT really hit the spot \u2014 the perfect end to a morning exploring.<\/p>\n

A Wednesday Trip to the Housing Works Bookstore Before Dinner at BondST<\/p>\n

For the last day of my Swiftie-inspired New York City tour, I made an early-bird reservation at BondST, one of Swift\u2019s go-to restaurants in Manhattan. When she\u2019s in the city, she\u2019s often photographed walking down the restaurant steps<\/a> \u2014 usually surrounded by other celebs like Selena Gomez and Jack Antonoff \u2014 before making her way over to the private members club Zero Bond.<\/p>\n

Before dinner, I stopped in to see another Swift-approved spot, the Housing Works Bookstore. The nonprofit shop, which has secondhand books, clothes, and a caf\u00e9 in the back, raises money to provide services for low-income New Yorkers living with HIV\/AIDS<\/a>. Swift used the space for the closing scene of her \u201cAll Too Well (10 Minute Version)\u201d music video<\/a>, where she played the role of an author at a book signing.<\/p>\n

After a quick browse around the shop, which had plenty of Swift-themed merch, I walked over to BondST for a sushi dinner. I sat at the counter in the back, where I got a front-row view of the chefs\u2019 dinner preparations. Plus, one of the chefs offered a complimentary taste of a roll he was making, Hot Eel Dice. At first, the menu was a little jarring \u2014 it seemed like every single item was $30 or more, but once I got past the sticker shock, I got to ordering. <\/p>\n

Dinner included a glass of white wine, a free bowl of edamame, and a selection of customer-favorite menu items: Big Eye Tuna Tarts, Red Snapper Tacos, Tuna Crispy Rice, and Short Rib Foie Gras Gyoza. Everything was delicious, but the crispy rice stole the show, IMO, and for $34, it better have.<\/p>\n

My week in Swift\u2019s New York City \u2014 excluding Met Gala Monday<\/a>, where I was glued to the red carpet coverage \u2014 was one to remember. She\u2019s a tastemaker, through and through, and her go-to spots are proof, even if some of them can test the budget.<\/p>\n

Don’t miss a thing<\/p>\n

Be the first to know what’s trending, straight from Elite Daily<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Before Kansas City (and its football team) stole Taylor Swift\u2019s heart, she was in a long-term, committed relationship…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":793423,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5122],"tags":[5229,8058,435,12730,2252,975,405,403,5226,5225,5228,5227,323819,3571,1164,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-793422","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-artwork","10":"tag-celebrity","11":"tag-homepage","12":"tag-life","13":"tag-music","14":"tag-new-york","15":"tag-new-york-city","16":"tag-newyork","17":"tag-newyorkcity","18":"tag-ny","19":"tag-nyc","20":"tag-set-jet-week","21":"tag-taylor-swift","22":"tag-travel","23":"tag-united-states","24":"tag-united-states-of-america","25":"tag-unitedstates","26":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","27":"tag-us","28":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116567275366287969","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/793422","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=793422"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/793422\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/793423"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=793422"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=793422"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=793422"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}