Gay Talese, an exemplar of New Journalism and author of the recently published compilation “High Notes” (Bloomsbury), is a consummate New Yorker. At age 85, he’s still out most every night and treats the Upper East Side, where he has lived in the same home since 1958, as if it is a small town — albeit, one with fine restaurants and amenities. Clearly, he’s in love with old-school New York, an iteration of the city that does not include chain coffee shops and 12-screen theaters. “Where I live,” he happily tells Michael Kaplan, “things have not changed in nearly 60 years.”
On weekends, I rarely leave my neighborhood. While I spend my weeks working during the day and going out all over the city at night — one evening last week, for example, I headed to the West Side for the documentary on James Baldwin and had dinner alone at PJ Clarke’s — weekends are largely devoted to chores and running errands.
But I like to find time for a martini at 6 p.m. My go-to spot is Le Veau d’Or, a French cafe that dates back to the 1930s. What I like is that the owner makes my martini and leaves me the shaker — so I get an extra half drink. Anyone who does that wins my heart. Plus that restaurant has no music. It’s quiet [so] you can have conversation, and the Dover sole ranks among the best in New York. I also like eating at the Pierre Hotel (it’s close, and I enjoy the lamb chops) as well as a steak joint called Donohue’s. The owner is a little bit like Elaine Kaufman. She’s the granddaughter of Martin Donohue, who founded the restaurant in 1950, and knows what I like.
If I do leave the neighborhood on a weekend, it’s usually for a trip to Strand Book Store. To get there, I always take the subway. I tend not to rely on cabs, I don’t know how to use Uber, and the New York subway stands out as the most democratic example of America. It’s so civilized: A guy squeezes on with a bike, and nobody gets mad.
What I like about the Strand is that it has the most cultivated clerks. They’re knowledgeable and polite. Last time there, I was looking for books by Ian Frazier; a guy took me around and helped me to find six good ones in paperback. After buying books I go to Cinema Village, which is right nearby. It’s a great, old movie theater that shows interesting films. I recently saw a music documentary there called “Nighthawks on the Blue Highway.”
But often my weekends in Manhattan are reserved for the mundane. Last Saturday I went to Lexington Hardware to buy light bulbs and string for tying recyclables. I don’t read daily news on the internet and the papers add up. I also got a haircut. The lady who does it for me is Mary Goldy. She came to my house, set a cloth on the floor, and I watched the news as she cut. I flip from CNN to Fox to MSNBC, dodging commercials. Ever since Trump took office, TV news has been interesting. Politically correct Obama was boring. Now watching the news is like watching “The Sopranos.”