Good morning and welcome to the weekend. It’s dry and sunny today, and wet tomorrow (with maybe a fluttering of snow late on). Temperatures hit a high of 41 degrees each day. Wrap up warm…

If you fancy a few hours indoors, you can pick up $50 tickets for the Met Opera. The special offer comes as the Lincoln Center-based organization battles against a sustained cyberattack. Read more…

The Metropolitan Opera House at the Lincoln Center

Here’s the rest of Hell’s Kitchen’s news this week.

The family of Food Emporium employee Maria Sanchez, who was killed in a horrific elevator accident while working in the store, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against building owners Manhattan Plaza and the elevator companies in charge of the faulty machinery. Read more…

Hell's Kitchen Food Emporium Death Maria Sanchez

Stressed by holiday hustle and bustle? There’s still time to unwind and de-Scrooge-ify yourself by taking a tour of New York’s best seasonal lights, now on charming display around Hell’s Kitchen and Midtown at large. Read more…

Holiday lights W51st Street

SPONSORED POST

HYHK Holiday Party

Due to the rain last weekend the Holiday Market in Bella Abzug Park is taking place this Saturday from 12pm-5pm. Come to the park to support local small businesses while you do your holiday shopping. We will be lighting 30 trees in the park and providing FREE HOT COCOA at 4:30pm. There will be a meet and greet with SANTA CLAUS from 2:30pm-5:30pm. More details…


What’s that sound? If you live on the West Side, it’s probably a helicopter. Whether it’s a BLADE ’copter headed to the Hamptons, a mysterious, low flying helicopter over Hell’s Kitchen, or airborne police activity, locals and New Yorkers at large are growing almost as fed up with the not-so-ambient noise as they are of the city’s rampant rat problem – leading lawmakers to press for fewer choppers circling the Big Apple. Read more…

Helicopter Hudson Yards Gary Hershorn

One of the largest cruise ships to ever dock in Manhattan arrived this week ahead of a naming ceremony Wednesday. With the customary breaking of a bottle of champagne against her hull, MSC Seascape was named by Hollywood legend Sophia Loren, who is “Godmother” to several MSC cruise ships. Read more…

MSC Seascape Hell's Kitchen New York

Say bonjour to a cozy new French bistro – Steak Frites has just soft-launched a slew of high-quality, casual comfort food options on 9th Avenue. The restaurant is a collaboration between longtime Hell’s Kitchen local Stephane Bibeau and noted New York chef Adam Schop, and is the first of several planned projects on what the two call a “new Restaurant Row.” Read more…

Longtime Hell’s Kitchen local Stephane Bibeau (left) has teamed up with Chef Adam Schop (right) for Steak Frites.

Helping Hell’s Kitchen residents “waste not”, the bustling Mathews-Palmer Playground food scrap drop-off is celebrating two years of growing the neighborhood’s composting efforts. Read more…

Chana demonstrates proper composting

Whether you love it or hate it, SantaCon — the yearly mass bar crawl across Manhattan — is coming to town today. And as sloshed Santas galore (along with their inebriated elves and raucous reindeer) make their way through Midtown, we have all the details on where to rock around the Christmas tree, or like many West Siders, avoid altogether.  Read more…

Santas cross 9th Avenue

It’s the final curtain for legendary Times Square comedy club Carolines on Broadway, which announced that its last show will be on New Year’s Eve — but made a promise to be back in action in the future. Owner Caroline Hirsch said the end of 30 years of history at the venue was caused by the building owner seeking a much higher rent. Read more…

Caroline's Times Square

As other cities experiment with fare-free transit, some MTA board members are calling on elected officials to come up with new funding sources that would allow the financially strapped agency to let New Yorkers ride buses for free. Read more…

MTA Bus Hell's Kitchen

Loyal viewers lined the streets to snag a ticket and there were surprise celebrity dial-ins this week as Hell’s Kitchen threw a farewell party for host Trevor Noah’s last taping of The Daily Show. The comedian stunned viewers in September when he announced he was stepping down, and he said his goodbyes at the 11th Avenue studio Thursday night. Read more…

Trevor Noah Daily Show last show

As they launched an employee walkout this week, the New York Times Guild beseeched readers not to cross the digital picket strike, even for their favorite puzzle. Read more…

New York Times Guild strike

Katie Honan at THE CITY has written about my rejected visa application. Thank you to all the readers who sent in letters of support. We asked for a Supervisory Review on Tuesday and hope to have an answer early next week.

Phil O'Brien W42ST

What we’ve been reading

Uber is suing New York City over its plan to raise the minimum wage for ride-share drivers by nearly 24% per mile. (New York Post)

A New York health advisory urges wearing masks indoors this winter. (New York Times)

Compost and waste will be turned into gas to help heat New Yorkers. (Gothamist)

Coming out! Ticket folks will step away from their MTA booths next year. (Politics NY)

A little history of Rudy’s on 9th Avenue. (Forgotten NY)

Freeze Frame

Lincoln Tunnel Sunset Peter Shankman

The Lincoln Tunnel is going cashless from this weekend. Thanks to Peter Shankman for this picture overlooking the ramps. “Finally. The weekend. Much love, my friends,” he said on Instagram last night.

Happy belated birthday to David Blaut and greetings today to Semyon Lobachev and Philippa Lynas.