I’m in love. At first I thought it would be just a fleeting affair, but after a week of playing with this new app constantly I think I could rename this summer “The Summer of The Scoop” because it seems destined to guide my lazy Saturday afternoons.
The Scoop is cleanly organized into 4 quadrants - Restaurants, Bars, Events, and Only in N.Y. Each section has focused, limited content, which I see as a huge advantage versus the endless choices I receive from apps like Yelp. Each section can be viewed as a list or as a map, making it easier to find the right bar, restaurant or activity for the day’s plans.
The restaurant section includes 50 top choices, cleverly named the “Siffty Fity” for Sam Sifton, The Times restaurant reviewer. To someone with one “Top 50 by 50” goal already, this comes across like a challenge worthy of my eating goals. The app lets you “mark as done” - a feature you can connect to your facebook, twitter, and foursquare accounts. At the bottom of the list you can see your progress - 6 of 50 and counting!
But the section that really takes the cake, and delivers something I haven’t found anywhere else yet, is “Only in N.Y.”. This includes a list of 50 uniquely New York experiences - such as “Eating Lunch with Diplomats” at the UN, taking a trapeze class on the bank of the Hudson, and visiting a Hindu Temple in Flushing. Sure, some of the items you will know about - such as the Highline or kayaking on the Hudson (am I labeling myself as a west-sider too clearly?!). But others are true gems, worthy of exploration and certainly an ideal tool to direct an otherwise directionless summer day.
Don’t have an iPhone? For a web based version of the app click here.
- New York Times App Gives Locals and Tourists the Scoop (appscout.com)
- Sam Sifton’s 50 Current Favorite New York Restaurants (dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.com)
