Best Free Things To Do in NYC This Week

“The quality and quantity of free events, free things to do that take place in New York City every day of the year is truly amazing. So don’t miss the opportunities that only New York provides: stop wondering what to do; start taking advantage of free things to do, free events to go to in NYC today!”

Join Club Free Time – I did, and it’s one of the best things I ever did. Here is a sample of FREE events this week. Get more information by going to the Club Free Time website.

Best Free Things To Do in NYC This Week

Monday, July 5, 2021

Mon, Jul 5 – 6:00 pm / free; RSVP required
Author Reading | The Extraordinary Life of His Holiness the Dalai Lama: A New Biography (virtual)
Artist Rima Fujita talks about Rima’s new book about one of the most revered spiritual figures of ou … more

Tuesday, July 6, 2021

Tue, Jul 6 – 6:00 pm / free; RSVP required
Play | Hamlet: Classic Shakespeare Tragedy Outdoors
Prince Hamlet is thrust into turmoil after losing his father. Will he obey the dictates of the dead … more

Tue, Jul 6 – 7:30 pm / free
Opera | Met Opera: Strauss’ Elektra (virtual, streaming for 23 hrs)
Elektra is one of the most frequently performed operas in the world. While based on ancient … more

Tue, Jul 6 – 8:00 pm / free; tickets required; available only through a digital lottery
Play | Merry Wives: Shakespeare Adaptation in the Park
Set in South Harlem, amidst a vibrant and eclectic community of West African immigrants, This adapta … more

Wednesday, July 7, 2021

Wed, Jul 7 – 4:00 pm / free; RSVP required
City Walk | Battery Park City Tour: The Business Core
The second of the Skyscraper Museum’s three thematic walking tours of Battery Park City covers the m … more

Wed, Jul 7 – 6:00 pm / free; no reservation required
Classical Music | Ensemble Connect: Baroque to Cutting Edge
The brilliant musicians of Ensemble Connect bring thrilling virtuosity and energy to everything they … more

Thursday, July 8, 2021

Thu, Jul 8 – 5:00 pm / free
Concert | Bach, Bartok, Broadway, The Beatles and More on Strings!
String trio Lumiere performs musical selections from Bach, Bartok, Broadway to the Beatles! … more

Thu, Jul 8 – 7:30 pm / free
Opera | Met Opera: Strauss’ Capriccio (virtual, streaming for 23 hours)
Renee Fleming is Countess Madeleine, the beautiful, enigmatic woman at the center of Strauss’s sophi … more

Thu, Jul 8 – 8:00 pm / free; tickets required; available only through a digital lottery
Play | Merry Wives: Shakespeare Adaptation in the Park
Set in South Harlem, amidst a vibrant and eclectic community of West African immigrants, This adapta … more

Friday, July 9, 2021

Fri, Jul 9 – 6:00 pm / Pay-as-you-wish, reservation required
Museums | New York City and American History
Founded in 1804, this American history museum holds an extensive collection of historical artifacts, … more

Fri, Jul 9 – 6:30 pm / Pay what you can, reservations required
Play | Shakespeare’s Love’s Labour’s Lost
Love’s Labour’s Lost is one of Shakespeare’s early comedies, believed to have been written … more

Saturday, July 10, 2021

Sat, Jul 10 – 2:00 pm / free; ticket required
Dance Performance | …Praise: The Inevitable Fruit of Gratitude: A Rhythmical Expression of Appreciation
NYC-based Dorrance Dance is an award-winning tap troupe that strives to share the African-American a … more

Sat, Jul 10 – 7:00 pm / free; RSVP required
Play | King Lear — with a Happy Ending
This version of King Lear by William Shakespeare will employ Nahum Tate’s 1681 “happy endin … more

Sat, Jul 10 – 7:30 pm / free
Opera | Met Opera: Strauss’ Arabella (virtual, streaming for 23 hrs)
Otto Schenk’s opulent production, conducted masterfully by Christian Thielemann, provides a perfect … more

Sunday, July 11, 2021

Sun, Jul 11 – 4:00 pm / free; no reservation required
Concert | Live Music Sunday
Lay out on the grass and enjoy live music. … more

Sun, Jul 11 – 7:00 pm / free; RSVP required
Play | King Lear — with a Happy Ending
This version of King Lear by William Shakespeare will employ Nahum Tate’s 1681 “happy endin … more

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If you are looking for some of the best info on food and drink, restaurants and eating in New York City, then you want to head to New York magazine’s Grub Street.

Right now you want to check out: The Return of Restaurants

“Make up for lost meals. No takeout, no pasta kits, just 66 of the best new (or newly relevant) places to eat.”
Edited by Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld, Photographs by Dina Litovsky

Here are 3 more of my faves:

Find Singapore in Sandwich Form

Native Noodles / 2129 Amsterdam Ave.

Amy Pryke, who opened Native Noodles in February, has gifted a rare Singaporean restaurant to the city — great news for workers at nearby New York–Presbyterian Hospital and the Washington Heights neighborhood in general. On a recent weekday, two silver-haired folks slurped thick rice noodles in a shrimpy yellow curry as the scent of coconut-jam waffles perfumed the air. Others went for the roti john, a squishy sandwich stuffed with ground beef, soft omelet, and sweet-spicy chile ketchup. If the small dining room is full, take your lunch over to nearby Highbridge Park. —R.P.S.

Conduct an Impromptu Pasta Tasting

Forsythia / 9 Stanton St.

Mark Coleman (Rezdôra) and Jacob Siwak (Olmsted) are the captains of this snug little establishment, which began life as a pop-up many months ago and is crowded now with a rabble of Italophiles, off-duty cooks, and carbonara loons, all clamoring for a taste of the city’s latest haute-pasta menu. The small, blond-toned dining room is nice, but if you want to feel like you’re dining on a side street in Bologna or Rome, ask for a table in the sidewalk cabana, which is strung with lights up in the rafters, lined with baby pine trees, and filled, on temperate evenings, with the bouncy sounds of Italian pop tunes. Pay special attention to Coleman’s elegant interpretations of the old Roman classics, like eggy tangles of tonnarelli pasta tossed alla gricia with pecorino, little chunks of guanciale, and plenty of black pepper.—A.P.

Work Your Way Through the Brand-New Menu at Brooklyn’s Best Thai Restaurant

Ugly Baby / 407 Smith St., Carroll Gardens

At Ugly Baby, New Yorkers exchange glances and ask their neighbors for recommendations — yes, even during a pandemic. The great unifier? The incendiary cooking of southern Thailand. After a winter restricted to delivery, the neighborhood rejoiced when chef-owner Sirichai Sreparplarn reopened for indoor dining in April. Even more exciting: His new menu was nearly three times as long as the original, comprising mostly new dishes like peek gai (ground-pork-stuffed chicken wings over green beans) and kang leung (sour sea-bass curry). While on a recent visit, the restaurant’s laab ped, labeled “stay away duck salad” on the menu, lacked some of the promised heat, Ugly Baby remains a place where napkins are reserved for wiping noses, not hands. —L.F.

Also see Eater New York’s interactive map that highlights
these 66 restaurants that deserve your attention.