Jing Fong Is Gone

If you walked past 380 Amsterdam (between 78th and 79th) this week and felt something was missing — you were right. Jing Fong, the Cantonese and dim sum restaurant that opened on the UWS in 2017, closed permanently on Sunday, March 8. "This decision does not come easily," the restaurant wrote. "We are beyond grateful for every guest who walked through our Upper West Side doors." If you're already mourning the dumplings: Moon Kee (Broadway and 100th), Dim Sum Bloom (98th and Broadway), and Han Dynasty (215 W 85th) are your next moves — all recommended by fellow West Siders.

Now Open on the UWS

Wendy's at 2565 Broadway (between 96th and 97th) — the first Wendy's on the UWS. (Corrected the address 🙂 that’s how you know I’m a human.)

PWR NYC 72, a personal training studio, is opening a second location at 143 W 72nd in April.

And Mr. Byrdie's Joint, a mom-and-pop sandwich and wings spot from couple Jae and Jon, is coming to 988 Amsterdam (108th/109th) this spring. Late-night hours. Dessert menu. "Modern uptown energy" is how they describe it. Three restaurants have cycled through that space in two years — root for this one.

West Park: Still No Decision

The LPC reviewed the church's rebuttal on Tuesday but did not vote. The 135-year-old landmarked building at 86th and Amsterdam remains in limbo — congregation wants to sell to a developer for ~$50M and demolish, the Center at West Park has raised $12M to restore it, and Community Board 7 has voted against demolition three times. No final vote date announced. We'll stay on it.

Columbia Women's Basketball: Revenge Game Tonight

Remember last week when we told you to bring the kids to Levien Gym? Yeah. Columbia led by 16 in the second half — and lost 68-64. Harvard's Karlee White scored 20 of her 24 points after halftime to erase the deficit. Perri Page had 25 for the Lions but it wasn't enough — Columbia turned the ball over 15 times in the second half, including the final possession with 28 seconds left and a chance to take the lead. It stung. But Columbia (20-7) is still dancing — they're the No. 2 seed in the Ivy League Tournament and play Harvard again tonight at 7:30pm in the semifinals at Cornell's Newman Arena. Three-time defending Ivy champs looking for revenge. Stream it on ESPN+ — or watch with fellow Lions fans at Amity Hall Uptown (982 Amsterdam). Doors at 7pm, free appetizers, 10% off everything, drink specials all night. If they win, the championship watch party is tomorrow at 5pm.

Big News for UWS Parents: 3-K Is Expanding

Mayor Mamdani announced this week that the city is adding 1,000+ new 3-K seats across 56 zip codes — and 10024 and 10025 are on the list. That's the UWS, Morningside Heights, and Manhattan Valley. New seats open this September through District 3. If you've already applied on MySchools, you don't need to do anything — the city will notify families as new programs are added. You can update your application to include new options through April 24. This is a big deal for UWS families who've been waitlisted or forced to look outside the neighborhood.

Friday, March 13 (tonight!)

Global Women in Music 2026 — UN Symphony Orchestra at Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway at 95th. 7:30pm. Works by female composers from around the world, presented as an official UN Commission on the Status of Women side event. Women's History Month at its most musically ambitious. You can walk there.

Saturday, March 14

With kids: NYICFF — Final Weekend — Multiple venues. Check schedule for Saturday screenings. The largest kids' film festival in North America. Ages 3–18.

MCNY Family STEAM Workshop — Museum of the City of New York, 1220 Fifth Ave at 103rd. 12pm. Under 20 free. Joe Macken's cardboard NYC will blow your kid's mind.

Riverside Park — Free yoga with Meg SantaMaria at the 102nd Street Field House. 9:30am. Stroller-friendly. Still free. Still great.

Date night: Selected Shorts: A Passport to Ireland — Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway at 95th. 3pm and 7pm. Colum McCann curates contemporary Irish short fiction performed live. St. Patrick's Week perfection. Almost sold out.

Rendez-Vous with French Cinema — Film at Lincoln Center, 165 W 65th St. Julia Ducournau's Alpha at 8:15pm with Q&A. She directed Titane. You know the vibe.

Queer Urban Orchestra: QUOfest — St. Paul & St. Andrew, 263 W 86th St. 8pm. Bernstein's Symphonic Dances from West Side Story plus Florence Price's bass concerto. $40 ($30 student/senior). Bernstein on the West Side, performed on the West Side.

For everyone: Schools Chancellor Town Hall: Our Schools, Our Future — Martin Luther King Jr. Campus, 122 Amsterdam Ave. 10:30am–12pm. Chancellor Kamar Samuels hosts an in-person discussion on school safety, academic rigor, and family empowerment. District 3 parents: show up.

Sunday, March 15

With kids: NYICFF — Final Day — Last screenings of the festival. Go.

Urban Park Rangers Free Birding Walk — Central Park, enter at W 100th & Central Park West. 9am. Free.

Third Street Concerto Competition Concert — Symphony Space. 3:30pm. Young musicians competing. If your kid plays an instrument, this is inspiration fuel.

For everyone: Silent Clowns Film Series: Three Ages — Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway at 95th. 2:30pm. Classic silent film with live musical accompaniment. A genuinely cool thing to do with a kid old enough to sit through it — or without one.

The 265th NYC St. Patrick's Day Parade steps off Tuesday, March 17 at 11am — Fifth Avenue from 44th to 79th Street. 150,000 marchers. 2 million spectators. Running continuously since 1762. Never canceled — not for blizzards, not for wars, not for pandemics.

Grand Marshal: Robert McCann, board chair of the Irish Arts Center, third-generation Irish American with roots in County Armagh.

Leading the march — for the 175th time — will be 800 soldiers of the "Fighting 69th," an Irish immigrant militia formed in 1849. They originally led the parade to protect it from anti-Catholic mobs. They attend Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral before stepping off. Officers still carry blackthorn fighting sticks from Ireland. Soldiers still wear boxwood sprigs — because at Fredericksburg in 1862, with their green flag in tatters, the Irish Brigade pinned the plant to their blue uniforms so they could carry some green into battle. Two Irish Wolfhounds march with them: "Gentle when stroked, fierce when provoked." That's not trivia — that's history walking up Fifth Avenue.

West Sider Insider: Stand between 70th and 79th: less crowded, stroller-friendly, easy bail to the park. No floats — all marching, all tradition. No restrooms along the route. Take the subway. Stream free on NBC 4 NY, YouTube, Roku, or Samsung TV Plus if you'd rather skip the crowds.

☁️ Stroller Rating: ☀️☀️☀️ (3/5)

Friday: 42°F, dry but chilly. Layers. Saturday: 47°F, clear skies. Best day of the weekend — get out there. Sunday: 49°F, slight chance of flurries because March is like that. Monday: 55°F but rain likely. Enjoy the weekend while it lasts.

Central Park: Urban Park Rangers birding walks continue — Sunday mornings at 9am, enter at W 100th & CPW. Free. Spring migration is starting.

Riverside Park: Free yoga with Meg SantaMaria continues Saturdays at 9:30am, 102nd Street Field House. No signup.

West Side Community Garden (89th between Amsterdam & Columbus): Still closed. 13,000 tulip bulbs underground doing their thing. April 12 opening. Four weeks out. We're counting.

🌸 First day of spring: Friday, March 20. About time.

TODAY: Fear & Anxiety from Childhood Through Teen Years — IG Live at Friday March 13, 9am Manhattan Valley Pediatrics is going live on Instagram this morning with Dr. Judith Hoffman and child psychologists Corrine Ahrabi, PhD and Sadie Cathcart, PhD from The Bravery Collective. Topics: nightmares, night terrors, bedtime fears, procedural anxiety (vaccines, blood draws), and more. Free. Tune in at 9am on @mvpediatrics. If you miss it, the replay will be on their page. For parents of kids of all ages — toddlers through teens.

Super Mario Galaxy Movie Activation — Through Saturday The Shops at Columbus Circle, ground floor. Through March 15, 11am–7pm. A Mushroom Kingdom installation featuring Princess Peach's Castle — stained glass artwork, a royal throne for photos, the whole thing. Free. Your kid will not walk past this calmly. The movie hits theaters April 1. All ages. Especially the 3–8 crowd. Free and walkable from anywhere on the UWS.

Monday, March 16

CWP Film Center: Manchester by the Sea — The Center at West Park, 263 W 86th St. 7pm. The Oscar winner on a big screen in a landmarked 1890 church — with a talkback featuring writer/director Kenneth Lonergan. $17.85+. This is the kind of thing that only happens on the UWS, and a good reason to support the Center while it fights to survive.

Tuesday, March 17 🍀

NYC St. Patrick's Day Parade — Fifth Ave, 44th to 79th St. 11am. Free. nycstpatricksparade.org

Science on Screen: Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story — Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway at 95th. 7pm. The Hollywood star who co-invented frequency-hopping tech that led to WiFi and Bluetooth. Irish parade by day, secret genius by night. That's a Tuesday.

Wednesday, March 18

Selected Shorts: A Passport to Ireland with Colum McCann — Symphony Space. 7pm. If you missed Saturday's shows, here's your second chance. Almost sold out.

How Pets Can Make Aging in Place Better — JCC Manhattan, 334 Amsterdam Ave. 11am. Dr. Amy Attas (City Pets), PAWS NY, and Search & Care on keeping your pet healthy as you age. Book signing. Free with RSVP.

Thursday, March 19

Ice Theatre of New York: City Skate Concert — Wollman Rink, Central Park. 6:15pm. Season-ending figure skating performances on the ice. One of those only-in-New-York things.

Friday, March 20 🌸 Go outside.

Help Teddy's Collection Close With Dignity

Teddy's Collection, the home goods and gift shop at 324 Columbus (between 75th and 76th), is closing March 23 after owner Stefanie Fischel was diagnosed with a serious health issue. The store — named after her 85-pound dog — was a neighborhood favorite since 2024. Stefanie is running a closing sale and needs volunteers to help move inventory.

If you have a few hours, reach out: [email protected] or 917-327-7360.

Sometimes showing up is the whole thing. Reach out to volunteer.

Alternative Side Parking this week and next: M/Th: Normal rules. Move your car. Tuesday: Normal rules. Move your car. Friday, March 20 — ASP suspended for Eid al-Fitr. 🌙 Stay put.

Eid Mubarak to our Muslim neighbors marking the end of Ramadan. Eid al-Fitr begins the evening of Thursday, March 19. If you see your neighbors celebrating, say Eid Mubarak — it means "blessed celebration."

Coming up: Holy Thursday and Good Friday (April 2–3), Passover begins April 2.

Full 2026 ASP calendar: nyc.gov/dot

Three of you wrote in after Issue #1. We read every one.

Shawna sent her UWS restaurant picks: Pig & Khao, Buceo 95, and Sempre Oggi — plus Playstreet Museum for the little ones. Noted on all of it.

Brian L. says we need to talk about Fat Boys Burgers. "More like Hell's Kitchen than UWS," he says — "especially the milkshakes." We'll allow it.

Katie told us the Weekend and On Your Radar sections are exactly what she needed as someone who's frequently planless on Saturdays. And she's with British Columbia on killing the time change. Same, Katie. Same.

Keep it coming. Reply to this email or send your best UWS photo to [email protected]. Sunsets over the Hudson, kids covered in playground mud, your dog judging you from a bench at 87th — we'll feature our favorites every Friday.

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That's Issue #2. There are over 150 of us now — no ads, no algorithm, just neighbors telling neighbors. Tell one more person this week and we'll keep growing the way the UWS does everything: one block at a time.

See you next week.

— The West Sider