Seinfeld was on your television for a very long time. That alone tells you that the show must have been at least semi-good. You don’t stay on long in prime time if you don’t have a good product. It lasted for nine seasons and they put out 180 episodes. If you think about that for a few minutes, you will realize exactly what kind of special magic they had on screen, along with a lot of luck, to last that long.
In 2013 the Writers Guild of America named The Sopranos as the best television show ever written. Seinfeld was named number two. Now that’s pretty impressive. Countless quotes from its episodes became the norm in the English language as well. They say that copying is the highest form of flattery there is. If that’s true then you can see just how much America loved Seinfeld during its run at the top of the sitcom ratings.
The show was set in New York City and a lot of places got to be pretty famous because of their appearances on the show. The New York Racquetball Club, Mendy’s restaurant, Gray’s Papaya and Sardi’s Restaurant and Lounge are just a few of the places that are now easily recognizable to any true Seinfeld fan.
Just in case you are heading to New York City in the near future and want to find some of Jerry and the gang’s favorite places, this list today should help you out!
20 Tom’s Restaurant - An Icon of the show
Most of the main cast’s downtime was spent eating and drinking at Monk’s Café/restaurant. The real restaurant is called Tom’s restaurant and it’s located at the corner of Broadway and West 112th Street. The official address is 2880 Broadway.
All of the interior scenes were actually filmed out in Los Angeles but the design was exactly what you will find inside of Tom’s. The blue and red sign is very recognizable and if you glance at it quickly you’ll think it’s what you see in the Seinfeld episodes. There aren’t a lot of people who recognize the different wording in real life because the sign looks almost like an exact match.
19 The Subway - Just don't listen to Kramer
Everywhere the cast went during the show they had three main sources of getting there: walking, taking a cab or taking the subway. Sometimes one of them had a car but in most episodes, it was one of the three mentioned.
One of the famous subway scenes was when they went out to Coney Island. Kramer gave Jerry wrong directions when he said “You can take the B or the F and switch for the N at Broadway/Lafayette, or you can go over the bridge to DeKalb and catch the Q to Atlantic Avenue, then switch to the IRT—2, 3, 4 or 5—but don't get on the G. See, that's very tempting, but you wind up on Smith and 9th Street, then you got to get on the R.”
18 Gray’s Papaya - When you desperately need a hot dog
If you are a fan of the Seinfeld show you already know that they spent some time at The Paragon Theatre. You’ll remember the plans that were made and then changed multiple times as things continued to come up, forcing them to change them.
Once they were there and set for the show, Kramer decided he needed a hotdog. So he went outside to a Papaya King stand to grab a dog before the show. The one depicted is actually located at the corner of Amsterdam Avenue, Broadway and West 72nd Street.
Just make sure if you stop there that you have your plans well figured out. You don’t want to live what they went through!
17 Metro Theater - Anyone have TP?
The Metro Theatre was the scene of some pretty funny fiascos on the show. Probably the most famous was when Elain was in a bathroom stall and she didn’t have any TP. The entire episode was pretty much based on the fact that she only wanted one square from the woman in the stall next to her, and the woman just wouldn’t give it up.
It turned out that Jerry was dating the unknown woman and Elaine finally came face to face with her at the end of the episode. That was a great episode and George also had his share of difficulties in the Metro Theater as well, in other episodes.
16 Royale Pastry Shop - She took the last Rye...
This shop was the scene of a few funny antics from the cast. Most famously this is where the old woman bought the last loaf of Rye bread, forcing Jerry to steal it from her later on. It also was the home of the black and white cookie, which the cast though might be able to help with discrimination. It all started with a hair found in a cake, forcing Jerry and Elaine to wait for a new one, creating time for all of the previously mentioned events to take place.
The shop is located at 237 West 72nd Street but they no longer sell bread, cookies or pastries. In an ironic twist of fate, it’s now a Jenny Craig location.
15 Jerry’s Building - A New York Address only
Jerry’s address on the show was 129 West 81st Street and he lived in the building with Kramer and Newman. They used the New York address in the show but the actual building they filmed was in Los Angeles.
Anything above the ground floor looks familiar but that’s about it. The entrance is different and the neighborhood is different. The neighborhood for that New York address is very quiet with not a lot of traffic. The show portrayed it as a busy area that was a mix of a residential and business district. But the odds of that happening in real life there are very low.
14 Lincoln Center For The Performing Arts - The site of the pretend girlfriend
Do you remember the episode when Elaine went to the ballet with a co-worker and pretended to be his girlfriend? That took place at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, located at 10 Lincoln Center Plaza.
She ended up developing a crush on him and went to great lengths to get him to “switch over to the other team.” Everything depicted in the episode is just as it is in real life so there is no mistaking it when you see it. Most New Yorkers are so used to it that they don’t even notice it when they are traveling around the city.
13 La Boîte En Bois - "I'll have what she's having"
There was a particular episode on the show were George took his girlfriend at the time, Karen, to La Boite en Bois for a very entertaining dinner. She ordered the risotto and her reaction was quite like the current Anna Farris commercial for the Atom movie app where she says “I’ll pre-order what she’s having!”
George was upset because the meal gave Karen a better reaction than he did.
The restaurant is located at 75 West 68th Street and thankfully for George, in real life, there is no more risotto on the menu. Karen wouldn’t be too pleased with that development though!
12 Mount Sinai Roosevelt - The most *cough* beautiful baby
Mount Sanai Roosevelt saw plenty of action during the run of Seinfeld. One of the more memorable episodes was when they went over to visit some friends of theirs who had just had a baby. They couldn’t believe what they were seeing and they had to lie to their friends and tell them it was the most beautiful baby they had ever laid eyes on, when actually, it was far from that.
In real life, the hospital is located at 1000 10th Avenue and is where John Lennon was taken before he died after being shot down at the nearby Dakota Apartments.
11 West Side YMCA - Hello, Hernandez.
The West Side YMCA is where Jerry first meets former New York Mets star, Keith Hernandez. The cast visit there quite often but in that particular episode, Hernandez was accused by Kramer and Newman of spitting on them. He was found innocent of all charges and made several other appearances on the show.
The real West Side YMCA is located at 5 West 63rd Street and is just as busy as it is portrayed to be on the show.
Hernandez once stated that he still gets about three grand a year in royalties from the reruns of the show. Not too bad at all for the small roles he played.
10 Edison Hotel - Where's my money?
The Edison Hotel is located at 228 West 47th Street and it was the scene of a very funny episode involving George and a beautiful woman he met on the subway. He was on his way to a job interview but the woman talked him into getting a hotel room with her.
Despite what George thought was happening when the woman indicated she way going to "get more comfortable", it was not the case at all.
A few minutes later she came back fully dressed and robbed George of his forty dollars and his only decent suit.
9 The Soupman - “No Soup For You!”
That famous saying is based on real-life events that took place when the show was being filmed. Jerry and many members of the cast and crew used to visit the small restaurant at 259A West 55th Street and came across Al Yenaneh. He was exactly how the character was portrayed in the show and the lines for his soup actually did extend down the street every day.
The original soup man used to say “Pick the soup you want! Have your money ready! Move to the extreme left after ordering! And if you don’t stick to the rules? No soup for you!” They put it into the show and hit gold!
8 The Improv - Host to Jerry's Stand-Up Scenes
The Improv was were Jerry did a lot of his work on the show. He was always either going to or coming home from the place. A lot of the stand-up scenes in the show were filmed there as well.
It was located at 358 West 44th Street but the club is no longer open. It now houses The Producers Club but I wouldn’t expect to see Seinfeld dropping by any time soon. Most of his time is spent on the other coast now.
Anyone familiar with the show though would notice the building and the area quite easily since it was shown so many times.
7 Rockefeller Center - No sets here
When George and Jerry went to the NBC studios to pitch their idea for a television show there were no props made for the scenes. They used the actual NBC studios and building for the filming of all of those very funny scenes.
The NBC studios are at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, West 50th Street and anyone who lives in New York knows exactly where that is. If you are visiting you won’t have a hard time spotting it either because since they used the real building, inside and out, it looks exactly as it did on the show! Go on in and say hello and you might get lucky enough to take a tour of the place!
6 Sardi’s - Popularity extends to the real world
Sardi’s at 234 West 44th Street. If you are a Seinfeld fan then you remember the episode when Kramer “won” a Tony Award while doing his job as a seat filler. After the show, they went over to Sardi’s and he was forced to fire Raquel Welch from a Broadway show.
The place has been there since 1927 and plenty of celebrities actual frequent it. It really is as popular in real life as it is portrayed in that episode. It was no accident that it was finally included in an episode of the hit show.
5 The Plaza Hotel - Anything to stay there
The Plaza Hotel is as famous for the movies and television shows that it has appeared in, as it is for the famous people who have stayed there. The beautiful facility at 768 5th Avenue appears in Seinfeld when Elaine was interviewing for a position with Viking Publishing.
She pretended to be from Florida so she could stay at the famous hotel but gave it up to Jerry’s parents instead. They, in turn, gave it to Uncle Leo and Nana who destroyed the entire room.
It’s a great episode and everyone knows exactly what it is when they see it in real life.
4 Mendy’s - Does soup count as a meal?
Mendy’s Kosher Delicatessen is where the debate began over if soup should be considered a meal. Located at 37 West 48th Street, it saw Jerry take Kenny Bania out for dinner and when Bania ordered only soup, he swore that he was still owed a real meal.
Jerry exclaimed later, “Soup and sandwich, that is a meal!” However, it was to no avail because Bania wanted a full dinner and if you have seen the show, you know what a pain he is to Jerry.
It’s a great episode and the real Mendy’s is just as nice as depicted in the show because they filmed it inside of the famous restaurant.
3 Barney’s New York - no skinny mirrors here
Barney’s New York is the scene when Elaine buys a dress that looks fantastic on her in the store, but when she gets home, well, not so much anymore. She accused the store of having “skinny” mirrors that made people look like they weigh far less than they really do. She said they altered the person’s appearance so they would buy the clothes.
Barney’s New York is located at 660 Madison Avenue and they appreciate all business and want you to know that they don’t use “skinny” mirrors in the store. The episode was funny but in real life, the store is all business!
2 Pendant Publishing - Now Ugg and Mont Blanc
Elaine spent a lot of time working for Pendant Publishing and later on George actually got a job there as well. The company itself was fictional for the purposes of the television show but the building really is located at 600 Madison Avenue and is home to Ugg Boots and Mont Blanc pens.
The structure was shown so many times on the show that it is instantly recognizable when you see it. You may be thrown off for a minute by the signs of the real residents inside but you will certainly know you have seen that building somewhere before.
1 Yankee Stadium - George's longest job
Yankee Stadium is the site of George’s longest reigning job. He loved working for the Yankees and people not only know it from the sitcom, but they also know it as one of the more famous baseball stadiums around.
The official address is 1 East 161st Street over in the Bronx and if you want to take the subway there you would not listen to Kramer. You would just make sure to get on the Green #4 train to 161st street. Easy as that.
Yankee Stadium was also in the funny episode that saw Elaine wearing a Baltimore Orioles hat and refusing to remove it.
References: nycgo, freetoursbyfoot, wikipedia