New York City New York City Lower East Side Sights

The Lower East Side was once the most densely settled area in New York, with 240,000 people crammed into one square mile. The Irish, fleeing famine-stricken Ireland in the mid-1800s, were the first to arrive. From then until WWI, an influx of mainly Jewish Eastern Europeans arrived. After WWII, a wave of African-Americans and Puerto Ricans joined the mix, and over the last two decades, Latinos and Asians have moved in. Today, Chinatown is steadily creeping northward.

While the Lower East Side’s immigrant past remains visible in its many ethnic food stores and restaurants, perhaps the most obvious 21st-century influx consists of young hipsters, who patrol the neighborhood’s community gardens and graffiti-marked streets. You’ll find indie-rock and underground music clubs galore, and neighborhood shopping includes both vintage clothing stores and pricey independent boutiques. The Lower East Side Visitor’s Center, 261 Broome St., provides maps, brochures, a free 90min. shopping tour of the area (Apr.-Dec. Su 11am; meet in front of Katz’s Deli), and a free discount card for shopping. ( ☎212- 226-9010; www.lowereastsideny.com. Open daily 10am-4pm.) Sights are listed from north to south. (Ù F, V to Lower East Side/2nd Ave.; F to E Broadway; F, J, M, Z to Delancey St./Essex St.)

Congregation Anshe Chesed. This red Gothic Revival building was built in 1849, making it the oldest Reform synagogue in New York. The building’s understated but dramatically lit interior is open to the public during events and services. Though the synagogue hosts services twice a month (1st and 3rd F), the building is predominantly used by the Angel Orensanz Foundation’s Center for the Arts. The foundation hosts classical music concerts, art exhibitions, and scholarly lectures. You can find a schedule of events on their website. (172-176 Norfolk St., between E Houston and Stanton St. S F, V to 2nd Ave.; F, J, M, Z to Delancey St./Essex St. ☎212-529-7194; www.orensanz.com. Call in advance for admission.)

Sung Tak Buddhist Association. This Buddhist temple occupies a former synagogue. Look for the two imposing stone staircases on either side of a Chinese emporium, with a giant white Buddha at the top. The interior reflects the building’s multicultural past in its juxtaposition of Middle Eastern and Asian architectural styles. Services are held daily. (15 Pike St., between E Broadway and Henry St. S F to E Broadway. ☎212-587-5936. Open daily 9am-6pm. Free.)

The Eldridge St. Synagogue. This Moorish-style edifice, built in 1886 as the first synagogue for New York’s Eastern Europeans, presides over a crowded, noisy block of what has now become Chinatown. The synagogue hosts community events almost every Sunday, including lectures, concerts, and festivals (tickets free-$12). Call or check the website for upcoming events. (12 Eldridge St., south of Canal St. S 6, N, R to Canal St. ☎212-219-0888; www.eldridgestreet.org. Tours every ½ hr. M-Th, Su 10am-4pm. $10, students and seniors $8, children 5-18 $6.)