Nine or so years ago I complimented a colleague on her suit, which paired a jacket with a skirt in an unorthodox but attractive combination. She said she got it at a store on the Upper West Side of New York where the owner knows how to put outfits together. Nine or so years and a decent condo down payment later, I don't know what I'd have been wearing all this time had I not learned about Darryl's.
Located between 83rd and 84th Streets on Amsterdam, Darryl's is a small shop packed with simple, beautiful clothing for women. The merchandise ranges from casual sweaters and slacks, to stylish suits, to cocktail dresses. It's not inexpensive (my mother says when I walk in the door Darryl hears "cha-ching!"), but it's not one of those stores where they sell only size 0 pants for $300 and up (how can 19 year olds who wear size 0 afford $300 pants -- by saving money on food?). When I first started going to Darryl's he carried French and Italian designers I couldn't find elsewhere. Sadly, given the poor value of the dollar against the Euro, those days are over. Darryl's now carries such makes as Cyrus, Teenflo, & Trousers, and BCBG. Though the selection doesn't seem as unusual as it once was, it's still worth piggybacking off Darryl's good taste. Not to mention his judgment as to what will work for you -- by the time I've gone through the whole store and picked out what I want to try on, he'll have filled the fitting room with additional items he's picked out ("your assignment," as he puts it).
If you need a nosh before shopping, there's a Le Pain Quotidien next door. If you want to forget how much you spent after shopping, have a chocolate malt at Homer's across the street or a drink at any number of local bars. Or if you need to buy some goodwill from children in tow during your shopping spree, check out West Side Kids in the next block north. If you're shopping for a gift, they'll ship for you; good news when mysterywriter bought a gigantic dog for our niece in Charlotte. (I managed to convince my Charlotte sister (the mother of the aforementioned niece) and her family to make the trek to Darryl's from the Natural History Museum a few months ago based on the promise of a nearby toy store and malt shop. There's something for everyone in this neighborhood.) Check out the west side block by block here.
Darryl's
492 Amsterdam Ave. (between 83rd and 84th)
New York, NY 10024
(212) 874-6677
Can we go there this weekend? I'm hoping that he's got some more of those Cyrus v-neck sweaters in that I can't seem to find anywhere else!
Posted by: mysterywriter | October 02, 2007 at 04:54 PM
Yep, I could tell from the post that a Darryl's visit was in the offing. Hope you and Mystery Writer find some good stuff!
Posted by: sybil | October 04, 2007 at 06:54 AM
Thank God for Darryl!
Posted by: NorthernOutlaw | October 19, 2007 at 01:53 AM
Hey, what's that supposed to mean?
Posted by: mbpalaver | October 22, 2007 at 01:18 AM
Hey there - thanks for the tip about Darryl's. During my NY trip I managed to combine a visit there with brunch at the wonderful Good Enough To Eat, which is just across the street....a well spent hour or so!!
Posted by: Joanne McMullan | October 22, 2007 at 11:58 AM