I went to Serendipity 3 for the first time during one of my earlier trips to New York. I was 19 years old, a college girl from Berkeley.
Meeting Stephen Bruce was more than a dream come true. I went to Serendipity 3 for the first time during one of my earlier trips to New York. I was 19 years old, a college girl from Berkeley, visiting a friend of mine who went to Stanford and had a summer internship in Brooklyn. It wasn’t my first time in one of the greatest cities in the world; but during the day, I would roam around Manhattan alone, in a coral trench coat (the city was hovered with rain that week) and black heels. I envisioned myself living and working there someday, in fact, I made it a goal. But Paris came along later in life, and New York, to this day, merely remains as a city that I continue to revisit.
Throughout the years, I’ve developed a certain routine: lunch at Balthesar, concert at Lincoln Center, desserts at Cafe Lalo, brunch in Soho, shopping on 5th Ave. Some may consider it “touristy,” but I always stop by to have a Frrrozen Hot Chocolate at Serendipity 3. I’ve been there with friends, with family, alone. Inside its whimsical decor, I still glance around and reflect upon the first time I was there. At 19 years old, I thought I could conquer the world.
Sitting with Stephen, alongside stained glasses, vintage medallions below famous Tiffany chandeliers; was more of a treat than the Frrrozen Hot Chocolate that accompanied our ebbless conversation. Stephen’s persona was beyond sweetness and genuine warmth. As he reminisced stories of Jackie O, Andy Warhol and Marilyn, I realized what a great storyteller he was. For an entire hour, I had forgotten the professional purpose that had brought me to the restaurant. I was immersed in a fairytale that transported 1960‘s New York City to vivid life.
Life is filled with endless possibilities. More than a decade ago, I stepped foot inside Serendipity 3 for the first time, a place where Warhol ordered espressos and showed Stephen unused I.Miller ads. At the time, I never could have imagined where life would evolved to, that I would have the pleasure of sitting next to Stephen, indulging in his memories of famous dream-like characters. When we parted, he said to me, “Wendy, you live up to the dream of your name.” My heart melted faster than the Frrrozen Hot Chocolate sitting on the table.
Read more of my interview at Serendipity 3 with Stephen Bruce.
Dreamy travels,
