Staff here is awesome! I enjoyed the belles lager and my bf liked the IPAs…read more It's a great place if you're more into IPAs - I was hoping for a crisp Pilsner. We always go here before going to a show. You can also bring outside food in. We enjoyed being able to watch the Olympics - as it was projected on the wall.

Fun lil brewery nearby Rutgers Newark in ...well...Newark. Got a nice flight of a variety of beers…read more...with ipa and sour the best. A near space with funky art on the wall and people geeking out on games. Nice service too. Was happy to serve me close to closing.

Jody is a fantastic guide. She not only knows the best gallery shows, but she is very knowledgeable…read moreabout art and artist. We had an amazing tour of the best NY galleries.

From the owner: Art Gallery Toursread more

Absolutely LOVED this tour!…read more I read about it recently as it was mentioned in O Magazine which is Oprah Winfrey's Magazine and I knew that I HAD to do a short trip from Chicago to NYC to take this signature and insightful tour lead by Professor Andrew Lear! Dr. Lear is the Founder and Master Guide of the Shady Lady Tours and is a leading scholar in the area of the history of sexuality. There were seven people in my group and we met at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) in front of the Giant Pharaoh in the main lobby. Dr. Lear then distributed the entrance tickets and the Nasty Women of the MET Tour commenced. The Nasty Women of the MET focuses on the "[f]eisty, path-breaking women--women who had more power and/or independence than we usually think women in the past had." (According to Dr. Lear's Web Site). I saw many works of art that I probably would not have spent a lot of time exploring on my own..but Dr. Lear provided "the backstory" of each painting, sculpture, vessel, statue, and cultural artifacts that were explored. I have to admit that my favorites included the Gertrude Stein painting in which she was painted by Pablo Picasso and it took about 90 sittings to complete! I find her intriguing. I also was fascinated by the Female Pharaoh Hatshepsut of Egypt who ruled 1500 years before Cleopatra....in the Egyptian Wing. Hatshepsut's statue shows her dressed in female attire, "[b]ut she wears the nemes headcloth, a royal attribute usually reserved for the reigning king." (As listed in the MET's formal description of her statue sitting on the throne). The final stop was the John Singer Sargent portrait of a young woman Edith Minturn from the mid 1860s. While the artist's choice was a request that Ms. Minturn dress in an evening gown during the sitting she showed up in a two piece outfit in which her skirt did not touch the floor-but her shoes were readily seen. Her husband stands behind her and she smiles vibrantly as if she "knows" that she has clout, class, and authority as well as individuality. FYI-her husband stood in for Ms. Minturn's Great Dane when the dog became unavailable to sit for the portrait. The stories and featured art that is/was explored on this tour were exceptional and as diverse as the "Nasty Women" that were peppered throughout the MET. I would like to return to attend the "Shady Lady Tour." Truly impressive tour, well paced (2 hours) with an entertaining and educational experience provided by Dr. Lear.

Finally went on a tour with them again today. I was fortunate to have Andrew Lear be the guide. The…read moretour was educational, fun, and interesting. I say this as someone who doesn't really like art, but does in the way that he teaches it. It's amazing to me hearing about who the paintings or sculptures are actually of and the story that goes with them. Cool tidbit: The goddess Aphrodite was supposed to be executed but her lawyer pulled her top off exposing her boobs and then they acquitted her LOL. The Paris tour looks amazing as well but don't think I would ever be able to do it. In any case, if you want to go to the MET because you feel that you should but find art zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz, take this tour. Two hours of showing you interesting pieces. Great way to spend a rainy, cold day in NYC.

I have been an on-again-off-again patron of the Met since I was very young. However, I have never…read morefelt as informed, energized, and enthusiastic about art as I did when I participated in the Gay Secrets of the Metropolitan Museum tour with Professor Lear. Wow! Professor Lear is a bit of a character with an overall sunny disposition and an indisputably shining passion for art. His knowledge about the history of homosexuality and of art in general is quite vast, and his entertaining yet thorough explanations make each stop on the tour such a delight. He was very open to questions, comments, and playful back-and-forths with the people in the tour group, which added a much-welcomed sense of community and casualness. I learned so much and couldn't have been happier with my experience. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! (Note that I have copied+pasted my review from Trip Advisor to ensure this service is properly reviewed across multiple platforms. I'm not a robot or paid, I promise!)

I'm not surprised for the current and very rare ALL 5-star reviews here for these tours. I…read morethoroughly enjoyed the "Gay Secrets of the Metropolitan Museum" I took last weekend. Andrew, our guide, a former art professor and academic author, was very knowledgable about the museum and the works, guiding us through centuries of art (somewhat out of chronological order, but to keep walking in that massive museum to a minimum) and telling us some of the stories behind them. I saw works I never noticed before and even visited rooms I had never been in before -- which with even dozens of previous museum visits is understandable, given the Met's hundreds of galleries and easily more than 10,000 works on display. It was great to have a knowledgable guide, and I thought I got a very good value.

If you are looking for art tours in NYC, you can stop looking -- you've found the best one. I…read morefound Emily a few months back while looking to give my wife several art tours as a gift. Emily helped me pull together a special gift and we had the first tour today. Emily is a remarkably talented guide, combining both incredible knowledge with a gift for storytelling. We spent several hours today at the Met with Emily and she was able to make the tour interesting and engaging for both my wife, who has background in art history, and myself, an art novice. Emily deftly crafted an itinerary based on my wife's favorite types of art while also bringing to life pieces that we'd previously have walked by without any second thought. Truly cannot recommend Emily more highly enough. We have two more tours with her and are so, so excited.

We recently had the pleasure of taking 2 private tours with Emily at both the MET and the MoMA…read more She is highly knowledgeable, and had interesting insights into the art and the artists. If you want an informative focused tour through these enormous collections with someone who knows their stuff, I highly recommend visiting them with Emily. Thank you Emily - for 2 unforgettable days!

I needed to have our family's art collection appraised and Victoria Shaw was fabulous! She is…read moreextremely knowledgeable and professional. Victoria was able to expedite the appraisal and her responses were always very prompt. I would highly recommend her for your art appraisals and advisory. I will absolutely use her in the future for any of my art needs.

I highly recommend Victoria. She's very knowledgeable, professional and customer service oriented…read more She helped me a great deal navigating the auction process to get top dollar. Very prompt with communication and honest with her advice. Highly recommended!

Jeff is the perfect guide. Patient, knowledgeable and funny. This tour is a great way to see some…read moreof the best street art in New York City and the ever changing scene that is Bushwick, Brooklyn. The walking tour goes at a good pace to cover a wide area but slow enough to also stop, think and take photos. Good value for money and well organised the tour takes you through the main streets in Bushwick and Jeff explains the background behind many of the pieces. It's a good way to get your bearings before revisiting solo or continuing your wonder under your own steam. Bushwick, Brooklyn is the street art epicentre with an ever changing array of works from world renowned street artists.

Ok tour but it was nothing as described. One graffiti stop. Nothing else. The tour was a very basic…read morehistorical/socio economic tour. Nothing about the neighbourhood being cool or artistic. Maybe 5 mins total was spent talking about artists that performed here. Hate to break it to you but the rest of the world knows the us has issues with poverty and garbage healthcare system. Nearly everywhere has issues with gentrification. Making a tour 100% about that when it's completely mismatched with the description is false advertising. ONE graffiti art spot. Not much sense preaching to tourists about unaffordable housing for 2 hours.

TEP deserves more than 5 stars for the amazing start to finish service we experienced on our 7 day…read moreadventure to Peru to hike the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. From the time we signed up, to the time we boarded the plane to return home, TEP took care of every detail. We commented amongst ourselves that we felt like kids on vacation with our parents, as we didn't have to worry about any of the details - just show up and follow Neptali (our guide). From airport pickup in Cusco in luxury Mercedes vans where we were promptly served Coca tea to help with the altitude acclimation, to group dinners at amazing Peruvian restaurants, to historical tours and education on the history of the Inca - everything was covered and taken care of for us. And that was all before the amazing trek along the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu! Of course the trek itself was the highlight of the trip, and although it was extremely challenging for us, TEP's unbelievable attention to detail did not fail us on the trail. With nearly a 2:1 porter to trekker ration, our every need was met on the trail. We dined like kings every meal, and were consistently amazed with the quality (and nutritional appropriateness) of the food our chef and sous chef were able to put out with minimal kitchen conveniences. The thing I felt was most special about TEP's approach to this trip was the focus on gaining a cultural and historical appreciation for what we were experiencing. Every step along the way, we learned about the native people of Peru, the Inca civilization, the many ruins we came across, the vegetation we saw and how it was and is used, and the history of modern Peru. It was the trip of a lifetime, and have the help of The Explorer's Passage made it so much more enjoyable, and so much more memorable. The value of what they provide is amazing for the cost....rather, for the investment. I highly recommend them!

What a fabulous tour! I did the "Washington in NYC" tour in June 2017 and it was such a wonderful…read moreexperience! So much fascinating historical information that I can't wait to share with all my friends now; such a great group of fellow explorers; and all so perfectly run - well planned, perfectly on time, with a great variety of sights and insights for all types of travelers. I recommend this tour highly - and will be on the lookout for future adventures from The Explorer's Passage! :)