Staten Island: More Than Just the Ferry?

Yesterday, I took my first trip to Staten Island. I have been meaning to go for a while, and for some reason, it seemed like the perfect day for a little adventure. Looking at a map guide of Staten Island, it actually says “Staten Island: More Than Just the Ferry.” That does not bode well for actually being more than just the ferry, and many people appeared to simply be riding the ferry over and then back in order to see the beautiful view of the city and the Statue of Liberty. To be fair, I did enjoy the ferry ride, but I wanted to see more. After getting to Staten Island, I journeyed onward to the Staten Island Botanical Gardens. I have a secret desire to get to all the botanical gardens in the 5 boroughs before the summer is out, although this is looking less and less likely as the summer goes by far to quickly. Anyway, the botanical gardens were a bit of a disappointment. I had good company, and the weather was perfect, but there were not a lot of flowers currently in bloom, and the space was filled with all sorts of buildings. I expect that the place shines at certain times of year, and that perhaps August is not one of those times. The rose garden still had a couple late bloomers to check out and a circus was performing randomly at 5pm, but overall, I think I prefer roaming around Central Park.

Another big goal of my summer is to make it through New York Magazine’s “The 101 Best Cheap Eats” list. While on Staten Island, I went to the borough’s only restaurant to make the list, Joe and Pat’s. Is it the only excellent cheap eat in all of Staten Island? This I cannot tell you. However, after three slices of spinach and onion pizza, I can confidently say that the restaurant deserves to make the list. The pizza had one of the thinnest crusts I have ever encountered, but it was crispy enough to hold the toppings without falling apart or being tough to bite into. Also, it was covered in gooey cheese, but not oily at all. The oiliness factor is a major downfall in many New York City pizza places, and somehow this place completely avoids that. Furthermore, the pizza was served at the perfect temperature to be pleasantly hot during the entire meal without burning the roof of my mouth at the start. Awesome!