About Myra Alperson
People often ask: How did Noshwalks and Noshnews start? That’s easy. I love to eat, I love exploring New York City neighborhoods, I’m a writer, and, well, I have a track record on this type of thing.
In 1983, I co-founded Hungry Pedalers Gourmet Bicycle Tours, the first bicycle tour company to combine urban cycling & eating adventures. We had tours in all five boroughs, including neighborhoods (such as the South Bronx, Harlem and Ridgewood) where most people wouldn’t expect to find great cycling or great food. We found both. And the press found us: We were covered by the major newspapers, WNYC-AM did a story on our Brighton Beach tour (by Jim Zarolli, before he hit the big time as a financial reporter for NPR), and even Nippon-TV, a Japanese station, covered our Harlem ride.
Even the New York Times paid attention to Hungry Pedalers and our special mission to promote food and culture throughout the city when one of their reporters joined our tour and chronicled his eating and ethnic adventures. See why he described our tours as, well, somewhat special! After you read this New York Times article, you'll understand a lot about how Noshwalks came to be!
Our tours were about more than food: We also pointed out historical & cultural landmarks. In 1987, Prentice-Hall published The Food Lover’s Guide to the Real New York, written by me & Hungry Pedalers co-leader Mark Clifford.
Hungry Pedalers folded when I went overseas (South Africa) for four years. When I came back, I wanted to resume my passion for exploring New York City’s neighborhoods. With new family responsibilities, I had no time for bike tours, but I did have time to walk around and write. Ergo, Noshnews. Publicity followed: It’s been mentioned in The New York Times, The New Yorker and Newsday (a great half-page piece by Erica Marcus) and on WQXR. NY1’s Paul Messina did a great story on Noshnews, following me through Sunnyside.
Since I LOVE showing people my favorite places, I launched Noshwalks in August 2000. NY1’s Paul Messina joined us on a tour of East Harlem in June 2001 and produced a hilarious story about our culinary adventures (including stumbling on the grand opening of a new Italian ices place on 1st Avenue near 115th Street). In December 2002, The Boston Globe ran a travel feature on Noshwalks.
In June 2003, New York Magazine identified Noshwalks as one of New York City’s five top walking tours! |
My newest project is Nosh New York: The Food Lover’s Guide to New York City’s Most Delicious Neighborhoods, based on Noshnews, published by St. Martin’s Press. It’s in all major bookstores, or you can order it by clicking here. (Hey, this book solves your gift ideas for all the foodies you know who adore New York City!)
My other interests include adoption & multicultural families. My book, International Adoption Handbook: How to make foreign adoption work for you, was published in 1997. Another, on multicultural parenting, was published in March 2001 by Farrar, Straus & Giroux. Guess I can’t get food out of my system: The title is Dim Sum, Bagels & Grits: A sourcebook for multicultural families.
I love leading Noshwalks and writing Noshnews and hope you’ll love both of them, too! If you haven’t taken a Noshwalk, sign up now! If you’re not a Noshnews subscriber, download a free issue! I also hope you enjoyed the Web site. I welcome your comments to make the site better. And please spread the news!
