A NY Graduation, Several Michelin Stars, and One Very Proud Mom

The entire McGowan gang descended on New York City for Annie’s graduation from Pratt Institute. She completed her two-year Masters program in writing and I could not be a prouder mom. 

Annie found this program herself, applied, got in, moved to the biggest city in America, found roommates, built a community of friends, and accomplished the goal she set for herself. For many people that would simply be too scary — and I’m sure at times it was for Annie too — but she did it anyway.

And honestly, that may be the part that makes me the proudest.

It has not all been perfect. New York has a way of humbling people. There have been roommate issues, job worries, subway adventures, tiny apartments, and the general reality that “adulting” is often much less glamorous than Instagram would like us to believe. But I’ve watched Annie learn how to handle life when it gets hard. That’s where real growth happens.

Now of course the question everyone asks is: “What’s next?”  Who knows.  And that’s okay too.

There is such pressure now to immediately have a five-year plan, a personal brand, and a perfectly curated future. But Annie has always been curious, and curious people eventually find their way toward something interesting.

Now aside from all the emotional motherhood moments, we also managed to organize this trip almost entirely around food — which honestly may be the McGowan family love language.

When we arrived Monday, Cam wanted to visit the National September 11 Memorial & Museum. I had been to Ground Zero before and seen the memorial pools sitting in the footprints of the towers, but I had never actually gone down into the museum itself.

We ended up with a tour guide named Lilly who was phenomenal. She somehow managed to tell the story of that day in a way that was emotional without feeling performative. As you descend into the space where the towers once stood, you are surrounded by pieces of twisted history — steel beams bent from the impact, a crushed fire truck that once had a front end and wheels, and the staircase that became one of the escape routes as debris and ash rained down.

Of course I remember that day vividly. To stand there with my 20-year-old son — who was not even born yet on 9/11 — felt surreal. Lilly said something that stuck with me: “The museum exists to take stories and turn them into history.”

That really is what happens over time. There are now adults walking around New York who only know 9/11 as something from textbooks and documentaries. For those of us who lived through it, there is still a feeling of before and after. Before felt lighter somehow. Less fear. Less suspicion.

After the museum we met Annie in Grand Central Terminal where Chad immediately announced he was starving. Within minutes we found ourselves standing at the oyster counter at Grand Central Oyster Bar ordering multiple dozen oysters and unknowingly beginning what would become one of the best food trips we’ve ever had in New York.

Then it was back to the Lotte New York Palace to collect Abbie so the band could officially be back together.

That night we took the subway downtown to Nudibranch on First Avenue and basically fell in love with everything on the menu, including a 14-day dry-aged duck that I’m still thinking about. There is something especially satisfying about sitting around a table with all your kids, Nana, and Chad, realizing that these are the moments you hope everyone remembers later.

The next morning we discovered the first of what would become two beloved bagel shops near the hotel. A proper New York graduation day apparently requires an enormous bagel before heading to the main event.

The graduation ceremony itself was held at Radio City Music Hall which is honestly a pretty spectacular place to watch your child become a grown-up. Annie found us before the ceremony started so we could spot exactly where she was sitting down below — a small but important victory in the chaos of large graduations.

The only downside to any graduation ceremony is that you wait approximately three hours to hear your own child’s name. But eventually they called it.

David Remnick, editor of The New Yorker, gave the commencement speech and was funny. He referenced Patti Smith’s legendary commencement address from years ago that somehow included a great deal of discussion about dental hygiene. Exactly the kind of weird New York intellectual humor Pratt students would appreciate.

Once it was over Annie was immediately hungry — understandable after sitting politely for hours in a polyester graduation gown — so we headed downtown again and landed at Buvette in the East Village.

On the walk over we passed the Stonewall National Monument. The East Village always feels like the New York people imagine when they think about moving to New York — tree-lined streets, tiny restaurants, bookstores, and people who somehow look casually fabulous while walking dogs.

At Buvette, get the salads. I know no one travels to New York dreaming of lettuce, but they somehow manage to make vegetables taste deeply important.

The girls stayed downtown to shop and sister-bond while Nana, Cam, Chad, and I headed back toward Midtown. 

You would think at this point I would stop discussing food, but absolutely not, because that night Annie somehow got us into The Four Horsemen in Brooklyn. Wow. There is a reason they have a Michelin star and James Beard recognition. It was one of those meals where every course makes the entire table stop talking for a second.

Now no New York trip would be complete without a Broadway show, and this time we saw Dog Day Afternoon starring Jon Bernthal and Ebon Moss-Bachrach. I had no idea the story originally came from a 1975 movie, so the plot kept surprising me. The set design was fantastic and somehow the entire thing has sent me back into a 1970s music phase.

Our last day in New York, Mom wanted to visit the Whitney Museum of American Art and Annie volunteered to take her. That morning I had to decide between going to an old ship with Chad or going to an art museum with Annie and Mom. — Art won.

The Whitney is a nice museums because it’s manageable. You can actually see it without developing museum exhaustion. They had several Edward Hopper paintings on display, and I’ve always loved his work — all those lonely windows and quiet American moments. The museum also does contemporary art very well, which means half the time you are deeply moved and the other half you are standing in front of something wondering if perhaps you too could glue random objects together and become famous.

Afterward we had lunch at the museum restaurant where I had an excellent mushroom bánh mì sandwich that I am now emotionally attached to (I will be back).

Eventually it was time to say goodbye to New York. Annie was heading back to South Carolina for the long weekend and we said goodbye to the kids and Mom. Chad and I were not heading home yet. We were off to our next adventure. A quick flight later and we landed in Milan on our way to a biking and hiking trip in the Dolomites.