Kayla Barr, Author at journiest

Kayla Barr

Originally from Los Angeles, and now residing in the East Village, Kayla is a writer and storyteller. When not writing for PopDust, she can be found writing, acting, and producing on stage and screen. She graduated with both her BA and Master's degrees from USC, is an avid fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and follows lots of doggo accounts on Instagram.

10 Most Haunted Places to Visit in America

Lucali

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Celebs: The spot where Jay-Z and Beyonce ate instead of attending the 2012 Grammy’s. A date night favorite for Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift.

Cuisine: Old school Italian, wood-fired pizzas, gobs of cheese. An intimate place with date night vibes and cozy ambience.

Emilio’s Ballato

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Celebs: A girls night spot for Blake Lively, Brittany Mahomes, Taylor Swift, and more. A popular joint for Barack Obama and George Clooney. New York athletes and movie stars galore.

Cuisine: Universally loved Italian comfort food in a joint that’s been around since 1956. Italian-American fusion that everyone should partake in once in their lives — at least.

Banzarbar

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Celebs: Good enough for Taylor Swift’s birthday party and a star-studded guest list with names including Sabrina Carpenter, Gigi Hadid, Zoe Kravitz, and many more.

Cuisine: Eclectic cocktails circa the 19th century. Combining modernism and classics, you’ll never have a drink like these.

Ray’s

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Celebs: A celebrity hotspot. Think Swift, the Hadids, Lana Del Rey, Dua Lipa, Zoe Kravitz, Dave Chappelle. Partly owned by Nicholas Braun and Justin Theroux.

Cuisine: A funky dive bar with bad cell service (which is kind of the point for celebs.)

MAMO

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Celebs: With a famous sister-restaurant in Paris, MAMO SoHo attracts stars like Rihanna, Samuel L. Jackson, Magic Johnson, and more.

Cuisine: More Italian food. Don’t blame me, the celebs love their Italian.

Central Park

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Celebs: All of them. Seriously, just hang out for a while and keep your eyes open. My friend saw Jason Bateman the other day while she was heading home from work.

Cuisine: The hot dog vendor. They’re not there for the food — they’re there to go for a run around the reservoir, take a walk or film something.

Torrisi

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Celebs: Where Barry Keoghan and Sabrina Carpenter had a steamy date night that confirmed they had not broken up.

Cuisine: You guessed it…Italian.

The Mercer Hotel

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Celebs: Deep inhale. Kim Kardashian, Kendall Jenner, Marc Jacobs, Kanye West, Hailey Bieber, Leonardo DiCaprio, Justin Timberlake, Zendaya, Doja Cat, Jay-Z…are you convinced yet, or should I keep going?

Cuisine: Not really for the food…more for the stay. But, The Mercer Hotel does have terrific cuisine considering it’s a top-notch, high-profile Manhattan hotel with some of the most high-profile clientele. Pro tip: go during NY Fashion Week.