Enough is enough! The city that never sleeps now just waits in hourslong lines
Believe it or not, there was once a time when waiting “on line” or “in line” was one of the few things New Yorkers universally hated.We complained about subway delays.We groaned at crowded delis.
We perfected the art of weaving through tourists who stopped in the middle of the sidewalk.Remember the classic “Seinfeld” episode “The Chinese Restaurant?”Jerry, George and Elaine spend an entire episode waiting for a table that never opens — and that’s the joke. They’re miserable.They’re frustrated.
They’re counting every wasted minute.Nobody’s taking selfies.
Nobody’s posting a TikTok.Nobody’s calling the wait “part of the experience.”Back then, waiting for something while being a part of a line was something New Yorkers endured.
Today, it’s something they actively seek out.Now, somehow, we’ve become a city that willingly spends its free time standing around.On any given weekend, New Yorkers, or so we think, can be found waiting an hour for a salted brown butter iced latte at Caffe Paradiso, two hours for mediocre pancakes at Bubby’s, three hours for a sample sale and even longer for whatever TikTok has declared essential that week.Even the simple joy of grabbing an ice cream cone on a hot summer day has been taken away as buzzy spots like Cafe Panna draw massive lines of eager scavengers looking to satisfy their taste buds with the latest flavor the Gramery cafe has posted about on its social media pages.And don’t get me started on the lackluster $11 Dot Cakes offered by luxe grocer Butterfield Market that sent New Yorkers into a frenzy.Or how about last month’s mob scene of hundreds camping out for days outside Times Square and SoHo Swatch Stores hoping to score a Swatch x Audemars Piguet collaboration watch.The city that never sleeps increasingly feels like a city that never stops queuing.And unlike the lines of old, these aren’t necessities.
They’re choices.Somewhere along the way, Gothamites stopped treating ...