Lauren Profile

Lauren Gruber, not unlike most NYU students, has no shortage of experience in cities- both at home and abroad. Lauren’s hometown is in the suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts, and she would visit urban Boston growing up. She came to NYU mostly for the journalism program, but being in New York City was a draw as well, and now the Lower East Side is her home.

One thing that draws her to New York, one that seems near-universal in this city and that I can relate to, is a sense of FOMO when not in the city. You know the feeling: living in the midst of some of the most important, successful people in the world, with basically anything you could want right at your fingertips; then feeling like you’re missing out when you’re not there. She explains, “Even if you’re not doing something, you could be.”

Except during the pandemic, that is. Then, suddenly, there was virtually nothing to do.

“During the pandemic I spent a lot of time just walking,” says Lauren. Walking gave time to explore streets never seen before in familiar neighborhoods. Among her favorites is the West Village, primarily because of the layout and architecture. She says, “It feels similar to a European city.”

European cities are a group with which Lauren is fairly familiar. Last year she spent a semester abroad in Paris- although she admits, “I mostly hung out with other NYU students.” It’s common sentiment among study abroad cohort students. During her time in France, she also took the opportunity to visit a few other European big names such as Amsterdam, Milan, and Bordeaux.

Aside from FOMO, the main thing that draws her to cities, especially New York, is the art scene. This was a big factor when she was in Paris- it is the art capital of the world, after all- and New York has no shortage of artists. Aside from museums, Lauren recommends Chelsea in particular as a good place to explore the city’s hidden-in-plain-sight art community.

In line with her interest in art, she has interned for and likes to work with fashion publications. There’s a major cultural aspect to it, she says, that makes it uniquely interesting; and art is obviously an important aspect of fashion.

We talked about the restaurant industry in New York as well, and with both of us being college students in the NYU area, of course Veselka came up. Lauren has actually interviewed the owners of Veselka about how they’ve grown their restaurant and how they fared during the pandemic. She chose Veselka in part because of her Eastern European heritage.

In the future, Lauren says she would like to visit more cities in the South and West United States, such as New Orleans, Louisiana and Phoenix, Arizona- and of course, visit more cities across the globe.