Like millions of people, I eagerly devoured every episode of “Sex and the City” (SATC), which aired from 1998 to 2004. I even bought a DVD player to watch the series after I gave up cable TV. I wasn’t alone in being obsessed with the four sexy, strong female characters and their hilarious and sometimes heartbreaking escapades and relationships. The show’s popularity continued to grow over six seasons, until over 10.6 million viewers tuned in to see the series finale.

New York was billed as the fifth character, and while I identified with all four women—writer Carrie Bradshaw, lawyer Miranda Hobbes, art gallerist Charlotte York, and publicist Samantha Jones—it was New York City that became my fantasy lover. I’ve been living that dream since moving here in 2017! I even contrived to meet and massage Mr. Big! But that’s a story for another day.

So when the SATC reboot “And Just Like That…” (AJLT) was announced, in 2021 (mid-pandemic), I was beyond excited. I was disappointed that my fellow Canadian Kim Cattrall wasn’t joining the fun, but I understood her point of view. She had moved on and had starred in her own series, “Sensitive Skin” (which I loved), and many other TV and movie roles, and didn’t want to go backwards. Plus there may have been a feud that factored into the equation. Nonetheless, with Sarah Jessica Parker reprising her role as Carrie, Cynthia Nixon as Miranda, Kristin Davis as Charlotte York Goldenblatt, and many other beloved series regulars returning, viewer excitement was enormous; ALJT was HBO Max’s most-watched series debut ever.

Perhaps because of the intense focus and anticipation, the reviews were mixed, and it took until Season 2 for AJLT to hit its stride. I think it was a tremendous challenge to bring back these characters whom we had loved in their thirties and show their true ages. On HDTV. It was a bit of a challenge for me to accept their aging, which was reflecting my own.

The series was accused of being too woke (and Che Diaz, played by Sara Ramirez, even had a “woke” bell on her podcast in Season One). People thought the attempts at sexual, racial, and gender inclusivity fell flat. And, perhaps, the storylines of the life challenges of middle-aged women weren’t as entertaining as the outrageous adventures of women we had last seen in their thirties.

Fooey! Down with the naysayers, I say. I am willing to forgive these flaws and more. I love the SATC:AJLT characters, and the world they inhabit. The new female lead characters in AJLT brought sexy new energy to the business of being a powerful woman in NYC: Sarita Choudhury as realtor Seema Patel (adore!) and Nicole Ari Parker (no relation to SJP) as documentary filmmaker Lisa Todd Wexley. Plus many other enchanting male, female, and non-gendered characters.

The part I had a problem with was the killing off of Mr. Big. I wept! A lot! And overheard other women on the streets of Manhattan releasing torrents of tears. This death made it clear AJLT was going to be a new world. A season of mourning ended with Carrie scattering Big’s ashes in the Seine. I couldn’t help but wonder: Would he really have wanted to be there? Did the spot where he had one moment of true love measure up to his decades of love for New York?

In Season 2, Carrie looked up her other old love, Aidan Shaw (played by John Corbett). Eww… That storyline was so well written it was beyond awful. The highlight was when they agreed to a five-year “relationship pause”—one hoped she would be rid of him soon! You can imagine that situation didn’t end well, after some of the most cringy scenes that you can possibly hope never to see again. (Until the overflowing toilet in the Season 3 series finale, that is.)

But things picked up for a while in Season 3, when Carrie reluctantly let go of her beloved Upper East Side (but actually Perry Street in the West Village) apartment. With Seema’s help, she moved into an ultra-modern apartment downtown (so bright white she had to wear shades), and then landed in her new digs at 3 Gramercy Park West.

Miranda lived at 3 Gramercy Park West for a while too, at first as a house-sitter, then as a yogurt-and-banana stealing roommate for a brief period of time. So I felt justified in appearing at the gate in high Miranda style.

Here Carrie met a dreamboat downstairs neighbor (UK biographer Duncan Reeves, played by Jonathan Cake). Seema hooked up with Carrie’s gardener (Adam Karma, played by Logan Marshall-Green), and things finally got interesting. To, you know, an aging SATC fan, namely me.

So to commemorate the coming and going of three years of AJLT hits and misses with some of my favorite people, whom I will always love… I visited a location from both series. I still don’t want to say goodbye.

Three Gramercy Park West

Three Gramercy Park West is a dreamy 9-unit co-op that was used for the exteriors of Carrie’s new home on AJLT. Since I had previously dressed as Carrie on the steps of her West Village brownstone, I decided to play her houseguest and roomie, Miranda, for this month’s adieu to AJLT. It was a bit of an identity shift for me, to let go of being writer Carrie, but I felt smart and tough and possibly lesbian as I channeled Miranda’s inner growth as a character.

The chichi Gramercy Park (where I jumped for Joe Biden) was built in 1831 and became a private park in 1844. The home at 4 Gramercy Park West was once occupied by James Harper, co-founder of the publishing house Harper Collins. He briefly served as mayor of New York (in 1844), and had the traditional “mayoral lamps” installed in front of the building after his term had ended. When lit, citizens knew not to disturb the mayor! According to Big Onion Walking Tours, his biggest accomplishment as mayor was to ban free-roaming hogs from the streets of Manhattan!

You could easily begin your glamorous New York life at 3 Gramercy Park West (sans free-roaming hogs), where the parlor level 2-bedroom unit rents for $22,000 per month. There’s a tiny kitchenless studio in the basement that recently sold for $900,000. Other units in the co-op have sold for prices ranging from $2.8 million to $5.7 million within the past six years.

Cafeteria

After loitering at the gate to 3 Gramercy Park West and slightly annoying the occupants therein (they haven’t yet reached the level of exasperation of the Perry Street residents), I went to Cafeteria at 119 Seventh Avenue in Chelsea to meet up with my crew of smart, sexy friends who were willing to recreate a nostalgic SATC moment with me.

The ultrahip Cafeteria, which opened in June 1998 (the year that SATC began), was the setting for most of the iconic brunch scenes in the SATC series. To me, these scenes were the heart of the show. This is what I’ve tried to recreate with my women friends time and again. And just like that, it finally happened! We came, we slayed, we drank Cosmos, we screamed with laughter, we staggered home*. Where, like Carrie in her “epiphanematic” moment, I was not alone, but on my own. Just me and my city.

An abbreviated version of this story first appeared in Chelsea News and other papers in the Straus News group.

Style Notes

• Glorious emerald green satin tuxedo-lapelled blouse with nude and sequined cutouts by Andrea T New York. 147 West 35th Street (by appointment only).
• Sexy, sleek black satin joggers with sewn front pleat. Andrea T New York.
• Ledapol black patent leather Mary Jane stilettos. Boutique Hautnah, Uhlandstr. 170, Berlin.

SATC Restaurants

For more iconic SATC restaurants that are still open, see this Thrillist article from 2024. How many have you been to? Never stop living your SATC dream!

* Many thanks to Maitre D Marcus Henson, Manager Louie Garay, and Chef Ali Meile for a delicious and memorable evening.