30 Things That'll Happen in NYC When PAUSE (Lockdown) Ends

NYC has been under PAUSE restrictions (aka lockdown) since March 22. This means that us NYC residents – other than the heroes that are our essential workers – are staying at home.

But we’re all dreaming of the day we can finally hit up our favorite bars, shops, cafes, nail bars, pressed juice spots, matcha bars, and spinning classes.

Table of Contents

Here are some things we as New Yorkers can expect to happen when our lockdown ends – whenever that may be…

Woman looking onto Times Square NYC holding champagne glass

1. Showtime dancers will be back with a vengeance on the subway – with new routines they learned on TikTok during self-isolation!

2. All of the counterfeit Times Square Elmos and Disney characters will be back… and after months without human contact, locals will actually want to hug them.

3. New Yorkers will start taking the subway again. On week 1, we’ll make eye contact with each other because we’re craving human connection after months of isolation. By week 2, we’ll all go back to ignoring each other and avoiding eye contact.

4. The bodega cat will be named the official mascot of the city. Because without our local bodegas, none of us would have been able to get groceries, toilet paper, Lysol, hand sanitizer, or soap during lockdown.

5. People will line up (or as native New Yorkers say, wait “on line”) to get into an empty Supreme store that hasn’t restocked its inventory yet.

Woman in white jacket hailing NYC yellow taxi

6. Every intersection will be total mayhem because, being out of practice, New Yorkers will have forgotten how to efficiently jaywalk.

7. There will be a 12-week waitlist to reserve a bike for a SoulCycle class.

8. Nail bars, hair salons, Dr. Jonathan Zizmor, and anyone with a license to administer Botox will stay open 24/7 for the first 2 months to accommodate all of their clients who let themselves go during self-quarantine.

9. There will be a 57 minute wait until the next Brooklyn bound L-train.

10. Feeling nostalgic, locals will visit Times Square to feel like they’re part of the big city again. But just once. Then we won’t step foot in Times Square again for at least another 10 years.

Woman sitting in windowsill looking at view of NYC skyline

11. Every Instagram influencer (including me) will line up overnight to get into Top of the Rock or the Empire State Building to take photos on the first day they reopen.

12. Every Citibike will be in use within 60 seconds of lockdown ending. You won’t be able to find an open bike for at least two weeks.

13. New Yorkers will be so excited to imbibe at their favorite neighborhood bars, every single bar will sell out of liquor one hour after they reopen.

14. The dog parks will be more crowded than ever. Both with regulars and also people who managed to get quarantine puppies before everything shut down.

15. Every single park will be rammed with people wearing their swimsuits and tanning as if they’re at the beach.

Woman standing in front of large clock at Jacob Riis beach in NYC

16. Speaking of beaches, the Rockaways will be jam packed and demand for nutcracker will be through the roof. And, the giant parking lot at Jacob Riis beach will be full for the first time in the city’s history.

17. Every ATM will be out of cash by noon, as locals flock back to their favorite cash only bars and restaurants.

18. Traffic will be so bad, it’ll take 3 hours in a cab to get from the West Village to Central Park.

19. And the drive out to Montauk will be bumper-to-bumper and take 10 hours.

20. Everyone will try to put on pants to head back to the office (and be excited to dress up again!)… and then realize that the only things that still fit after lockdown are the sweatpants they’ve been wearing every day for months.

21. On day 1 after lockdown, every single New Yorker will have a bagel or an egg and cheese on a roll for breakfast, a slice of 99 cent pizza for lunch, and then hit up their favorite restaurant for dinner.

22. And…two weeks after lockdown ends, New Yorkers will have forgotten the cooking skills they acquired during self-quarantine and will start eating all of their meals out again.

23. Pizza rat will feast!

24. The Olive Garden in Times Square will have zero customers until tourists start coming back to the city.

25. But the Brooklyn Bridge will be completely packed with pedestrians and cyclists.

Woman in black skirt walking past Brooklyn Bridge

26. Carbone will have a 7 year wait for a table.

27. The line to buy fresh handmade pasta at Eataly Flatiron will run all the way up to 34th Street.

28. Restaurants will stop offering all you can drink brunch because everyone’s alcohol tolerance went waaaaaaay up in quarantine, so AYCD brunch is no longer profitable for them.

29. The line to get onto the Bedford station platform for a Manhattan bound L train will stretch all the way to the BQE.

30. Everyone will start a group chat with their friends to make plans for brunch/happy hour/dinner but after 1,473 texts to plan it, everyone will bail the day of because they’re too tired.

Did I miss anything that’s going to happen when NYC lifts its PAUSE restrictions? Let me know in the comments!

With NYC’s PAUSE restrictions extended until at least May 15th, it’ll be a while until any of this stuff happens. But, until then, I’m sending you a big virtual hug from at least 6 feet away.

In the meantime, come say hi on Instagram or join my free Facebook group for female influencers/Instagrammers.

xo,