Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Food
Is It Appropriate To Eat, Drink And Smoke At The 9/11 Memorial?
By
Scott Heins
Published May 30, 2014
Modified May 30, 2014
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Scott Heins / Gothamist
View all 12
By
Scott Heins
Published May 30, 2014
Modified May 30, 2014
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Now that the National 9/11 Memorial as well as the commercially enterprising and decidedly controversial museum are both open to the public, the lower Manhattan site has become a place for locals and visitors alike to visit, reflect, photograph and ponder. It's also a place to kick back, have a smoke, and eat lunch.
Yesterday, NY Times architecture critic Michael Kimmelman wrote about "unwanted activities" at the memorial plaza:
Proud workers in blue vests tend to visitors who have questions and keep an eye out for unwanted activities, of which there are many. The memorial permits no recreation, no loud noise, no “behaving in a way that is inappropriate,” according to the memorial’s online rules list. You can’t sing. At a site celebrating freedom and liberty, protests and demonstrations are prohibited.
I asked one worker whether people can eat or sunbathe and received a look akin to what an airline passenger in coach earns when venturing into business class for extra peanuts. The worker volunteered that a visitor may bring a snack or sandwich to the memorial but must dispose of the trash off site. There are no garbage receptacles — no vendors, either, and retail is forbidden in the adjacent towers that face the memorial site.
During a visit yesterday, we saw families enjoying fast food from McDonald's and school kids eating their brown-bagged lunches. Soda cups were set on the pools' railings (where the names of the dead are carved) so that hands could be made free to snap photos. Cigarettes were smoked and at least one butt was left behind.
No one was asked to stop.
Tagged
9/11 memorial
9/11 museum
etiquette
world trade center
original
Scott Heins
Scott Heins is a freelance photo and video journalist based in New York City, and a frequent contributor to Gothamist + WNYC. His work often centers around labor rights, housing, and policing. In 2018-2019 he traveled to four states while covering a wave of public school teachers strikes, with work featured in The New York Times, The Intercept, Getty Images, Splinter, and Bloomberg Photos. Scott is a dues-paying member of the National Writers Union's Freelance Solidarity Project.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE food
North African restaurants are rare in NYC. These 10 are the best.
Egyptian, Moroccan, Algerian and Tunisian food is delicious but underrepresented in the city.
By
Robert Sietsema
Published Oct 10, 2026
10 dishes that demonstrate the delicious diversity of curry in New York City
The global dish is shapeshifting and ubiquitous.
By
Robert Sietsema
Food
10 dishes that demonstrate the delicious diversity of curry in New York City
The global dish is shapeshifting and ubiquitous.
By
Robert Sietsema
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
By
Sonia Rao
5 NYC banana puddings as good as Magnolia's
By
Hannah Frishberg
Where to eat in Greenpoint, Brooklyn right now, from Polish to Sichuan to Iberian
By
Robert Sietsema
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .