Hell's Kitchen is hot

Once a nefarious playground for an array of street thugs, Hell's Kitchen is now a hot spot for foodies, theater aficionados and tourists.

Long gone are the days when Irish, African-American and Hispanic street gangs with names like the Gophers and the Gorillas roamed, violently clashing. But the gritty name remains, adored by many residents and resilient to past proposals aimed at rebranding the neighborhood as Clinton.

During the 1800s and early 1900s, warehouses, tenement buildings, slaughterhouses, lumberyards and factories dominated. These days, Hell's Kitchen is home to Theater Row on 49th Street between Ninth and Dyer avenues, Restaurant Row on 46th Street between Eighth and Ninth avenues, and the scenic piers overlooking the Hudson River.

Though parts of Hell's Kitchen remain industrialized, it has its share of green spaces: Hudson River Park along the West Side Highway; the Clinton Community Garden at 434 W. 48th St.; Hell's Kitchen Park at 10th Avenue between 47th and 48th streets; and DeWitt Clinton Park at 52nd Street between 11th and 12th avenues.

Sandwiched between Chelsea and the Upper West Side, Hell's Kitchen stretches from 34th Street up to 59th Street. Its eastern border is Eighth Avenue and to the west is the Hudson River.