DISTRICT PROFILE: Jay Saba
October 1, 2016
Name: Jay Saba
Title: Owner
Organization/Business: The Soil & The Sea
Social: @thesoilandthesea
What do you do, and how did you get here?
Owner of the natural skincare brand, The Soil and the Sea. Located inside Chelsea Market. I have been a West Chelsea resident for the past 12 years.
What do you love about Meatpacking?
I love how the Meatpacking District keeps evolving. I first started coming here 15 years ago for castings and photo shoots while working as a fashion model and was amazed at the dichotomy of the evolving fashion and nightlife scene mixed with the industrial meatpacking.
If you had 15 minutes, how will you spend it in the neighborhood?
In the summer, I find the little Hudson River Park‘s 14 Street Park at Tenth Avenue to be a neighborhood gem. It is a great place to sit in nature for a few moments and catch up on emails.
If you had a few hours, how would you ideally spend the day?
Usually a bike ride along the Hudson River, followed by some grocery shopping at Chelsea Market for a home-cooked meal. Chelsea Wine Vault and The Lobster Place are on the daily grocery list.
Where do you go to escape the crowds? People watch?
Surfing or hiking in remote areas is my escape from everything, so when in New York, I embrace the crowds, the energy and the people. I hate to sound like a broken record but people watching doesn’t get any better than spending the day at Chelsea Market. You have the neighborhood locals, office workers upstairs, and tourists all converging to shop and eat.
Where will you recommend for a great cocktail or bite?
I love The Standard, High Line because you have so many options depending on your mood or the time of day.
What’s your most memorable moment or experience in Meatpacking?
Honestly… too many to list. I had some amazing times in the late 1990s and early 2000s, when nightlife was still in its infancy in the Meatpacking District. Most memorable is probably in early 2007… bringing my girlfriend (now wife) to STK and Tenjune nightclub underneath (now closed) on her first visit to NYC. Both spaces were so impressive and was a great way to impress on a date night.
Of all the personalities you can think of (whether you know the person or not), whom would you want to grab a drink with?
Probably Andrew Rosen , founder of Theory and Jeffrey Kalinsky founder of Jeffrey. I think they have both been so influential in transforming what the Meatpacking District has become today.
What should we know about you outside of work. Hobbies, life, that sort of thing?
I was raised on the beaches of Florida and grew up surfing, so until someone designs a wave pool in the Hudson River, my escape from the city is always going to be somewhere where there is consistent surf. These days, that is usually monthly trips to Costa Rica.