A morning routine? I wake up at 10am and stay in bed until 10.30. I won’t have finished in the kitchen until 3am the night before. I make a coffee and sit on the deck out the back of my apartment, alone, for an hour, in silence. It’s my favourite day, the one I don’t work, and I like to start it in total solitude.

Do you eat in or out? I never cook at home, and I don’t want to think about food on Sundays. It’s also the perfect day for restaurants for me – they’re busy enough that you don’t feel you’re sat alone, but you can get a table when you want.

Your favourite spot? I head religiously to Metrograph, a cinema and restaurant, on New York’s Lower East Side. I order breakfast and a coffee, then read my book and slowly think about what I might do that day. Friends know if they need me that’s where I’ll be.

A Sunday stroll? To Fort Greene Park, it’s my favourite in the city. I’ll sit under a tree with headphones on.

What’s playing? Soothing jazz, low-energy music. The rest of the week I blast out Abba to get myself going; on Sundays I slow right down to the sound of Ella Fitzgerald.

A day trip? The Met Cloisters museum is only 45 minutes out of the city. It’s a beautiful and peaceful place.

A Sunday smell? I’ve started doing yoga, to fix my body after six days of standing. I go to this place called Sky Ting, where they burn palo santo. It’s this mellow aroma that calms me right down.

A favourite shop? Brooklyn Flea Market in the summer for old furniture. The best vintage place, Front General Store, is nearby.

The perfect evening? Dinner somewhere I know. I eat everything on the menu once a week at Frenchette in Tribeca. Or I go to Cervo’s for Portuguese, especially seafood. I sit and take my time. I’m a big fan of a long Sunday dinner. Then it’s back to Metrograph for an old movie to see the night out.

McGarry’s restaurant, Gem, in New York, is open each Wednesday to Saturday (gem-nyc.com)