Department stores have restrooms, but they are notably absent from the areas dancers frequent, and most restaurants won't let you use the facilities unless you are a patron. What to do? Here are the two best pit stops in the "dance belt."

In the Lincoln Center area, go to Avery Fisher Hall. The doors are almost always open and the restrooms are large, clean and free. (This tip is courtesy of veteran ballet mother Linda Murphy Goodmann who travels from Long Island and treks around the West Side while daughter Alice Murphy takes class at SAB.)

In the Theatre District, go to the Cosmic Coffee Shop on the corner of 59th Street and Broadway. You will need a transit token in order to get into the restrooms. (The Metrocard won't work here.) The facilities are safe and fairly clean.