(Photo: Alamy)

No-Hassle Laundry
Schedule free pickups and drop-offs by launderers in your area using Seamless-like web portal Spotless City (spotlesscity.com). Cost is per piece for dry cleaning and by weight for wash-and-fold. The online-ordering system, which currently serves twelve neighborhoods in Manhattan and Brooklyn, even lets users input special-care instructions or request rush service. A citywide expansion is in the works.

(Photo: Courtesy of the vendor)

Alcohol on Demand
Talk about bottle service. The three-month-old Booze Carriage (boozecarriage.com) ferries beer, wine, and top-shelf spirits straight to your doorstep—and within an hour. The stock is sourced from nearby stores ($20 minimum); pinched-for-time party hosts can also order five-pound bags of ice ($2.99). Deliveries are currently limited to Manhattan below 91st Street but will soon extend to 116th Street as well as select areas in Brooklyn and Queens.

(Photo: Courtesy of the vendor)

Flora at the Ready
May start-up the Sill (thesill.com) trades in hardy, hand-potted plants cultivated to survive even the most challenging of city environs—cavelike lighting, desert-dry air, and extreme temperatures. Choose your price point (under $50, $50 to $100, or over $100) and pot preference (terra-cotta or artsy ceramic), and the Sill will hook you up with a jade, haworthia, pothos, or other plant requiring minimal maintenance. Select parts of Brooklyn and Manhattan below 96th Street only.

Related:

• Archive: “The Storefront: Openings & Closings”
• Table of Contents: Aug 20, 2012 issue of New York | Subscribe!