Victor Cruz — salsa king of the NFL, cosmopolitan man about town, the Pride of the Giants and Paterson, N.J. — is happy to serve today as our perfect Super Bowl ambassador.
Cruz details for The Post how and where to have a Super time in the week leading up to Super Bowl XLVIII, also providing insightful analysis of the game and his Super pick.
“Obviously I was born and raised in this area, so it’s something that is near and dear to my heart,” Cruz told The Post. “I know what to do and not do. So it’s fun to be a part of this local market and be a homegrown guy and know the ins and outs of this place, so I’ll take it.”
The 2012 Pro Bowl receiver could have a second career as a tour guide.
“If you want to do the tours and things, you gotta go to the Empire State Building. You gotta have a slice of New York pizza. You gotta visit SoHo and check out all the shopping and things you want to do down there.
“And for all the Spanish guys coming in, you gotta visit Sofrito, that’s always something that’s on my things to do every other time I’m in the city. Everything else is about the venues and the nightlife and visiting different things at night and enjoying the Super Bowl festivities.”
OK, where’s the best nightlife?
“Oh man, it’s hard to choose just one, there’s so many different clubs,” Cruz said. “You got the Standard Hotel with the Boom Boom Room on the top floor. … You got 1Oak. You have Avenue. I think those would probably be the best three things to go during this week.”
Cruz plans on attending “two or three” Super Bowl parties and host one himself the night before the Super Bowl. He will also host a Food Network/SHOWTIME event Wednesday with Bill Cowher at Time Warner Studios and a Connect a Million Minds function at TWC Studios on Saturday.
“I’m going to the EA Sports party. I’m going to the Time Warner Cable Studio’s party, the Connect A Million Minds thing at Time Warner Studios. I’m hosting a party at this place called No. 8 in the city Saturday,” Cruz said.
Asked who will be attending other than Steve Serby, Cruz laughed.
“The list will definitely go out. … I know Drake will be in town, so hopefully he can join, and I think Diddy will be in town, so hopefully he can join as well. Amongst my close friends and associates and teammates, of course, that are in town, things of that nature, and that’s about it.”
Where else does Cruz like to dine? “I love Nobu downtown in the TriBeCa area. I love Hillstone,” Cruz said.
And in New Jersey? “My favorite place around my area is Gencorelli’s, it’s an Italian restaurant that’s very very good,” Cruz said. “There’s also another place called Sabor Peru that has beautiful, great Peruvian food that’s also one of my favorites.”
For Cruz, it is bittersweet that the Super Bowl is in his backyard and his stadium and he and the Giants are not in it.
“Yeah, it’s definitely bittersweet, our goal was to be the first team to host a Super Bowl in their town,” he said, “but it’s fun, you get to enjoy the festivities and enjoy the people that come, and have all your friends and family, but it’s bittersweet for me, definitely.”
Cruz expects the Giants to be back in the Super Bowl next year.
“Absolutely. … I think we’re definitely gonna have a bounce back year and be able to compete for a Super Bowl,” he said.
In the meantime, the Seahawks will be using the Giants locker room.
“You can’t escape the inevitable,” Cruz said. “As long as they don’t mess up our area and screw up our stuff, I’m good to go.”
Byron Maxwell covered Cruz in the Seahawks’ 23-0 demolition of Eli Manning and the Giants last month at MetLife Stadium.
“I don’t know where they keep finding these 6-2, 6-3 corners, he’s gonna get his hands on you and try to redirect and things like that, but he’s good,” Cruz said.
Is Richard Sherman the best cornerback in football?
“I do [think so],” Cruz said. “When you think about the people he went up against and their numbers against him and the things he’s done, especially the last two years, you can’t take anything away from the guy.”
The key to the game for Cruz will be the matchup between the Broncos receivers and the Seahawks secondary.
“I think it’s gonna be a heckuva matchup,” Cruz said. “They’re gonna fight tooth and nail all the way down to the very end. Denver receivers are physical and big, and they’re gonna be able to combat some of the physicality that Seattle’s gonna try to impose on them, and vice versa. They’re gonna win some battles, and the receivers are gonna win some battles, so it’ll be going back and forth. It’ll be fun to watch.”
Who does Cruz give the edge?
“I’m going with the Denver receivers, man,” he said. “There are too many weapons to just try to get a gauge on one, so it’ll be a good matchup.”
Cruz sees Wes Welker as a problem for the Seahawks secondary.
“I think they’re gonna again try to be physical with him and try to push him around and do things with him and see if they can get him off track a little bit, but that’s easier said than done, and it’s gonna be hard to do that for the entire game,” Cruz said.
Cruz said he believes Eli can be a resource for Big Brother Peyton.
“I think he can be very helpful,” Cruz said. “I think he can say things and tell him things that are useful from a defensive standpoint that can help him and get things going, especially defensively with the things they do and the scheme, just little things that he can look for and key in on.”
His pick?
“My pick is Denver, 27-21,” Cruz said. “I just think it’s their time. I think it’s Peyton’s time to get another ring. I think kinda the stars aligning with Eli winning in Indy, and I think his brother comes to Eli’s town and wins one here.”
The charismatic Cruz just extended his partnership with Time Warner Cable, where he’ll support the “Enjoy Sports Better” initiative and their commitment to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) through its Connect a Million Minds (CAMM) initiative.
He will attend Super Bowl XLVIII.
“I think it’s gonna go down as one of the best,” he said.