One doesn’t expect a line around the block on a weeknight, but that was exactly what I saw when I got to Nightmare: Vampires, an interactive haunted house in NOHO. Nightmare claims to be “America’s #1 Haunted House.” Although it’s not quite a “house,” since it’s located in the warehouse-like NOHO Event Center at Broadway and Houston this year, it is definitely populated by haunting ghouls and, as the name would imply, vampires.
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No Comments | Posted on October 31, 2009 | Categories: Event-Related, From the Blog, Manhattan, Neighborhoods
tags: Halley Hair, halloween, haunted house, scary, vampires
There are wild things going on in New York City this week, and I’m not just talking about the pre-Halloween festivities. The Morgan Museum and Library is showing original drawings from Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are through November 1st. Laid out amongst the books in Mr. Morgan’s cozy, office-like library, the display includes the writer’s notes, drawings, and tracing paper templates for the storybook.
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2 Comments | Posted on October 30, 2009 | Categories: Attractions, Event-Related, From the Blog, Manhattan, Midtown East, Neighborhoods
tags: Allison Poirier, books, cheap, children's books, Museum, Where the Wild Things Are
“We might be able to get free tix to Girl Talk on Sunday by test driving a car around East Village. Sound good?”
Such was the text message I received from my friend this past weekend. Well hm, let me think . . . a joyride in a brand new car and free tickets to see one of the liveliest DJs out there . . . is that even a question?
After a lovely around-the-block-test drive in the all-new Kia Soul on a rainy Saturday, I set out with six friends, our wristbands proudly displayed, on a scenic stroll from Times Square to the venue of the night—Pier 94 at W 55th Street and 12th Avenue on the banks of the Hudson River. A quick raise of the left arm to show off the wristband and in we walked to behold a massive open space, whose industrial lighting and concrete pillars gave the event a raw, underground vibe. The energy emitted by DJ Greg Gillis, aka Girl Talk, spread like contagion throughout the crowd and we were instantly lured to the center of a 300-person crowd of raging dancers, snakes, pillows, flashing lights, and the masterful mashups and digital sampling streaming from the speakers.
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No Comments | Posted on October 29, 2009 | Categories: Event-Related, From the Blog, Manhattan, Midtown West
tags: Ashley Shaw, concerts, free, Girl Talk, music, party
While for students, the ratio of alcohol to food expenditures has always been a top-heavy phenomenon, the current recession disclaimer attached to all consumer decisions has finally pushed our boundless budget for booze to its threshold. The “poor-and-starving college student” is now the “sober-starving” college student, and the expense of drinking has forced us to bolster our tolerance levels. Luckily, in my search for a decent deal on tap, I came across Amsterdam 106, where from 4 to 7pm happy hour enthusiasts not only drink from a huge selection of $3 pints, but also feast on a free order of house mussels, no strings attached.
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2 Comments | Posted on October 29, 2009 | Categories: Dining, From the Blog, Manhattan, Morningside Heights
tags: bars, beer, Food, free, Julia Sourikoff, mussels
Living in the East Village this summer, my tolerance for subway rides increased tremendously. I suddenly found myself traveling to Brooklyn and even taking buses (hold your applause) to find a good place to sit and read in peace. Needless to say, this spoiled me rotten as far as cafés and parks were concerned. Soon I began to expect, and even demand, an excess of comfortable seating, a friendly staff, nonchalant atmosphere, and good coffee. My rude awakening came when I trudged back to Morningside Heights this fall to find that a subway ride was once again an event. That said, I am happy to announce that I have found a little piece of Williamsburg excellence right around the corner on 114th and Frederick Douglas.
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No Comments | Posted on October 28, 2009 | Categories: Dining, From the Blog, Manhattan, Morningside Heights, Neighborhoods
tags: cafe, coffee, Food, wine, wine tasting
It’s October. It’s cold, it’s wet, and it’s midterm season. I find myself, more often than not, asking, “What am I doing here?”
And then I find those moments where everything makes sense and the big picture finally shifts into focus. Ordinary Days is full of those moments.
Now playing at the Roundabout Underground, Ordinary Days is a new song cycle with music and lyrics by Adam Gwon and direction by Marc Bruni. Gwon’s songs tell the story of four characters and how their lives intertwine in the city. Read the complete post »
No Comments | Posted on October 27, 2009 | Categories: Event-Related, From the Blog, Manhattan, Midtown West, Neighborhoods
tags: cheap, Emily Nagel, independent theater, musical theater, theater
When I have children in many, many, many years, I won’t be able to sit them down by the fire and tell them that I was there when the Allies landed in 
Normandy, or when the Yankees stopped General Lee’s northern invasion of Gettysburg. But I will be able to tell them, hand clamped to my chest with pride, that I was there for the great Marshmallow Civil War of 2009.
This past Saturday, my friend and I trekked down to the Brooklyn Bridge, armed with umbrellas, raincoats, and two bags of marshmallows, completely unsure of how our afternoon would turn out. We wandered aimlessly underneath the Manhattan side of the bridge, wondering if we would even find this supposed war. But then we heard them: battle cries, punctuated by the soft, whooshing sounds of marshmallow artillery hurtling through the air—the unmistakable sounds of a marshmallow war.
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4 Comments | Posted on October 27, 2009 | Categories: Event-Related, From the Blog, Manhattan
tags: battles, Erica Drennan, free, marshmallows, Newmindspace
My routine procedure for any restaurant always includes the menu scan—a fleeting opportunity for any ingredient, flavor or taste to provoke instantaneous salivation and entice me to reconsider “the usual” that I religiously order. As this technique is easily applied to cocktail lists as well, while out for drinks at 67 Orange St I grabbed a menu to see what combination of alcohol and juice would best quench my thirst.
Artichoke…basil…rosemary…jalapeno…rhubarb…my appetite was whetted but I wasn’t here for dinner, “drink menu please.” At second glance, and this time with meticulous reexamination, I quickly discovered that the dozens of gourmet recipes listed before me were, in fact, beverages.
A step above the college standards of wristbands and all-you-can-binge-drink Budweiser, if you appreciate the art of a cocktail, you are definitely getting what you pay for at 67 Orange St. Here, the silhouette of the liquor cabinet takes a form unlike any I have seen before, replacing Jägermeister-chilling dispensers and pre-made margarita machines with exquisitely-crafted bottles of luxury spirits from all ends of the globe. Homemade liquor infusions of natural fruits, herbs and spices are brewed several times a week to create salty, sour, savory and sweet concoctions that hit the tongue like a 3-course meal.
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9 Comments | Posted on October 26, 2009 | Categories: Event-Related, From the Blog, Harlem, Manhattan, Neighborhoods, Nightlife
tags: bars, booze, classy, cocktails, free, Julia Sourikoff
Imagine my surprise when, as I was filtering through last week’s pile of Columbia University associated e-mails (Donate blood, [insert random acronym here] weekly newsletter, Dinner and a Movie with Dean Moody-Adams), I actually came across something I wanted to do:
Welcome to the Table: A Cultural Food Journey and Cooking Demonstration with none other than Marcus Samuelsson.
Marcus Samuelsson who?
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No Comments | Posted on October 25, 2009 | Categories: Dining, Event-Related, From the Blog
tags: columbia, columbia univ, columbia university, Food, free, iron chef
New York, I Love You, in theaters since October 16th, is the second film of an urban anthology project which began with Paris, je t’aime in 2006. Boasting an impressive and beautiful cast, including Natalie Portman and Ethan Hawke, this collection of eleven separate vignettes about romance and fleeting encounters are all tied together by one common love: New York.
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No Comments | Posted on October 25, 2009 | Categories: From the Blog
tags: movies
