After spending over two hours on a sunny Saturday afternoon perusing booths and sampling treats, I am convinced that you can find anything at the Brooklyn Flea Market. Every Saturday and Sunday from April to Thanksgiving, over 125 local vendors gather at acre lots in Fort Greene and Williamsburg to sell handmade or carefully selected wares, ranging from the perfectly practical to the wildly absurd. Beyond the typical beautiful vintage clothing and handmade jewelry (of which there is plenty), the Brooklyn Flea Market features old maps, postcards, screen-printed posters and t-shirts, typewriters, used books, rugs, vintage cameras, gleaming 
silver vintage dentist’s instruments, patio furniture, eyeglasses, sunglasses, leather goods, curios, and some of the best food you will ever taste. Best of all, reasonably priced merchandise is not hard to find, and the market has a sustainable, eco-friendly vibe that will delight both your wallet and your conscience.
Among the myriad booths selling vintage or repurposed clothing is Reclaimed Trading, a clothing and jewelry shop run by Rhianna Tycholis. As the name suggests, everything sold at Reclaimed Trading was found by Tycholis. A lot of the clothing is altered and the jewelry is cast from found objects. As a student who is usually wary of vintage clothing because of the price tag, I was happy to hear that Tycholis’s motto “is to have affordable prices,” and everything on one of her racks was only $10. Tycholis shares her booth with her friend, Nina Ziefert, who sells beautiful handmade Swedish clogs that she designs at Nina Z, LLC. The pair love selling at the Brooklyn Flea Market. “I wouldn’t even call it a flea market,” says Ziefert, “it’s like a bazaar to me, because it’s so much more than vintage clothes. It’s a launch-pad for a lot of emerging designers and jewelry. It’s really amazing.”
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No Comments | Posted on April 13, 2011 | Categories: Brooklyn, Event-Related, From the Blog, Williamsburg
tags: Claire Heyison, flea market, Fort Greene, jewelry, Momofuku, repurposed clothing, Soda, tacos, vintage, Williamsburg
This so-called spring has been one big disappointment so far, so last weekend I decided to take a trip far, far away—well, downtown—to check out Café Gitane’s outpost at the Jane Hotel. Luckily, the French-Moroccan restaurant proved to be just the antidote to the killjoy weather. Located a few minutes walk from the 1 stop at 14th street, this gin joint is a far cry from the glitz and glamor now tantamount to the Meatpac
king district. Regulars at the Soho location will be happy to learn that this Gitane is about three times the size of its counterpart—meaning fewer lines but an equally enjoyable meal. Even at 9 PM on a Saturday night, my lovely date and I were seated immediately.
Located in what might have been an old ballroom, Café Gitane is chalk-full of old-school allure. While the bar is a dead ringer for an old Parisian metro sign, the adjacent stuffed alligator (or is it a crocodile? ) is a good reminder that this isn’t just any old French restaurant. Moroccan lamps and potted plants all give you the feeling that perhaps you have stumbled upon an updated version of Casablanca’s Rick’s Café Américain—Sam aside and à la française—of course.
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1 Comment | Posted on April 10, 2011 | Categories: Dining, From the Blog, Greenwich Village, Manhattan
tags: Cafe Gitane, Couscous, Emily Rothrum, French-Moroccan, Jane Hotel, Jane Hotel Bar, Parisian, Wine List
Walking into Decibel sake bar I thought I had made a mistake. Above the dingy stairwell, there was an “ON AIR” sign. Two opaque metal doors after that, I walked into a tiny room filled only with a makeshift wall with a bench and, behind that, a bar. A lanky Asian man was seated on that bench, almost in a fetal position—with his knees in his face and his feet perched on the bar—hurriedly eating a bowl of noodles. Some questions immediately arose: did I actually just walk through some sort of worm-tunnel into Tokyo? And, perhaps even more pressing than that, where the heck are we going to sit?
We were graciously led back behind a fabric-covered doorway and through a corridor to a larger room with diffused red light filled with small tables and comfortable level of noise coming from the other patrons. The atmosphere in the room was buzzing, but still relaxed. My friend Maya—a Barnard graduate who works at Artists Wanted—and I perused the sake and shochu drinking options; sake is a fermented rice wine and shochu is a distilled spirit, similar to vodka—both Japanese in origin.
Our waitress, who was wearing a short kimono-like jacket, took our orders for a Lychee Martini and a Lyn cocktail, the latter made with shochu, pineapple juice, orange juice, and tonic. The Lychee Martini was GREAT—and I’ve had a fair share of them elsewhere, but this one elevated this drink to an art. It was a perfect balance of sweet and sharp. The Lyn was less impressive, but certainly exotic. To meet the $8 min per person, we each ordered another cocktail called Pink Rock, a shochu, cranberry, and lime concoction that delivered boozy tastiness quite effectively.
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No Comments | Posted on April 8, 2011 | Categories: East Village, From the Blog, Manhattan, Nightlife, Uncategorized
tags: bar, Japanese, Julia Burgi, Sake, Sochu, Tofu, Tokyo
Get your mind out of the gutter… We’re talking good, clean fun here people! With spring finally on the horizon (well, its somewhere out there) and our focus drifting like a foul ball on a windy day, there is no better time to sit back, relax, and enjoy America’s favorite pastime—Baseball!
This weekend I had the pleasure of seeing the Yankees play the Detroit Tigers during the second game of the season. My sister was able to snag us some amazing suite tickets right behind home plate, just yards away from some of my favorite men: Teixeira, A. Rod, Jeter, and the infamous Johnny Knoxville (not on the diamond but in the audience of course). The game was an exciting but generally slow one, with the Yankees leading almost every inning and finishing with a 10-6 win over the Tigers. Both Teixeira and Russell Martin hit three-run home runs. My man A. Rod was clearly M.V.P with a double, a walk, and a home run. The boys were running a pretty smooth game, hitting fairly consistently in each inning.
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No Comments | Posted on April 8, 2011 | Categories: Attractions, From the Blog, The Bronx
tags: A.Rod, Baseball, beer, Hot dog, Jeter, Leila Mabourakh, Tradition, True New York, Yankees, Yanks
Self-identifying “chocoholics” all agree on one thing: they love chocolate. Surprisingly, the correspondence ends here. Sweet or bitter, soft or hard, dark or light: these are just some of the many seeds of discord among chocolate-lovers. But while the cocoa-crazed are very particular about what chocolate they eat, few are brave or tal
ented enough to make their own. Maha Alami, a first year student at Columbia University’s School of International and Political Affairs, is unique in this way.
Maha says it all began when she convinced her “dark-chocolate averse” friend to sample some homemade chocolate—a culinary tradition in Maha’s family. Her friend was so impressed with the chocolate that she insisted Maha share this treat with others. Soon after, making chocolate turned from a hobby to a small business for Maha.
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No Comments | Posted on April 5, 2011 | Categories: Attractions, From the Blog, Manhattan, Midtown West, Uncategorized
tags: Austin Moukattaf, chocolate, hazlenut, Home-made, lavender, Maha Chocolate, NY Chocolate Show, organge, Student Enterprise, Tempering
Have you heard about the alligators in the sewers? What about a Cheshire cats who thinks it is invisible, a cool caterpillar with a chorus of musical legs or a tardy rabbit with a magical watch that can propel you through time? These are just some of the mad, and yet, compassionate, creatures, Alice—a present day aspiring children’s book writer turned English teacher—meets with when she slips down the rabbit hole and through the looking glass into the upside-down w
orld of Wonderland. The musical, now playing at the Marquis Theatre (1535 Broadway), gives Charles Lutwidge Dodge’s (aka Lewis Carroll) 1865 story entitled, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, a very special twist as Alice embarks on an journey below Queens, New York through a land ruled by the Queen of Hearts who delights in lobbing off her subjects’ heads. What is Alice’s goal? Not so simply, to recognize her inner child, and thereby answer the ultimate question, “who are you?”—all the while avoiding capture and rescuing her young daughter from a truly Mad Hatress, who seeks to take Wonderland for herself, of course.
Chug an elixir from the clear glass bottle with the note, “Drink Me… Responsibly” tied around its neck and through the door you go, greeted by a posse of demented classical Alices in blue and white frocks, leaping around the stage, singing. Find a White Knight and his posse in tightly fit polo shirts and riding pants who can not only save you from almost certain doom, but also serenade you with a smooth R&B song, and dance moves fresh from the 1990’s boy band era. Make a dramatic entrance into to the immortal Dodge’s otherworldly lair and allow him to help you solve the riddles of life. Such are the events that comprise Alice’s journey, weaved together by music and dialogue sprinkled with modern day jokes, puns, and references.
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1 Comment | Posted on April 3, 2011 | Categories: Attractions, From the Blog, Manhattan, Midtown West, Uncategorized
tags: Alice in Wonderland, cabaret, Costumes, Hairspray, Jekyll and Hyde, Karen Mason, Kate Shindle, Katie Kolombatovich, Legally Blonde, Lewis Carroll, Mad Hatter, Mama Mia!, musicals, Spring Awakening, Susan Hilferty, theater, Wicked
Breakfast: Halal Cart
Location: Cart on W. 116th and Broadway
Time: Monday – Friday 9 am – 10 pm
It sure is not the prettiest food cart on the street—nor the fanciest—but the service is fast, the food is portable, and their breakfast options sure does the trick if you’re hu
ngry and not looking to burn a hole in your wallet. The Halal cart on 116th and Broadway (on the west side of Broadway) offers 3 types of breakfast sandwiches on Kaiser rolls that are surprisingly large and satisfyingly filling. They are all just under $5—though they offer the optional accompaniment of tea or coffee for just a few extra cents. The proprietor is a man of few words but will serve up your food to you before you can even take out your wallet to pay. The cart also sells cold drinks and iced coffee in addition to the standard halal cart fare—lamb/chicken and rice, sandwiches, French fries and burgers—as well as some breakfast pastries and donuts if you’re in a sweet rather than savory mood.
- Iced coffee and breakfast sandwich: $4.25, Cash only.
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1 Comment | Posted on April 1, 2011 | Categories: Dining, From the Blog, Upper West Side
tags: Cheap Eats, coffee, dessert, Dosa, Food Carts, food trucks, Froyo, Frozen Yogurt, Halal, Joyride, Julia Wu, Morningside Heights, Sharon Kwong, Vegetarian
