Friday January 6
Location: Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Music: Slick Rick
Show time: 8 PM
Venue: Brooklyn Bowl
Food: Blue Ribbon
Drink: Brooklyn Bowl
Miscellaneous: Bowling at Brooklyn Bowl
The ruler’s back! That’s right, hip hop aficionados rejoice as Slick Rick returns to the stage to perform his classics. For dinner, check out Blue Ribbon, part of the highly rated eateries in the city, you’ll find southern fare including fried chicken and BBQ, some crazy shakes & floats, and more. For drinks, just walk about 20 feet to the bar where they offer nine draft beers from Brooklyn. Finally, and most obvious, there’s 16 lanes of bowling. While the wait is generally long, where else can you throw a strike and see a great band at the same time?
Friday January 6
Location: Chelsea, NYC
Music: Indelible Festival
Venue: Highline Ballroom
Food: Better Burger
Drink: Passerby
Miscellaneous: ’sNice
Join some of the best mix of hip hop and jazz musicians to share the stage at one time at Indelible Festival, which is dedicated to Gil Scott-Heron and Gordon Parks, with a tribute to Living Legend Jimmy Scott. Performers include Yasiin Bey (Mos Def), Jimmy Scott, Questlove, Bilal, Derrick Hodge, Gary Bartz, and many more. Hormone and antibiotic free, Better Burger focuses on serving a fresh and healthier alternative to the grease burger you can get anywhere. With a tiled floor that lights up, other than that, Passerby is a non-descript bar, which is why it’s a place artists flock to for a cocktail without being disturbed. While not the best named coffee shop, ’sNice is a nice and quiet coffee house offering vegetarian sandwiches and baked goods, while being a large enough space to spread your legs out and not worry about stealing another seat from someone.
Saturday January 7
Location: Greenwich Village, NYC
Music: 2012 Winter Jazzfest
Show time: 6 PM
Venue: (Le) Poisson Rouge
Food: Koo Sushi
Drink: Blind Tiger Ale House
Miscellaneous: Peanut Butter & Co.
Check out some of the best new and legendary jazz musicians all in one room at the 2012 Winter Jazzfest. Performers include David Murray’s Cuban Ensemble, John Medeski, Vijay Iyer Trio, Cindy Blackman-Santana’s “Another Lifetime,” Bill Laswell, Bernie Worrell Orchestra, Miguel Zenon, The Nels Cline Singers, Jenny Scheinman’s Mischief & Mayhem, Big Sam’s Funky Nation, Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog, Marco Benevento, DJ Spinna and many more. A little known sushi joint, Koo Sushi offers affordable and fantastic fish with an impressive number of specialty rolls. For a bar that looks like any other, Blind Tiger Ale House offers an impressive number of beers including draught, bottled, cask and one called Louise’s Bloody Beer. Try it if you dare! If you’re in the mood for some comfort food, Peanut Butter & Co., offers some PB heavy hitters like the Elvis, a PB, banana, and bacon sandwich that tastes better than it sounds.
Saturday January 7
Location: Upper East Side, NYC
Film: Jem Cohen: NYC Weights and Measures
Show time: See website for schedule; Through March 25, 2012
Venue: The Jewish Museum
Food: Brother Jimmy’s Bait Shack
Drink: Cavatappo Wine Bar
Miscellaneous: Ship of Fools
In the film Jem Cohen: NYC Weights and Measures, the artist chronicles a city that exudes noise and bustle, balanced with beauty and tranquility. A compendium of street footage, the video shows a ticker-tape parade, street musicians, the subways…life above and under ground. Cohen writes, “Sometimes I just wander around with my camera — I like to see what comes around the corner, and sometimes I just like the corner itself.â€For some great BBQ in the area, Brother Jimmy’s Bait Shack is known for their BBQ’d meats, smoked in house. The menu is all Southern favorites like po boys, catfish, fried chicken, along with burgers. Though it’s small, Cavatappo Wine Bar packs a mighty punch, offering an amazing selection of wines from all over the world for under $10 a glass. With more than 40 TVs featuring sports, Ship of Fools also has darts, pool tables, and video games.
Sunday January 8
Location: Midtown West, NYC
Art: Sherrie Levine: Mayhem
Show time: See website for schedule; Through January 29, 2012
Venue: Whitney Museum of American Art
Food: Brother Jimmy’s Bait Shack
Drink: BB&R
Miscellaneous: Dylan’s Candy Bar
Sherrie Levine (b. 1947) has transformed and re-contextualized images and objects in her work since the late 1970s, often presenting them as installations that provide a compelling sense of context. This exhibition, Sherrie Levine: Mayhem, developed as a project by the artist, includes works ranging from well-known photographs, such as After Walker Evans: 1-22, 1981, to recent sculptures, such as Crystal Skull: 1-12, 2010. The exhibition, conceived by the artist as offering constellations of older and newer works, will provide juxtapositions that provoke new associations and responses. If you’ve got a craving for barbeque, check out Brother Jimmy’s Bait Shack as the ribs, chicken, beef, and pork are all smothered in some amazing BBQ sauce. BB&R, which stands for Blonde, Brunette, and a Redhead is the brainchild of three best friends. What they’ve created is something between a neighborhood bar and a lounge with leather seats in the front and a pool table, photo booth, and video games in the back. Looking more like it came out of Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Dylan’s Candy Bar is a colorful place to get lollipops, licorice, and all things sugary. Don’t go crazy though, or your sweet tooth might melt here!
