Punk rock porn princess Joanna Angel, who started the sex and rock n’ roll website Burning Angel with photographer Brenda Staudenmaier, both stop by B&N to talk about their new book Burning Angel. 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.
You may know Randy Couture as an Ultimate Fighting and mixed martial arts champion, but today, he stops by Border’s to promote his new memoir Becoming the Natural: My Life In and Out of the Cage. While most people buy hot dogs and grab a beer at expensive restaurants in the Seaport mall, you’ll be smart and head over to Burritoville for inexpensive and delicious California inspired burritos, all under $10. For drinks, Jeremy’s Ale House has a lively crowd and a beer list that will get you a pint for $5 and under. If you get down to the financial district early, check out Century 21. They won’t try to sell you some property, but they have some great designer clothing on the cheap, plus the place is huge to roam.
Bertha Lum (American, 1879–1954). Rain, 1908. Color woodcut on cream, thin, Japanese wove paper. Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts, 63.108.2
This exhibition explores how Japanese art affected Western culture at the turn of the century, during early Japan-U.S. relations. Focusing on the graphic arts—watercolor, pastel, etching, and other graphic media—we see how it affected the work of several western artists. It’s the place where Susanne Vega wrote “Tom’s Restaurant,” but Tom’s restaurant is just as famous for its food. With a near insane breakfast menu, expect items like pancakes with apples and pecans to be brought to you by the sweetest waitresses in Brooklyn. Soda Bar is a great place for drinks. The alcohol is cheap, there’s surprisingly excellent food, and there’s even another room where DJs spin. If it’s too much, you can hang outside in the backyard patio under the stars. The Old Brooklyn Parlor specializes in old school drinks like the Brooklyn Egg Cream and the Lime Cherry Rickey, making it an excellent anchor to this neighborhood.
On the heels of Junot Diaz’s highly acclaimed first novel, The Brief Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao, he hits Summerstage for a rather large reading. Joining him is Aleksandar Hemon, a writer from Sarajevo and author of The Lazarous Project. 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 or your sweet tooth might melt here!
Former Beat The Devil singer, Shilpa Ray leads a new line-up with a more pop friendly sound that takes serious grooves and walls of sonic guitar to a new place with enchanting vocals that harmonize with her harmonium. San Loco serves inexpensive Mexican food. You can get a heaping amount of nachos for as little as $3.75, and telling by the heavy traffic, the place is doing just fine. What I like about Max Fish is that it’s a local bar for local artists. It’s walls play host monthly for art exhibitions, there’s a pool table in the back, and drinks aren’t pricey, like many new bars springing up in this neighborhood. For one of the best cupcakes in the city, Sugar Sweet Sunshine has 10 varieties, on top of cakes. Try the Sexy Red Velvet or the Bob, a yellow cupcake with chocolate almond buttercream.
Bon Jovi makes a stop close to his New Jersey hometown here in NYC at MSG! Expect lots of hair and lots of hits from one of the 80s biggest bands. Joining them are All-American Rejects. Though small, Supermac packs a hearty punch with it’s gourmet mac & cheese’s like the Mac Cheesesteak with shaved steak, caramelized onions, roasted peppers, cremini/shitake, provolone, and white American ($8.25 mini; $10.95 mega). A great place in NYC to get a full-bodied dark beer is at Stout. With a very detailed beer list with descriptions, I’ve never had a bad pint at this bar and restaurant, plus the food menu is American and quite good. Probably the biggest 99-cent store in NYC, Jack’s is three floors of some of the finest values you can find, especially in an overpriced area like Herald Square.
Baye Kouyate is a talking-drum master from Mali. One of the most up-and-coming African musicians on the NY scene, he has collaborated with Salif Keita and Vieux Farka Toure, and recently released an album, Danama. If you love African music, or just quality music in general, check him out. If you’ve never been to Minca for dinner, go right now! This small noodle bar makes some amazing ramen noodles from scratch. Try the Minca Ramen, a mild broth with pork, chicken & dried seafood ($8.50). One of the newer bars in the East Village, Common Ground has a dark wood interior, a relaxed atmosphere, and excellent cocktails like the Blueberry Pie. If you like pastries filled with cream, check out Beard Papa Sweets Café. They offer cream fillings like earl grey, green tea, coffee, and the standard vanilla, chocolate, strawberry among others.
In this exhibition of 20 photographs, photographer Larry Fink gives a much closer look at Barack Obama and Hilary Clinton on the campaign trail for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination. At one of my favorite places to get duck, The Peking Duck House, the meat is succulent and the skin crunches like a potato chip. Sometimes you just want to grab a pint without paying a cover charge or playing host to a group of people after work, which is why I like Blackstones Pub & Restaurant. It looks like an old-time saloon and has two pool tables in the back and plenty of other games, while also being big enough to grab traditional American food from the menu. If you’re still hungry, check out the New York Milkshake Company for one of the best $6 shakes of your life.
Longtime Broadway veteran, Charles Strouse has composed music for shows like Annie, wrote the film score for Bonnie and Clyde, and the theme song for All in the Family. He’s a legend and in his new memoir Put on a Happy Face, he waxes poetic on meeting and working with acting legends like Sammy Davis Jr., Lauren Bacall, Mel Brooks, Warren Beatty, and Carol Burnett. Low priced anything near Columbia is getting harder to find, but at Symposium, you’ll get Greek food that won’t force you to take a mortgage out. The Pastitsio (baked macaroni with ground meat $9.95) is out of this world. Not the kind of dive bar you’re thinking, though Broadway Dive has a single malt scotch and bourbon menu big enough that you won’t even know where you are after a few. A coffee bar that also serves liquor, tapas, and baked goods all in one place? Sip sounds good to me.
Don’t forget to check out Chin Chin at Joe’s Pub tonight. Blending funk, soul, disco, hip-hop, and electronica with an Afrobeat influence and plenty of hooks, these guys usually come 12 musicians deep and bring the party live. In other words, put on your dancing shoes! With sushi that’s 50 percent off all the time, you might think, “Something’s wrong with that?” but the fish is good and the rolls are inventive, making this one of the best low-priced sushi joints in the city. Though St. Marks all of a sudden lost its charm, Grassroots Tavern hasn’t. This large dive bar has cheap drinks, darts in the back, and old men behind the bar, things a good dive bar should have. Excellent coffee served in a big mug and a healthy menu of food coupled with a year round enclosed outdoor backyard patio make this place a great little coffee shop in the area.
It’s hard to deny Leslie Feist’s lush and gorgeous voice, and on her latest album, The Reminder, she proves she can write great pop songs. Joining her is the equally talented singer Juana Molina who hails from Argentina. The theme at Press 195 is pressed comfort food. A sandwich shop with quite the menu, they offer 30 types of delicious sandwiches like the turkey and fontina cheese sandwich with a cranberry and roasted pear chutney on ciabatta ($7.75). While Union Hall looks like a cabin at a ski resort with a fireplace, stone walls, comfy couches, and inexpensive drinks, you may want to stick around rather than barhop. A low-key bar in this hood, O’Connor’s is a hole in the wall where you can grab a cheap drink and watch the game on their TV, just like your grandpa sitting next to you!
This exhibition remembers through photos and documentation, a time during the 1930s when the Nazi’s allowed Jews to emigrate out of Germany. But no country was willing to take them but the Dominican Republic. Here, the stories of the Jews who settled on an abandoned banana plantation in Sosúa tell of the diificult time of adapting. While most people buy hot dogs and grab a beer at expensive restaurants in the Seaport mall, you’ll be smart and head over to Burritoville for inexpensive and delicious California inspired burritos, all under $10. For drinks, Jeremy’s Ale House has a lively crowd and a beer list that will get you a pint for $5 and under. If you get down to the financial district early, check out Century 21. They won’t try to sell you some property, but they have some great designer clothing on the cheap, plus the place is huge to roam.
Check out Brooklyn artist Eloise Corr Danch’s 50-pound dress made of paper at Anthropologie’s store in Rockefeller Center. It’s based on the painting Las Meninas by Diego Velazquez and simply breathtaking. At Zip Burger they offer farm-raised, organic, and grass-fed meat and poultry, letting you build your own burger with plenty of gourmet toppings. The first time I went to Subway Inn I thought it was completely strange that there was a dive bar off Lexington Avenue, especially in this neck of the woods, but somehow it works. Born in the 30s, this bar has somehow remained, and thank god, as it’s easily the cheapest place in the area for a drink. For fans of Japanese pop-culture, Kinokuniya Bookstore has a large selection of Japanese themed books, videos, CDs, magazines, comics, and stationary.
Brian Nice 8 AM, plate 11, 2008 Silver Gelatin Print, Paper size: 11 x 14 inches
Location: Midtown East, NYC Art: Meltdown: The Icebergs of Greenland Show time: Tues to Fri: 9:30 AM to 5:30 PM, Sat: 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM Thru July 9 Venue: Pace Prints Food: Supermac Drink: Stout Miscellaneous: Jack’s 99 Cent Store
Meltdown: The Icebergs of Greenland takes a look at the Icebergs in Greenland, which have been getting alarmingly smaller the last few years due to climate change. Artist Don Nice, and his photographer son Brian Nice, documented the meltdown of the icebergs around Greenland and Michelle Icahn filmed their journey. Though small, Supermac packs a hearty punch with it’s gourmet mac & cheese’s like the Mac Cheesesteak with shaved steak, caramelized onions, roasted peppers, cremini/shitake, provolone, and white American ($8.25 mini; $10.95 mega). A great place in NYC to get a full-bodied dark beer is at Stout. With a very detailed beer list with descriptions, I’ve never had a bad pint at this bar and restaurant, plus the food menu is American and quite good. Probably the biggest 99-cent store in NYC, Jack’s is three floors of some of the finest values you can find, especially in an overpriced area like Herald Square.
Leading Japanese photographer Takashi Homma will be signing his newest book from Aperture, Takashi Homma: Tokyo, in which he documents the ever-evolving megalopolis of Tokyo. At one of my favorite places to get duck, The Peking Duck House, the meat is succulent and the skin crunches like a potato chip. Sometimes you just want to grab a pint without paying a cover charge or playing host to a group of people after work, which is why I like Blackstones Pub & Restaurant. It looks like an old-time saloon and has two pool tables in the back and plenty of other games, while also being big enough to grab traditional American food from the menu. If you’re still hungry, check out the New York Milkshake Company for one of the best $6 shakes of your life.
Self-taught artist Henry Darger (1892-1973), created nearly 300 watercolor and collage paintings to illustrate his epic masterpiece, The Story of the Vivian Girls. This show features 11 artists’ works, including Darger’s, which were inspired by his art, and the idiosyncrasies of this self-taught master. At Zip Burger they offer farm-raised, organic, and grass-fed meat and poultry, letting you build your own burger with plenty of gourmet toppings. The first time I went to Subway Inn I thought it was completely strange that there was a dive bar off Lexington Avenue, especially in this neck of the woods, but somehow it works. Born in the 30s, this bar has somehow remained, and thank god, as it’s easily the cheapest place in the area for a drink. For fans of Japanese pop-culture, Kinokuniya Bookstore has a large selection of Japanese themed books, videos, CDs, magazines, comics, and stationary.
Let’s face it, sex is everywhere. In film. In art. On television, and of course on the internet. Action: Sex and the Moving Image examines the history of sex in Media, the Internet, and its help in creating the porn industry, on top of being a major influence in almost everything we do. If you love Bollywood films then you probably like Indian food, and Masala Bollywood have combined the two. With giant Indian film still on the walls, and colorful dishes like the Don Fish Tikka Masala (grilled fish tikka masala garnished with garlic and creamy tomato onion sauce ($8)), the menu is surprisingly $10 and under. More white trash than urban cowboy, the Rodeo Bar offers live music, Tex-Mex food, and daily Happy Hour specials like margaritas for $5 and draft beers for $3. For the health conscious, Organique offers organic food including soups, coffee, omelets, burgers, and sandwiches.
In the Heights, the new musical set in Washington Heights successfully brings the musical worlds of hip hop and Latin rhythms together in an amazing Broadway performance. Recently, it just won six Tony award’s including Best Musical. Though small, Supermac packs a hearty punch with it’s gourmet mac & cheese’s like the Mac Cheesesteak with shaved steak, caramelized onions, roasted peppers, cremini/shitake, provolone, and white American ($8.25 mini; $10.95 mega). A great place in NYC to get a full-bodied dark beer is at Stout. With a very detailed beer list with descriptions, I’ve never had a bad pint at this bar and restaurant, plus the food menu is American and quite good. Probably the biggest 99-cent store in NYC, Jack’s is three floors of some of the finest values you can find, especially in an overpriced area like Herald Square.
Dethklok, the death metal band that rule the world in the Cartoon Network show Metalocalypse is one of the funniest and most wrong cartoons on TV, and live, one can easily assume, they will be earsplitting. Playing with them are Chimaira and Soilent Green. For a kickass burger or chicken sandwich, Island Burgers and Shakes specializes in making great burgers like the Bourbon Street Burger that’s blackened, with bacon, Jack, bayou mayo, and onion on sourdough. One cheap bar in midtown, Smith’s is a dive bar with cheap booze, friendly locals, and live music daily in the next room. Though the place is way expensive, Colony Music is a fun music store that sells albums and sheet music. You can walk around and check out the entertainment memorabilia. Whether you’re looking for an autographed guitar signed by the Rolling Stones or an autographed 8x10 of Linda Carter, they’ve got it.
One of the Austria’s avant-garde “Vienna Actionist” artists of the 1960s, Otto Muehl is primarily known for his photographs and movies in which he tries to show the political importance of the body. In this exhibition, Muehl’s work does not attack the individual art but the entire art system. For dinner, show some respect and go to the Ear Inn. This restaurant and bar is housed in a 200 year old building that strangely enough was built for James Brown, not the godfather of soul, but the aide to George Washington. The food here is better than your standard bar food but the atmosphere makes the place. Named after William S. Burroughs novel, Naked Lunch is a cool and comfortable bar where local artists usually gather. No shooting up though! If you like chocolate, stop in at Jacques Torres for some of the sweetest morsels of chocolate in NYC or anywhere else.
In author John Gruen’s memoir Callas Kissed Me…Lenny Too! he tells of his beginnings including his marriage to painter Jane Wilson and their life together in NYC. Gruen worked as a composer, photographer, and journalist, while Wilson developed as a distinguished painter. They were pretty well connected to many greats in the arts, which are always fun stories to hear. Josie’s offers dishes like Warm Macadamia-Crusted Natural Chicken Breast Dinner Salad ($17.75), several tofu and seitan specialty dishes and the Freshly Ground Char-Grilled Brandt Natural Beef Cheeseburger ($15.75), so everyone here will walk away happy. Comfortable and dimly lit, the Candle Bar has a pool table in the back and drink specials daily. For some of the best and most interesting ice cream in the city, Emack & Bolio’s offers eclectic flavors like Deep Purple Cow (Black Raspberry ice cream with white and dark chocolate chips and blueberries).
One of the originators of ska, The Skatalites helped define the genre during the 1960s, and to this day still perform. For music fans, it doesn’t get any better than seeing this band, who are the roots of Jamaican and many other genres of music, play live. Known more for its cheesecake than anything else on its menu, Junior’s also offers fantastic diner and deli style eats from steak burgers to deli sandwiches. If you can make it through dinner, the cheesecake will be worth the wait! One of Brooklyn’s most interesting dive bars, O’Connor’s offers cheap drinks in a place where Park Slope hipsters meet old-time drinkers, making for one of the oddest pairings that works. An excellent place to get schnitzel and goulash and other Austrian delights, Thomas Beisl is right across the street from BAM.
With the third annual VH1 Rock Honors coming up, and airing on VH1 on July 17, it looks like The Who will be honored. The show will feature tribute performances by Pearl Jam, Foo Fighters, The Flaming Lips and Incubus. In honor of The Who, we are giving away, to one lucky fan a WHO VIP PRIZE PACK which includes: The Who commemorative flask, Who shot glasses, a VH1 Rock Honors custom t-shirt, and a set-of 4 Who guitar picks. The contest will end on July 17.
To enter, e-mail us Here
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Short and Sweet NYC
New York City, New York City, United States
Compiled by people who have been there, we are dedicated to bringing you daily listings of music and events paired with food and drink in NYC, all within walking distance of each other and all in 150 words or less. Not just THE place to find out about interesting events, we are also addicted to turning you on to great music, food, bars, booze, and all the fun stuff that you're looking to do in NYC. Most of all, at Short and Sweet NYC, all of our reviews are just that, short and sweet. Who wants to read a thesis when you just want to know the facts?
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