The King Khan and BBQ Show
Friday November 28
Location: Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Bands: Gang Gang Dance + Marnie Stern Get Tickets Here
Show time: 9 PM
Venue: Music Hall of Williamsburg
Food: Viñas
Drink: Radegast
Miscellaneous: Roebling Tea Room
Experimental rock outfit Gang Gang Dance, hot off their new album Saint Dymphna, stop by the Music Hall of Williamsburg. Joining them is Marnie Stern, one badass guitarist. With great ambiance, the food also has great personality at Vinas. The menu offers Latin cuisine including faves like ceviche and empanadas, while upping the ante with the likes of Truffled Honey Glazed Pork Belly. Williamsburg’s first beer hall, Radegast has a number of German and Austrian beers on tap, and an even greater selection of bottled beers. There’s even a menu of German food to soak up all the booze! Get your tea fix at Roebling Tea Room, where the menu offers a vast array of teas and inexpensive food.
Friday November 28
Location: Midtown West, NYC
Comedy: Jim Gaffigan Get Tickets Here
Show time: 8 & 10:30 PM
Venue: Town Hall
Food: Zip Burger
Drink: Subway Inn
Miscellaneous: Kinokuniya Bookstore
Comedian Jim Gaffigan has no shame and obviously has a sense of humor as he performs at Town Hall as part of The Sexy Tour, taking his absurd views of the everyday and putting it in your face. 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.
Saturday November 29
Location: Tribeca, NYC
Band: Fishbone Get Tickets Here
Show time: 8 PM
Venue: Knitting Factory
Food: Pakistan Tea House
Drink: Mocca Lounge
Miscellaneous: Chinatown Ice Cream Factory
They’ve been around since the 70s, and are one of the pioneering black rock musical acts. So when Fishbone stop by to play it’s a must to see them, especially when they bring their raucous mix of ska and punk to a small stage like the Knitting Factory. Joining them are Natives of the New Dawn and Heavy Mojo. Nearby, Pakistan Tea House is a buffet style Indian restaurant where you can choose between chicken, meat, fish and vegetables. It’s affordable and very good. For drinks, check out Mocca Lounge. With a funky interior and a menu of Italian inspired fare, it’s also a bar with a large list of coffees with or without alcohol, beers, and frozen shots. Smack dab in the heart of Chinatown, the Chinatown Ice Cream Factory makes gourmet ice cream flavors like Black Sesame, Ginger, Durian, and more exotic flavors like Taro and Wasabi. Don’t worry, they have the go-to’s like Vanilla, fruits, and chocolate flavors too.
Saturday November 29
Location: West Village, NYC
Bands: El Guincho + Prefuse 73
Show time: 11:55 PM
Venue: (le) poisson rouge
Food: Koo Sushi
Drink: Blind Tiger Ale House
Miscellaneous: Peanut Butter & Co.
El Guincho, who sound like a band is made up of Pablo DÃaz-Reixa who takes samples of everything from tropicalia to rock to afrobeat and seamlessly pastes them together makes gorgeous new compositions out of something old and familiar. Joining him is cut and paste master Prefuse 73. 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.
Sunday November 30
Location: Lower East Side, NYC
Bands: The King Khan & BBQ Show + Vivian Girls Get Tickets Here
Show time: 8 PM
Venue: Bowery Ballroom
Food: Café Himalaya
Drink: Max Fish
Miscellaneous: Pink Pony
King Khan, who most recently of King Khan and the Shrines, recorded one of the best albums I’ve heard The Supreme Genius of has gotten back with former Spaceshits bandmate BBQ to play doo wop and punk. Together they sound unbeatable. Joining them are shoegazers, the Vivian Girls who are pretty hot right now. Ever have Nepalese or Tibetan food? Must try dishes at Café Himalaya include the momos, better known as pan-fried dumplings, and thukpa, a Tibetan noodle soup, both amazingly delicious and under $10 like most menu items. One of the last boho bars on the L.E.S., Max Fish is a mix of local dive and new art as upcoming artists show their work monthly, while being a local hang for artists from all genres. A great late night cafe for coffee or drinks, it has a literary atmosphere and a friendly and hip waitstaff where you can sit and talk the night away.
