Friday June 29
Location: Chelsea, NYC
Music: Tenacious D
Show time: 8 PM
Venue: Hammerstein Ballroom
Food: Supermac
Drink: Stout
Miscellaneous: Jack’s 99 Cent Store
The hysterical musical comedy duo of Jack Black and Kyle Gass who are Tenacious D have a new album out in Rize of the Fenix, the bands third album featuring plenty of insanity and fun. 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 99 Cent Store is three floors of some of the finest values you can find, especially in an overpriced area like Herald Square.
Location: Upper West Side, NYC
Music: Glen Hansard
Show time: 8 PM
Venue: Beacon Theater
Food: Hummus Place
Drink: Jake’s Dilemmal
Miscellaneous: Alice’s Tea Cup
You know him from the film Once, but Glen Hansard is also a member of folk rock duo The Swell Season and the Irish group The Frames. Catch him in all his many guises. Cheap yet not too heavy, Hummus Place serves up surprisingly great hummus in the uptown version of their original downtown location. More a game room for adults than a sports bar, Jake’s Dilemmal offers more than 50 beers to choose from while you can play pool, video games, or foosball. Inspired by Alice in Wonderland, Alice’s Tea Cup is as much for adults as it is for kids. Get one of a vast assortment of teas flown in from around the world here or a gorgeously designed slice of cake.
Saturday June 30
Location: Bushwick, Brooklyn
Music: Shilpa Ray
Show time: 8 PM
Venue: Shea Stadium
Food: Potion Café
Drink: Life Café Nine 83
Miscellaneous: Stain
Former Beat the Devil and Happy Hooker member Shilpa Ray has one of those voices that silence crowds as she sings along with her harmonium into a sea of astonished audience members witnessing her power packed performance. Best of all, the linup is stacked with great acts including Caged Animals, Give to Light, and Kyle Avallone. For food in this neighborhood, Potion Café offers organically grown and traded food that’s part of the “slow food†movement and make delicious and creative food like the poached eggs in white wine sauce. For drinks, check out Life Café Nine 83. While it’s THE same Life Café that the RENT musical features in the play, it’s not the same location. This new Bushwick locale also possesses a boho vibe, an Americanized menu of ethnic food, and a fun selection of mixed drinks including martini’s and lemonade cocktails. A HUGE space decked out in old couches, Stain is an artsy bar that looks like an old-school coffeehouse yet serves local wines and beers.
Saturday June 30
Location: Union Square, NYC
Event: The Awesome 80s Prom
Show time: 8 PM
Venue: Webster Hall
Food: Thai Me Up Sandwich Bar
Drink: McSorley’s Old Ale House
Miscellaneous: Mudd Cafe
Relive the best and worst of coming of age in high school at The Awesome 80s Prom. This interactive show is part musical and full-on party as the audience gets to drink, dance and vote for the Prom King and Queen. For eats, check out Thai Me Up Sandwich Bar, a sandwich shop offering Thai sandwiches with 7 Steamed Fried Vegetables and a choice of chicken, veggie, tofu or beef on a baguette with 3 types of sauces for $7. One of the city’s oldest bars, at McSorley’s Old Ale House you can feel the history when you enter as memorabilia, since its beginnings in 1854, are all over the walls. Aside from it being a frat hangout nowadays, it’s worth the trip. You’ve seen that orange Mudd coffee truck parked on Astor Place and on various other streets, but check out their Mudd Cafe on East 9th for coffee and a healthy, vegan, and vegetarian menu.
Sunday July 1
Location: Upper West Side, NYC
Art: Beer Here: Brewing New York’s History
Show time: See website for schedule; Through September 2
Venue: New York Historical Society
Food: Swizz Restaurant & Wine Bar
Drink: Café des Artistes
Miscellaneous: Magnolia Bakery
The exhibition Beer Here: Brewing New York’s History takes a look at the social, economic, political, and technological history of the production and consumption of beer, ale, and porter in New York City from the seventeenth century to the present. Fondue lovers, Swizz Restaurant & Wine Bar is the place to go and the menu is just as extensive as its wine. It’s romantic and cheesy. Get it! Café des Artistes is one of those old historic bars that’s as New York as it gets. This bar/restaurant was the meeting place of artists going all the way back to 1917. Today, it serves up new American dishes and cocktails to those in the know. To soothe your sweet tooth, check the uptown location of Magnolia Bakery and sink your teeth into one of the city’s best cupcakes.
