East 4th St between Bowery and 2nd Ave has been transformed into Fourth Arts Block- an upgrade on the NYC tradition of Business Improvement Districts.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Aug 11: Steinway Street, Astoria
I ran around like a crazy person today, and my errands took me to Steinway Street in Astoria. I was looking for a pair of sandals to wear that night, and I didn't have much time, so I was literally running in and out of stores. I'd been to Steinway and Broadway before in passing, but I'd never been shopping on Steinway. I learned that there are in fact lots of shoe stores and a little bit of everything else.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Aug 10: BWM Guggenheim Lab
The lab calls itself "a mobile laboratory traveling around the world to inspire innovative ideas about urban life." I guess this is why I'm not in advertising or writing copy somewhere, because I could not have come up with a tag so succinct for something so unique and interesting. I had to write a long winded article just to feel like I explained it.
This outdoor urban experiment gives people the space and tools to think critically about what it means to live in a city today and what new challenges will face urbanites in the near future. Play an interactive game, participate in a discussion, listen to others, grab a bite in their outdoor cafe or just sit on the ground and enjoy the indoor/outdoor space (like I did).
Open Wed- Sun from 1-5pm (Sat and Sun 10-1 come for silent meditation). Enter on 1st or Houston between 1st and 2nd Aves.
This outdoor urban experiment gives people the space and tools to think critically about what it means to live in a city today and what new challenges will face urbanites in the near future. Play an interactive game, participate in a discussion, listen to others, grab a bite in their outdoor cafe or just sit on the ground and enjoy the indoor/outdoor space (like I did).
Aug 9: Fish Raw Bar
Fish Raw Bar restaurant is on one of the best blocks of Bleeker St in the West Village, between 7th Ave and Cornellia. The tiny block has bars, restaurants, a guitar shop, a boutique or two and Grom gourmet and (uber expensive) Florentine gelato. Every time I walk on this block I think how great it is, but until I ate a Fish today I think the only time I ever actually entered a business there was to get a tasty but overpriced scoop of Nocciola at Grom over 2 years ago.
I was invited to Fish to partake of their "oyster happy hour:" 6 fresh oysters and a pint on tap. I can't remember the last time I had oysters, but these were definitely better. They were salty and slimy and delicious. The got even better with the explosively flavorful and different sauces (I put sauce on everything, but I never would have thought of dousing oysters on the half shell with thick ginger wasabi dressing, tangy vinegar beet juice or homemade horseradish. Maybe that's (another reason) why I'm not a chef).
Nice place with a laid back vibe and food that's fresh and tasty. Not a bad twist on happy hour.
I was invited to Fish to partake of their "oyster happy hour:" 6 fresh oysters and a pint on tap. I can't remember the last time I had oysters, but these were definitely better. They were salty and slimy and delicious. The got even better with the explosively flavorful and different sauces (I put sauce on everything, but I never would have thought of dousing oysters on the half shell with thick ginger wasabi dressing, tangy vinegar beet juice or homemade horseradish. Maybe that's (another reason) why I'm not a chef).
Nice place with a laid back vibe and food that's fresh and tasty. Not a bad twist on happy hour.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Aug 8: Beth Israel Med Center, 2nd Floor Radiology
This is one new place I'd rather not have been.
I had to get an x-ray of my stomach, a "small bowel GI series." For those of you that know what that entails, you'll know why I'd rather not have gone. For those that don't, I'll spare you the details. What I anticipated to be a single x-ray after drinking a tablespoon or two of 'contrast' an a relatively quick experience (under an hour) turned out to be a four-hour endeavor of me drinking almost two liters of a most unpleasant Barium contrast, having at least 10 x-rays and being rotated from standing to lying down back to standing on the electronic adjustable x-ray table.
I really hope I won't have to go back to 2nd Floor, Radiology any time soon. Or ever.
I had to get an x-ray of my stomach, a "small bowel GI series." For those of you that know what that entails, you'll know why I'd rather not have gone. For those that don't, I'll spare you the details. What I anticipated to be a single x-ray after drinking a tablespoon or two of 'contrast' an a relatively quick experience (under an hour) turned out to be a four-hour endeavor of me drinking almost two liters of a most unpleasant Barium contrast, having at least 10 x-rays and being rotated from standing to lying down back to standing on the electronic adjustable x-ray table.
I really hope I won't have to go back to 2nd Floor, Radiology any time soon. Or ever.
Aug 7: Compare Foods
I've been in my apartment in Ridgewood, Queens for 6 months, but I'm still checking out new places around the neighborhood. Today I needed to restock on cleaning supplies, and instead of going all the way to the big grocery store, I decide to check out the much smaller Compare Foods I'd noticed under the M train while running around the little local park.
Turns out, it is much cleaner than the big grocery store, the produce looked fresher and the prices were almost as low. Admittedly, I don't do much grocery shopping since I lead a sporadic nomadic life (note previous posts), but this will definitely be my go-to source for ingredients the nights I actually do cook.
A few steps from the norm, and I know my own neighborhood a little bit better.
Turns out, it is much cleaner than the big grocery store, the produce looked fresher and the prices were almost as low. Admittedly, I don't do much grocery shopping since I lead a sporadic nomadic life (note previous posts), but this will definitely be my go-to source for ingredients the nights I actually do cook.
A few steps from the norm, and I know my own neighborhood a little bit better.
Aug 6: The Half Pint, West 3rd St
I seriously can't believe I haven't been here before. I went to NYU and have spent a considerable number of days and nights up and down West 3rd. I've also been to the Half Pint in Midtown East, so I really can't believe I haven't been here before tonight.
I obviously had a beer, after going cross-eyed looking at the miles of pages of brews they offer. I also had a sandwich (way too late to be eating a sandwich, but I hadn't eaten since noon) that was far better than I expected and deserves to be described. When I order food at a bar I expect bar food- decent but not stellar. I'd go back this Half Pint any day of the week for another one of these, even if I don't drink. I ordered (and rapidly devoured) a buffalo chicken with mozzarella and pesto on cibatta and balsamic drenched greens. The pesto must have been homemade (or the best Cisco order ever!) because it was rich, salty and flavorful. The mozzarella was thick, fresh and the consistency of the mozzarella I ate in Florence. I'll be dreaming about this sandwich until I make it back.
I obviously had a beer, after going cross-eyed looking at the miles of pages of brews they offer. I also had a sandwich (way too late to be eating a sandwich, but I hadn't eaten since noon) that was far better than I expected and deserves to be described. When I order food at a bar I expect bar food- decent but not stellar. I'd go back this Half Pint any day of the week for another one of these, even if I don't drink. I ordered (and rapidly devoured) a buffalo chicken with mozzarella and pesto on cibatta and balsamic drenched greens. The pesto must have been homemade (or the best Cisco order ever!) because it was rich, salty and flavorful. The mozzarella was thick, fresh and the consistency of the mozzarella I ate in Florence. I'll be dreaming about this sandwich until I make it back.
Aug 5: The Lusty Lobster
I spent the day lounging on the beach at Sandy Hook in New Jersey with my best friend; astonishingly this is the first time I've been to the beach all summer. A big, sandy beach (sans boardwalk/stores of any kind) is one of the places I could conceivably spend most of my time without complaint, and today was perfect because the water was refreshing, there was a nice breeze, and it wasn't too crowded.
On the way back from the beach my friend decided to stop at The Lusty Lobster and pick up some shrimp and clams for dinner. It was a small seafood vendor that smelled like fish and sold nothing that didn't come from the sea. These were the also the first clams I've had this summer, so it turned out to be a quintessential summer day that was exactly what I needed after so many weeks rat racing nonstop around NYC.
(I got a bit of a sunburn, so it turns out "Lusty Lobster" worked as a nickname as well as a new place).
On the way back from the beach my friend decided to stop at The Lusty Lobster and pick up some shrimp and clams for dinner. It was a small seafood vendor that smelled like fish and sold nothing that didn't come from the sea. These were the also the first clams I've had this summer, so it turned out to be a quintessential summer day that was exactly what I needed after so many weeks rat racing nonstop around NYC.
(I got a bit of a sunburn, so it turns out "Lusty Lobster" worked as a nickname as well as a new place).
Aug 4: Gravy
There's nothing like a good cocktail to start off the evening, and today I was treated to an exceptionally good one at an upscale southern restaurant on 21st between Park and Broadway: Gravy. I don't remember what the drink was called, but it was made with moonshine and was the smokiest drink I've ever tasted and one of the most interesting (and I have a lot to compare to...)
I'd never been past or heard of this place, so it was nice to discover someplace completely new. It's daunting to think that I could go to one of Manhattan's thousands of different bars every day- no repeats- and still be trying new places years from now. Talk about density of choice.
I'd never been past or heard of this place, so it was nice to discover someplace completely new. It's daunting to think that I could go to one of Manhattan's thousands of different bars every day- no repeats- and still be trying new places years from now. Talk about density of choice.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Aug 3: Baburichi
I've passed this Indian restaurant thousands of times (it actually might be that many) during my four undergrad years at NYU, but I've never eaten there (the crux of routine deviation!) Today my boyfriend and I stopped in for lunch. The food was excellent (rich North Indian cuisine) and the prices were chopped in half- they offer 50% menu prices when you dine in house M-F from 12-3:30. Good deal. Simple decor and cool copper drinking cups. Definitely someplace I'll go back to.
Aug 2: Cowgirl's Baking
Tacos to die for. $2 on Tuesdays. They're 100% vegan and they don't even taste like it. This is one of the few places where you can get a filling, healthy lunch for $4 and even sit down in the AC. And if you feel like undoing your balanced taco lunch with a (still vegan) cupcake afterwards, you can do that too.
See my Manhattan Green Living Examiner Tasty Tuesdays article for more.
See my Manhattan Green Living Examiner Tasty Tuesdays article for more.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Aug 1: Psychiatric Hospital
Very rarely do I feel a chill go down my spine and my blood go cold as I walk down a New York City street, but this was creepy. I was watching my friends dogs and I took them down a block I'd never been- East 30th St between 1st Ave and the FDR approach road (the runs parallel to the highway entrance ramp from 34th to like 28th). I know that Bellvue Psychiatric Hospital is on 1st Ave because I've passed it a million times taking the M15. I'm guessing this building is part of it, but I'm not sure since it's not connected to the main building on 27th, and for some reason the front entrance to this one is on 30th St not on 1st Ave. And it's the creepiest entrance to a building I've probably ever seen- and I grew up in a rural town with some pretty unnerving vacant buildings.
The entrance is a huge brick facade set out from the rest of the brick building. It has a dingy stone carving nameplate that reads "Psychiatric Hospital." The creepy part was that some of the windows were boarded and others were half open with sheets covering them. One had a mattress blocking it. Others in the building had lights on and you could see curtains blowing in the evening breeze. There was one uniformed guard in a booth in front of the double doors. Clearly the building was in use, but it in no way resembled a modern hospital or anything from this century. It looked like it should be on Shutter Island or in some horror film, not in Kips Bay. I shuttered to think of the people inside and what their lives were like.
Someplace I've never been past before and will certainly not go past again (although there is a part of me that REALLY wants to go inside...)
The entrance is a huge brick facade set out from the rest of the brick building. It has a dingy stone carving nameplate that reads "Psychiatric Hospital." The creepy part was that some of the windows were boarded and others were half open with sheets covering them. One had a mattress blocking it. Others in the building had lights on and you could see curtains blowing in the evening breeze. There was one uniformed guard in a booth in front of the double doors. Clearly the building was in use, but it in no way resembled a modern hospital or anything from this century. It looked like it should be on Shutter Island or in some horror film, not in Kips Bay. I shuttered to think of the people inside and what their lives were like.
Someplace I've never been past before and will certainly not go past again (although there is a part of me that REALLY wants to go inside...)
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