Today’s “Fab 5”/ Selected NYCity Events – SATURDAY, JAN. 11, 2014
For other useful and curated NYCity event info for Manhattan’s WestSide check out:
♦ “Notable NYC Events-Jan”, and also “on Broadway”, and “Top10 Free” in the header above.
♦ For NYCity trip planning see links in “Resources” and “Smart Stuff” in the header above.
Mystery IPA Contest.
Hopheads Rejoice! This one is for you.
My heart is broken because I won’t be able to make this very special event.
“Fans of spicy, strong beer should head to Williamsburg on Saturday for Mugs Alehouse’s Mystery IPA Contest. Starting at noon, the bar will be pouring brews from 12 American IPAs in a blind taste test for imbibers to cast their impartial vote for favorite. The winning brew gets a place on the tap list for six months; last year that honor went to Greenport Harbor Brewing Company’s “Other Side IPA.” Attendees can sample as much of the suds as they want until 3 p.m. Tickets also include bar snacks and a pint glass to take home; tickets are $30.” (Gothamist)
Mugs Alehouse, 125 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn
this is not Manhattan’s WestSide, but it is Bklyn’s WestSide, and this event is worth the short detour. subway: L train to Bedford Ave (1st stop in Bklyn); walk 3 blocks N to Mugs
12PM / $30
(718) 486-8232 / mugsalehouse.com
Beer & Cassoulet
“Delightful underground bar Jimmy’s No. 43 hosts a weekend full of savory stew with their annual celebration of cassoulet. This southern French dish contains hearty ingredients like meats, sausages and beans, which are slow-cooked in a a flavorful broth. First up, the Beer & Cassoulet ($45) meal on Saturday from 1 p.m. – 4 p.m., which includes three different versions of the dish (classic, goat and lamb, Kielbasa and chicken) paired with 10 beers and ciders.” (Gothamist)
Threefifty, Classically Trained Guitar Duo
With both steel-string acoustic and electric guitars, classically trained musicians Brett Parnell and Geremy Schulick create hushed, austerely beautiful instrumental soundscapes. Incorporating elements of post-rock, minimalism, and baroque classicism—with a touch of ambient electronics—the duo, returning after performing at last year’s Crossing Brooklyn Ferry, casts a spell that’s both haunting and hypnotic.
BAMcafe, Peter Jay Sharp Building
9pm / FREE
JOHN PIZZARELLI AND JANE MONHEIT (through Sun Jan 12)
John Pizzarelli, the world-renowned jazz guitarist and singer, was called “Hip with a wink” by Town & Country, “madly creative” by the Los Angeles Times and “the genial genius of the guitar” by The Toronto Star. The jazz guitarist-singer and Oakdale, LI chanteuse team up for what should be a fine evening of music.
Blue Note, 131 W. Third St.,
at 10:30 p.m./$20-$35
212-475-8592, bluenote.net
WINTER JAZZFEST (last day)
“If there are any doubts that present-day jazz is marked by heterogeneity, this annual, multi-venue extravaganza, which is celebrating its tenth anniversary, will dispel them. Dozens of artists descend upon spaces that are often too compact, but what one gives up in comfort one gains in an appreciation of the current scene’s vitality. Among the highlights are appearances by the Burnt Sugar Arkestra, Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society, the vocalist Gretchen Parlato, the pianist Matthew Shipp, and the guitarist Mary Halverson (who will join Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog); the visionary veteran Henry Threadgill also performs, in a tribute to the late Butch Morris.”
(NewYorker mag)
Various locations / (winterjazzfest.com)
Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm ticket availability, dates and times, as schedules are subject to change.
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A PremierPub / Midtown West.
Russian Vodka Room / 265 W 52nd St (btw 7th/8th ave)
Sure, you could travel to Minsk or even Brighton Beach, for an authentic Russian experience, but why bother. On those days when you feel you must wash down your dish of kasha with a few glasses of icy, cold vodka, the Russian Vodka Room will definitely satisfy your urge.
From the outside this place looks a bit drab, and with no windows, a bit mysterious. Midtown tourists walk right by on their way to see “Jersey Boys”, just down the block.
Those in the know enter a secret hideaway, a dimly lit front room with soft jazz playing – a perfect spot for an illicit late-night rendezvous, or maybe a meet-up with your Russian spy handler, but that’s later in the evening. Early in the evening the large U-shaped bar fills with the after work happy hour crowd, a group made very happy by the much reduced prices.
Their website says: “Welcome Comrades”. Of course, this welcome focuses on dozens of different vodkas, including their own special infusions, which marinate in giant, clear glass jugs visible around the room. The large vodka martinis ensure that you won’t confuse this place with your mother’s Russian Tea Room.
But man does not live by vodka alone. Eat some food, especially the tapa like appetizers. Be decadent and try the cheese blintzes with chocolate, or try a main dish like beef stroganoff with kasha.
Your best bet is to go on a night when the piano man is playing. This guy, who looks like he has eaten a lot of those cheese blintzes, plays five nights a week from 7 to 12 (no Mondays and Thursdays). When the piano man is playing American pop tunes, and you are at the crowded, dimly lit bar testing the horseradish infused vodka, that’s when the RVR shines.
It’s the kind of place where the noise gets louder and the crowd gets happier as the happy hour goes on. I’m generally a beer guy, but I like to come here with a group of friends. We find a table in the back room; we eat, and we drink vodka ‘till it hurts (and it will hurt).
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Website: http://www.russianvodkaroom.com/
Phone #: 212-307-5835
Hours: 4pm-2am; Fri-Sun closes 4am (that could be trouble)
Happy Hour: 4-7pm every day
$4 shots infused vodka (2oz), $5 cosmos; $4 czech draft beer
Music: FR-SU; TU-WE / 7pm-12am
Subway: #1 to 50th St.
Walk 2 blk N. on B’way to 52nd St.; 1 blk W. to RVR
Confusingly, the Russian Samovar is right across the street, on the S. side of 52nd St.
The RVR, your destination, is on the N. side of 52nd St.
Update: music some nights includes a sax player with a younger, trimmer piano man.
NYCity 1-2-3 : What's Happening / Manhattan's WestSide 