Today’s Fab 5+ > SUNDAY / MAR. 13, 2016

“We search the internet everyday looking for the very best of What’s Happening, primarily on Manhattan’s WestSide, so that you don’t have to.” We make it as easy as 1-2-3.
(click on links for more complete event info.)

Have time for only one event today? Do this:
Roy Haynes 91st Birthday Celebration
Blue Note, 131 West Third St./ 8PM +10:30PM, $50 – $75
“When Roy Haynes says that he’s played with “everybody,” it’s not just a figure of speech: The 90-year-old drum legend’s former employers include Charlie Parker, John Coltrane and Sarah Vaughan, to name only a few. Haynes remains a galvanizing bandleader and garrulous crowd-pleaser, not to mention one of the hardest-swinging percussionists ever to pick up sticks. For this special celebration of his 91st birthday, the drummer teams up here with lyrical guitar superstar Pat Metheny.” (TONY)

Music, Dance, Performing Arts
Birdland Jazz Party Hosted By Carole Bufford
Birdland, 315 W44th St./ 6PM, $40
“Birdland’s very own jazz quartet hits the stage every Sunday to wrap up the weekend with jazz classics featuring jazz vocalist Carole J. Bufford! Carole J. Bufford has become one of the most sought after young performers in the New York cabaret & jazz scene. Her recent shows, “Speak Easy” and “Body & Soul” earned her rave reviews across the board, including The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. She has traveled all over the US and recently made her London debut to great critical acclaim.”

L’Immediat (LAST DAY)
N.Y.U. Skirball Center, 566 LaGuardia Pl./ 3PM, $35-$65
“The French director, artist, and performer Camille Boitel stages the New York première of his kinetic spectacle. The show combines theatre, circus, and acrobatics to create a live experience that swings over the edge of chaos into something barely categorizable: seven aerialists perform soaring stunts and lurching pantomime, interacting with shifting, tangled props that litter the stage, including piles of junk, worn wooden furniture, and clusters of lights.

Boitel is a veteran in the schools of magic and contortionism, who began his work at age twelve, busking in the streets of Montauban. He’s recently toured this unruly production across Europe, Asia, and South America.” (NewYorker)

Bill Frisell and Thomas Morgan (LAST DAY)
Village Vanguard, 178 Seventh Avenue South, at 11th St./ 8:30 +10:30PM, $30
“Quiet guitar innovator Bill Frisell, a jazz ace equally enamored with country music, twangy ’50s pop and outré noise, still sounds like no other player on earth. For his latest Vanguard stand, in what is sure to be a stunning showcase of his many talents, Frisell scales down to a duo with eminent young bassist Thomas Morgan.” (TONY)

Elsewhere, but this looks worth the detour:
“The singer Esperanza Fernández and the jazz musician Gonzalo Rubalcaba perform in “Flamenco Meets Cuba” at Roulette in Downtown Brooklyn. 8PM, $40″ (NYT/Today)

Elsewhere, but this is CLOSING TODAY: Catch the final days of “Coney Island: Visions of an American Dreamland” exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum. It is really excellent.
subway: easy 25 minutes from Penn Station.
#2.3 express to Eastern Parkway, right at museum’s doorstep.

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Bonus – Jazz Venues:
Many consider NYCity the Jazz capital of the world. Here are my favorite Jazz clubs, all on Manhattan’s WestSide. Check out who is playing tonight:
Greenwich Village (all six are within walking distance of each other):
Village Vanguard – 178 7th Ave. South, villagevanguard.com, 212-255-4037
Blue Note – 131 W3rd St. nr 6th ave. bluenotejazz.com, 212-475-8592
55 Bar – basement @55 Christopher St. nr 7th ave.S. 55bar.com, 212-929-9883
in case you need more options in the Village, these are also fine spots:
Mezzrow – basement @ 163 W10th St. nr 7th Ave. mezzrow.com,646-476-4346
Smalls – basement @ 183 W10th St. smallslive.com, 646-476-4346
Cornelia Street Cafe – 29 Cornelia St. corneliastreetcafe.com, 212-989-9319
Outside Greenwich Village:
Dizzy’s Club – Broadway @ 60th St. — jazz.org/dizzys / 212-258-9595
Birdland – 315 W44th St.(btw 8/9ave) — birdlandjazz.com / 212-581-3080
Smoke Jazz Club – 2751 Broadway nr.106th St. — smokejazz.com / 212-864-6662
Special Mention:
Caffe Vivaldi – 32 Jones St. nr Bleecker St. — caffevivaldi.com / 212-691-7538
a classic, old jazz club in the Village, Caffe V often surprises with a wonderfully eclectic lineup. It’s my favorite spot for an evening of listening enjoyment and discovery.

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♦ Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm ticket availability, dates and times, as schedules are subject to change.
♦ NYCity, with a population of  8.5 million, had a record 58 million visitors last year and was TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Top U.S. Destination for 2016.  Quality shows draw crowds.
Try to reserve seats in advance, even if just on day of performance.
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A PremierPub / West Village

Corner Bistro / 331 W. 4th St.

Sometimes you just need a beer and a burger. If so, Corner Bistro is the place you want. Located just outside the hip Meatpacking district, this corner bar and grill is decidedly unhip, but it’s not uncrowded, especially at night. Seems that everyone knows this place has one of the better burgers in town.

In the maze of streets known as the West Village, where West 4th intersects with West 12th (and West 11th, and West 10th, go figure), you will eventually find Corner Bistro on the corner of West 4th and Jane Street. An unassuming neighborhood tavern, it looks just like dozens of other taverns around town.

The bartender tells me that the Corner Bistro celebrated it’s 50th anniversary last year. The well worn interior tells me that the place itself is much older.

Corner Bistro has outlasted many of those other taverns around town because they know how to keep it simple — just good burgers and beer, fairly priced. The classic bistro Burger is only $6.75, and should be ordered medium rare, which will be plenty rare for most folks. Actually, it will be a juicy, messy delight – make sure you have extra napkins. I like to pull up a stool and sit by the large front window in the afternoon, where I can rest my burger and beer on the shelf, and watch the Villagers walk by.

Corner Bistro seems to attract very different groups of patrons depending on time of day. While it’s crowded with locals in the evening, in the afternoon you hear different foreign languages, and watch groups of euro tourists wander in, led by their guidebooks and smartphones.

For the classic Bistro experience, order your burger with a McSorley’s draft, the dark preferably. This is the same beer that you can get over at the original McSorley’s in the East Village, the pub that claims to be the oldest continually operating bar in NYCity. The only difference is that this McSorley’s ale is served with a smile by the bartenders here. Or you can get a Sierra Nevada, Stella, or Hoegaarden on tap if you want to go upscale a bit. Either way this is a simple, but quality burger and beer experience that is just too rare these days (sorry for the pun).
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Website: cornerbistrony.com
Phone #: 212-242-9502
Hours: 11:30am-4am Mon-Sat; 12pm-4am Sun
Happy Hour: NO
Music: Juke Box
Subway: #1/2/3 to 14th St. (S end of platform)
Walk 2 blk W. on 13th St. to 8th Ave.; 1 blk S. on 8th Ave. to Jane St.
Update:

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“Pub” is used in it’s broadest sense – bars, bar/restaurants, jazz clubs, wine bars, tapas bars, craft beer bars, dive bars, cocktail lounges, and of course, pubs – just about anyplace you can get a drink without a cover charge (except for certain jazz clubs).

If you have a fave premier pub or good eating place on Manhattan’s WestSide let us all know about it – leave a comment.

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This week’s fave and FREE NYCity AppS: 
Trip Advisor
An enormous base of NYCity user reviews (2.1 million) provides the widest coverage of hotels (468), restaurants (12,645) and things to do (yes, 3,246). Have a specific question? Then try one of Trip Advisor’s forums. Just remember that with all those reviews you have to try to find the consistency among the comments, and ignore the outliers.

OpenTable
Instantly locate restaurants near you with open reservations and then place a reservation right from your iOS device. A great interface and the ability to see a menu from the restaurant you’re interested in makes this my go to restaurant reservation app.

Subway Time 
Need to catch your #1,2,3 subway to attend an event? Use the Subway Time app from the MTA to find out when the next train arrives at your station. The MTA also has Bus Time info available on their mobile website.
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