We hope you will come back often to see what’s cooking here.

Today it’s Top 10 NYC Corona Culture. NEW STUFF!

1. Your Concise New York Art Guide for February 2021 – hyperallergic.com

“Your list of must-see, fun, insightful, and very New York art events this month.

It’s February, and groundhog mumbles aside, we’re one month closer to sunshine and longer days. To break up some of the winter slush, we’ve rounded up 10 art events worth checking out — from exhibitions, to film series, to book fairs and interdisciplinary projects — many of which are available online.”

==============================================================

2. Best Things to do in NYC This Week – TONY

Here are just a few ideas:

m. Restaurant Week To Go
News Eating

In happier 2021 news, one of our favorite local traditions is back. NYC & Company’s NYC Restaurant Week returns this winter in a special new format: Running from January 25-31 (with an optional extension from February 1-7), Restaurant Week To Go will focus on great takeout and delivery options across all five boroughs. Local restaurants are invited to participate cost-free in the program, which will highlight a broad range of venues, from fine-dining stalwarts to casual pop-in spots. Participating restos like Gramercy Tavern, RedFarm, and Bar Boulud have already been announced. Each eatery will offer an entrée with at least one side dish for lunch or dinner at $20.21 a meal, to commemorate the new year. (Note: Tax, delivery fees and gratuity are not included in the meal price.) MasterCard holders have an extra incentive: The company is sponsoring the program, so diners who use their MasterCard will receive a $10 rebate for all orders.

n. Aerialists & Acrobats at City Point
Things to do City Point, Downtown Brooklyn Feb 11 2021-Feb 28 2021

A creative residency of aerialists and acrobats is performing at City Point’s BKLYN STUDIOS every Sunday and Thursday through February 28—and you can see them for free. Some of New York’s top circus performers, who have been furloughed since March, are practicing and displaying their works-in-progress and show-ready acts and of dazzling skills, innovative movements, super-human resiliency and flexibility (while adhering to Covid-19 guidelines). You can catch their showcases twice a week (Thursdays at 7pm and Sundays at noon) and their rehearsals on weekdays from 9am to 1pm and from 6 to 9pm, as well as on Sundays from 10am to 7pm.

Ernst-Alper and photographer Giles Clement also collaborated on New York City Performer Series for an installation featuring images of aerialists, burlesque personalities, clowns, and dancers in the Atrium at City Point. Each image will be sold as a limited-edition print and as part of a set of 10 postcards. Proceeds from sales will be shared with the performing artists to help them through the pandemic.

o. “Looking Up” sculpture in Rockefeller Center
News Art

A 10-foot-tall sculpture now looms over NYC’s Rockefeller Center Channel Gardens, gazing up at 30 Rock—a stance we’ve all taken at some point, whether as a tourist or a passerby. The stainless steel artwork by American artist Tom Friedman was just unveiled at the entrance to the gardens located on Fifth Avenue between 49th and 50th streets, and it’ll be standing tall until March 19. Titled “Looking Up,” the humanoid figure was created with crushed aluminum foil pans which, through a process of lost wax casting, retains the imprint of the original materials. The sculpture combines Friedman’s interests in the supernatural and experiential, according to Rockefeller Center’s developer Tishman Speyer.

p. Elsewhere Sound Space
Music Music venues Online, Feb 23 2021-Jun 24 2021

Elsewhere is bringing back live performances via Twitch so everyone can tune into its new monthly series, “Elsewhere Sound Space.” Hosted by trans comedian and actor Peter Smith, the episodic series will feature new musical guests and live performances from New York City’s underground music and arts scene each month, starting with Princess Nokia on January 28, Starchild & The New Romantic on February 23, Paperboy Prince on March 23, and others on April 27, May 25 and June 24. The premise of the whole series is out of this world—it’s a continuing story that follows the sci-fi misadventures of a music deity marooned in space and their curious cultural dispatches back to Earth. Peter Smith will be broadcasting live from the “Astral Spa & Sound Bath” while on a “chilled-out mission to bring the joy and community of live music to Earthlings, who are in their most quarantined and isolated state.” Twitch audience members can expect comedic skits, psychedelic musical performances, candid artist interviews and holistic wellness treatments.

There are many more right HERE at Time Out New York

==========================================================

3. The 25 best cheap eats in NYC – TONY

“Eat for $10 or less at the best restaurants with cheap eats in NYC

UPDATE, October 29 2020: Dining out in New York City has never been so different than this year and it’s not only because restaurants had to shut down their dining rooms for more than six months. The current crisis has put a renewed focus on more affordable food options, whether you’re scarfing down tacos from a food truck or ordering dumplings from a mom-and-pop business in Chinatown. At Time Out New York, we’ve done the homework for you in discovering dishes, old and new, that are all $10 or under. 

The hefty prices at many New York restaurants can at times make the dining scene feel like it’s only for the elite. But some of the best restaurants in NYC still serve affordable bites for $10 or less. Dining on a budget in New York doesn’t have to feel like a constraint with our picks for jerk chicken, Sicilian-style pizza, creative veggie burgers, underground buffets, Cuban bakeries and more.”

“Sanford Biggers, Félix Fénéon and the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s history of itself”

“Nicolas Cage hosts the history of swearing. Lorde writes a book and Julie Mehretu takes over the Whitney. This new year has to be better, right?”

6. Everywhere You Should Be Eating Vegan and Vegetarian Food in NYC – thrillist

17 go-to spots for meatless eats.

“New York City is on the cutting edge of all things culinary, so it’s no surprise that plant-based eateries have been a fixture in the city for decades. In fact, restaurants like Candle Cafe, Dojo, Angelica Kitchen (RIP) and many more transformed meatless diets into a lifestyle to aspire to as early as the 1970s. While vegetarian and vegan eateries have continued to proliferate since then, one exciting newish trend is the introduction of plant-based options within the fast-casual space (e.g., Taim, by CHLOE, et al.) offering affordable and quickly prepared items that make it that much easier for New Yorkers to go meat-free.”

7. What’s Open in NYC | The Official Guide to New York City – nycgo.com

“Businesses across all five boroughs are working toward a common goal: to welcome back guests, employees and the community at large while ensuring everyone’s health and safety. Use this hub as a starting point for what’s open right now or opening soon, and make sure to follow up directly with any venue to confirm hours and protocols before you visit.”

8. Three ‘astonishing’ works of art are inside the new Moynihan Train Hall – TONY

The Public Art Fund says they’ll ‘stop us in our tracks’ “In true New York style, the new Moynihan Train Hall at Penn Station, which opens Friday, has been decked out with incredible art.

Penn Station’s $1.6 billion Moynihan Train Hall features a spacious, light-filled atrium with a 92-foot-high glass skylight and soaring ceilings honoring the design of the original Penn Station, but as with any new transit hub, whether it’s a new subway station, airport terminal or a passenger hall like this one, New York calls on its amazing artists to decorate the walls, halls and floors and inspire travelers passing by.”

9. The Metropolitan Opera is streaming free productions every night – TONY

The Met continues to share a different lineup of complete operas from its archives every week

“The Metropolitan Opera has closed its doors though at least September 2021, but the great New York opera house continues to lift the spirits of opera lovers around the world with free nightly streams of complete productions from its archives. Most of the offerings were originally recorded with multiple cameras in high definition to be shown in movie theaters as part of the company’s popular Live in HD series.

Each opera goes live on the Met’s website at 7:30pm EST (12:30am GMT) and remains there until 6:30pm EST the next evening. The operas can also be viewed with the Met Opera on Demand app on various devices.”

Nightly Opera Streams, February 15–21

10. -85 NYC restaurants with heaters for outdoor dining – 6sqft

“Though indoor dining is permitted at 25-percent capacity in New York City, a lot of people still don’t feel 100-percent comfortable with the idea. Luckily, the city made its outdoor dining program permanent and year-round and gave restaurants the go-ahead to install outdoor heat lamps. If you’re looking for one of these spots to dine al fresco without shivering, we’ve begun a running list throughout the city.”

“For the cosmetics mogul and philanthropist Leonard Lauder, the city, with its museums, public transit and parks, is an explorer’s delight.”

“Get to a nearby park and get in shape (safely).”

Bonus#2: When the Bronx was a Forest: Stroll Through the Centuries – NYT

“Yankee Stadium was the site of a salt marsh. Concourse Plaza was a valley. Our critic walks with Eric Sanderson, a conservation ecologist.”

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

We hope you enjoy this change of pace, then please return here March 1, and every day for our daily, hot off the presses event guide with “Only the Best” NYCity event info. 

==========================================================

Stay home for a bit more – Mask up, stay smart and stay safe