NYC Events,”Only the Best” (11/04) + Museum Special Exhibitions: Manhattan’s WestSide

Posted on 11/04/2017 by GregD

Today’s Elite 8 NYC Events > SATURDAY/ NOVEMBER 04, 2017

“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.

For future NYC Events better check the tab above: “NYC Events-November”
It’s the most comprehensive list of top events this month that you will find anywhere.
Carefully curated from “Only the Best” NYC event info on the the web, it’s a simply superb resource that will help you plan your NYC visit all through the month.

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

Have time for only one NYC Event today? Do this:

‘THE RED SHOES’ (Oct.26 – Nov.5)
at New York City Center / 8PM, $35+
“Matthew Bourne/New Adventures returns to New York City Center with his first new production in four years. An adaptation of the treasured Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger film, “The Red Shoes” explores Victoria Page’s battle between life and art. The New Adventures dancers Ashley Shaw and Cordelia Braithwaite perform the part, along with Sara Mearns, a principal of New York City Ballet. The composer Julian Craster is played, alternately, by Marcelo Gomes of American Ballet Theater and Dominic North of New Adventures. And finally, Sam Archer plays the impresario Boris Lermontov.” (NYT-GIA KOURLAS)

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7 OTHER TOP NYC EVENTS TODAY (see below for full listing)
>> Dizzy Gillespie All-Stars
>> Ann Hampton Callaway: Jazz Goes to the Movies
>> NICOLE MITCHELL
>> Linda Eder
>> FRED HERSCH
>> Nuevo Jazz Latino
>> Architecture & Design Film Festival
 ===========================================================

Music, Dance, Performing Arts

Dizzy Gillespie All-Stars (Oct.31-Nov.05)
Blue Note / 8PM +10:30PM, $30-$45
“History has produced its share of great artists and great people – John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie was both. As a performer, he left behind an incredible record of innovation and inspiration; as a composer, a broad repository of musical masterpieces; and as a man, a legion of friends, colleagues, and compatriots who remember him with the same degree of love and esteem they reserve for his work.

The Dizzy Gillespie™ Alumni All-Star group are the direct descendants of Gillespie’s musical ventures. The groups have featured some of Dizzy’s closest compatriots: senior statesman and NEA Jazz Master James Moody; musical director John Lee; and veteran Gillespie alumni Roy Hargrove, Roberta Gambarini, Cyrus Chestnut, Steve Davis, and Willie Jones III. All of them are outstanding band leaders, educators, and recording artists in their own right.

The Alumni All-Star group debuted in 1996. They continue to delight audiences around the world with the enduring power and freshness of Gillespie’s music. These groups are the legacy the master would have wanted, and they serve as a living tribute from extraordinary musicians who exemplify his style, range, and commitment.”

Ann Hampton Callaway: Jazz Goes to the Movies (Oct.31-Nov.04)
Birdland / 8:30 and 11PM, $40
“A swinging fixture of the cabaret world, Ann Hampton Callaway has also branched into jazz and TV theme songs (The Nanny). She has a reassuringly mellow way with the standards, sung in a wry, dark-toned contralto. Her latest set explores intersections of jazz and film, from silver-screen classics like “As Time Goes By” to songs that she herself she has recorded for soundtracks.” (TONY)

NICOLE MITCHELL (Nov.3-4)
at the Stone at the New School / 8:30PM, $
“Ms. Mitchell is one of the most creative jazz musicians to have played the flute. And one of the most tireless: To her fans it’s little surprise that she has released two remarkable recordings this year, one with her Black Earth Ensemble (“Mandorla Awakening II: Emerging Worlds”) and another in collaboration with the poet Haki Madhubuti (“Liberation Narratives”). Ever on to the next thing, she performs this weekend with a new intriguing team of diverse associates: Taylor Ho Bynum on trumpet, Rufus Reid on bass, Shirazette Tinnin on drums and Fay Victor on vocals.” (NYT-GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO)

Linda Eder
Feinstein’s/54 Below / 7PM, $110
“Linda Eder—the Star Search songstress turned Broadway and concert star—has never been known for the subtlety of her approach, which can be boiled down to two steps: (1) Stand, and (2) Sing. But gee whiz, the lady can really belt a number.” (TONY)

FRED HERSCH (Oct. 31-Nov. 5)
at the Village Vanguard / 8:30 and 10:30PM, $30
“Mr. Hersch, a starkly articulate and affecting pianist, recently put out “Open Book,” a solo record that comprises original compositions, covers of jazz standards and a 20-minute free improvisation. He will take the stage alone for the first three nights of this run, then will be joined by his trio mates, the bassist John Hébert and the drummer Eric McPherson, for the next three.” (NYT-GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO)

Nuevo Jazz Latino (Nov.3-4)
30th Anniversary Landmark Concert
Jazz at Lincoln Center / 7PM, +9:30PM, $34+
“Back by extremely popular demand, Nuevo Jazz Latino returns to The Appel Room. This all-star ensemble features some of the greatest young leaders in Afro-Latin music today.

When the group was first assembled in 2014, each musician contributed original music specifically for this ensemble. The result was an eclectic repertoire of new music that beautifully utilized the unique talents of each musician. The super-group reassembled for a sold-out week at Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, and they’re now joining forces again to present new pieces and expand upon the original Nuevo Jazz Latino compositions.”

Smart Stuff / Other NYC Events
(Lectures/Discussions, Book Talks, Film, Classes, Food & Drink, Other)

Architecture & Design Film Festival (Nov.1-5)
Cinépolis Chelsea / 8:30 pm – 10:00 pm, $16.50
“The Architecture & Design Film Festival (ADFF) – the nation’s largest film festival devoted to the creative spirit that drives architecture and design – will take place in New York City from November 1-5 at Cinépolis Chelsea. Through a curated selection of films, director Q&As and panel discussions, ADFF creates an opportunity to educate, entertain and engage all who are excited about architecture and design. The ninth edition will showcase 30+ feature-length and short films offering explorative portraits of architecture icons such as Mies van der Rohe, Glenn Murcutt and Rem Koolhaas, and delving into topics ranging from imaginative solutions for homeless housing and how drones will impact architecture.”

Continuing Events

Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park (6th Ave. & 42nd St.)
Midtown Manhattan’s winter wonderland.
Enjoy Bryant Park through the winter with the Holiday Shops food and gift boutiques (thru Jan.02), Danny Meyer’s pop-up rinkside eatery Public Fare (thru Mar.04), and The Rink, the centerpiece of Winter Village and New York City’s only free admission ice skating rink.
The Rink
This 17,000 square foot rink features free admission ice skating, high quality rental skates, and free skating shows, special events, and activities.
​October 28, 2017 – March 4, 2018
Daily, 8am-10pm (Rink hours are weather permitting)

Canstruction (Nov.02-15)
Brookfield Place; /10AM – 8PM; FREE
“Give “food as art” new meaning beyond those food-porn Instagrams at this 24th annual cans-for-a-cause competition, pitting architecture teams against each other to create larger-than-life Pop-Art–installations using more than 120,000 cans of nonperishable food, all in the name of ending hunger (every can is donated to City Harvest). Head down to Brookfield Place to see the unveiling of these engineering spectacles, all built overnight after months of planning, and check back to see if your favorite takes home any titles in judges’ categories like Best Use of Labels, Best Meal and Structural Ingenuity. You’ll also be able to cast a ballot for the “People’s Choice” winner online. Admission is completely free, but you can do your part by bringing the suggested donation of one canned good per person.” (TONY)

EXHIBIT ‘TO QUENCH THE THIRST OF NEW YORKERS: THE CROTON AQUEDUCT AT 175’ (thru Dec 31)
“Many New Yorkers today take for granted the appearance of clean water in the city’s taps. This exhibit focuses on the history of the Croton Aqueduct, an engineering feat that brought fresh water from the Croton River upstate to fountains in the middle of the city when it was completed in the 1840s.” (STAV ZIV, Newsday)
WHEN | WHERE: Opens Saturday, Sept. 2 at the Museum of the City of New York, 1220 Fifth Ave. – INFO: $18; 212­-534­-1672, mcny.org.

Learn all about the High Bridge, which carried the Croton Aqueduct across the Harlem River. This magnificent civic structure was modeled on the old Roman Aqueduct bridges, and is New York City’s oldest and best bridge. I know, because I lived nearby in the far west Bronx neighborhood of Highbridge, and have strolled across it many times.

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Bonus NYC events– 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:
(5 are underground, classic jazz joints. all 6 are within walking distance of each other):
Village Vanguard – UG, 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
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 – UG, 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.

==================================================================================
♦ 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 60 million visitors last year and was TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Top U.S. Destination for 2017.  Quality shows draw crowds.
Try to reserve seats for these top NYC events in advance, even if just on day of performance.
NYCity Vacation Travel Guide Video (Expedia):

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WHAT’S ON VIEW
My Fave Special Exhibitions – MUSEUMS / Manhattan’s WestSide
(See the New York Times Arts Section for listings of all museums,
and also to see their expanded reviews of these exhibitions)

Grey Art Gallery 

PARTNERS IN DESIGN: ALFRED H. BARR JR. AND PHILIP JOHNSON (through Dec. 9).

“Five minutes on StreetEasy, browsing through seven-figure “contemporary” condos whose furniture was designed a century ago, should offer all the proof necessary that Modernism will never die. This intriguing if incomplete exhibition reveals how two young, Bauhaus-mad men of MoMA — Barr, the museum’s first director, and Johnson, its first architecture curator — imported European design to the United States, and showcased it not only in their new museum but also in their own apartments. Johnson had family money, and hired Mies van der Rohe to kit out his apartment with a rosewood chest, a spare tea table, and a camel-colored Barcelona chair; Barr, who had to work for a living, ordered entirely passable knockoffs from Ypsilanti, Mich. This show is too small for its subject, but if you’re into Modernist revivals, you’ll do better here than at the ghastly new restaurant in Johnson’s old Four Seasons.” (Jason Farago)

Museum of Modern Art:

A special pat on the back to MOMA, who is now displaying art from the seven countries affected by Trump’s travel ban.

“Trump’s ban against refugees from seven Muslim-majority nations has sparked acts of defiance in NYC, from demonstrations across town, to striking taxicab drivers at JFK to Middle Eastern bodega owners closing their shops in protest. Recently, the Museum Of Modern added its two cents by bringing out artworks it owns from the affected countries, and hanging them prominently within the galleries usually reserved for 19th- and 20th-century artworks from Europe and the United States. Paintings by Picasso and Matisse, for example, were removed to make way for pieces by Tala Madani (from Iran), Ibrahim El-Salahi (from Sudan) and architect Zaha Hadid (from Iraq). The rehanging, which was unannounced, aims to create a symbolic welcome that repudiates Trump by creating a visual dialog between the newly added works and the more familiar objects from MoMA’s permanent collection.” (TONY)

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture

‘BLACK POWER!’  (through Dec. 30).
“Given the economic, environmental and social policies emanating from the White House, the United States could be headed for its most dynamic era of public resistance since the 1960s. And if you’re searching for cultural models from the past, even flawed ones, that effectively brought a message of social change into the street, the schools and the workplace, you’ll do well to check out this vivid documentary show about a cultural movement that broadened activist art to embrace public murals, fashion and poetry; and protest demonstrations that had the visual allure, choreographic rigor and emotional weight of theater.” (Cotter)

American Museum of Natural History:

Mummies (thru 1/7/18)
“For thousands of years, peoples around the world practiced mummification as a way of preserving and honoring their dead. Mummies brings you face to face with some of these ancient individuals and reveals how scientists are using modern technology to glean stunning details about them and their cultures. In Mummies, ancient remains from the Nile Valley of Africa and the Andes Mountains of South America will be on view, allowing visitors to connect with cultures from the distant past. Mummification, a more widespread practice than most think, was used not only for royal Egyptians but also for common people and even animals. Interactive touch tables let visitors virtually “unravel” or see inside mummies as they delve deep into the unique stories of the people or animals who lie within. Other parts of the exhibition showcase the latest isotopic and DNA testing being performed on mummies, and explain how these sophisticated analytical techniques are helping scientists discover important clues about long-vanished practices. Mummies was developed by The Field Museum, Chicago.”(NYCity Guide)

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For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in right Sidebar dated 11/02 and 10/31.
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NYC Events,”Only the Best” (11/03) + Today’s Featured Pub (WestVillage)

Posted on 11/03/2017 by GregD

Today’s Elite 8 NYC Events > FRIDAY/ NOVEMBER 03, 2017

“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.

For future NYC Events better check the tab above: “Notable NYC Events-November”
It’s the most comprehensive list of top events this month that you will find anywhere.
Carefully curated from “Only the Best” NYC event info on the the web, it’s a simply superb resource that will help you plan your NYC visit all through the month.

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

Have time for only one NYC Event today? Do this:

Nuevo Jazz Latino (Nov.3-4)
30th Anniversary Landmark Concert
Jazz at Lincoln Center / 7PM, +9:30PM, $34+
“Back by extremely popular demand, Nuevo Jazz Latino returns to The Appel Room. This all-star ensemble features some of the greatest young leaders in Afro-Latin music today.

When the group was first assembled in 2014, each musician contributed original music specifically for this ensemble. The result was an eclectic repertoire of new music that beautifully utilized the unique talents of each musician. The super-group reassembled for a sold-out week at Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, and they’re now joining forces again to present new pieces and expand upon the original Nuevo Jazz Latino compositions.”

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

7 OTHER TOP NYC EVENTS TODAY (see below for full listing)
>> The Exterminating Angel 
>> NICOLE MITCHELL
>>‘THE RED SHOES’
>> John McLaughlin + Jimmy Herring
>> FRED HERSCH
>> George Coleman
>> Architecture & Design Film Festival
 ===========================================================

Music, Dance, Performing Arts

The Exterminating Angel (next performance Nov.07; +various dates thru Nov.21)
The Metropolitan Opera / 8PM, $30+
“Following the rapturous response to his last opera, The Tempest, the Met presents the American premiere of Thomas Adès’s The Exterminating Angel, inspired by the classic Luis Buñuel film of the same name. Hailed by the New York Times at its 2016 Salzburg Festival premiere as “inventive and audacious … a major event,” The Exterminating Angel is a surreal fantasy about a dinner party from which the guests can’t escape. Tom Cairns, who wrote the libretto, directs the new production, and Adès conducts his own adventurous new opera.”

NICOLE MITCHELL (Nov.3-4)
at the Stone at the New School / 8:30PM, $
“Ms. Mitchell is one of the most creative jazz musicians to have played the flute. And one of the most tireless: To her fans it’s little surprise that she has released two remarkable recordings this year, one with her Black Earth Ensemble (“Mandorla Awakening II: Emerging Worlds”) and another in collaboration with the poet Haki Madhubuti (“Liberation Narratives”). Ever on to the next thing, she performs this weekend with a new intriguing team of diverse associates: Taylor Ho Bynum on trumpet, Rufus Reid on bass, Shirazette Tinnin on drums and Fay Victor on vocals.” (NYT-GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO)

‘THE RED SHOES’ (Oct.26 – Nov.5)
at New York City Center / 8PM, $35+
“Matthew Bourne/New Adventures returns to New York City Center with his first new production in four years. An adaptation of the treasured Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger film, “The Red Shoes” explores Victoria Page’s battle between life and art. The New Adventures dancers Ashley Shaw and Cordelia Braithwaite perform the part, along with Sara Mearns, a principal of New York City Ballet. The composer Julian Craster is played, alternately, by Marcelo Gomes of American Ballet Theater and Dominic North of New Adventures. And finally, Sam Archer plays the impresario Boris Lermontov.” (NYT-GIA KOURLAS)

John McLaughlin + Jimmy Herring
The Town Hall, / 8PM, $65+
“Fusion guitarists collide when chakra-blasting speed demon John McLaughlin meets Berklee-trained Jimmy Herring. After sets with their respective 4th Dimension and Invisible Whip bands, the pair will convene for a summit session focusing on the alternately searing and serene sounds of McLaughlin’s still-breathtaking early-’70s albums with the Mahavishnu Orchestra. That band served as a high-volume transition between his stint with Miles Davis and Shakti, the fusion ensemble that introduced Indian classical music to the jazz world. Herring is a journeyman virtuoso best known for stints with Col. Bruce Hampton’s Aquarium Rescue Unit, the Allman Brothers Band, and, currently, Widespread Panic. Blaming arthritis, McLaughlin, 75, claims this will be his final tour, so if you’d like him to fan your inner-mounting flame, now’s the time.” (Richard Gehr, Village voice)

FRED HERSCH (Oct. 31-Nov. 5)
at the Village Vanguard / 8:30 and 10:30PM, $30
“Mr. Hersch, a starkly articulate and affecting pianist, recently put out “Open Book,” a solo record that comprises original compositions, covers of jazz standards and a 20-minute free improvisation. He will take the stage alone for the first three nights of this run, then will be joined by his trio mates, the bassist John Hébert and the drummer Eric McPherson, for the next three.” (NYT-GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO)

George Coleman (Nov.2-5)
Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St./ 7:30PM, +9:30PM, $35
“The tenor saxophonist Coleman may be conserving his energy these days, as he reflects on a career that took root in the late fifties, but his forceful spirit is still very much willing. A stomping album from 2016, “A Master Speaks,” found this hard-bop patriarch doing what he does best—crafting lush ballads and giving his all to lively mainstream romps.”

Smart Stuff / Other NYC Events
(Lectures/Discussions, Book Talks, Film, Classes, Food & Drink, Other)

Architecture & Design Film Festival (Nov.1-5)
Cinépolis Chelsea / 8:30 pm – 10:00 pm, $16.50
“The Architecture & Design Film Festival (ADFF) – the nation’s largest film festival devoted to the creative spirit that drives architecture and design – will take place in New York City from November 1-5 at Cinépolis Chelsea. Through a curated selection of films, director Q&As and panel discussions, ADFF creates an opportunity to educate, entertain and engage all who are excited about architecture and design. The ninth edition will showcase 30+ feature-length and short films offering explorative portraits of architecture icons such as Mies van der Rohe, Glenn Murcutt and Rem Koolhaas, and delving into topics ranging from imaginative solutions for homeless housing and how drones will impact architecture.”

Continuing Events

Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park (6th Ave. & 42nd St.)
Midtown Manhattan’s winter wonderland.
Enjoy Bryant Park through the winter with the Holiday Shops food and gift boutiques (thru Jan.02), Danny Meyer’s pop-up rinkside eatery Public Fare (thru Mar.04), and The Rink, the centerpiece of Winter Village and New York City’s only free admission ice skating rink.
The Rink
This 17,000 square foot rink features free admission ice skating, high quality rental skates, and free skating shows, special events, and activities.
​October 28, 2017 – March 4, 2018
Daily, 8am-10pm (Rink hours are weather permitting)

Canstruction (Nov.02-15)
Brookfield Place; /10AM – 8PM; FREE
“Give “food as art” new meaning beyond those food-porn Instagrams at this 24th annual cans-for-a-cause competition, pitting architecture teams against each other to create larger-than-life Pop-Art–installations using more than 120,000 cans of nonperishable food, all in the name of ending hunger (every can is donated to City Harvest). Head down to Brookfield Place to see the unveiling of these engineering spectacles, all built overnight after months of planning, and check back to see if your favorite takes home any titles in judges’ categories like Best Use of Labels, Best Meal and Structural Ingenuity. You’ll also be able to cast a ballot for the “People’s Choice” winner online. Admission is completely free, but you can do your part by bringing the suggested donation of one canned good per person.” (TONY)

EXHIBIT ‘TO QUENCH THE THIRST OF NEW YORKERS: THE CROTON AQUEDUCT AT 175’ (thru Dec 31)
“Many New Yorkers today take for granted the appearance of clean water in the city’s taps. This exhibit focuses on the history of the Croton Aqueduct, an engineering feat that brought fresh water from the Croton River upstate to fountains in the middle of the city when it was completed in the 1840s.” (STAV ZIV, Newsday)
WHEN | WHERE: Opens Saturday, Sept. 2 at the Museum of the City of New York, 1220 Fifth Ave. – INFO: $18; 212­-534­-1672, mcny.org.

Learn all about the High Bridge, which carried the Croton Aqueduct across the Harlem River. This magnificent civic structure was modeled on the old Roman Aqueduct bridges, and is New York City’s oldest and best bridge. I know, because I lived nearby in the far west Bronx neighborhood of Highbridge, and have strolled across it many times.

=====================================================
Bonus NYC events– Jazz Clubs:
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:
(5 underground, classic jazz joints. all 6 within walking distance of each other):
Village Vanguard – UG, 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
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 – UG, 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.

==================================================================================
♦ 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 60 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 for these top NYC events in advance, even if just on day of performance.
NYCity Vacation Travel Guide Video (Expedia):

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

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.

kac_120405_phude_corner_bistro_bar_1000-600x450In 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).
=========================================================
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:
==============================================================
“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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NYC Events,”Only the Best” (11/02) + GallerySpecialExhibits: Chelsea

Posted on 11/02/2017 by GregD

Today’s Elite 8 NYC Events > THURSDAY/ NOVEMBER 02, 2017

“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.

For future NYC Events better check the tab above: “Notable NYC Events-November”
It’s the most comprehensive list of top events this month that you will find anywhere.
Carefully curated from “Only the Best” NYC event info on the the web, it’s a simply superb resource that will help you plan your NYC visit all through the month.

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

Have time for only one NYC Event today? Do this:

Architecture & Design Film Festival (Nov.1-5)
Cinépolis Chelsea / 8:30 pm – 10:00 pm, $16.50
“The Architecture & Design Film Festival (ADFF) – the nation’s largest film festival devoted to the creative spirit that drives architecture and design – will take place in New York City from November 1-5 at Cinépolis Chelsea. Through a curated selection of films, director Q&As and panel discussions, ADFF creates an opportunity to educate, entertain and engage all who are excited about architecture and design. The ninth edition will showcase 30+ feature-length and short films offering explorative portraits of architecture icons such as Mies van der Rohe, Glenn Murcutt and Rem Koolhaas, and delving into topics ranging from imaginative solutions for homeless housing and how drones will impact architecture.”

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

7 OTHER TOP NYC EVENTS TODAY (see below for full listing)
>> Madama Butterfly 
>> Edna Vazquez Band
>> Dizzy Gillespie All-Stars
>> Ann Hampton Callaway: Jazz Goes to the Movies
>> Canstruction
>> Rivals Unto Death: Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr
>> “Strangers in Their Own Land:”
 ===========================================================

Music, Dance, Performing Arts

Madama Butterfly (various dates Nov.2 – Mar.16)
The Metropolitan Opera / 7:30PM, $25+
“Anthony Minghella’s stunning production of Puccini’s heartbreaking opera, an instant Met classic since its 2006 premiere, returns with Hui He and Ermonela Jaho in the tragic title role of the trusting geisha. Roberto Aronica and Luis Chapa alternate as her callous American lover, Pinkerton, and Jader Bignamini and Marco Armiliato conduct.”

Edna Vazquez Band
Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center/ 7:30PM, FREE, but get there early for a seat.
“Edna Vazquez is a fearless singer, songwriter, and guitarist whose powerful voice and musical talent embrujan and transcend the boundaries of language to engage and uplift her audience. She is a creative crisol with a vocal range that allows her to paint seamlessly with her original material, an intersection of folk, rock, pop, and R&B. Vazquez’s passion for music and performance grew from her bicultural raices and, with songs deeply rooted in universal human emotion, she has traveled far and wide spreading her message of light, love, and cultural healing.”

Dizzy Gillespie All-Stars (Oct.31-Nov.05)
Blue Note / 8PM +10:30PM, $30-$45
“History has produced its share of great artists and great people – John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie was both. As a performer, he left behind an incredible record of innovation and inspiration; as a composer, a broad repository of musical masterpieces; and as a man, a legion of friends, colleagues, and compatriots who remember him with the same degree of love and esteem they reserve for his work.

The Dizzy Gillespie™ Alumni All-Star group are the direct descendants of Gillespie’s musical ventures. The groups have featured some of Dizzy’s closest compatriots: senior statesman and NEA Jazz Master James Moody; musical director John Lee; and veteran Gillespie alumni Roy Hargrove, Roberta Gambarini, Cyrus Chestnut, Steve Davis, and Willie Jones III. All of them are outstanding band leaders, educators, and recording artists in their own right.

The Alumni All-Star group debuted in 1996. They continue to delight audiences around the world with the enduring power and freshness of Gillespie’s music. These groups are the legacy the master would have wanted, and they serve as a living tribute from extraordinary musicians who exemplify his style, range, and commitment.”

Ann Hampton Callaway: Jazz Goes to the Movies (Oct.31-Nov.04)
Birdland / 8:30 and 11PM, $40
“A swinging fixture of the cabaret world, Ann Hampton Callaway has also branched into jazz and TV theme songs (The Nanny). She has a reassuringly mellow way with the standards, sung in a wry, dark-toned contralto. Her latest set explores intersections of jazz and film, from silver-screen classics like “As Time Goes By” to songs that she herself she has recorded for soundtracks.” (TONY)

Smart Stuff / Other NYC Events
(Lectures, Discussions, Book Talks, Literary Readings, Classes, Food & Drink, Other)

Canstruction
Brookfield Place; /at various times; FREE
‘Give “food as art” new meaning beyond those food-porn Instagrams at this 24th annual cans-for-a-cause competition, pitting architecture teams against each other to create larger-than-life Pop-Art–installations using more than 120,000 cans of nonperishable food, all in the name of ending hunger (every can is donated to City Harvest). Head down to Brookfield Place to see the unveiling of these engineering spectacles, all built overnight after months of planning, and check back to see if your favorite takes home any titles in judges’ categories like Best Use of Labels, Best Meal and Structural Ingenuity. You’ll also be able to cast a ballot for the “People’s Choice” winner online. Admission is completely free, but you can do your part by bringing the suggested donation of one canned good per person.” (TONY)

Rivals Unto Death: Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr
Fraunces Tavern Museum, 54 Pearl St./ 6:30PM, $10
“Trace the thirty-year rivalry between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr that ended in their deadly encounter in Weehawken–just one week after they dined together at Fraunces Tavern!”

“Strangers in Their Own Land:” A Conversation with Arlie Hochschild
Deutsches Haus at NYU, 42 Washington Mews / 11AM, FREE
“Deutsches Haus at NYU and NYU’s Center for European and Mediterranean Studies present a conversation with Arlie Hochschild, author of “Strangers in Their Own Land,” discussing her findings on a polarized electorate.

The discussion will be based on her 2016 book, “Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right” (a finalist for the National Book Award) which is a timely piece of both empirical and theoretical sociological research into the divisions of American society. Published to much critical acclaim before the November 2016 elections, it has implications for an increasingly polarized electorates not only in the U.S.”

Continuing Events

Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park (6th Ave. & 42nd St.)
Midtown Manhattan’s winter wonderland.
Enjoy Bryant Park through the winter with the Holiday Shops food and gift boutiques (thru Jan.02), Danny Meyer’s pop-up rinkside eatery Public Fare (thru Mar.04), and The Rink, the centerpiece of Winter Village and New York City’s only free admission ice skating rink.
The Rink
This 17,000 square foot rink features free admission ice skating, high quality rental skates, and free skating shows, special events, and activities.
​October 28, 2017 – March 4, 2018
Daily, 8am-10pm (Rink hours are weather permitting)

EXHIBIT ‘TO QUENCH THE THIRST OF NEW YORKERS: THE CROTON AQUEDUCT AT 175’ (thru Dec 31)
“Many New Yorkers today take for granted the appearance of clean water in the city’s taps. This exhibit focuses on the history of the Croton Aqueduct, an engineering feat that brought fresh water from the Croton River upstate to fountains in the middle of the city when it was completed in the 1840s.” (STAV ZIV, Newsday)
WHEN | WHERE: Opens Saturday, Sept. 2 at the Museum of the City of New York, 1220 Fifth Ave. – INFO: $18; 212­-534­-1672, mcny.org.

Learn all about the High Bridge, which carried the Croton Aqueduct across the Harlem River. This magnificent civic structure was modeled on the old Roman Aqueduct bridges, and is New York City’s oldest and best bridge. I know, because I lived nearby in the far west Bronx neighborhood of Highbridge, and have strolled across it many times.

=====================================================
Bonus NYC events– 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:
(5 are underground, classic jazz joints. all 6 are within walking distance of each other):
Village Vanguard – UG, 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
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 – UG, 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.

==================================================================================
♦ 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 60 million visitors last year and was TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Top U.S. Destination for 2017.  Quality shows draw crowds.
Try to reserve seats for these top NYC events in advance, even if just on day of performance.
NYCity Vacation Travel Guide Video (Expedia):

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

Chelsea Art Gallery District*

Chelsea is the heart of the NYCity contemporary art scene. Home to more than 300 art galleries, the Rubin Museum, the Joyce Theater and The Kitchen performance spaces, there is no place like it anywhere in the world. Come here to browse free exhibitions by world-renowned artists and those unknowns waiting to be discovered in an art district that is concentrated between West 18th and West 27th Streets, and 10th and 11th Avenues. Afterwards stop in the Chelsea Market, stroll on the High Line, or rest up at one of the many cafes and bars and discuss the fine art.

Here is one exhibition that the New Yorker likes:
Robin F. Williams (thru Nov.11)
P.P.O.W. 535 W. 22nd St.
“In her edgy, lewd, and psychedelic canvases, the young figurative painter presents women in the unlikely, uncomfortable poses of fashion-magazine advertising. Williams is particularly interested in the commercial photography of the nineteen-seventies that paid homage to art-historical icons. “Your Good Taste Is Showing”—which gives the show its title—shrugs at Balthus, with a crotch-flashing figure and a yellow cat, as it sardonically advertises cigarettes. (An absurdly lithe model holds one in each hand.) Williams has a painterly gift for contrasts as she shifts between pasty and airbrushed surfaces, auras and hard-edge geometry, and de Chirico weirdness and Thiebaud seduction. Allusions aside, her barbed investigations of the female form are captivating in their own right.”

MM

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

For a listing of 25 essential galleries in the Chelsea Art Gallery District, organized by street, which enables you to create your own Chelsea Art Gallery crawl, see the Chelsea Gallery Guide (nycgo.com) Or check out TONY magazine’s list of the “Best Chelsea Galleries” and click through to see what’s on view.

*Now plan your own gallery crawl, but better to plan your visits for Tuesday through Saturday; most galleries are closed Sunday and Monday.

TIP: After your gallery tour, stop in Ovest at 513W27th St. for Aperitivo Italiano (Happy Hour on steroids). Discuss all the great art you have viewed over a drink and a very tasty selection of FREE appetizers (M-F, 5-8pm). OR try the NYT recommendation: “When you’re done, adjourn to the newly renovated Bottino , the Chelsea art world’s unofficial canteen on 10th Avenue (btw 24/25 St.) “

=======================================================
For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see recent posts in right sidebar dated 10/31 and 10/29.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

NYC Events,”Only the Best” (11/01) + Today’s Featured Pub (Midtown West)

Posted on 11/01/2017 by GregD

Today’s Super 7 NYC Events > WEDNESDAY/ NOVEMBER 01, 2017

“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.

For future NYC Events better check the tab above: “Notable NYC Events-November”
It’s the most comprehensive list of top events this month that you will find anywhere.
Carefully curated from “Only the Best” NYC event info on the the web, it’s a simply superb resource that will help you plan your NYC visit all through the month.

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

Have time for only one NYC Event today? Do this:

Ann Hampton Callaway: Jazz Goes to the Movies (Oct.31-Nov.04)
Birdland / 8:30 and 11PM, $40
“A swinging fixture of the cabaret world, Ann Hampton Callaway has also branched into jazz and TV theme songs (The Nanny). She has a reassuringly mellow way with the standards, sung in a wry, dark-toned contralto. Her latest set explores intersections of jazz and film, from silver-screen classics like “As Time Goes By” to songs that she herself she has recorded for soundtracks.” (TONY)

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

6 OTHER TOP NYC EVENTS TODAY (see below for full listing)
>> ‘THE RED SHOES’
>> Dizzy Gillespie All-Stars
>> FRED HERSCH
>> SciCafe: Are We Alone in the Universe?
>> Happy Birthday, Alamo!
>> Holy Blood: Mexican Horror Cinema
 ===========================================================

Music, Dance, Performing Arts

‘THE RED SHOES’ (Oct.26 – Nov.5)
at New York City Center / 7:30PM, $35+
“Matthew Bourne/New Adventures returns to New York City Center with his first new production in four years. An adaptation of the treasured Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger film, “The Red Shoes” explores Victoria Page’s battle between life and art. The New Adventures dancers Ashley Shaw and Cordelia Braithwaite perform the part, along with Sara Mearns, a principal of New York City Ballet. The composer Julian Craster is played, alternately, by Marcelo Gomes of American Ballet Theater and Dominic North of New Adventures. And finally, Sam Archer plays the impresario Boris Lermontov.” (NYT-GIA KOURLAS)

Dizzy Gillespie All-Stars (Oct.31-Nov.05)
Blue Note / 8PM +10:30PM, $30-$45
“History has produced its share of great artists and great people – John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie was both. As a performer, he left behind an incredible record of innovation and inspiration; as a composer, a broad repository of musical masterpieces; and as a man, a legion of friends, colleagues, and compatriots who remember him with the same degree of love and esteem they reserve for his work.

The Dizzy Gillespie™ Alumni All-Star group are the direct descendants of Gillespie’s musical ventures. The groups have featured some of Dizzy’s closest compatriots: senior statesman and NEA Jazz Master James Moody; musical director John Lee; and veteran Gillespie alumni Roy Hargrove, Roberta Gambarini, Cyrus Chestnut, Steve Davis, and Willie Jones III. All of them are outstanding band leaders, educators, and recording artists in their own right.

The Alumni All-Star group debuted in 1996. They continue to delight audiences around the world with the enduring power and freshness of Gillespie’s music. These groups are the legacy the master would have wanted, and they serve as a living tribute from extraordinary musicians who exemplify his style, range, and commitment.”

FRED HERSCH (Oct. 31-Nov. 5)
at the Village Vanguard / 8:30 and 10:30PM, $30
“Mr. Hersch, a starkly articulate and affecting pianist, recently put out “Open Book,” a solo record that comprises original compositions, covers of jazz standards and a 20-minute free improvisation. He will take the stage alone for the first three nights of this run, then will be joined by his trio mates, the bassist John Hébert and the drummer Eric McPherson, for the next three.” (NYT-GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO)

Smart Stuff / Other NYC Events
(Lectures, Discussions, Book Talks, Literary Readings, Classes, Food & Drink, Other)

SciCafe: Are We Alone in the Universe?
American Museum of Natural History, Cullman Hall of the Universe, Enter at 81st Street
6PM, FREE, but RSVP
“Beyond the edges of our solar system, astronomers have recently identified dozens of planets which could be like our own Earth—and potentially support extraterrestrial life. But how can we tell? Astrophysicist Lisa Kaltenegger explores how we can use our own planet and its wide range of species as a Rosetta Stone to detect signs of life on exoplanets. Join her for a journey over vast interstellar distances to answer an age-old question: are we alone in the universe?”
SciCafe is primarily standing room only. Your RSVP does not guarantee a seat.

Happy Birthday, Alamo!
26 Astor Place / 11AM-3PM, FREE
In November 1967 Tony Rosenthal’s now iconic “Alamo” sculpture landed at Astor Place! Join our birthday party for the “Cube” on November 1st where we’ll be celebrating fifty spinning years with the following activities. (I used to work across the street in the late 1960’s and remember the Alamo fondly.)

Astor Place & Alamo Sculpture History Talks
The now iconic Alamo sculpture was the first ever piece of public art in New York City and was originally only meant to be on display for six months…the rest is history! Find out more about that history, and Astor Place’s storied history at one of three fifteen minute Astor Place history snapshot walk’s and talks, presented by one of our walking tour guides.

Music
No birthday is complete without music nor the singing of Happy Birthday! We’ll have the Grace Church School choir and orchestra doing the honors!

Elsewhere, but you don’t want to miss this series, which is almost over:

Holy Blood: Mexican Horror Cinema (thru Nov.02)
BAMcinematek / 7PM, 9:15PM, $15
“BAM’s vital ten-film series “Holy Blood: Mexican Horror Cinema” boasts a couple of canonized works (Alejandro Jodorowsky’s Santa Sangre [1989], Felipe Cazals’s Canoa: A Shameful Memory [1976]); a pair of warm but still scarifying psychological slow-burners (Guillermo del Toro’s Cronos [1993], Carlos Enrique Taboada’s Poison for the Fairies [1984]); one flesh-rending Seventies softcore spree (Juan López Moctezuma’s Alucarda [1977]); a clutch of dead-serious black-and-white beauties that create a state of gothic delirium (Fernando Méndez’s El Vampiro [1957], Chano Urueta’s The Witch’s Mirror [1962], Rafael Baledón’s The Curse of the Crying Women [1963]); and one skull-puncturing, centuries-defiling goof (Urueta’s El Barón del Terror [1962]), made all the more gloriously funny and fascinating by the fact that it, too, is often dead serious, even as its furry rubber-masked Ferengi of a warlock sucks brains out of heads via a forked proboscis-like tongue.” (Alan Scherstuhl, Village Voice)

Continuing Events

Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park (6th Ave. & 42nd St.)
Midtown Manhattan’s winter wonderland.
Enjoy Bryant Park through the winter with the Holiday Shops food and gift boutiques (thru Jan.02), Danny Meyer’s pop-up rinkside eatery Public Fare (thru Mar.04), and The Rink, the centerpiece of Winter Village and New York City’s only free admission ice skating rink.
The Rink
This 17,000 square foot rink features free admission ice skating, high quality rental skates, and free skating shows, special events, and activities.
​October 28, 2017 – March 4, 2018
Daily, 8am-10pm (Rink hours are weather permitting)

EXHIBIT ‘TO QUENCH THE THIRST OF NEW YORKERS: THE CROTON AQUEDUCT AT 175’ (thru Dec 31)
“Many New Yorkers today take for granted the appearance of clean water in the city’s taps. This exhibit focuses on the history of the Croton Aqueduct, an engineering feat that brought fresh water from the Croton River upstate to fountains in the middle of the city when it was completed in the 1840s.” (STAV ZIV, Newsday)
WHEN | WHERE: Opens Saturday, Sept. 2 at the Museum of the City of New York, 1220 Fifth Ave. – INFO: $18; 212­-534­-1672, mcny.org.

Learn all about the High Bridge, which carried the Croton Aqueduct across the Harlem River. This magnificent civic structure was modeled on the old Roman Aqueduct bridges, and is New York City’s oldest and best bridge. I know, because I lived nearby in the far west Bronx neighborhood of Highbridge, and have strolled across it many times.

==========================================================
Bonus NYC Events – 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:
(5 are underground, classic jazz joints. all 6 are within walking distance of each other):
Village Vanguard – UG, 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
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 – UG, 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.

==============================================================================
♦ 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 60 million visitors last year and is TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Top U.S. Destination for 2017.  Quality shows draw crowds.
Try to reserve seats for these top NYC events in advance, even if just on day of performance.
NYCity Vacation Travel Guide Video (Expedia):

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

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.
(Alas, no more. After 10 years, “Jersey Boys” closed Jan.15)

lThose 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 near the piano man; we eat, and we drink vodka ‘till it hurts (and it will hurt).
=====================================================
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 now includes a younger, trimmer piano man. “Tiny” we miss you.
Update#2: Rumor that “Tiny” is back playing only on Friday nights – need to check it out.

==============================================================================
“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.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

NYC Events,”Only the Best” (10/31) + Museum Special Exhibitions: Manhattan’s 5th Avenue

Posted on 10/31/2017 by GregD

Today’s Elite 8 NYC Events > TUESDAY/ OCTOBER 31, 2017

“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.

For future NYC Events better check the tab above: “Notable NYC Events-OCTOBER”
It’s the most comprehensive list of top events this month that you will find anywhere.
Carefully curated from “Only the Best” NYC event info on the the web, it’s a simply superb resource that will help you plan your NYC visit all through the month.

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

Have time for only one NYC Event today? Do this:

Dizzy Gillespie All-Stars (Oct.31-Nov.05)
Blue Note / 8PM +10:30PM, $30-$45
“History has produced its share of great artists and great people – John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie was both. As a performer, he left behind an incredible record of innovation and inspiration; as a composer, a broad repository of musical masterpieces; and as a man, a legion of friends, colleagues, and compatriots who remember him with the same degree of love and esteem they reserve for his work.

The Dizzy Gillespie™ Alumni All-Star group are the direct descendants of Gillespie’s musical ventures. The groups have featured some of Dizzy’s closest compatriots: senior statesman and NEA Jazz Master James Moody; musical director John Lee; and veteran Gillespie alumni Roy Hargrove, Roberta Gambarini, Cyrus Chestnut, Steve Davis, and Willie Jones III. All of them are outstanding band leaders, educators, and recording artists in their own right.

The Alumni All-Star group debuted in 1996. They continue to delight audiences around the world with the enduring power and freshness of Gillespie’s music. These groups are the legacy the master would have wanted, and they serve as a living tribute from extraordinary musicians who exemplify his style, range, and commitment.”

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

7 OTHER TOP NYC EVENTS TODAY (see below for full listing)
>> ‘THE RED SHOES’
>> SCOTT ROBINSON AND THE HELIOTONES
>> George Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic
>> FRED HERSCH
>>Ann Hampton Callaway: Jazz Goes to the Movies
>> Village Halloween Parade
>> Holy Blood: Mexican Horror Cinema
 ===========================================================

Music, Dance, Performing Arts

‘THE RED SHOES’ (Oct.26 – Nov.5)
at New York City Center / 7:30PM, $35+
“Matthew Bourne/New Adventures returns to New York City Center with his first new production in four years. An adaptation of the treasured Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger film, “The Red Shoes” explores Victoria Page’s battle between life and art. The New Adventures dancers Ashley Shaw and Cordelia Braithwaite perform the part, along with Sara Mearns, a principal of New York City Ballet. The composer Julian Craster is played, alternately, by Marcelo Gomes of American Ballet Theater and Dominic North of New Adventures. And finally, Sam Archer plays the impresario Boris Lermontov.” (NYT-GIA KOURLAS)

SCOTT ROBINSON AND THE HELIOTONES
at Jazz Standard / 7:30 and 9:30PM, $25
“The saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist Mr. Robinson, a remarkable talent with wildly varied interests, is about to release “Heliosonic Toneways, Vol. 1,” an engrossing album that he recorded in 2015, exactly 50 years after Sun Ra made the now-classic “The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra (Vol. 1).” The original album laid down a new, Ra-specific standard for free improvising: darker, slower, cooler and thicker than the work of Ornette Coleman or Cecil Taylor. On “Heliosonic Toneways,” Mr. Robinson pays tribute with an all-star cast, using electronic and acoustic instruments to similarly viscous effect. He celebrates its release at this show, joined by Philip Harper on trumpet, Frank Lacy on trombone, Gary Versace on piano and organ, Pat O’Leary on bass and Matt Wilson on drums.” (NYT-GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO)

George Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic
B.B. King Blues Club & Grill / 7PM, $50
George Clinton—the one and only Uncle Jam and author of the recent memoir (deep breath) Brothas Be, Yo Like George, Ain’t That Funkin’ Kinda Hard on You?—lands the mothership in Times Square for a night of ass-liberating tunes. Here, the groove innovator hosts a Halloween bash: Expect an hours-long exploration of funk past, presents and future.” (TONY)

FRED HERSCH (Oct. 31-Nov. 5)
at the Village Vanguard / 8:30 and 10:30PM, $30
“Mr. Hersch, a starkly articulate and affecting pianist, recently put out “Open Book,” a solo record that comprises original compositions, covers of jazz standards and a 20-minute free improvisation. He will take the stage alone for the first three nights of this run, then will be joined by his trio mates, the bassist John Hébert and the drummer Eric McPherson, for the next three.” (NYT-GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO)

Ann Hampton Callaway: Jazz Goes to the Movies (Oct.31-Nov.04)
Birdland / 8:30 and 11PM, $40
“A swinging fixture of the cabaret world, Ann Hampton Callaway has also branched into jazz and TV theme songs (The Nanny). She has a reassuringly mellow way with the standards, sung in a wry, dark-toned contralto. Her latest set explores intersections of jazz and film, from silver-screen classics like “As Time Goes By” to songs that she herself she has recorded for soundtracks.” (TONY)

Smart Stuff / Other NYC Events
(Lectures, Discussions, Book Talks, Literary Readings, Classes, Food & Drink, Other)

You can’t have Halloween in NYCity without the classic and outrageous Village Parade.

Village Halloween Parade
Sixth Ave from Spring St to 16th St./ 7pm; FREE
“Before you head out to some of the best Halloween parties in NYC, you must participate in the Village Halloween Parade—NYC’s spookiest procession and one of the best Halloween events in Gotham. With over 50,000 zombies, giant puppets and Donald Trumps taking the streets, you may need a little help with navigation. So hit a Halloween store and dress up in your best costume (or else you won’t be allowed to march), work on your Halloween makeup and get ready for a ghoulishly good time.” (TONY)
TONY’s complete Guide to Halloween in NYC is pretty good.

Elsewhere, but you don’t want to miss this series, which is already half over:

Holy Blood: Mexican Horror Cinema (thru Nov.02)
BAMcinematek / 7PM, 9:15PM, $15
“BAM’s vital ten-film series “Holy Blood: Mexican Horror Cinema” boasts a couple of canonized works (Alejandro Jodorowsky’s Santa Sangre [1989], Felipe Cazals’s Canoa: A Shameful Memory [1976]); a pair of warm but still scarifying psychological slow-burners (Guillermo del Toro’s Cronos [1993], Carlos Enrique Taboada’s Poison for the Fairies [1984]); one flesh-rending Seventies softcore spree (Juan López Moctezuma’s Alucarda [1977]); a clutch of dead-serious black-and-white beauties that create a state of gothic delirium (Fernando Méndez’s El Vampiro [1957], Chano Urueta’s The Witch’s Mirror [1962], Rafael Baledón’s The Curse of the Crying Women [1963]); and one skull-puncturing, centuries-defiling goof (Urueta’s El Barón del Terror [1962]), made all the more gloriously funny and fascinating by the fact that it, too, is often dead serious, even as its furry rubber-masked Ferengi of a warlock sucks brains out of heads via a forked proboscis-like tongue.” (Alan Scherstuhl, Village Voice)

Continuing Events

Archtober  (LAST DAY)
31 days, 100+ ways to celebrate design in NYC! The seventh-annual, month-long festival of architecture activities, programs, and exhibitions in New York City will take place October 1-31, 2017.  Archtober’s calendar features 200 architecture and design lectures, conferences, programs, and exhibitions at more than 70+ collaborating institutions across the city.

Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park (6th Ave. & 42nd St.)
Midtown Manhattan’s winter wonderland.
Enjoy Bryant Park through the winter with the Holiday Shops food and gift boutiques (thru Jan.02), Danny Meyer’s pop-up rinkside eatery Public Fare (thru Mar.04), and The Rink, the centerpiece of Winter Village and New York City’s only free admission ice skating rink.
The Rink
This 17,000 square foot rink features free admission ice skating, high quality rental skates, and free skating shows, special events, and activities.
​October 28, 2017 – March 4, 2018
Daily, 8am-10pm (Rink hours are weather permitting)

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Bonus NYC events– Jazz Clubs:
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:
(5 are underground, classic jazz joints. all 6 are within walking distance of each other):
Village Vanguard – UG, 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
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 – UG, 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 60 million visitors last year and was TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Top U.S. Destination for 2017.  Quality shows draw crowds.
Try to reserve seats for these top NYC events in advance, even if just on day of performance.
NYCity Vacation Travel Guide Video (Expedia):

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WHAT’S ON VIEW
These are My Fave Special Exhibitions @ MUSEUMS / Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue
(See the New York Times Arts Section for listings of all museum exhibitions,
and also see the expanded reviews of these exhibitions)

Museum of the City of New York

NY AT ITS CORE (ongoing)
“Ten years in the making, New York at Its Core tells the compelling story of New York’s rise from a striving Dutch village to today’s “Capital of the World.” The exhibition captures the human energy that drove New York to become a city like no other and a subject of fascination the world over. Entertaining, inspiring, important, and at times bemusing, New York City “big personalities,” including Alexander Hamilton, Walt Whitman, Boss Tweed, Emma Goldman, JP Morgan, Fiorello La Guardia, Jane Jacobs, Jay-Z, and dozens more, parade through the exhibition. Visitors will also learn the stories of lesser-known New York personalities, like Lenape chieftain Penhawitz and Italian immigrant Susie Rocco. Even animals like the horse, the pig, the beaver, and the oyster, which played pivotal roles in the economy and daily life of New York, get their moment in the historical spotlight. Occupying the entire first floor in three interactive galleries (Port City, 1609-1898, World City, 1898-2012, and Future City Lab) New York at Its Core is shaped by four themes: money, density, diversity, and creativity. Together, they provide a lens for examining the character of the city, and underlie the modern global metropolis we know today. mcny.org” (NYCity Guide)

Morgan Library & Museum

‘DRAWN TO GREATNESS: MASTER DRAWINGS FROM THE THAW COLLECTION’  (through Jan. 7, 2018). “This major group drawing show constitutes a grand summing-up of a career, of an art form and of an institution’s holdings. During the past 60 years, the New York art dealer Eugene V. Thaw and his wife Clare Eddy Thaw amassed a phenomenal drawing collection notable for its chronological breadth, running from the early Renaissance to the near present. This year they gave more than 400 items outright to the Morgan Library, expanding and deepening its range. The 150 works on view include a super-rare Andrea Mantegna, an unearthly Samuel Palmer and a soulful Vincent Van Gogh.”  (NYT-Holland Cotter)

Met Breuer 

“DELIRIOUS: ART AT THE LIMITS OF REASON, 1950-1980” (through Jan. 4). This provocative multimedia survey ignores the established canon to propose that after the destructiveness of World War II, artists began to answer life’s absurdities with more of the same. It follows a thread of irrationality through the efforts of 63 artists from three continents working with abstract form, language and the body . There are some familiar names — Sol LeWitt, Claes Oldenburg and Lynda Benglis — but the selections and rejiggered context give everything a new spin. (NYT-Roberta Smith)

and you should be sure to check out these special exhibitions at that little museum on Fifth Ave., The Metropolitan Museum of Art
(open 7 days /week, AND always Pay What You Wish)

‘TALKING PICTURES: CAMERA-PHONE CONVERSATIONS BETWEEN ARTISTS’  (through Dec. 17). “One of the wisest, savviest museum exhibitions of the summer may not have much actual art in it, but it circles the subject like a satellite around a planet. Using prints, slide shows, books and iPads, it presents image-only camera-phone exchanges between 12 pairs of artists and is full of flashes of wit, poetry, even genius. Observers will find occasional momentous events, both personal and presidential.” (NYT – Roberta Smith) 212-535-7710, metmuseum.org

‘STREAMS AND MOUNTAINS WITHOUT END: LANDSCAPE TRADITIONS OF CHINA’  (through Jan. 6). “If you’ve seen only ash-aired Beijing, or that architectural Oz Shanghai, you haven’t seen China. Most of the country is wide-open space, green and blue: hills, plains, water. And it was for an escape to that openness that some Chinese urbanites yearned in centuries past. Their dream: to sit in on a terrace halfway up a mountain, with tea steeping, an ink-brush at hand, a friend at the door, and a waterfall splashing nearby. Not just for vacation. Forever. One way they could live the dream was through images of the kind seen in this show. Technically, it’s a collection reinstallation spiced with a few loans. But the Met’s China holdings are so broad and deep that some of the pictures here are resurfacing for the first time in almost a decade; one is finally making its debut a century after it was acquired. And there’s more than just paintings on view: ceramics, textiles and scholar’s rocks fill out the panorama.” (NYT-Holland Cotter) 212-535-7710, metmuseum.org

‘JAPANESE BAMBOO ART: THE ABBEY COLLECTION’  (through Feb. 4). “This fabulous show celebrates Diane and Arthur Abbey’s gift of some 70 bamboo baskets and sculptures, which nearly doubles the Met’s already outstanding holdings in this genre and brings them into the 20th and 21st centuries. The curator has embedded this trove within what is essentially a second exhibition that traces bamboo’s presence through folding screens, ink paintings, porcelain, netsuke, kimonos and more.” (NYT-Roberta Smith)
212-535-7710, metmuseum.org

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Museum Mile is a section of Fifth Avenue which contains one of the densest displays of culture in the world. Eight museums can be found along this section of Fifth Avenue:
• 105th Street – El Museo del Barrio (closed Sun-Mon)*
• 103rd Street – Museum of the City of New York (open 7 days /week)
•  92nd Street – The Jewish Museum (closed Wed) (Sat FREE) (Thu 5-8 PWYW)
•  91st Street  –  Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum (open 7 days /week)
•  89th Street –  National Academy Museum (closed Mon-Tue)
•  88th Street –  Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (closed Thu) (Sat 6-8 PWYW)
•  86th Street –  Neue Galerie New York (closed Tue-Wed) (Fri 6-8 FREE)
Last, but certainly not least, America’s premier museum
•  82nd Street – The Metropolitan Museum of Art (open 7 days /week)*
*always Pay What You Wish (PWYW)

Although technically not part of the Museum Mile, the Frick Collection (closed Mon) (Wed 2-6pm PWYW; First Friday each month (exc Jan+Sep) 6-9pm FREE) on the corner of 70th St. and Fifth Avenue and the The Morgan Library & Museum (closed Mon) (Fri 7-9 FREE) on Madison Ave and 37th St are also located near Fifth Ave.
Now plan your own museum crawl (info on hours & admission updated June 2, 2015).
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For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in right Sidebar dated 10/29 and 10/27.
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NYC Events,”Only the Best” (10/30) + Today’s Featured Pub (Greenwich Village)

Posted on 10/30/2017 by GregD

Today’s Super 7 NYC Events > MONDAY/ OCTOBER 30, 2017

“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.

For future NYC Events better check the tab above: “Notable NYC Events-OCTOBER”
It’s the most comprehensive list of top events this month that you will find anywhere.
Carefully curated from “Only the Best” NYC event info on the the web, it’s a simply superb resource that will help you plan your NYC visit all through the month.

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Have time for only one NYC Event today? Do this:

The Exterminating Angel (various dates thru Nov.21)
The Metropolitan Opera / 7:30PM, $25+
“Following the rapturous response to his last opera, The Tempest, the Met presents the American premiere of Thomas Adès’s The Exterminating Angel, inspired by the classic Luis Buñuel film of the same name. Hailed by the New York Times at its 2016 Salzburg Festival premiere as “inventive and audacious … a major event,” The Exterminating Angel is a surreal fantasy about a dinner party from which the guests can’t escape. Tom Cairns, who wrote the libretto, directs the new production, and Adès conducts his own adventurous new opera.”

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6 OTHER TOP NYC EVENTS TODAY (see below for full listing)
>> ODEAN POPE SAXOPHONE CHOIR WITH RAVI COLTRANE
>> Natalie Douglas: Tributes—Bassey
>> Christine Ebersole: After the Ball
>> Jim Caruso’s Cast Party
>> Pop-Up Magazine
>> Jumping at Shadows: The Triumph of Fear and the End of the American Dream
 ===========================================================

Music, Dance, Performing Arts

ODEAN POPE SAXOPHONE CHOIR WITH RAVI COLTRANE
at the Blue Note / 8 and 10:30PM, $20, $35
“The tenor saxophonist Odean Pope, a looming figure in his native Philadelphia, earned his stripes playing alongside Max Roach in the 1970s. But by now he’s most often thought of in association with the Saxophone Choir, a large ensemble he’s held together for the past 40 years. Surging momentum and full-blossom harmonies coexist happily in this group, which vests Mr. Pope’s compositions with a hard-bitten beauty. Its concerts at the Blue Note have become a tradition unto themselves, and typically involve one special guest. This show features Mr. Coltrane, a tenor and soprano saxophonist, performing with a 10-piece iteration of the ensemble.” (NYT-GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO)

Natalie Douglas: Tributes—Bassey
Birdland, 315 W44th St. / 7PM, $30
“Octuple MAC Award winner Douglas has previously plumbed the catalogs of Nina Simone, Stevie Wonder, Lena Horne, Abbey Lincoln and Billie Holiday, among many others. Now she pays homage to Welsh powerhouse Shirley Bassey, whose James Bond theme songs remain the gold standard.” (TONY)

Christine Ebersole: After the Ball
Feinstein’s/54 Below / 7PM, $75+
“Broadway leading lady Ebersole (Grey Gardens) can really land a joke and knock out a number, moving with ease between her lustrous belt, her mock-operatic soprano and multiple other modes. On select Monday nights this fall, she spends her night off from the musical War Paint, in which she plays makeup titan Elizabeth Arden, to share standards at Feinstein’s/54 Below.” (TONY)

Jim Caruso’s Cast Party
Birdland, 315 W44th St. / 9:30PM, $30
Jim Caruso’s Cast Party is a wildly popular weekly soiree that brings a sprinkling of “Broadway glitz and urbane wit to the legendary Birdland in New York City every Monday night. It’s a cool cabaret night-out enlivened by a hilariously impromptu variety show. Showbiz superstars, backed by Steve Doyle on bass, Billy Stritch on piano and Daniel Glass on drums, hit the stage alongside up-and-comers, serving up jaw-dropping music and general razzle-dazzle.” (broadwayworld)

Smart Stuff / Other NYC Events
(Lectures, Discussions, Book Talks, Literary Readings, Classes, Food & Drink, Other)

Pop-Up Magazine
Geffen Hall, Lincoln Center / 7:30PM, $36+
“Take a long form magazine story, add animation, video, photography or music, then bring it to a massive stage in front of a live audience and you’ve got Pop-Up Magazine. This mixed media non fiction show is like no other kind of journalism. Book tickets to the October show at Lincoln Center to witness this innovative kind of storytelling for yourself.” (TONY)

Elsewhere, but this looks worth the detour:

Jumping at Shadows: The Triumph of Fear and the End of the American Dream
Greenlight Bookstore, 686 Fulton St./ 7:30PM, FREE
“Trump’s Republican Convention speech and his Inaugural Address are prime examples of the role fear has taken on in American life. (In less than a month, Vegas shooting survivors have been bombarded with death threats and false flag videos have garnered millions of views.) Journalist Sasha Abramsky sits down with Eric Klinenberg, Director of the Institute for Public Knowledge at NYU, to talk about an anxious nation revealed in Abramsky’s new book, Jumping at Shadows: The Triumph of Fear and the End of the American Dream.” (ThoughtGallery.org)

Continuing Events

Archtober  (Oct.01-31)
31 days, 100+ ways to celebrate design in NYC! The seventh-annual, month-long festival of architecture activities, programs, and exhibitions in New York City will take place October 1-31, 2017.  Archtober’s calendar features 200 architecture and design lectures, conferences, programs, and exhibitions at more than 70+ collaborating institutions across the city.

For more details go to my Tab in the Header: “Notable Events October”  and scroll all the long way to the bottom. This event makes America, or at least NYCity, great again.

Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park (6th Ave. & 42nd St.)
Midtown Manhattan’s winter wonderland.
Enjoy Bryant Park through the winter with the Holiday Shops food and gift boutiques (thru Jan.02), Danny Meyer’s pop-up rinkside eatery Public Fare (thru Mar.04), and The Rink, the centerpiece of Winter Village and New York City’s only free admission ice skating rink.

The Rink
The centerpiece of Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park, this 17,000 square foot rink features free admission ice skating, high quality rental skates, and free skating shows, special events, and activities.
​October 28, 2017 – March 4, 2018
Daily, 8am-10pm
Rink hours are weather permitting.

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Bonus NYC Events – Music Venues:
So much fine live music every night in this town. These are my favorite non jazz music venues on Manhattan’s WestSide. Check out who’s playing tonight:

City Winery – 155 Varick St., citywinery.com, 212-608-0555
Feinstein’s/54 Below – 254 W54th St., 54below.com, 646-476-3551
Joe’s Pub @ Public Theater – 425 Lafayette St., joespub.com, 212-967-7555
Metropolitan Room – 34W22ndSt., metropolitan room.com, 212-206-0440
Beacon Theatre – 2124 Broadway @ 74th St., beacontheatre.com, 212-465-6500
Town Hall – 123 W43rd St., thetownhall.org, 212-997-6661
B.B. King’s Blues Bar – 237W42nd St., bbkingblues.com, 212-997-2144
Bowery Ballroom – 6 Delancey St. boweryballroom.com,
Le Poisson Rouge – 158 Bleecker St., lepoissonrouge.com, 212-505-3474

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 discovery and enjoyment.
See Below.

==================================================================================
♦ 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 60 million visitors last year and was TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Top U.S. Destination for 2017.  Quality shows draw crowds.
Try to reserve seats for these top NYC events in advance, even if just on day of performance.
NYCity Vacation Travel Guide Video (Expedia):
=================================================================================

A PremierPub and 3 Good Eating Places – Greenwich Village

Caffe Vivaldi / 32 Jones Street (btw. Bleecker St./W4th St.)

Café Vivaldi is a classic, intimate club located in Greenwich Village on Jones Street, the street featured on the cover of Bob Dylan’s second album, “Freewheelin’. ”

maxresdefaultEach night Ishrat, the long time proprietor and impresario, carefully curates and schedules an eclectic series of musicians. You can often see him at his table in the corner, hard at work reviewing music videos and listening to cd demos on his laptop, scouting out future bookings. Musicians come from all over to play and sing in a club in Greenwich Village. Some are local New Yorkers, others are just passing through, in town for a few days.

There is a small bar, seating maybe 10. It’s close to the stage and I find it’s a perfect spot to sip a glass of red wine while listening to the music. The room itself has the performance area at one end and a cozy fireplace at the other. The performance area here is small, dominated by a large black Yamaha Grand piano. Tables are bunched together and most people at the tables are eating lite meals or sampling the wonderful desserts.

There is also a good selection of fairly priced wines,  but you are here because of the music. You can never be quite sure what you’re going to find, and that’s half the charm of this place. It’s not a home run every night, but many nights it’s pretty special.

I remember the night I saw the most talented bossa nova group, just in from San Paulo. As I listened, I wondered if there was any better music playing anywhere else in New York City that night. And at Caffé Vivaldi there is never a cover charge. Their recently redesigned web site does give you a better idea of the type of music playing each night.

At one time Greenwich Village was filled with clubs just like this, but times change. Real estate interests have impacted the village, and not for the better. Even Caffé Vivaldi had a rough time recently, when a new landlord raised the rent exorbitantly. Fortunately, Ishrat has built a loyal following over the years, and a fund raiser and slightly more reasonable rent has kept Café Vivaldi in business.

When Woody Allen and Al Pacino wanted to make movies featuring the timeless quality of Greenwich Village they came to Vivaldi. It’s important that we keep this special place alive, for if we lose Cafe Vivaldi, NYCity will have lost a piece of it’s soul.

Website: http://caffevivaldi.com/
Phone #: (212) 691-7538
Hours: Music generally 7:30PM – 11PM, but varies
Lunch/Dinner 11AM-on
Subway: #1 to Christopher St.
Walk 1 blk S. on 7th ave S. to Bleecker St., 1 blk left on Bleecker to Jones St., 50 yards left on Jones St. to Caffe V.
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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.

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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3 Good Eating places

It’s not difficult to find a place to eat in Manhattan.
Finding a good, inexpensive place to eat is a bit harder.
Here are a few of my faves in this neighborhood:

Fish – 280 Bleecker St. (just a bit S. of 7th ave South)
This was an easy pick – the best raw bar special in town. $9 gets you 6 of the freshest oysters or clams + a glass of wine or beer. Don’t know how they can do it, but I tell everyone I know about this place. And it’s located right in the heart of some of the best no cover music in town.

Bleecker Street Pizza – 69 7th ave S. (corner of Bleecker St.)
The place is tiny and not much to look at, but this is one good slice. They like to brag that they have been voted “Best pizza in NY” 3 years in a row by the Food Network. I believe them. I would have voted for them.

Num Pang – 21 E 12th St. (btw. University Place/5th ave.)
This is a Cambodian banh mi sandwich shop that kept me well fed while I was in class nearby recently. It’s cramped, even for NYCity, but usually there is room up the spiral staircase to sit down and eat. In good weather carry your sandwich a few blocks to Union Square park. You may have to wait a few minutes, because everything is freshly made, but it’s worth it. Can you believe – an unheard of 26 food rating by Zagat.

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“3 Good Eating places” focuses on a quick bite, what I call “Fine Fast Food – NYCity Style”
No reservations needed.
========================================================
NYCity is the most diverse and interesting place to find a meal anywhere in the world. With more than 24,000 eating establishments you might welcome some advice.

◊ For all my picks of 54 Good Eating places, and essays on my favorite 18 PremierPubs in 9 Neighborhoods on Manhattan’s WestSide, order a copy of my e-book:
“Eating and Drinking on NYCity’s WestSide” ($4.99, available Winter 2017).
◊ Order before Feb. 28, 2018 and receive a bonus – 27 of my favorite casual dining places with free Wi-Fi.

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NYC Events,”Only the Best” (10/29) + Museum Special Exhibitions: Manhattan’s WestSide

Posted on 10/29/2017 by GregD

Today’s Elite 8 NYC Events > SUNDAY/ OCTOBER 29, 2017

“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.

For future NYC Events better check the tab above: “Notable NYC Events-OCTOBER”
It’s the most comprehensive list of top events this month that you will find anywhere.
Carefully curated from “Only the Best” NYC event info on the the web, it’s a simply superb resource that will help you plan your NYC visit all through the month.

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

Have time for only one NYC Event today? Do this:

‘THE RED SHOES’
at New York City Center (Oct. 26 through Nov. 5 at various times).
“Matthew Bourne/New Adventures returns to New York City Center with his first new production in four years. An adaptation of the treasured Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger film, “The Red Shoes” explores Victoria Page’s battle between life and art. The New Adventures dancers Ashley Shaw and Cordelia Braithwaite perform the part, along with Sara Mearns, a principal of New York City Ballet. The composer Julian Craster is played, alternately, by Marcelo Gomes of American Ballet Theater and Dominic North of New Adventures. And finally, Sam Archer plays the impresario Boris Lermontov.” (NYT-GIA KOURLAS)

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7 OTHER TOP NYC EVENTS TODAY (see below for full listing)
>> Terell Stafford Quintet
>> ‘LAYLA AND MAJNUN’
>> Johnny O’Neal
>> AMERICAN BALLET THEATER
>> The Poetry Brothel’s Tenth Annual Masquerade Ball
>> A History of Ghost Hunting
>> IFPDA Print Fair
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Music, Dance, Performing Arts

Terell Stafford Quintet (LAST DAY)
Village Vanguard, 178 Seventh Ave. S., at 11th St. / 8:30PM, +10:30PM, $30
“Hearing Stafford’s work as a whirlwind trumpeter in decades past, with the bands of Bobby Watson and others, you could practically taste his promise. True to predictions, Stafford has developed into a distinguished bandleader and composer whose horn playing still startles with its verve and conviction. His quintet is bolstered by the pianist Bruce Barth and the saxophonist Tim Warfield.” (NewYorker)

‘LAYLA AND MAJNUN’
at the Rose Theater at Jazz at Lincoln Center/ 3PM, $
“As part of the White Light Festival, the choreographer Mark Morris presents “Layla and Majnun,” an acclaimed production spotlighting a pair of star-crossed lovers central to Persian and Arabian folklore that predates “Romeo and Juliet.” For it, the Mark Morris Dance Group is joined by the Silk Road Ensemble, and the sumptuous sets and costumes are by the British painter and printmaker Howard Hodgkin.” (NYT-GIA KOURLAS)

Johnny O’Neal (LAST DAY)
Smoke, 2751 Broadway, between 105th and 106th Sts./ 7, 9, 10:30PM, $38
“O’Neal is a survivor, and he’d be the first person to tell you so. Obscurity and illness diverted his path for a good part of the past few decades, but this fine pianist and singer is a throwback to the long-gone days when performers had to know any song that was thrown at them, and then toss it off with authority. He has built a coterie of devoted listeners entranced by his old-school erudition. O’Neal celebrates the release of his album “In the Moment” in charge of an agreeably empathic trio.” (NewYorker)

AMERICAN BALLET THEATER (LAST DAY)
at the NYS / DHK Theater, Lincoln Center / 2PM, +8PM, $40+
“The company continues its fall season with performances of Alexei Ratmansky’s latest ballet, “Songs of Bukovina,” set to a new score by Leonid Desyatnikov, and a pair of premieres by Benjamin Millepied. Along with “I Feel the Earth Move,” which will be unveiled on Oct. 25, Mr. Millepied also contributes “Counterpoint for Philip Johnson,” a work created in homage to the architect and performed during select intermissions. Other programs include understated beauties: Frederick Ashton’s “Symphonic Variations” (1946) and Jerome Robbins’s “Other Dances” (1976), originally created for Natalia Makarova and Mikhail Baryshnikov.” (NYT-BRIAN SCHAEFER)

Smart Stuff / Other NYC Events
(Lectures, Discussions, Book Talks, Literary Readings, Classes, Food & Drink, Other)

Elsewhere, but these two look like a fun way to celebrate Halloween, worth the detour:

The Poetry Brothel’s Tenth Annual Masquerade Ball
House of Yes / 8pm; $40­–$75
“It’s a little like Eyes Wide Shut meets Dead Poets Society; the Brothel’s infamous, annual Halloween party heightens its already-sensual shows into a fully rapturous experience. For this year’s edition, hosts Mister Charley, the Madame and Tennessee Pink welcome guest poet Steph Burt, burlesque sirens Mademoiselle Estelle and Puss N Boots, aerialists the Lost Boys, sketch artist Too Loose and palm reader and jewelry maker Holy Crow. Music comes by way of Sarian and house band the Hot Club of Flatbush. Be sure to bring a little extra pocket money for a private reading from one of the events many roaming poets. Iambic pentameter never sounded so sexy.” (TONY)

A History of Ghost Hunting
Q.E.D., 27-16 23rd Ave., btw. 27th & 28th Sts., Astoria, Queens / 3PM, $10
“Ghost hunting has been part of our fictional and historic narratives since the Ancient Greeks. This lecture will take you on a historical paranormal investigation starting with Homer’s The Odyssey to the Middle Ages to 19th century spiritualism to present day ghost hunting techniques. The second half of the lecture will involve an interview/discussion with paranormal investigator, Vinny Carbone, who currently conducts paranormal investigations at the historic Morris-Jumel Mansion and throughout the U.S. and then we’ll open up the floor for questions.” (ThoughtGallery.org)

IFPDA Print Fair (LAST DAY)
Javits Center River Pavilion, 655 West 34th St./ 12-8PM, $20
This week the Javits Center will be filled with prints spanning a wide range of artistic periods, from Dürer to Tacita Dean (with an emphasis on contemporary and modern works), all part of the International Fine Print Dealers Association’s yearly fair, now in its twenty-sixth edition.

View and purchase a diverse collection of rare works that span a range of periods and prices at the largest and most celebrated art fair dedicated to the artistic medium of printmaking.

Continuing Events

Archtober  (Oct.01-31)
31 days, 100+ ways to celebrate design in NYC! The seventh-annual, month-long festival of architecture activities, programs, and exhibitions in New York City will take place October 1-31, 2017.  Archtober’s calendar features 200 architecture and design lectures, conferences, programs, and exhibitions at more than 70+ collaborating institutions across the city.

For more details go to my Tab in the Header: “Notable Events October”  and scroll all the long way to the bottom. This event makes America, or at least NYCity, great again.

TASTING CIDER WEEK (LAST DAY)
“If cider is the apple of your eye, then Cider Week is for you. Hop around town for tastings, celebrate the opening of the Bad Seed Cider Brooklyn Taproom and check out the Cider in the Square Apple Market to find hard and sweet ciders, apples, pie and donuts. Festivities also include cider­centric feasts, talks and extended happy hours.” (Newsday)
WHEN | WHERE Friday through Sunday, , Oct. 20­29 at various venues, including the Bad Seed Brooklyn Tap Room, 585 Franklin Ave.,
INFO Free -­$85, ciderweeknyc.com

=====================================================
Bonus NYC events– 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:
(5 are underground, classic jazz joints. all 6 are within walking distance of each other):
Village Vanguard – UG, 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
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 – UG, 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.

==================================================================================
♦ 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 60 million visitors last year and was TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Top U.S. Destination for 2017.  Quality shows draw crowds.
Try to reserve seats for these top NYC events in advance, even if just on day of performance.
NYCity Vacation Travel Guide Video (Expedia):

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

WHAT’S ON VIEW
My Fave Special Exhibitions – MUSEUMS / Manhattan’s WestSide
(See the New York Times Arts Section for listings of all museums,
and also to see their expanded reviews of these exhibitions)

 

Grey Art Gallery 

PARTNERS IN DESIGN: ALFRED H. BARR JR. AND PHILIP JOHNSON (through Dec. 9).

“Five minutes on StreetEasy, browsing through seven-figure “contemporary” condos whose furniture was designed a century ago, should offer all the proof necessary that Modernism will never die. This intriguing if incomplete exhibition reveals how two young, Bauhaus-mad men of MoMA — Barr, the museum’s first director, and Johnson, its first architecture curator — imported European design to the United States, and showcased it not only in their new museum but also in their own apartments. Johnson had family money, and hired Mies van der Rohe to kit out his apartment with a rosewood chest, a spare tea table, and a camel-colored Barcelona chair; Barr, who had to work for a living, ordered entirely passable knockoffs from Ypsilanti, Mich. This show is too small for its subject, but if you’re into Modernist revivals, you’ll do better here than at the ghastly new restaurant in Johnson’s old Four Seasons.” (Jason Farago)

Museum of Modern Art:

A special pat on the back to MOMA, who is now displaying art from the seven countries affected by Trump’s travel ban.

“Trump’s ban against refugees from seven Muslim-majority nations has sparked acts of defiance in NYC, from demonstrations across town, to striking taxicab drivers at JFK to Middle Eastern bodega owners closing their shops in protest. Recently, the Museum Of Modern added its two cents by bringing out artworks it owns from the affected countries, and hanging them prominently within the galleries usually reserved for 19th- and 20th-century artworks from Europe and the United States. Paintings by Picasso and Matisse, for example, were removed to make way for pieces by Tala Madani (from Iran), Ibrahim El-Salahi (from Sudan) and architect Zaha Hadid (from Iraq). The rehanging, which was unannounced, aims to create a symbolic welcome that repudiates Trump by creating a visual dialog between the newly added works and the more familiar objects from MoMA’s permanent collection.” (TONY)

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture

‘BLACK POWER!’  (through Dec. 30).
“Given the economic, environmental and social policies emanating from the White House, the United States could be headed for its most dynamic era of public resistance since the 1960s. And if you’re searching for cultural models from the past, even flawed ones, that effectively brought a message of social change into the street, the schools and the workplace, you’ll do well to check out this vivid documentary show about a cultural movement that broadened activist art to embrace public murals, fashion and poetry; and protest demonstrations that had the visual allure, choreographic rigor and emotional weight of theater.” (Cotter)

American Museum of Natural History:

Mummies (thru 1/7/18)
“For thousands of years, peoples around the world practiced mummification as a way of preserving and honoring their dead. Mummies brings you face to face with some of these ancient individuals and reveals how scientists are using modern technology to glean stunning details about them and their cultures. In Mummies, ancient remains from the Nile Valley of Africa and the Andes Mountains of South America will be on view, allowing visitors to connect with cultures from the distant past. Mummification, a more widespread practice than most think, was used not only for royal Egyptians but also for common people and even animals. Interactive touch tables let visitors virtually “unravel” or see inside mummies as they delve deep into the unique stories of the people or animals who lie within. Other parts of the exhibition showcase the latest isotopic and DNA testing being performed on mummies, and explain how these sophisticated analytical techniques are helping scientists discover important clues about long-vanished practices. Mummies was developed by The Field Museum, Chicago.”(NYCity Guide)

==============================================================
For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in right Sidebar dated 10/27 and 10/25.
============================================================

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

NYC Events,”Only the Best” (10/28) + Today’s Featured Pub (Times Square / Theater District)

Posted on 10/28/2017 by GregD

Today’s Elite 8 NYC Events > SATURDAY/ OCTOBER 28, 2017

“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.

For future NYC Events better check the tab above: “Notable NYC Events-OCTOBER”
It’s the most comprehensive list of top events this month that you will find anywhere.
Carefully curated from “Only the Best” NYC event info on the the web, it’s a simply superb resource that will help you plan your NYC visit all through the month.

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

Have time for only one NYC Event today? Do this:

AMERICAN BALLET THEATER (thru Oct.29)
at the NYS / DHK Theater, Lincoln Center / 2PM, +8PM, $40+
“The company continues its fall season with performances of Alexei Ratmansky’s latest ballet, “Songs of Bukovina,” set to a new score by Leonid Desyatnikov, and a pair of premieres by Benjamin Millepied. Along with “I Feel the Earth Move,” which will be unveiled on Oct. 25, Mr. Millepied also contributes “Counterpoint for Philip Johnson,” a work created in homage to the architect and performed during select intermissions. Other programs include understated beauties: Frederick Ashton’s “Symphonic Variations” (1946) and Jerome Robbins’s “Other Dances” (1976), originally created for Natalia Makarova and Mikhail Baryshnikov.” (NYT-BRIAN SCHAEFER)

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

7 OTHER TOP NYC EVENTS TODAY (see below for full listing)
>>Terell Stafford Quintet
>> MIN XIAO-FEN WITH THE CREATIVE MUSIC ORCHESTRA
>> ‘LAYLA AND MAJNUN’
>> Johnny O’Neal
>> Marilyn Maye
>> A Wasabassco Halloween : Costume Party & Burlesque
>> IFPDA Print Fair
 ===========================================================

Music, Dance, Performing Arts

Terell Stafford Quintet (Oct. 24-29.)
Village Vanguard, 178 Seventh Ave. S., at 11th St. / 8:30PM, +10:30PM, $30
“Hearing Stafford’s work as a whirlwind trumpeter in decades past, with the bands of Bobby Watson and others, you could practically taste his promise. True to predictions, Stafford has developed into a distinguished bandleader and composer whose horn playing still startles with its verve and conviction. His quintet is bolstered by the pianist Bruce Barth and the saxophonist Tim Warfield.” (NewYorker)

MIN XIAO-FEN WITH THE CREATIVE MUSIC ORCHESTRA
at El Taller Latino Americano, 215 E 99th St./ 8:30PM, $20
“Ms. Min, a spry and fearless practitioner of the pipa, a Chinese lute, has a new album out, titled “Mao, Monk and Me.” On it she performs and sings unaccompanied, blending the music of Thelonious Monk with Chinese folk song and her own experimental excursions. She will appear here as a special guest of Karl Berger’s Creative Music Orchestra, a collective of improvisers whose approach to spontaneous composition, like Ms. Min’s, attempts to neutralize the divides between genres and cultural lineages.” (NYT-GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO)

‘LAYLA AND MAJNUN’ (also Sunday 3PM)
at the Rose Theater at Jazz at Lincoln Center/ 7:30PM, $
“As part of the White Light Festival, the choreographer Mark Morris presents “Layla and Majnun,” an acclaimed production spotlighting a pair of star-crossed lovers central to Persian and Arabian folklore that predates “Romeo and Juliet.” For it, the Mark Morris Dance Group is joined by the Silk Road Ensemble, and the sumptuous sets and costumes are by the British painter and printmaker Howard Hodgkin.” (NYT-GIA KOURLAS)

Johnny O’Neal (Oct.27-29)
Smoke, 2751 Broadway, between 105th and 106th Sts./ 7, 9, 10:30PM, $38
“O’Neal is a survivor, and he’d be the first person to tell you so. Obscurity and illness diverted his path for a good part of the past few decades, but this fine pianist and singer is a throwback to the long-gone days when performers had to know any song that was thrown at them, and then toss it off with authority. He has built a coterie of devoted listeners entranced by his old-school erudition. O’Neal celebrates the release of his album “In the Moment” in charge of an agreeably empathic trio.” (NewYorker)

Marilyn Maye
@ The Appel Room, TimeWarnerCenter / 7PM, +9:30PM, $60+
“Legendary cabaret singer Marilyn Maye has performed on Broadway, The Tonight Show, at Carnegie Hall, and alongside legends like Count Basie and Charlie Parker. This week she is headlining a new stage. For the first time ever Maye will be giving a full feature performance at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Appel Room. Accompanied by the Tedd Firth Big Band, she’ll perform cornerstones of the Great American Songbook like “On The Street Where You Live,” “Put on a Happy Face,” and “Here’s to Life.” (WNYC)

Smart Stuff / Other NYC Events
(Lectures, Discussions, Book Talks, Literary Readings, Classes, Food & Drink, Other)

A Wasabassco Halloween : Costume Party & Burlesque
City Winery , 155 Varick St./ 8PM, $25
“It’s time to Dress up, dress all-out, and undress with New York’s greatest burlesque show. This year Wasabassco celebrates Halloween on Saturday Oct 29. Avoid the maddening crowd-filled the streets and chaos and do halloween with class, elegance and lots of fancy stripping burlesquers.
It’s a Halloween party Wasabassco style, with ridiculously costumed numbers from the performers, a costume contest for all of the guests, music, food and wine! Win prizes for you daring flair, including bottles of wine from City Winery, and enjoy one of the most acclaimed burlesque shows in the world.

Hosted by Nasty Canasta with a cast of our most amazing performers: Sapphire Jones, Amuse Bouche, Audrey Love, Dangrrr Doll, Ivory Fox, Penny Wren, Qualms Galore, and Tiger Bay!” (cityguideny.com)

IFPDA Print Fair (Oct.26-29)
Javits Center River Pavilion, 655 West 34th St./ 12-8PM, $20
This week the Javits Center will be filled with prints spanning a wide range of artistic periods, from Dürer to Tacita Dean (with an emphasis on contemporary and modern works), all part of the International Fine Print Dealers Association’s yearly fair, now in its twenty-sixth edition.

View and purchase a diverse collection of rare works that span a range of periods and prices at the largest and most celebrated art fair dedicated to the artistic medium of printmaking.

Continuing Events

Archtober  (Oct.01-31)
31 days, 100+ ways to celebrate design in NYC! The seventh-annual, month-long festival of architecture activities, programs, and exhibitions in New York City will take place October 1-31, 2017.  Archtober’s calendar features 200 architecture and design lectures, conferences, programs, and exhibitions at more than 70+ collaborating institutions across the city.

For more details go to my Tab in the Header: “Notable Events October”  and scroll all the long way to the bottom. This event makes America, or at least NYCity, great again.

TASTING CIDER WEEK (thru Oct.29)
“If cider is the apple of your eye, then Cider Week is for you. Hop around town for tastings, celebrate the opening of the Bad Seed Cider Brooklyn Taproom and check out the Cider in the Square Apple Market to find hard and sweet ciders, apples, pie and donuts. Festivities also include cider­centric feasts, talks and extended happy hours.” (Newsday)
WHEN | WHERE Friday through Sunday, , Oct. 20­29 at various venues, including the Bad Seed Brooklyn Tap Room, 585 Franklin Ave.,
INFO Free -­$85, ciderweeknyc.com

=====================================================
Bonus NYC Events – Music Venues:
So much fine live music every night in this town. These are my favorite non jazz music venues, almost all on Manhattan’s WestSide. Check out who’s playing tonight:

City Winery – 155 Varick St., citywinery.com, 212-608-0555
Feinstein’s/54 Below – 254 W54th St., 54below.com, 646-476-3551
Joe’s Pub @ Public Theater – 425 Lafayette St., joespub.com, 212-967-7555
Metropolitan Room – 34W22ndSt., metropolitan room.com, 212-206-0440
Beacon Theatre – 2124 Broadway @ 74th St., beacontheatre.com, 212-465-6500
Town Hall – 123 W43rd St., thetownhall.org, 212-997-6661
B.B. King’s Blues Bar – 237W42nd St., bbkingblues.com, 212-997-2144
Bowery Ballroom – 6 Delancey St. boweryballroom.com,
Le Poisson Rouge – 158 Bleecker St., lepoissonrouge.com, 212-505-3474

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.

==================================================================================
♦ 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 60 million visitors last year and was TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Top U.S. Destination for 2017.  Quality shows draw crowds.
Try to reserve seats for these top NYC events in advance, even if just on day of performance.
NYCity Vacation Travel Guide Video (Expedia):

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

A PremierPub

Jimmy’s Corner / 140 W 44th St (btw B’way & 7th ave)

IMG_2083Jimmy’s Corner is right in the heart of Times Square, but you won’t find it on the corner, it’s mid-block. Enter this long narrow bar and you are struck by the walls covered with mostly black-and-white boxing photographs, and memorabilia. Soon enough you learn that “Corner” refers to proprietor Jimmy Glenn’s long career as a corner man for some of boxing greats – Liston, Tyson, even “the greatest,” Ali.

Jimmy’s is a sort of time machine, taking you back to a time and place that no longer exists. All around you Times Square has cleaned up, grown up, assumed a new identity. Jimmy’s probably hasn’t changed a bit since it first opened in 1971. Certainly the bar itself looks original and the prices haven’t changed much either. When I brought a friend, who owns her own bar, she was surprised when she got the small tab for a round of drinks. Figured there must be a mistake, that maybe they forgot to charge for all the drinks.

Times Square today is filled with neon glitz and wandering tourists from Dubuque, but not Jimmy’s. You’ll likely find some old timer’s at the bar nursing their drinks, some younger locals at tables in the back, and maybe a few adventuresome tourists clutching their trusty guidebooks. There’s no food served here because this is just a bar, and sometimes that’s all you need.

On nights when no local team is playing, it’s a fine place to sip some drafts and listen to a great old time jukebox, with a great selection of  40s& 50s R&B and soul. On sports nights this very narrow bar can get a bit claustrophobic, filled with excited fans watching their team on the TVs. Either way, Jimmy’s is the place to be if you are looking for an old time bar in the new Times Square.
————————————————————————————————————————
Website: are you kidding !
(although there is a facebook page with lots of photos –
facebook.com/jimmyscornernyc)
Phone #: 212-221-9510
Hours: 11am – 4 am, except Sunday they open 12 noon
Happy Hour: not necessary, low prices all day, every day
Subway: #1,2,3 to TimesSquare 42nd st
walk 2 blks N on 7th ave to 44th st; ½ blk E to Jimmy’s

==================================================================================
“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.
================================================================================
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

NYC Events,”Only the Best” (10/27) + GallerySpecialExhibits: Chelsea

Posted on 10/27/2017 by GregD

Today’s Elite 8 NYC Events > FRIDAY/ OCTOBER 27, 2017

“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.

For future NYC Events better check the tab above: “Notable NYC Events-OCTOBER”
It’s the most comprehensive list of top events this month that you will find anywhere.
Carefully curated from “Only the Best” NYC event info on the the web, it’s a simply superb resource that will help you plan your NYC visit all through the month.

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

Have time for only one NYC Event today? Do this:

Marilyn Maye (also Saturday)
@ The Appel Room, TimeWarnerCenter / 7PM, +9:30PM, $60+
“Legendary cabaret singer Marilyn Maye has performed on Broadway, The Tonight Show, at Carnegie Hall, and alongside legends like Count Basie and Charlie Parker. This week she is headlining a new stage. For the first time ever Maye will be giving a full feature performance at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Appel Room. Accompanied by the Tedd Firth Big Band, she’ll perform cornerstones of the Great American Songbook like “On The Street Where You Live,” “Put on a Happy Face,” and “Here’s to Life.” (WNYC)

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

7 OTHER TOP NYC EVENTS TODAY (see below for full listing)
>> Julien Baker
>> Rosie Yadid: A Sort-of Debut
>> Jonny King
>> JEN SHYU
>> Johnny O’Neal
>> ‘THE RED SHOES’
>> IFPDA Print Fair
 ===========================================================

Music, Dance, Performing Arts

Julien Baker
at the Town Hall / 8PM, $25–$39.50
“Julien Baker’s 2015 debut album, Sprained Ankle, was remarkable for its vulnerability. On her quiet songs sung over strummed electric guitar, the rawness of Baker’s emotions was palpable. The tracks felt shockingly personal, with a deep hurt that seeped through the young musician’s voice. The two numbers released from her follow-up LP, Turn Out the Lights (out at the end of this month), feel stronger, more confident, and brash. Baker’s voice sounds less like that of someone who has just stopped crying, and yet her ability to pierce into dark emotions is just as stunning. On the title piece, we hear Baker belt out the chorus over distorted guitar that’s louder than anything she’s released before. It’s the sound of catharsis.” (Sophie Weiner, VillageVoice)

Rosie Yadid: A Sort-of Debut
Silvana, 300 W 116th St./ 7PM, FREE
“Power-packing chanteuse and sultry Scorpio Rosie Yadid invites you to celebrate her birthday at this night of jazz-inflected vocals. With the aid of guitarists Dan Hartig and Paul Weintrob, bassist Rami Yadid and drummer Victor De La Garza, Yadid introduces you to her intoxicating voice through original songs.” (TONY)

Jonny King (Oct.27-30.)
Mezzrow, 163 W. 10th St./ 8PM, +9:30PM, $20-$25
“King, a multitalented pianist and the author of the valuable primer “What Jazz Is,” has had an on-again, off-again career, thanks to his stint as a trial attorney, but it’s worth attending to his trenchant post-bop playing now that he’s in view again. He has unerring support from the bassist Ira Coleman and the drummer Victor Lewis.” (NewYorker)

JEN SHYU (Oct.27-28)
at the Stone at the New School / 8:30PM, $
“Ms. Shyu is a multi-instrumentalist and vocalist whose compositions trace a winding path back through history and heritage. “Song of Silver Geese,” her coming album, consists of an original, nine-part suite drawing on East Asian and Melanesian folk song, and the writings of two of her mentors. On the album, which finds Ms. Shyu cycling nimbly through languages and emotional registers, she is joined by a string quartet and her jazz septet, Jade Tongue. On Friday she will perform the suite with a five-piece band, then will give a solo concert on Saturday.” (NYT-GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO)

Johnny O’Neal (Oct.27-29.)
Smoke, 2751 Broadway, between 105th and 106th Sts./ 7, 9, 10:30PM, $38
“O’Neal is a survivor, and he’d be the first person to tell you so. Obscurity and illness diverted his path for a good part of the past few decades, but this fine pianist and singer is a throwback to the long-gone days when performers had to know any song that was thrown at them, and then toss it off with authority. He has built a coterie of devoted listeners entranced by his old-school erudition. O’Neal celebrates the release of his album “In the Moment” in charge of an agreeably empathic trio.” (NewYorker)

‘THE RED SHOES’  (Oct. 26 through Nov. 5 at various times).
at New York City Center / 7:30PM, $35+
“Matthew Bourne/New Adventures returns to New York City Center with his first new production in four years. An adaptation of the treasured Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger film, “The Red Shoes” explores Victoria Page’s battle between life and art. The New Adventures dancers Ashley Shaw and Cordelia Braithwaite perform the part, along with Sara Mearns, a principal of New York City Ballet. The composer Julian Craster is played, alternately, by Marcelo Gomes of American Ballet Theater and Dominic North of New Adventures. And finally, Sam Archer plays the impresario Boris Lermontov.” (NYT-GIA KOURLAS)

Smart Stuff / Other NYC Events
(Lectures, Discussions, Book Talks, Literary Readings, Classes, Food & Drink, Other)

IFPDA Print Fair (Oct.26-29)
Javits Center River Pavilion, 655 West 34th St./ 12-8PM, $20
This week the Javits Center will be filled with prints spanning a wide range of artistic periods, from Dürer to Tacita Dean (with an emphasis on contemporary and modern works), all part of the International Fine Print Dealers Association’s yearly fair, now in its twenty-sixth edition.

View and purchase a diverse collection of rare works that span a range of periods and prices at the largest and most celebrated art fair dedicated to the artistic medium of printmaking.

Continuing Events

Archtober  (Oct.01-31)
31 days, 100+ ways to celebrate design in NYC! The seventh-annual, month-long festival of architecture activities, programs, and exhibitions in New York City will take place October 1-31, 2017.  Archtober’s calendar features 200 architecture and design lectures, conferences, programs, and exhibitions at more than 70+ collaborating institutions across the city.

For more details go to my Tab in the Header: “Notable Events October”  and scroll all the long way to the bottom. This event makes America, or at least NYCity, great again.

TASTING CIDER WEEK (thru Oct.29)
“If cider is the apple of your eye, then Cider Week is for you. Hop around town for tastings, celebrate the opening of the Bad Seed Cider Brooklyn Taproom and check out the Cider in the Square Apple Market to find hard and sweet ciders, apples, pie and donuts. Festivities also include cider­centric feasts, talks and extended happy hours.” (Newsday)
WHEN | WHERE Friday through Sunday, , Oct. 20­29 at various venues, including the Bad Seed Brooklyn Tap Room, 585 Franklin Ave.,
INFO Free -­$85, ciderweeknyc.com

=====================================================
Bonus NYC events– 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:
(5 are underground, classic jazz joints. all 6 are within walking distance of each other):
Village Vanguard – UG, 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
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 – UG, 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.

==================================================================================
♦ 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 60 million visitors last year and was TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Top U.S. Destination for 2017.  Quality shows draw crowds.
Try to reserve seats for these top NYC events in advance, even if just on day of performance.
NYCity Vacation Travel Guide Video (Expedia):

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

Chelsea Art Gallery District*

Chelsea is the heart of the NYCity contemporary art scene. Home to more than 300 art galleries, the Rubin Museum, the Joyce Theater and The Kitchen performance spaces, there is no place like it anywhere in the world. Come here to browse free exhibitions by world-renowned artists and those unknowns waiting to be discovered in an art district that is concentrated between West 18th and West 27th Streets, and 10th and 11th Avenues. Afterwards stop in the Chelsea Market, stroll on the High Line, or rest up at one of the many cafes and bars and discuss the fine art.

Here is one exhibition that the New Yorker likes:

Jordan Casteel (thru Oct.28)
Casey Kaplan Gallery, 121 W27th St.

“In one of the most buzzed-about débuts of the fall season, Casteel shows large figurative canvases that combine the candid immediacy of the digital snapshots on which they’re based with the restraint and humanity of an Alice Neel portrait. The young Colorado-born phenom worked almost entirely from pictures she took in Harlem of men, at night. Casteel’s subjects, like the artist herself, are black, and her work tackles the representation of race in general, while revelling, as painters will, in the specific details. In “Q,” a man sits on a stoop next to a sketched-in green railing, earnestly consulting his iPhone, and wearing a sweatshirt with an image of Biggie Smalls in wraparound shades, a gold chain, and a Coogi sweater. In “MegaStarBrand’s Louie and A-Thug,” two well-turned-out young men sprawl with authority in folding chairs on the sidewalk, gazing skeptically out of frame. One wears a shirt that says “REASON,” the other is in a T-shirt that reads “T.H.U.G.: THE HATE YOU GAVE US.” In her exhilarating, if uneven, show, Casteel gives nothing but love.” (NewYorker)

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For a listing of 25 essential galleries in the Chelsea Art Gallery District, organized by street, which enables you to create your own Chelsea Art Gallery crawl, see the Chelsea Gallery Guide (nycgo.com) Or check out TONY magazine’s list of the “Best Chelsea Galleries” and click through to see what’s on view.

*Now plan your own gallery crawl, but better to plan your visits for Tuesday through Saturday; most galleries are closed Sunday and Monday.

TIP: After your gallery tour, stop in Ovest at 513W27th St. for Aperitivo Italiano (Happy Hour on steroids). Discuss all the great art you have viewed over a drink and a very tasty selection of FREE appetizers (M-F, 5-8pm). OR try the NYT recommendation: “When you’re done, adjourn to the newly renovated Bottino , the Chelsea art world’s unofficial canteen on 10th Avenue (btw 24/25 St.) “

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For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see recent posts in right sidebar dated 10/25 and 10/23.

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NYC Events,”Only the Best” (10/26) + Today’s Featured Pub (Tribeca)

Posted on 10/26/2017 by GregD

Today’s Nifty 9 NYC Events > THURSDAY/ OCTOBER 26, 2017

“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.

For future NYC Events better check the tab above: “Notable NYC Events-OCTOBER”
It’s the most comprehensive list of top events this month that you will find anywhere.
Carefully curated from “Only the Best” NYC event info on the the web, it’s a simply superb resource that will help you plan your NYC visit all through the month.

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Have time for only one NYC Event today? Do this:

‘THE RED SHOES’  (Oct. 26 through Nov. 5 at various times).
at New York City Center / 7:30PM, $35+
“Matthew Bourne/New Adventures returns to New York City Center with his first new production in four years. An adaptation of the treasured Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger film, “The Red Shoes” explores Victoria Page’s battle between life and art. The New Adventures dancers Ashley Shaw and Cordelia Braithwaite perform the part, along with Sara Mearns, a principal of New York City Ballet. The composer Julian Craster is played, alternately, by Marcelo Gomes of American Ballet Theater and Dominic North of New Adventures. And finally, Sam Archer plays the impresario Boris Lermontov.” (NYT-GIA KOURLAS)

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8 OTHER TOP NYC EVENTS TODAY (see below for full listing)
>> YOSVANY TERRY AND BAPTISTE TROTIGNON
>> Sven Ratzke and Band in Concert
>> Tammy Faye: Just a Kiss Away
>> The Breithaupt Brothers Songbook Revue
>> Terell Stafford Quintet
>> AMERICAN BALLET THEATER
>> Reza Farazmand: Comics for a Strange World
>> IFPDA Print Fair
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Music, Dance, Performing Arts

YOSVANY TERRY AND BAPTISTE TROTIGNON (Oct. 26-29)
at Jazz Standard / 7:30 and 9:30PM, $30.
“Mr. Terry, a deft and blistering alto saxophonist hailing from Cuba, recently partnered with Mr. Trotignon, a French pianist of rippling sensitivity. The result was “Ancestral Memories,” an engaging album, out this year, that explores the African diaspora through the lens of French colonial incursion. Mellifluous and buoyant, these tunes dance with a well-plotted grace. Mr. Terry and Mr. Trotignon present that music here, joined by the bassist Yunior Terry (Yosvany’s brother) and the drummer Clarence Penn.” (NYT-GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO)

Sven Ratzke and Band in Concert
Atrium at Lincoln Center / 7:30PM, FREE, but get there early for a seat.
“German-Dutch cabaret star Sven Ratzke returns to Lincoln Center, bringing along his amazing live band. Together they’ll perform songs from their new hit show Homme Fatale, featuring songs by history’s great songwriters, including David Bowie, Rufus Wainwright, Jacques Brel, and Bertolt Brecht, plus some Ratzke originals. Prepare to be entertained.”

Tammy Faye: Just a Kiss Away
Pangea / 7:30PM, $20
The daring, hilarious, persona-shifting singer, who has previously taken on the oeuvres of Nico and Marianne Faithfull, blasts through the rock & roll canon of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards in a new concert series. Each week for a month at Pangea, she takes on a different Rolling Stones album: TONIGHT it’s “Exile on Main Street”. (TONY)

The Breithaupt Brothers Songbook Revue
Joe’s Pub at the Public Theater / 7PM, $25
“Janis Siegel, Alyson Palmer, Christian Campbell, Marissa Mulder, Jeremy Kushnier and Greg Naughton are among those performing songs by the acclaimed Canadian musical-theater team of Don and Jeff Breithaupt.” (TONY)

Terell Stafford Quintet (Oct. 24-29.)
Village Vanguard, 178 Seventh Ave. S., at 11th St. / 8:30PM, +10:30PM, $30
“Hearing Stafford’s work as a whirlwind trumpeter in decades past, with the bands of Bobby Watson and others, you could practically taste his promise. True to predictions, Stafford has developed into a distinguished bandleader and composer whose horn playing still startles with its verve and conviction. His quintet is bolstered by the pianist Bruce Barth and the saxophonist Tim Warfield.” (NewYorker)

AMERICAN BALLET THEATER (thru Oct.29)
at the NYS / DHK Theater, Lincoln Center (at various times).
“The company continues its fall season with performances of Alexei Ratmansky’s latest ballet, “Songs of Bukovina,” set to a new score by Leonid Desyatnikov, and a pair of premieres by Benjamin Millepied. Along with “I Feel the Earth Move,” which will be unveiled on Oct. 25, Mr. Millepied also contributes “Counterpoint for Philip Johnson,” a work created in homage to the architect and performed during select intermissions. Other programs include understated beauties: Frederick Ashton’s “Symphonic Variations” (1946) and Jerome Robbins’s “Other Dances” (1976), originally created for Natalia Makarova and Mikhail Baryshnikov.” (NYT-BRIAN SCHAEFER)

Smart Stuff / Other NYC Events
(Lectures, Discussions, Book Talks, Literary Readings, Classes, Food & Drink, Other)

Reza Farazmand: Comics for a Strange World
The Strand, 828 Broadway / 7PM
$20 Admission & Signed Copy grants you admission for one, plus one signed copy of the book. $15 Admission & Gift Card grants you admission for one, plus one $15 Strand gift card to be used at any time on any product.
“Reza Farazmand is known for his shrewd and hilarious comics that take jabs at our modern age. Now, in his follow up collection to Poorly Drawn Lines, Reza brings you even more bizarre ideas and scenarios to enjoy. What does a squirrel need to blend into society? How would a crotchety version of you describe the internet to your grandchildren? Would a party that never ends truly be fun after the first 32 hours? In these small vignette comics, Reza illustrates his musings in a charming style that will keep you wanting more.”

IFPDA Print Fair (Oct.26-29)
Javits Center River Pavilion, 655 West 34th St./ 12-8PM, $20
This week the Javits Center will be filled with prints spanning a wide range of artistic periods, from Dürer to Tacita Dean (with an emphasis on contemporary and modern works), all part of the International Fine Print Dealers Association’s yearly fair, now in its twenty-sixth edition.

View and purchase a diverse collection of rare works that span a range of periods and prices at the largest and most celebrated art fair dedicated to the artistic medium of printmaking.

Continuing Events

Archtober  (Oct.01-31)
31 days, 100+ ways to celebrate design in NYC! The seventh-annual, month-long festival of architecture activities, programs, and exhibitions in New York City will take place October 1-31, 2017.  Archtober’s calendar features 200 architecture and design lectures, conferences, programs, and exhibitions at more than 70+ collaborating institutions across the city.

For more details go to my Tab in the Header: “Notable Events October”  and scroll all the long way to the bottom. This event makes America, or at least NYCity, great again.

TASTING CIDER WEEK (thru Oct.29)
“If cider is the apple of your eye, then Cider Week is for you. Hop around town for tastings, celebrate the opening of the Bad Seed Cider Brooklyn Taproom and check out the Cider in the Square Apple Market to find hard and sweet ciders, apples, pie and donuts. Festivities also include cider­centric feasts, talks and extended happy hours.” (Newsday)
WHEN | WHERE Friday through Sunday, , Oct. 20­29 at various venues, including the Bad Seed Brooklyn Tap Room, 585 Franklin Ave.,
INFO Free -­$85, ciderweeknyc.com

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Bonus NYC Events – Jazz Clubs:
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:
(5 underground, classic jazz joints. all 6 within walking distance of each other):
Village Vanguard – UG, 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
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 – UG, 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 60 million visitors last year and was TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Top U.S. Destination for 2017.  Quality shows draw crowds.
Try to reserve seats for these top NYC events in advance, even if just on day of performance.
NYCity Vacation Travel Guide Video (Expedia):

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A PremierPub / Tribeca

B-Flat / 277 Church St. (btw Franklin/White St))

b_flat4There are some places that are tough to find, then add a layer of mystery when you do find them. B-Flat has a nondescript, almost unmarked door at street level – today’s speakeasy vibe. Open this door and you face a dimly lit stairway down to their basement location. It almost takes a leap of faith to follow the stairs down to their interior door.
But open that door and a pleasant surprise awaits you.

It’s a basement jazz spot all right, but not like any traditional jazz joint you may have been to before. This place looks as fresh as today, probably because it’s only been open for 6 years. Even though it hasn’t had a chance to age gracefully, the cherry wood accents and low lighting make this small space very inviting.

There is always jazz, often progressive jazz, playing over their very discrete, stylish bose speakers, setting just the right tone as you find a seat at the bar, or one of the small tables. There is wine and beer available, but this place has some expert mixologists making some very creative cocktails, which I’m told change seasonally, a nice touch.

Come at happy hour and tasty cocktails like the el Diablo or the lychee martini are $8 – not bad. I am a sucker for any drink made with lychee and how can you not try a tequila drink named el Diablo. There is also nice selection of small bites available at happy hour and a food menu that is as innovative as the cocktail menu, so this does not have to be a happy hour only stop.

It wasn’t surprising to find a tasty prosciutto and arugula salad with yuzu dressing, but I did not expect to find such a good version of fried chicken breast on the apps menu. Here it’s called “Tatsuta.” Best bet is to sample happy hour, then dinner on a Monday or Wednesday night, when you can finish with no cover live jazz that starts around 8.

This place is tough to find (look for a small slate sandwich board on the sidewalk out front advertising happy hour) and on some nights when there is no live music it may be a little too quiet for some. But I think it’s worth searching out if you want a place with good music, food, and especially drinks, away from the maddening crowd.

Website: http://http://www.bflat.info/index.html
Phone #: 212-219-2970
Hours: Mo-Wed 5pm-2am; Th-Sat 5pm-3am; no Sun
Happy Hour: 5-7pm every day; $8 cocktails + special prices on apps
Music: Mon/Wed 8pm
Subway: #1 to Franklin; walk E 1 blk to Church; N 1 blk to bFlat

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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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