NYCity 1-2-3 : What's Happening / Manhattan's WestSide

Today’s “Fab 5”/ Selected NYCity Events – FRIDAY, MAY 23, 2014.

Ben Wolfe Quintet Featuring Nicholas Payton (through May 25)
“As on an elegant, swinging album from last year, “From Here I See,” the bassist Ben Wolfe augments his ensemble with a commanding guest, the trumpeter Nicholas Payton.” (Chinen-NYT)
Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, 60th Street and Broadway,
212-258-9595, jalc.org
At 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. / $35 to $45 cover, with a $10 minimum

Hailu Mergia
“Rescuing of obscure musicians otherwise lost to time has been a popular trend of late, ranging from the renaissance of Latino protest singer Sixto Rodriguez to unearthing the synth-laced Afrobeat made in Nigeria by William Onyeabor.

Another curious entry comes from the Awesome Tapes From Africa label, which a few years ago reissued a winsome album from Ethiopian accordionist and keyboardist Hailu Mergia. Mr. Mergia was a big star in his native country before relocating to the U.S., where he drove a cab in Washington, D.C. The success of that reissue has him gracing stages in his adopted country now.” (WSJ)
(le) Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker St.
(212) 505-3474

Free Suckling Pig Roast
“The Village Russian restaurant Ariana is kicking off the weekend with a free suckling pig roast and punch party. At 7 p.m., the kitchen will start serving up bits of the buckwheat-stuffed hog, and the bar will pour a berry and vodka punch. You’ll want to get there early to partake — food and drink are first come, first served.” (VillageVoice)
Ariana, 138-140 West Houston St.
at 7 p.m.

Here’s a sweet doublehaeder at Joe’s Pub, one of the fine, small music venues in town:

Bill Kirchen
“With a voice that echoes the world-weary timbre of Willie Nelson, Bill Kirchen is best known for his gritty, R&B-infused country rock with Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen during the early ’70s. Known as “The Titan of The Telecaster,” Kirchen has collaborated with Nick Lowe, Elvis Costello, Gene Vincent, and Link Wray while consistently producing excellent albums, most recently 2013’s “Seeds And Stems.” (DNA Info)
Joe’s Pub, at the Public Theater, 425 Lafayette Street, at Astor Place
at 7:30PM / $20 cover, with a $12 minimum.
212.697.7555 / joespub.com

Rickie Lee Jones
“The granddaughter of the vaudevillians Frank (Peg Leg) and Myrtle Lee Jones, Rickie Lee was born in Chicago, grew up in Arizona, and eventually found her way to Southern California. She released her first album in 1979, and caused an immediate sensation with her womanly subject matter delivered in a distinctive little-girl voice and original compositions that took singer-songwriter pop in a cool, jazzy direction.

Her most recent album is “The Devil You Know,” featuring interpretations of songs by the Stones, the Band, Donovan, Tim Hardin, Neil Young, and others. She is currently at work on a crowd-funded album of new material.” (NewYorker)
Joe’s Pub, at the Public Theater, 425 Lafayette Street, at Astor Place
at 9:30PM / $60 cover, with a $12 minimum.
212.697.7555 / joespub.com
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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 is a big town with many visitors where quality shows draw crowds. Try to reserve seats in advance, even if just on day of performance.
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A PremierPub – West Village

Corner Bistro / 331 W. 4th St.

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

In the maze of streets known as the West Village, where West 4th intersects with West 12th (and West 11th, and West 10th, go figure), you will eventually find Corner Bistro on the corner of West 4th and Jane Street. An unassuming neighborhood tavern, it looks just like dozens of other taverns around town. The bartender tells me that the Corner Bistro will be celebrating it’s 50th anniversary next year. The well worn interior tells me that the place itself is much older.

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

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

For the classic Bistro experience, order your burger with a McSorley’s draft, the dark preferably. This is the same beer that you can get over at the original McSorley’s in the East Village, the pub that claims to be the oldest continually operating bar in NYCity. The only difference is that this McSorley’s ale is served with a smile by the bartenders here. Or you can get a Sierra Nevada, Stella, or Hoegaarden on tap if you want to go upscale a bit. Either way this is a simple, but quality burger and beer experience that is just too rare these days (sorry for the pun).

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Website: cornerbistrony.com
Phone #: 212-242-9502
Hours: 11:30am-4am Mon-Sat; 12pm-4am Sun
Happy Hour: NO
Music: Juke Box
Subway: #1/2/3 to 14th St. (S end of platform)
Walk 2 blk W. on 13th St. to 8th Ave.; 1 blk S. on 8th Ave. to Jane St.
Update:

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

If you have a fave premier pub or good eating place on Manhattan’s WestSide let us all know about it – leave a comment.
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Today’s “Fab 5”/ Selected NYCity Events – WEDNESDAY, MAY 21, 2014.

Stars In The Alley
Free Broadway outdoor concert in the legendary Shubert Alley, between Broadway and 8th Avenue and 44th and 45th Streets. Listen to stars performing songs from approximately 25 shows, including many of this year’s Tony nominees. Plus appearances from another half dozen non-musicals.
11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Rain or shine! Please enter from 44th St.

2014 Tony-nominated actors/actresses scheduled to appear include Adriane Lenox (After Midnight), Bryce Pinkham (A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder), Kelli O’Hara (The Bridges of Madison County), Lena Hall (Hedwig and the Angry Inch), Andy Karl (Rocky), Joshua Henry (Violet), and Tyne Daly(Mothers and Sons) as well as performances from all 2014 Tony Award-nominated musicals now in performance on Broadway including After Midnight, Aladdin, Beautiful – The Carole King Musical, The Bridges of Madison County, Bullets Over Broadway, Cabaret, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, If/Then, Les Misérables, Rocky and Violet.

The show will be hosted by star of stage and screen Norm Lewis, who has just taken over the legendary title role in Broadway’s record-breaking The Phantom of the Opera.

Harold Mabern Trio
“Encountered most frequently playing with longtime compadre George Coleman or protégé Eric Alexander, Memphis piano titan Harold Mabern settles into Smalls for a one-night stand with bassist Essiet Essiet and drummer Joe Farnsworth.” (TONY)
Smalls, 183 W 10th St. btw Seventh Ave South and W 4th St.
at 9:30pm / $20
212-252-5091 / smallsjazzclub.com

Marissa Mulder -“Living Standards”
“Living Standards” is an exciting new cabaret show that addresses the complaint “they don’t write ’em like they used to.” “Living Standards” presents later entries to the Great American Songbook. Songs written by living composers and lyricists. Songs that are every bit as witty, elegant, touching, and intelligent as the Gershwin/ Kern/ Porter standards of days past. ”

Living Standards” will include work by the best of today’s cabaret songwriters, writers such as Francesca Blumenthal, John Bucchino, Craig Carnelia, Julie Gold, and Marcy Heisler and Zina Goldrich, as well as songs from singer-songwriters like Christine Lavin and Anais Mitchell. Celebrity songwriters like Randy Newman and Joni Mitchell will be included as well.

Some songs will be well known in the cabaret community, having achieved “standard” status through numerous recordings or industry awards. Other songs will be less well known, but in the opinion of the show’s creators, equally deserving of the high status. Marissa Mulder recently won two MAC Awards, for Major Artist and for recording of the Year. Both awards pertained to her last show at the Metropolitan Room, “Tom…In His Words,” devoted to the songs of Tom Waits.” (Cabaret Hotline)
THE METROPOLITAN ROOM, 34 West 22nd St.
212-206-0440
at 9:30PM / $25 cover plus a 2-drink minimum

Need to leave Manhattan’s WestSide for a two very special events:

‘America’s Romance with Chocolate: A Sweet Social History’
“Attention, chocoholics: Chocolate and its growth in popularity from a drinkable treat to a portable confection is the focus of this lecture, which, appropriately, comes with a sampling. Cathy Kaufman, a culinary historian, will lead the discussion, by chocolate and wine tasting. “ (NYT)
Merchant’s House Museum, 29 East Fourth St.
212-777-1089, merchantshouse.org
At 6:30 p.m. /$40, $75 per couple, reservations required
this looks good, worth the short detour.
subway: N/R to 8^th St.; walk S 3 blks on B’way, E 1 blk on 4^th St.

Pizza: The Brooklyn Story
“Learn about pizza’s path from Southern Italian snack to quintessential Gotham grub at this talk with Scott Wiener, the Scott’s Pizza Tours founder who’s also been featured in New York magazine and The Wall Street Journal. Wiener pays special attention to the important role Kings County played in citywide appreciation of the perfect slice.” (TONY)
Brooklyn Historical Society, 128 Pierrepont St. at Clinton St
718-222-4111 / brooklynhistory.org
at 7:00pm / $8, members $5
subway: 2/3 to Clark St. (1^st stop in Bklyn) / Brooklyn Heights
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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 is a big town with many visitors where quality shows draw crowds. Try to reserve seats in advance, even if just on day of performance.
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The Week That Was in NYCity
(courtesy NYPost, with the most unique front/back pages anywhere)

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A PremierPub and 3 Good Eating Places – Greenwich Village

Caffe Vivaldi / 32 Jones Street (btw. Bleecker/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’ ”.

Each 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 wines and lite meals, fairly priced, 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. I should note that 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, NYC 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 S/left on Bleecker to Jones st, 50 yards E/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 (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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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. $8 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)
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 Sq 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”

That covers a wide range of food – pizza, burgers, food trucks/carts, vegetarian/falafel, ramen, chopped salad & salad bars, hot dogs, bbq, soup & sandwiches, picnic fixins’, raw bars & lobster rolls. No reservations needed. ================================================================================

◊ For all my picks of 54 Good Eating places and descriptions of my favorite 18 PremierPubs in 9 Neighborhoods (plus 27 casual dining places with free Wi-Fi) order a copy of my e-book: “Eating and Drinking on NYCity’s WestSide” ($3.99).
(available Fall 2014)

Today’s “Fab 5”/ Selected NYCity Events – TUESDAY, MAY 20, 2014.

French cinema’s “Secret Trove”
“Curated by one of the world’s most influential film journals, Cahiers du Cinéma, CinéSalon celebrates French cinema’s “Secret Trove” — rarely shown films featuring some of the best examples of overlooked, poetic cinema classics in French film history. Each 7:30 p.m. session is preceded by an introduction by an arts luminary and paired with a free post-screening wine reception. Films are shown in French with English subtitles. Today’s films are “Rue de l’Estrapade” at 4 p.m. and “Flammes” at 7:30 p.m.” (DNA Info)
FIAF, Florence Gould Hall, 55 East 59th St.
Tickets are $16.35 and $9.95 for students.

El Gallo Místico
“Jazz at the Crossroads: The Dance of Eleggua, a progressive Latin-jazz series, presents a new collaboration between percussionist-vocalist Román Díaz and pianist David Virelles, commemorating the anniversary of Cuba’s birth as a republic. This pair fueled Virelles’s heady, engrossing 2012 set, Continuum, so we expect further fascination here.” (TONY)
Minton’s, 206 W 118th St., Harlem
At 8pm and 10pm / $20
212-243-2222 / mintonsharlem.com

Karrin Allyson (through May 24)
“Ms. Allyson is a jazz singer and pianist of imaginative savvy, and she has a genuine connection with her fellow musicians. Her most recent release is a holiday album, so it seems likely that she’ll look elsewhere for repertory here — to evergreen standards, Brazilian tunes and Beatlesesque pop songs.” (Chinen-NYT)
Birdland, 315 West 44th St.
212-581-3080, birdlandjazz.com
At 8:30 and 11 p.m. / $40 cover, with a $10 minimum.

LIVE from the NYPL: Kara Walker
“One of today’s most significant and complex contemporary artists, Kara Walker, reflects on themes of race, gender, sexuality, violence and subjugation in her visually striking work.

New York-based artist Kara Walker is best known for cut-paper silhouettes and tableaus that complicate traditional narratives of power and repression. Walker’s provocative work, which has taken the form of drawing, painting, text-based work, video, film, performance and cyclorama, retells historic moments, such as slavery in the Antebellum South and Hurricane Katrina, and has frequently been the subject of controversy.

She has received numerous awards, perhaps most notably in 1997, when she was the second-youngest person ever to receive a MacArthur Foundation “Genius Grant.”
(ThoughtGallery)
New York Public Library – Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, 476 5th Ave.,
at 7:00 pm / $15-$25
917-275-6975

The Pinch Brothers in “The Bawdy House”
When THE PINCH BROTHERS (also sisters) are hired to save an ailing theater, they turn it into a BAWDY HOUSE, complete with ribald comedy, risqué magic, and of course, burlesque, burlesque, burlesque!

But on opening night, everything goes wrong — buttons keep popping, pants keep dropping, and the schtick keeps getting schtickier. Can this Marx Brothers-inspired crew of reprobates get through the show with their clothes intact? …Nope. Pinchbottom’s classic burlesque tribute to the funniest brothers in showbiz returns to the stage as part of MarxFest 2014, an ambitious month long festival.
“Daring, funny, imaginative and titillating to all tastes.” -The Sunday Telegraph (UK)
The Players Theatre, 115 MacDougal St.
at 8:00 pm
Adults only. Admission starts at $29 (includes two beverages).
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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 is a big town with many visitors where quality shows draw crowds. Try to reserve seats in advance, even if just on day of performance.
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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 – my fave is Ovest on W 27th St., where the aperitivo is like Happy Hour on steroids.

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. ==========================================================

For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in the right Sidebar: “Selected Events + Special Exhibitions : Manhattan’s WestSide” dated (05/18) and (05/17).

Today’s “Fab 5”/ Selected NYCity Events – MONDAY, MAY 19, 2014.

Internet Week New York (through May 25)
“This annual festival devoted to all things Web presents discussions, seminars and social events with industry professionals and business leaders at various locations. Its headquarters is the Metropolitan Pavilion, 125 West 18th Street, Chelsea; internetweekny.com.” (NYT)
Here are a few of today’s events (all require pass/ticketed events):

• The Future of Television
• Can Tech Solve Media and Entertainment Needs?
• VICE Sessions | The Future of Video News
• How Technology is Changing the Way We Listen to and Interact with Music
• Fireside Chat with Chet Kanojia, Founder and CEO, Aereo

HERE COMES EVERYBODY: The Story of the Pogues with James Fearnley
James Fearnley, a soul guitarist from Yorkshire, first met The Pogues’s notorious frontman Shane McGowan while auditioning for McGowan’s first band, The Nips, in 1980. He later became accordionist to The Pogues as well as one of its founding members.

Fearnley’s memoir HERE COMES EVERYBODY opens and closes like a scene from a film, beginning in the early nineties with The Pogues’ band members gathered in a hotel room in Japan, readying themselves to sack Shane due to drunken behaviour and failure to show up on time—for gigs as well as everything else.

In between, Fearnley gives us a riveting depiction of the inside life of the band, both on and off the road. There will be live music—banjo, accordion, and acoustic guitar—to accompany Fearnley’s readings from the memoir.
McNally Jackson Books, 52 Prince St.
212-274-1160
at 7:00 pm / FREE

All Star Tribute to Mat Domber & Arbors Records
“Amazing soloists will be at performing at this event: Warren Vache, Rossano Sportiello, Bucky Pizzarelli, Anat Cohen, Bob Wilber, Dick Hyman and Wycliffe Gordon, among others. They’re gathered in the memory of Mat Domber (1928–2012), the impresario behind Arbors Records, which has been the lifeblood of premodern jazz styles and stylists for 25 years. Seeing as nearly all of the best swing and New Orleans-style jazz of recent decades has been documented by Arbors, this tribute should be a celebration worth celebrating.” (WSJ)
Symphony Space, Peter Jay Sharpe Theatre, 2537 Broadway, at 95th Street
(212) 864-5400 / symphonyspace.org
At 7:15 p.m. / $35, $25 for members

BILLY MINTZ QUARTET
“Perennially underrated drum veteran Billy Mintz, whose 2013 full-length, Mintz Quartet, encompassed avant-garde–leaning postbop and romantic balladry, leads the same band featured on that disc, with saxist John Gross, pianist Roberta Piket and bassist Putter Smith.” (TONY)
Greenwich House Music School, 46 Barrow Street, West Village,
212-242-4770, greenwichhouse.org
At 8:30 p.m./ $15

GARRISON KEILLOR
The Prairie Home Companion host, now 71, reads from his latest volume, The Keillor Reader, a collection of his varied writings that includes monologues, stories, excerpts from novels, newspaper columns and new pieces.
BookCourt, 163 Court St., btw Dean and Pacific Sts.
718-875-3677 / bookcourt.com
at 7:00pm / FREE
subway: #2-3 to borough hall; walk S on CourtSt.
not Manhattan’s WestSide, but this is a fine bookstore which deserves our support,
and it is that old rascal from Minnesota, Garrison Keillor

Today’s FREE stuff:
• Ferry rides (rush hour only), coffee and doughnuts all week to inaugurate West Side service from Pier 84 (W 44th Street) to World Financial Center.
• Nutella Cronut holes for the spread’s 50th birthday, outside Eataly @ 23^rd St..
10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
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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 is a big town with many visitors where quality shows draw crowds. Try to reserve seats in advance, even if just on day of performance.
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A PremierPub / Midtown West.

Russian Vodka Room / 265 W 52nd St (btw 7th/8th ave)

Sure, you could travel to Minsk or even Brighton Beach, for an authentic Russian experience, but why bother. On those days when you feel you must wash down your dish of kasha with a few glasses of icy, cold vodka, the Russian Vodka Room will definitely satisfy your urge.

From the outside this place looks a bit drab, and with no windows, a bit mysterious. Midtown tourists walk right by on their way to see “Jersey Boys”, just down the block.

Those in the know enter a secret hideaway, a dimly lit front room with soft jazz playing – a perfect spot for an illicit late-night rendezvous, or maybe a meet-up with your Russian spy handler, but that’s later in the evening. Early in the evening the large U-shaped bar fills with the after work happy hour crowd, a group made very happy by the much reduced prices.

Their website says: “Welcome Comrades”. Of course, this welcome focuses on dozens of different vodkas, including their own special infusions, which marinate in giant, clear glass jugs visible around the room. The large vodka martinis ensure that you won’t confuse this place with your mother’s Russian Tea Room.

But man does not live by vodka alone. Eat some food, especially the tapa like appetizers. Be decadent and try the cheese blintzes with chocolate, or try a main dish like beef stroganoff with kasha.

Your best bet is to go on a night when the piano man is playing. This guy, who looks like he has eaten a lot of those cheese blintzes, plays five nights a week from 7 to 12 (no Mondays and Thursdays). When the piano man is playing American pop tunes, and you are at the crowded, dimly lit bar testing the horseradish infused vodka, that’s when the RVR shines.

It’s the kind of place where the noise gets louder and the crowd gets happier as the happy hour goes on. I’m generally a beer guy, but I like to come here with a group of friends. We find a table in the back room; we eat, and we drink vodka ‘till it hurts (and it will hurt).

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Website: http://www.russianvodkaroom.com/
Phone #: 212-307-5835
Hours: 4pm-2am; Fri-Sun closes 4am (that could be trouble)
Happy Hour: 4-7pm every day
$4 shots infused vodka (2oz), $5 cosmos; $4 czech draft beer
Music: FR-SU; TU-WE / 7pm-12am
Subway: #1 to 50th St.
Walk 2 blk N. on B’way to 52nd St.; 1 blk W. to RVR
Confusingly, the Russian Samovar is right across the street, on the S. side of 52nd St.
The RVR, your destination, is on the N. side of 52nd St.
Update: music some nights includes a sax player with a younger, trimmer piano man.

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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.
===========================================================================================

Today’s “Fab 5”+1/ Selected NYCity Events – SUNDAY, MAY 18, 2014.

World’s Fair Anniversary Festival
A full day of free activities celebrating World’s Fairs past,
including the return of the 1964 World’s Fair Belgian Waffle.

“Celebrate the 75th and 50th anniversaries of the NYC World’s Fair at this day-long event. Enjoy tours of the historic site, food, and music and dance performances throughout the day. Come nightfall, the sky explodes with a special fireworks display.”
(FlavorPill-Mindy Bond, Editor)
Unisphere in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Queens, NY
from 1pm-8pm / FREE
This is surely not Manhattan’s WestSide, but I worked the World’s Fair in 1965, so this event has to be listed. If you ever rode the Paratrooper ride in the amusement area, then I was your ride operator, so drop me a line.
subway: #1-2-3 to TimesSquare, transfer to #7 to Shea Stadium/Willets Point ,
then a nice long walk in the park to the Unisphere.

New York Hot Jazz Festival 2014
“Hot Jazz” has lately become a catch phrase encapsulating New Orleans and traditional jazz, blues, big bands, “Hot Club”-style gypsy swing and often also vaudeville, burlesque and the thriving Retro Nouveau scene. All of those factions are joining together for a 12-hour party/dance/concert at which 16 bands will alternate in three different spaces within the Players Club.

On the bill are such worthies as Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks, the hyper-energetic Hot Sardines, clarinet master Ken Peplowski’s New Swing, Aussie sax stalwart Professor Cunningham and His Old School, Dan Levinson’s Gotham SophistiCats and Birdland faves David Ostwald’s Louis Armstrong Eternity Band with Wycliffe Gordon. The guest vocalists—Brianna Thomas, Catherine Russell, Tamar Korn, Molly Ryan, Kate Davis, and Marilyn Maye—are worth the price of a day-long admission alone.” (WSJ)
The Players Club, 16 Gramercy Park South,
212- 475-6116

René Marie
“The feisty singer, an outspoken civil-rights activist, pays tribute to the equally forthright and defiantly eccentric Eartha Kitt. Positing Kitt—whose lengthy career found her juggling turns as a brazenly sexual, bilingual night-club, stage, and recording star; a delicious Catwoman on the sixties TV camp classic “Batman”; and a tell-it-like-it-is media figure—as a woman whose time has come for celebration, Marie brings her own insouciance to such Kitt classics as “Santa Baby” and “C’est Si Bon” on her album, “I Wanna Be Evil (With Love to Eartha Kitt).” (NewYorker)
Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Broadway at 60th St.
jalc.org.

The 9th Avenue International Food Festival
The Ninth Avenue International Food Festival, blends international cuisine, art and soul in one of the country’s most unique neighborhoods. Adjacent to Times Square, America’s number one tourist destination. The Festival is New York’s oldest and largest continuous Food Festival, drawing over 200,000 visitors over the course of the two day festival weekend. From open to close, visitors can browse the offerings of 15 City Blocks of gourmet food and beverages. Asian to Cajun and everything edible, along with fine art and crafts and an entire city block of family friendly children’s games and entertainment.
9th Avenue, 42nd – 57th Streets
noon to 5PM

Around the World with Barry Lewis: Central Park
Central Park’s design is democracy in three dimensions. No one understood that better than its creators, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux. With their talented team, they created a slice of the American countryside—accessible to all—that looks completely natural but is a brilliantly crafted artifice that helps us achieve the “American dream.”

Barry Lewis is an architectural historian who currently teaches at Cooper Union Forum and specializes in European and American architecture from the 18th to 20th centuries.
He is a fascinating font of NYCity knowledge who will talk for 30 minutes without taking a breath. He’s the best.
New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West,
212-873-3400 /
at 5:00 pm / $34; $20 members

Sacred Sites Open House Weekend
“For the past four years, the New York Landmarks Conservancy has arranged tours of a number of houses of worship. This year, the weekend focusses on immigrant communities, and the sites include St. Anselm’s Church, in the Bronx (modelled on the Hagia Sophia), the Lower East Side’s Church of St. Brigid—St. Emeric (designed by the noted Irish architect of churches Patrick Keely), and the Museum at Eldridge Street, located in the Eldridge Street Synagogue (a New York City and National Historic Landmark). More than forty-five places in the five boroughs will be open for touring.” (NewYorker)
nylandmarks.org.
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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 is a big town with many visitors where quality shows draw crowds. Try to reserve seats in advance, even if just on day of performance.
==============================================================================

What’s on View:
Special Exhibitions @ 4 Museum Mile / Fifth Ave. Museums:

‘The Passions of Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux’ (through May 26)
‘Tibet and India: Buddhist Traditions and Transformations’ (through June 8)
‘Lost Kingdoms: Hindu-Buddhist Sculpture of Early Southeast Asia, 5th to 8th Century’ (through July 27)
The Flowering of Edo Period Painting: Japanese Masterworks from the Feinberg Collection’ (through Sept. 7)
‘Early American Guitars: The Instruments of C.F. Martin’ (through Dec. 7)
Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 5th Ave, at 82nd St.
(212) 535-7710 / metmuseum.org
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‘Renaissance and Baroque Bronzes From the Hill Collection’ (through June 15)
“This sensational, beautifully presented show of 33 late-15th- to early-18th-century bronzes reflects a taste for historically important, big-statement examples in exceptional condition. They vividly reflect the Renaissance’s new interest in antiquity and the human form while encouraging concentration on emotional expression, refined details (great hair!), struggling or relaxed figures and varied patinas. Works by the reigning geniuses Giambologna, Susini and the lesser-known Piamontini dominate, further enlivened by a handful of old master and late-20th-century paintings from the Hill collection.”
(Roberta Smith-NYT)
Frick Collection: 1 East 70th St.
212-288-0700 / frick.org.
—————————————————————————————————————————————-

Guggenheim Museum: ‘Italian Futurism, 1909-1944: Reconstructing the Universe’ (through Sept. 1)
“This epic, beautifully designed exhibition may be one of the more thorough examinations of modernism’s most obnoxious and conflicted art movement that you are likely to see. Awash in the manifestoes that its members regularly fired off, it follows Futurism through to its end with the death of its founder, Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, in 1944. It covers the Futurist obsessions with speed, war, machines and, finally, flight and the aerial views it made possible. And the show highlights relatively unknown figures like the delightful Fortunato Depero and Benedetta Cappa, Marinetti’s wife. 1071 Fifth Avenue, at 89th Street, 212-423-3500, guggenheim.org.“ (Smith-NYT)
Guggenheim Museum, 1071 Fifth Avenue, at 89th St.
(212) 423-3500 / guggenheim.org.
————————————————————————————————————–
‘Degenerate Art: The Attack on Modern Art in Nazi Germany, 1937’ (through June 30)
Neue Galerie, 1048 Fifth Avenue, at 86th St.
212-628-6200 / neuegalerie.org.

========================================================== Museum Mile is a section of Fifth Avenue which contains one of the densest displays of culture in the world. Ten museums can be found along this section of Fifth Avenue:

• 110th Street – Museum for African Art

• 105th Street – El Museo del Barrio

• 103rd Street – Museum of the City of New York

• 92nd Street – The Jewish Museum

• 91st Street – Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum

• 89th Street – National Academy Museum

• 88th Street – Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

• 86th Street – Neue Galerie New York

• 83rd Street – Goethe-Institut

Last, but certainly not least, America’s premier museum
• 82nd Street – The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Additionally, though technically not part of the Museum Mile, the Frick Collection on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 70th St. and the The Morgan Library & Museum on Madison Ave and 37th St are also located near Fifth Ave. Now plan your own museum crawl. ==========================================================

For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in right Sidebar: “NYCity Events: Manhattan’s WestSide” dated 05/16 and 05/14.

Today’s “Fab 5”/ Selected NYCity Events – SATURDAY, MAY 17, 2014.

New York Dance Parade and Festival
“We know you like to shake what your mama gave you at your favorite watering hole, but did you know that “social dancing” in bars is technically illegal without a permit? Fight the man, Footloose-style, at the Eighth Annual New York Dance Parade & Festival, which was created to defend public dancing as a constitutional right. More than 10,000 dancers from across the globe will sashay, B-boy and conga their way along the route—stopping at the Union Square grandstand on the way to perform everything from ethnic folk dances to contemporary hip-hop. The promenade ends at Tompkins Square Park, where DanceFest—featuring more performances, lessons and parkwide social dancing—will already be under way.” (TONY)
From Broadway and 21st St to Tompkins Square Park.
Parade from 1pm-3pm; DanceFest from 3pm-7pm / all FREE
267-350-9213 / danceparade.org

Taste of Tribeca,
It’s the season for neighborhood tastings, and Tribeca’s famous high-end eateries will showcase the food that’s made them perennial award winners. For $50 on the day of the event, guests can sample the best of restaurants like Bouley and Tribeca Grill. Pick up a tasting card, which includes six tastes.

There will be a wine tour and live entertainment courtesy of City Winery. A complete list of events and participating restaurants available online.
Duane Street between Greenwich and Hudson.
From 11:30 a.m. – 3pm

Gizmodo Home of the Future (through May 21)
“Experience how you will live, work, and play in the not-so-distant future at Gizmodo’s first-ever Home of the Future, an immersive installation showcasing the design, ideas, and technology set to redefine urban dwelling.

Visitors can check out and test-drive a mind-boggling array of innovative designs and cutting-edge products that will shape urban life in the coming decade – from an electric cruiser for your daily commute to a bathroom scale that measures weight, body composition, and even air quality, to an ingenious vertical garden tower for growing vegetables indoors and a telepresence robot that can beam you into an office meeting when working remotely from home. Home of the Future also plays host to an array of talks and panels led by architecture buffs, design enthusiasts, tech innovators, and urban futurists. For a full schedule visit the website.”
(FlavorPill, Mindy Bond, Editor)
St. Patrick’s Youth Center, 268 Mulberry Street, near Houston Street in SoHo.
Nearest subway: Broadway-Lafayette.
Hours: 11:00 am to late. / FREE
Come work in the Home of the Future—stop by to sit on our snazzy furniture and use our superfast WiFi. Plus, we’ll be hosting events every night.
go here to see the schedule and RSVP – homeofthefuture.gizmodo.com

Eddie Izzard Force Majeure (closes May 18)
One of the most acclaimed comedians of his generation, Izzard’s unique, tangential, absurd, and surreal comic narratives are lauded for their creativity and wit, earning him a New York Drama Desk Award and two Emmys for Dress to Kill, two British Comedy Awards for Top Stand-Up Comedian, and an Olivier Award nomination for Outstanding Achievement.
Beacon Theatre, 2124 Broadway,
212-465-6225, beacontheatrenyc.com

Louis Hayes and the Jazz Communicators
“If the name of the band sounds vaguely reminiscent of Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, there’s good reason: Like Blakey, Mr. Hayes is a locomotive hard-bop drummer with a history of grooming younger players. This weekend, celebrating the release of an album recorded on this bandstand, that means the saxophonist Abraham Burton, the vibraphonist Steve Nelson, the pianist David Bryant and the bassist Dezron Douglas.” (Chinen-NYT)
Smoke, 2751 Broadway, at 106th St.,
212-864-6662, smokejazz.com
At 7, 9 and 10:30 p.m./ $38 cover.
===============================================================

♦ Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm ticket availability, dates and times, as schedules are subject to change.

♦ NYCity is a big town with many visitors where quality shows draw crowds. Try to reserve seats in advance, even if just on day of performance.
==============================================================================

WHAT’S ON VIEW: Special Exhibitions @ 3 MUSEUMS (Manhattan’s WestSide)

‘A World of Its Own: Photographic Practices in the Studio’ (through Oct. 5)
‘Designing Modern Women 1890-1990’(through Oct. 5)
Museum of Modern Art: 11 W 53rd St. (btw 5th /6th Ave.)
(212) 708-9400 / moma.org.

Designing Modern Women 1890-1990:

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

‘Out of Hand: Materializing the Postdigital’ (through June 1)
“If you haven’t quite wrapped your head around the concept of 3-D printing, or haven’t yet had a digital scanner wrap itself around you, now you can do both in this survey of computer-assisted art, architecture and design. The show looks at art made since 2005 and fills nearly three floors, including many irresistible interactive projects. Its ideas may not be entirely new; the Museum of Modern Art’s 2008 exhibition “Design and the Elastic Mind” covered much of the same territory, but there’s something to be said for this more down-to-earth, production-focused exhibition.” (Rosenberg-NYT)
Museum of Arts and Design, Columbus Circle,
212-299-7777,madmuseum.org.

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

The Art of the Brick by Nathan Sawaya (ongoing)
This exhibition by artist Nathan Sawaya is a critically acclaimed collection of intriguing and inspiring works of art made exclusively from one of the most recognizable toys in the world — LEGO® bricks. The Discovery Times Square exhibit is the world’s biggest and most elaborate display of LEGO® art ever and features brand-new, never-before-seen pieces by Sawaya. This show was named ‘One of CNN’s Ten Global Must-See Exhibitions.’
Discovery Times Square, 226 West 44th St. (btw 7th/8th ave)
866.987.9692 / http://www.discoverytsx.com

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

For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in the right Sidebar: “Selected Events + Special Exhibitions : … …” dated (05/14) and (05/12).

Today’s “Fab 5”/ Selected NYCity Events – FRIDAY, MAY 16, 2014.

Stained Glass from Canterbury Cathedral (closes Sunday)
This exhibition of stained glass from England’s historic Canterbury Cathedral features six Romanesque-period windows that have never left the cathedral precincts since their creation in 1178–80.

Better head uptown to The Cloisters to check them out before this unique exhibition: “Radiant Light: Stained Glass From Canterbury Cathedral at The Cloisters” closes.
The Cloisters, 99 Margaret Corbin Dr, Fort Tryon Park in Upper Manhattan.
“Take the A train” to 190^th St.
open seven days a week, from 10 a.m. until 4:45 p.m./ $25
metmuseum.org

Paul Barrere & Fred Tackett + The New Orleans Suspects
“Tonight’s three-set Southern-fried fiesta opens with a duo performance by Little Feat’s Paul Barrere and Fred Tackett. The New Orleans Suspects – a seriously funky crew drawn from the Radiators, the Neville Brothers, and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band – will follow. And combustication should ultimately ensue when the two tribes merge for a finale set of Little Feat and Big Easy showstoppers.” (Richard Gehr, VillageVoice)
Stage 48, 605 W. 48th St. / 212-957-1800
7:00 p.m. / $32.50-$55

‘Zurich Meets New York’ (through May 23)
“This weeklong celebration of Swiss innovation includes art displays, performances, screenings and other events, many free, at locations around the city. Offerings include a photography display in Vanderbilt Hall at Grand Central Terminal; a “Dada on Tour” art installation opening Sunday at the Whitebox Art Center, 329 Broome Street, between Broadway and Chrystie Street, Lower East Side; and “How Is This Professor Freud, and How Does He Actually Behave?,” a theater piece on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the Center for Jewish History, 15 West 16th Street.” (NYT)
A schedule and other details are available at zurichmeetsnewyork.org.

Jazz at Lincoln Center’s “A Side, B Side” Series
“In the Appel Room (the recently christened Allen Room space), this ongoing uptown program devoted to current artists presents two alternating programs highlighting jazz compositions. “New Jazz Standards” featuring specially commissioned pieces by Carla Kihlstedt, Guillermo Klein, Bill McHenry, Reid Anderson, and Eric Harland, takes place May 16 at 7 and May 17 at 9:30. “Nuevo Jazz Latino,” showcasing new work by the Bronx-born Carlos Henriquez and the Cubans Elio Villafranca, Yosvany Terry, Dafnis Prieto, and Pedrito Martinez, runs May 16 at 9:30 and May 17 at 7.” (NewYorker)
Jazz at Lincoln Center, Broadway at 60th St.
jalc.org.

Marc Ribot
“As a centerpiece of this spring’s Undead Music series, Mr. Ribot, the flinty and endlessly inventive guitarist, has been playing in a range of settings over the past week. The run concludes on Friday, when he’ll convene Los Cubanos Postizos, his beloved retro Cuban band.” (Chinen-NYT)
Le Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street,
212-505-3474, lepoissonrouge.com;
At 6:30 p.m. / $25.
===============================================================

♦ Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm ticket availability, dates and times, as schedules are subject to change.

♦ NYCity is a big town with many visitors where quality shows draw crowds. Try to reserve seats in advance, even if just on day of performance.
==============================================================================

A PremierPub – West Village

Corner Bistro / 331 W. 4th St.

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

In the maze of streets known as the West Village, where West 4th intersects with West 12th (and West 11th, and West 10th, go figure), you will eventually find Corner Bistro on the corner of West 4th and Jane Street. An unassuming neighborhood tavern, it looks just like dozens of other taverns around town. The bartender tells me that the Corner Bistro will be celebrating it’s 50th anniversary next 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.
===========================================================================================

Today’s “Fab 5”/ Selected NYCity Events – THURSDAY, MAY 15, 2014.

Eva Ayllón
“A guiding force of música criolla — a romantic and delicate blend of Peruvian regional forms — Ms. Ayllón has around two dozen albums and multiple Latin Grammy nominations to her name. She performs a new, collaborative set with the Cuban-American crooner Albita.” (NYT-Anderson)
Town Hall, 123 West 43rd St.
800-982-2787, the-townhall-nyc.org
At 8 p.m. / $55 to $65.

John Scofield Organic Trio
“In the past decade, Scofield, a long-venerated guitarist who is comfortable with both fusion and bop in their many configurations, sought room for his snaky improvisations with the likes of the Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh and the jazz-funk pioneers Medeski, Martin & Wood, among others. More conventional perhaps, yet no less vivid, are his interactions with two equally responsive collaborators, the organist Larry Goldings and the drummer Greg Hutchinson, who make up his Organic Trio.” (NewYorker)
Blue Note, 131 West Third Street, Greenwich Village,
212-475-8592, bluenote.net
At 8 and 10:30 p.m. / $35 cover at tables, $20 at the bar.

Lykke Li
“Lykke Li returned to the studio with her longtime producer Bjorn Yttling (of Peter, Bjorn and John) to record her follow up to 2011’s “Wounded Rhymes.” The resulting breakup album, “I Never Learn,” was recently described by Pitchfork as an album “for the times when heartbreak is so life-affirming that you want to share the feeling with the world.” (DNA Info)
Apollo Theater, 253 West 125th St, Harlem.
at 8 p.m. / $40
Tickets are available from $68 on Stubhub.
800-745-3000, apollotheater.com

Al Kooper
“Kooper pops up nearly everywhere in the history of rock and roll. A product of Hollis Hills, Queens, he started playing professionally in junior high, joining the Royal Teens (who had a hit with “Short Shorts,” in 1958) and in the process becoming friends with Paul Simon. He wrote “This Diamond Ring,” which was a huge hit in 1965 for Gary Lewis. He plopped down, unbidden, behind the Hammond organ during Dylan’s “Highway 61” sessions and ad-libbed the unforgettable organ fills to “Like a Rolling Stone.”

He founded Blood, Sweat & Tears, splitting after just one brilliant album—and just before the band took off, on an artistically compromised but commercially lucrative arc. He led the aptly titled “Super Session” project with Mike Bloomfield and Stephen Stills. He discovered and produced Lynyrd Skynyrd. And that only covers the period up through the mid-seventies. Countless producing gigs, sessions as a sideman, and concerts followed, and he’s not done with the business yet—he writes a weekly online column called “New Music for Old People,” and he’s at the B. B. King Blues Club & Grill on May 15-16, celebrating his seventieth birthday. Special guests are expected.” (NewYorker)
B. B. King Blues Club & Grill, 237 W. 42nd St.
212-997-4144.

The Pinch Brothers in “The Bawdy House”
When THE PINCH BROTHERS (also sisters) are hired to save an ailing theater, they turn it into a BAWDY HOUSE, complete with ribald comedy, risqué magic, and of course, burlesque, burlesque, burlesque!

But on opening night, everything goes wrong — buttons keep popping, pants keep dropping, and the schtick keeps getting schtickier. Can this Marx Brothers-inspired crew of reprobates get through the show with their clothes intact? …Nope. Pinchbottom’s classic burlesque tribute to the funniest brothers in showbiz returns to the stage as part of MarxFest 2014.
“Daring, funny, imaginative and titillating to all tastes.” -The Sunday Telegraph (UK)
The Players Theatre, 115 MacDougal St.
at 8:00 pm
Adults only. Admission starts at $29 (includes two beverages).
===============================================================

♦ Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm ticket availability, dates and times, as schedules are subject to change.

♦ NYCity is a big town with many visitors where quality shows draw crowds. Try to reserve seats in advance, even if just on day of performance.
==============================================================================

A PremierPub + 3 Good Eating places

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

Jimmy’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 (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.
===========================================================================================

3 Good Eating places

It’s not difficult finding 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:

Patzeria Perfect Pizza – 231 W46 st (Betw 7th/8th ave)
Perfect name for a pizza joint. On a street filled with Broadway theaters, this is a real hole in the wall, but don’t let the dive look scare you away. You can never go wrong with a slice of NYC pizza, and this one is a classic thin crust. Only a few seats here, but pizza was made to eat standing up.

Shake Shack – 691 8th ave (Betw 43rd/44th st)
Danny Meyer has revolutionized the high quality burger in this town. Now he has a branch on the West Side that was desperately needed, with none of the insane lines that you find at the Madison Sq. Park location. Plus, it may be the cleanest joint to eat in all of Hell’s Kitchen.

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“3 Good Eating places” focuses on a quick bite, what I call “Fine Fast Food – NYCity Style”

That covers a wide range of food – pizza, burgers, food trucks/carts, vegetarian/falafel, ramen, chopped salad & salad bars, hot dogs, bbq, soup & sandwiches, picnic fixins’, raw bars & lobster rolls. No reservations needed. ================================================================================

◊ For all my picks of 54 Good Eating places and descriptions of my favorite 18 PremierPubs in 9 Neighborhoods (plus 27 casual dining places with free Wi-Fi) order a copy of my e-book: “Eating and Drinking on NYCity’s WestSide” ($3.99).
(available Fall 2014)

Today’s “Fab 5”+1/ Selected NYCity Events – WEDNESDAY, MAY 14, 2014.

Making Italian America
“As embodied in fashion, film, food, popular music and sports, Italian American identities have fascinated, disturbed and influenced American and global culture.

Historian and book editor Simone Cinotto will lead a group of scholars in a discussion of how consumption has shaped the culture and identity of Italians in America” (ThoughtGallery)
Tenement Museum, 103 Orchard St.,
not exactly Manhattan’s WestSide, but this should be worth the detour:
subway: #1-2-3 to 14^th St, transfer to F – 4 stops to Delancey St.;
walk 2 blks W on Delancey.
212-982-8420 / http://www.tenement.org
at 6:30 pm / FREE, seats are first-come, first-serve.
However, you can reserve two seats with the purchase of Making Italian America.
Contact Laura Lee at llee@tenement.org or 212.431.0233 ext. 259 to purchase a book.

Marissa Mulder -“Living Standards”
“Living Standards” is an exciting new cabaret show that addresses the complaint “they don’t write ’em like they used to.” Produced and directed by Tom Toce, “Living Standards” presents later entries to the Great American Songbook. Songs written by living composers and lyricists. Songs that are every bit as witty, elegant, touching, and intelligent as the Gershwin/ Kern/ Porter standards of days past. ”

Living Standards” will include work by the best of today’s cabaret songwriters, writers such as Francesca Blumenthal, John Bucchino, Craig Carnelia, Julie Gold, and Marcy Heisler and Zina Goldrich, as well as songs from singer-songwriters like Christine Lavin and Anais Mitchell. Celebrity songwriters like Randy Newman and Joni Mitchell will be included as well. Some songs will be well known in the cabaret community, having achieved “standard” status through numerous recordings or industry awards. Other songs will be less well known, but in the opinion of the show’s creators, equally deserving of the high status. Marissa Mulder recently won two MAC Awards, for Major Artist and for recording of the Year. Both awards pertained to her last show at the Metropolitan Room, “Tom…In His Words,” devoted to the songs of Tom Waits. Tom Toce is a veteran theater and cabaret songwriter.“ (Cabaret Hotline)
THE METROPOLITAN ROOM, 34 West 22nd St.
212-206-0440
at 9:30PM / $25 cover plus a 2-drink minimum

Stephen J. Dubner and Steven D. Levitt
The co-authors of the bestselling Freakonomics and co-hosts of Freakonomics Radio on WNYC talk with Catie Lazarus (host of Employee of the Month) about their latest book, unveiling essential tools to allow readers to “think like a freak” — to see the world unconventionally, and ultimately, more clearly. The Freakonomics guys developed the book after receiving thousands of readers’ and listeners’ questions.
Symphony Space, Broadway at 95th St.
212-864-5400 /symphonyspace.org
at 7:30pm / $25

Terell Stafford (throughMay 18.)
“The high-velocity excitement Stafford used to stir up in the nineties as a rip-roaring young trumpeter with Bobby Watson’s Horizon band remains in his playing, but maturity has further deepened his musicality. Telling examples of his artistry can be found on Stafford’s most recent album, 2011’s “This Side of Strayhorn,” a heartfelt tribute to Duke Ellington’s trusted collaborator. He is joined by the same quintet from that record, which includes the saxophonist Tim Warfield and the pianist Bruce Barth.” (NewYorker)
Village Vanguard ,178 Seventh Ave. S., at 11th St.
212-255-4037.

Timothy Geithner
Stress Test: Reflections on Financial Crises
Join Timothy Geithner as he discusses Stress Test: Reflections on Financial Crises with Mad Money’s Jim Cramer.
Barnes & Noble, Union Square, 33 East 17th St.
212-253-0810
at 7:00 PM / FREE
Priority seating with receipted book purchase from Barnes & Noble, bn.com or NOOK device. Books sold at our location are pre-signed as their will be no signing portion of the program. Event space opens at 5:00 pm

A Night of Improvised Round Robin Duets
“The art of spontaneous duologue gets a supersize platform in this special concert, a joint presentation of Red Bull Music Academy and Undead Music. Unfolding as an overlapping series of one-on-one exchanges, it will feature a staggering array of musicians, including Allen Toussaint, the New Orleans pianist and singer-songwriter; Marc Ribot and Nels Cline, the stylistically voracious guitarists; Amp Fiddler and Daedelus, the head-trippy electronic producers; David Murray and James Carter, both unstoppable saxophonists; and Wadada Leo Smith and Dave Douglas, both incisive trumpeter-composers. “ (Chinen-NYT)
Town Hall, 123 West 43rd St.
800-982-2787, the-townhall-nyc.org
At 7:30 p.m. / $22 to $32.
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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 is a big town with many visitors where quality shows draw crowds. Try to reserve seats in advance, even if just on day of performance.
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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 – my fave is Ovest on W 27th St., where the aperitivo is like Happy Hour on steroids.

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. ==========================================================

For other selected Museum and Gallery Special Exhibitions see Recent Posts in the right Sidebar: “Selected Events + Special Exhibitions : Manhattan’s WestSide” dated (04/30) and (04/28).