AWESOME GIVEAWAY: 2 Tickets to Chaplin the Musical

If there's one man who invented and then re-invented the movie business, it was the late, great Charlie Chaplin. His most well known character, the Little Tramp, has warmed his way into many a family's memories and hearts, but the little-known story behind the character is perhaps more intriguing, and ultimately more heartwarming than I ever could have thought.

The new show Chaplin: The Musical stars Rob McClure as the legendary silent film star and features a book by three-time Tony Award® winner Thomas Meehan (Hairspray, The Producers, Annie) and Christopher Curtis, and music and lyrics by Christopher Curtis. Everything from the costumes and make-up, to the set and the brilliant choreography contributes to one of the best new musicals I've seen in a while. The show had such an effect on me that when the curtain fell, I immediately went and added at least 10 Chaplin movies to my Netflix queue.

All my readers are in luck! I'm giving away a pair of tickets to Chaplin: The Musical! There are 4 easy ways to win, and each comment counts as an entry. Be sure to leave your email in each comment so that I can contact you if you are the winner.

1) REQUIRED - Follow this blog by clicking on the button on the right panel and leave a comment below letting me know you did so.

2) REQUIRED - Leave a comment letting me know your favorite Charlie Chaplin movie and why.

3) Follow me on Twitter @yaelleah and leave a comment below letting me know you did so.

4) Tweet about this contest "I just entered to win 2 tix to @ChaplinBway on Awesome In New York! http://bit.ly/S3dsO5" and let me know with a link to your tweet.

Winners will be chosen using Random.org on Friday 10/26. You have until Friday 10/26 at 4 p.m. EST to enter the contest. Good luck!

Congratulations Elizabeth! She was the 17th commenter and wins 2 tickets to Chaplin! Thanks to everyone for entering! Better luck next time.

If you don't want to take any chances, you can purchase tickets for as low as $49 by visiting BroadwayOffers.com and entering code CLSCD925. You can also call (212) 239-6200 and use the code CLSCD925.

AWESOME GIVEAWAY: 5 Pairs of Tickets to the 17th Annual 2nd Avenue Halloween Bar Crawl

Everyone loves a good bar crawl, especially when they are Halloween themed (or really anything themed is good when alcohol and wandering around the city is involved). Lindy Promotions is planning their 8-hour marathon 17th annual 2nd Avenue Halloween Bar Tour on Saturday October 27th, and it promises to be a good time.

Here are the deets:

• A Ton Midtown East Bars All w/in 2 Blocks!
• $2 Domestic Draft Pints
• $4 Mixed Drinks
• Various Food & Shot Specials
• FREE Souvenir Pint Cup (first 700pp)
• Beads, Giveaways and More!

Advance discount tickets start at only $7 online, and advanced ticket holders are guaranteed a souvenir cup. Use the promo code AWESOME for an additional $2 OFF!

Walk-up tickets will be available from 1-6pm at TG Whitney's (53rd St. btwn 2nd & 3rd Ave.). Prices are $10 with costume and $15 without.

But wait! All my readers are in luck! I'm giving away 5 pairs of tickets to the 2nd Avenue Halloween Bar Crawl! There are 4 easy ways to win, and each comment counts as an entry. Be sure to leave your email in each comment so that I can contact you if you are the winner.

1) REQUIRED - Follow this blog by clicking on the button on the right panel and leave a comment below letting me know you did so.

2) REQUIRED - Leave a comment letting me know your favorite happy hour deal and where I can find it.

3) Follow me on Twitter @yaelleah and leave a comment below letting me know you did so.

4) Tweet about this contest "I just entered to win 2 tix to the @lindypromo 2nd Avenue Halloween Bar Crawl on Awesome In New York! http://bit.ly/TyqiCU" and let me know with a link to your tweet.

Winners will be chosen using Random.org on Wednesday 10/24. You have until Wednesday 10/24 at 4 p.m. EST to enter the contest. Good luck!

Don't Be Scrooge, Drink At Le Poisson Rouge!

(Le) Poisson Rouge is an awesome venue. Don't be put off by the smack-dab-in-the-middle-of-NYU-territory location, because LPR features everything from classical to rock, folk to Thrillist parties.

In light of their mantra "serving alcohol and art," LPR invited me to sample their brand, spanking new cocktail menu on a recent Friday night. Mixologists Laura Smith, Amy Wilkinson, and Renee Rogoff spent significant amounts of time at the bar concocting recipes with one-of-a-kind alcohols and mixers, not a bad job if you ask me. The result is a new menu of 10 drinks ($14 each) ranging from the crisp Cool Hand Cuke to the woodsy Distillery Gibson to the inside-warming Sticki Hot Lemonade.

I'm a fruity-drink lover, so I started out with the Slow Jam. This drink was practically made for me. With cachaca, lemon juice, and ginger beer mixed with a dollop of apricot jam and garnished with dried apricot, the drink made me feel warm and fuzzy with out too much of a sweet kick. My guest decided to start off adventurous and tried the Distillery Gibson. This drink will probably grow hair on your chest, but the good kind, if you know what I mean. The pickled onions were an amazing addition to this gin, dry vermouth, and balsamic and sherry vinegar mixture.

The LPR Bar

Slow Jam and Distillery Gibson (left to right)

While sipping our first drinks, I perused the food menu and it looks killer! Truffled mac n' cheese anyone? How about grilled chicken sliders with caramelized onions or a spicy tuna roll? They also serve milk and cookies for dessert...how oddly quaint!

Next up, I opted for the other jam drink, the Purple Haze. This was another drink made for me with gin, green chartreuse, lime juice, and blackberry jam garnished with mint. My guest went lighter and sampled the Rhuby Slip, with rhubarb liquer, Aperol, and prosecco. Definitely refreshing.

Purple Haze

Rhuby Slip

(Le) Poisson Rouge is located at 158 Bleecker Street in the village.

The First Brewery In Queens Since Prohibition--Opening Soon!

New York is a beer town. Despite all of the buzz you've heard about wine, whiskey, tequila, rum, vodka, cachaca, etcetera, if you lived in this town about a hundred years ago, you couldn't walk 10 blocks without coming across at least one brewery (you would know this especially if you came across the NY Historical Society's Beer Here exhibition this past summer).

In the last decade or so, brewing has made a comeback here, especially in Brooklyn with Brooklyn Brewery and Greenpoint, among others. However, the creation of beer has been lacking in pretty much every other borough. So you can imagine why there's so much anticipation for the opening of SingleCut Brewery in Astoria, the first to open in Queens in more than a generation.

Advertising exec turned home-brewer turned professional brewer Rich Buceta named the brewery for a body-style of electric guitar he's played for much of his life. He decided to open the brewery in Queens to fill a gap in the community. All beer will be 100% brewed on-site and they will also self-distribute, ensuring freshness.

Now for the beers. SingleCut's focus will be on lagers (or as they like to call them, "Lagrrrs!"). They even have 2 specialized lager tanks that are only really found in Germany. Their launch beers will be:

• 19-33 Lagrrr!: a pilsner-style but given a "SingleCut injection of awesome," according to Rich. The name "19-33" comes from their address, the year Prohibition ended, and the fact that SingleCut is only operating brewery in Queens since Prohibition. 
• Bob Sunburst Finish Lagrrr!: a hoppy, malty, smooth lager
• Dean Pacific NW Mahogany Ale: a red-hued hoppy ale influenced by beers Rich tasted in Oregon
• Billy Half-Stack IPA: SingleCut's flagship IPA

The brewery will also feature a Tap Room where you can sample two beers gratis and purchase and refill growlers (prices and hours are still TBD). Because of local laws, they will not be operating as a bar or eatery, but will be hosting community events 4-5 times a year. The brewery features a stage (along with Rich, most other employees of SingleCut seem to play an instrument) for live music. Rich said they hope to partner with local business in creating these events.

Lastly, in furthering the community connection even more, SingleCut will be available at Queens restaurants like Queens Kickshaw, Sweet Afton, Sunswick, Crescent and Vine, AleWife, and MexiBBQ, as well as many craft beer bars throughout Brooklyn and Manhattan.

The day I went for a visit, the brewery was very much still under construction, but Rich gave me a tour and I can't wait to go back and see the final product. Brewing should be going on right now with the first batch ready for business sometime after the second week in November.

Rich Buceta and a Lager Tank

The future Tap Room - love that wood!

Tap Room into the brewery

Before I left, Rich gave me a bottle of Sunburst Lagrr! to take home and man was it good. Stay tuned in the coming months for another post after I return to the finished brewery!

SingleCut is located about a 15 minute walk from the Ditmars stop on the N/Q train (19-33 37th Street, Astoria).

AWESOME GIVEAWAY: 2 Tickets to Dead Accounts

Whether you really love Broadway, especially family dramas, or whether you just want to catch the Ex-Mrs. Cruise (AKA: Katie Holmes) in her first performance since the big splitaroo (we won't judge), Dead Accounts is definitely a show you want to see. In addition to Katie, the show stars two-time Tony Award winner Norbert Leo Butz and is written by Pulitzer prize finalist Theresa Rebeck (Seminar) and directed by three-time Tony Award winner Jack O’Brien.

The cast also features Judy Greer (in her Broadway debut!), Jayne Houdyshell (Tony Award winner, last seen in the 2011 revival of Follies), and Josh Hamilton (Proof, Coast of Utopia). Here's a couple videos that provide a closer look at the play and the story behind it.

All my readers are in luck! I'm giving away a pair of tickets to Dead Accounts! There are 4 easy ways to win, and each comment counts as an entry. Be sure to leave your email in each comment so that I can contact you if you are the winner. The winner will be given tickets to performances on November 5, 7 (matinee), 8, 9, or 10 (matinee).

1) REQUIRED - Follow this blog by clicking on the button on the right panel and leave a comment below letting me know you did so.

2) REQUIRED - Leave a comment letting me know you're favorite Katie Holmes movie/TV show/Broadway show and why.

3) Follow me on Twitter @yaelleah and leave a comment below letting me know you did so.

4) Tweet about this contest "I just entered to win 2 tix to @DeadAcctsBway on Awesome In New York! http://bit.ly/T14Bz4" and let me know with a link to your tweet.

Winners will be chosen using Random.org on Friday 10/19. You have until Friday 10/19 at 4 p.m. EST to enter the contest. Good luck!

A winner has been chosen! Congratulations Brad! He was the 13th commenter and wins 2 tickets to Dead Accounts on Broadway! Thanks to everyone who entered and stay tuned for more contests from Awesome In New York!

When All You Want Is A Doughnut...Or Ten

When all I want is a doughnut, or 10, I think a doughnut party would be the best place to be. I just found out about this awesome sounding doughnut party happening TONIGHT at Project No. 8 at the Ace Hotel. It's to celebrate the launch of All You Can Eat Now's New York Doughnut Map and to celebrate National Doughnut Month (frankly that should be every month). They will have donuts from Peter Pan, Dough, Doughnut Plant, Pies-n-Thighs, Dun-Well, and Van Leeuwen with Stumptown Coffee and drinks from Caledonia Spirits and Winery. It all goes down from 6-8, get excited!

AWESOME ALERT: Free Lipgloss at American Apparel

This one is pretty self-explanatory. Thought I'd share!

To find a store near you, click here!