Sip for St. Jude

The Frying Pan is one of my favorite local drinking spots for spring and summer evenings. It's positioned perfectly on the Hudson to watch the sun set and take in a good beer and perhaps some pre-dinner snacks.

On Tuesday June 9, you can join the friends of the St. Jude Steering Committee for their annual young professionals event benefitting cancer research exclusively on the Frying Pan.

Tickets are $75 until 3pm on the day of the event, when they go up to $85, and are available here. You'll be served beer, wine, and light apps, and if you arrive by 8pm, you'll be entered to win free admission to the organizations annual winter gala.

When: Tuesday June 9, 7-9pm

Where: The Frying Pan, Pier 66 @ West 26th Street

Why: To raise money for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Tickets: $75 in advance

AWESOME GIVEAWAY: 5 Classes to Exceed Physical Culture

Remember how I held a contest with lots of cool prizes to raise money for the National MS Society? Well, the winners have been picked and notified. But SURPRISE! There's one more prize to win!

I've got a 5-class pack up for grabs (valued at $160!)! The classes at Exceed are amazing, small and full of personal attention. What's more, the facilities are squeaky clean and up-to-date. 

Every $5 donation made to my Walk MS page from today through midnight on 4/18 will be entered to win--so if you donate $20, you'll receive 4 entries! Whether or not you were a big winner in the overall raffle (or if you forgot to enter, I won't judge!), here's your second chance!

I'm fast approaching my $3,000 goal and the walk is this Sunday! So spread the word and best of luck!

AWESOME DEAL: Get 10% Off Sparkly Soul & Give Back to the MS Society

I've raved about my favorite nonslip, workout headbands from Sparkly Soul on this website before, but I'm going to do it again. These are the most amazing headbands for all sorts of workouts--from running to boxing, spinning to yoga, and rowing to Crossfit. They come in a wide array of colors and I have never had one slip off during class. It's like they're magic or something.

Well Sparkly Soul just one-upped themselves in support of my campaign to raise money for the National MS Society. Use the code WALKMS by 4/19 and get 10% off your entire purchase from www.sparklysoul.com. Addtionally, my team will receive 10% of your entire purchase as well. So you get awesome headbands and the MS Society receives vital funds to help support research and programming for people affected by this debilitating disease.

These headbands would make perfect Mother's Day, graduation or just because gifts! I wouldn't fault you for picking up a few of your own (I've got a collection of 6!). Now all that's left to decide is what colors you are going to buy!

AWESOME DEAL: Pay What You Wish at Just Salad Today

Wallet feeling kind of light? (Or even kind of heavy?) Just Salad, a fast casual restaurant concept serving healthy food--including, yes, salad--at 315 Park Ave South is allowing customers to pay what they wish for any salad or wrap at both lunch (12-1:30pm) and dinner (6-7:30pm) today 4/9.

All proceeds from the event will be donated to the Food Bank For NYC. Limit 1 wrap or salad (valued up to $10) per person and in-store only.

Dating by Subway Stop

Quick! Where's the best place to meet a Tinder Date near the 18th Street 1 stop? What about the 23rd Street 6 stop? The folks at Thrillist have come up with a handy little guide of all of the best date spots next to EVERY subway stop in Manhattan. You're welcome.

Meet the Indian "Chipotle" Now Open in the Theater District

I'll be the first to admit that having Indian food for lunch often sounds unappealing simply because it's hard to return to my desk and work after a rich, filling, often spicy meal served from an all-you-can-eat buffet. Ironic because I LOVE Indian food. So when I heard about the new fast casual Indian restaurant Chutney Kitchen, which opened up shop in Hell's Kitchen in February, I couldn't wait to try it.

Chutney Kitchen is the brainchild of former finance 9-5'er Silu Sao and her friend since grade school, Pankaj Amin. One morning Sao's 8-year-old daughter asked her why she was working in finance when all she loved was to cook. That week she quit her hedge fund job and enrolled in culinary school. After 2 years of creating recipes reflecting the fresh, high-quality Indian food she likes to eat at home, Sao opened the restaurant with Amin with the goal of providing a light alternative to this cuisine especially geared toward those with special dietary needs like vegetarians and those who eat gluten-free.

The way it works is very much like Chipotle. You choose a base--roti wrap (like a burrito), naan tacos, salad greens, rice bowl, or chaat bowl (garbanzo beans and potatoes)--and then a fill:

• Charbroiled chicken marinated in yogurt and spices ($8.95)
• Pulled pork simmered with tangy spices ($8.95)
• Shredded steak marinated in ginger, garlic and chilies ($9.95)
• Pan-seared potatoes seared with tumeric, cumin and onions ($7.95)
• Farmer's cheese (Paneer) sauteed with a 5-spice blend ($8.95)
• Lentils (Daal) stewed with onions and spices ($7.95)

You can then choose flavors including warm sauces (coconut cashew, tikka, or vindaloo), cold chutneys (date, yogurt, cilantro, or mirchi), and salad dressings (lemon cumin and spicy mango).

If you can't make up your mind (or are just overwhelmed by choices), Chutney Kitchen has some suggestions including the Viva Las Vegas (naan tacos with pulled pork, vindaloo, carrots & cabbage, pickled onions and yogurt and mirchi chutneys) and the Lucy Goosey (Chaat bowl with cucumber and tomatoes, chickpea crunch, and date, yogurt and cilantro chutneys).

I opted for the shredded steak chaat bowl with tikka sauce, carrots & cabbage, corn, chickpea crunch, and yogurt chutney washed down with an Aranciata San Pellegrino. The bowl was enough food for 2 meals for me, which I really appreciated. It was flavorful, yet slightly spicier than I expected. If you don't like spicy, make sure to let the person preparing your food know and they'll steer you clear of anything you won't like.

Other intriguing items on the menu include masala fries ($2.50), hot street chai ($3.50), and mango smoothies ($3.50). The only thing missing was dessert--I would love to see Sao's take on gulab jamun!

Full disclosure: I received a free meal from Chutney Kitchen but the opinions presented here are 100% my own.

AWESOME ALERT: Win Prizes from Peloton, Levain Bakery, Uplift Studios and More!

Have you ever wanted to support a worthy cause, work out at a fancy fitness studio for free, and munch on some divine chocolate chip cookies at the same time? If so, I have some fantastic news for you.

For my 12th year of fundraising for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society in their annual MS Walk, I've organized a contest to try and raise $3,000 for research and programming to benefit those with this terrible, debilitating disease. 

The prizes are valued at over $1,500! For every $10 donation, you will earn one chance to win one of these items:

• 30-class pack to my favorite spin studio in NYC, Peloton Cycle ($650 value!)
• 5-class pack to the Fhitting Room, where you'll get an amazing high intensity workout and personalized attention ($170 value!)
• 5-class pack to the amazing, kick-your-butt in the best way possible Uplift Studios ($160 value!)
• 5-class pack to ((305)) Fitness, the best and most fun dance cardio workout from Miami located in the Village ($149 value!)
• 5-class pack to the Union Square cycling studio with all sorts of theme rides, Revolve ($140 value!)
• One dozen assorted cookies from the place in the world that makes them best, Levain Bakery ($71 value!)
• 2 eyebrow waxes to the place that does them best, Boom Boom Brow Bar ($50 value!)
• 2 2-packs of classes from Throwback Fitness to get your recess on ($35 each!)

To enter, make a donation on my walk page and include how many raffle tickets you would like ($10 per ticket) in the notes section. Be sure to include your full name and email address when donating so that I can contact you if you win. Entries will be accepted through 9am ET on Sunday 4/12. All winners will be contacted by Monday 4/13.

Please spread the word to friends! These prizes are too good not to! And thanks for helping fund vital MS research and programming!