A Mr. Popper Moment

Two nights ago the most amazing thing happened--I took a pictures with a penguin in a photobooth. No joke, here's the proof:

How awesome is that right? As jealous as you all are of my avian encounter, I'm sure you're wondering why and how this is relevant to your lives. Let me back up a bit. My friend Stephanie invited me to wine hour event at NIOS, inside the Muse Hotel. The back room of NIOS is having an identity crisis and the restaurant had an event to launch their re-naming contest. The contest will run through Friday, May 17, with entries themed to two categories: Greek and Wine. The winner will receive a cocktail party for up to 25 people in the newly-named space. You can enter to win by submitting your Greek and/or wine themed entries through the hotel's Facebook and Twitter pages or by stopping by the restaurant.

Photo Courtesy of NIOS

The Muse Hotel is part of the Kimpton Family and they have a policy that if you can walk in the door you can stay at the hotel. Hence, the Columbus Zoo was visiting with a real live penguin! Even better, there was a photobooth to document the penguin's visit! I was so excited that I couldn't even control myself and I think I was grinning ear to ear for the rest of the night.

You can check out Kimpton's pet policy as well as some adorable animal photos here.

You Want to Visit the Park with Tequila in Its Name

Last night I went with my friend Jen to check out the grand opening of Tequila Park Taqueria in the Hudson Hotel. It was a tad chilly by the time we got there, but with my jacket on it was a super enjoyable night at a rooftop bar.

The place is very large by comparison to other similar venues, and the vibe is definitely downtown meets uptown ($16 for margaritas?! Holy cow!?), yet nostalgic and whimsical (hello strings of lights, fake grass, and foosball tables).

In all honesty, their menu looked super interesting. I started with the Horchata Apple Blossom Margarita with Riazul Reposado and apple blossom honey and Jen got the Smokin' Apple with Corzo Reposado, ginger, mezcal and red sea salt. These couldn't be more different apple margaritas if they tried. Mine was on the sweeter side while Jen's had quite the kick, but I enjoyed them both.

Horchata Apple Blossom and Smokin' Apple Margaritas ($16 each)

For food we split two orders of tacos, one from the "common" side of the menu--the crispy 48-hour pork carnitas ($8 for 2)--and one from the "uncommon" side of the menu--sriracha cheesesteak ($12). Both were served on homemade tortillas and the latter packed quite the punch with the sriracha. Would highly recommend both!

Crispy 48-Hour Pork Carnitas Tacos ($8)

Sriracha Cheesteak Tacos ($12)

No visit to Tequila Park is complete without at least 3 rounds of foosball (best of 3 wins of course!). We played 4 and yours truly won 2, leaving with sufficiently sore arms. I forgot how much fun those little men on poles could be!!

Ready, set, foosball!!

It's definitely the start of rooftop bar season, so what do you think? Will you check out Tequila Park?

Authentic Sichuan Food on Restaurant Row

Over my years living in NYC, I've learned that Restaurant Row, though it has it's gems (I'm looking at you Bourbon Street), is typically a seedy place to eat dinner. You've got the hustlers trying to get suckers to pay for their overpriced pre-theater menus, and just the general hustle and bustle of that neighborhood can be a bit too much to handle. So you can understand my hesitance when I was invited for dinner at Grand Sichuan last weekend. My mom was in town and we had plans to see Tom Hanks in Lucky Guy (excellent! go see it!), so I suggested we give this place a try.

First thing I noticed when we were ushered back to our table in the back room of the narrow, white-walled, simple restaurant--everyone was speaking Chinese. That piqued my interest because you know those people aren't there for the General Tso's Chicken or the Beef with Mixed Vegetables. Maggie (I don't think that was her given name), our bubbly and cheerful host for the night gave us a bit of perspective about the menu. It was mostly Sichuan-inspired, with some more traditional elements as well (for the tourists who stumble in most likely). She did warn us that Sichuan food is inherently very spicy but was very nice in suggesting things for us that were not as hot, while still authentic.

First up, we tried the egg drop soup ($2.25). While it was similar to the egg drop soup I'm used to, this version had a lot more flavor. It was made with vegetables and had a bit of a peppery kick to it. It would definitely be nice to cuddle up with on a cold winter's day.

Egg Drop Soup ($2.25)

Next up, we opted for something a big on the spicier side that had rave reviews on Yelp. Dan Dan noodles are as traditional as you come in Sichuan food, and Grand Sichuan offers two different versions; plain or Xie Lao Ban's version from the Dunlop book (both $4.25). We chose the latter because Maggie said it was fairly famous and had a lot more flavor and no sugar added. Wow, was this delicious. My mouth is seriously watering now just thinking about it. However, it was one of the spiciest things I've ever eaten in my life. It was the kind of thing that you have to just keep eating because if you stop the heat will just take over and your mouth will explode (see all that bright red in the bottom? yea, that's straight hot pepper sauce). But the strange thing was that even though this dish was so spicy, it had so much flavor and I actually went back for seconds after the rest of our food came, event though that was slightly masochistic.

Xie Lao Ban's Dan Dan Noodles ($4.25)

The menu offers two different duck options, and we went for the Smoked Tea Duck ($16.95) which was served crispy with buns and sauce you use to make little sandwiches. This meat was delicious and super moist. You could even taste a slight tea flavor under all that crispiness. Good stuff. 

Smoked Tea Duck ($16.95)

Then the entrees started coming. First were the beef short ribs served with a corn salad and topped with spicy shredded beef ($13.95). Next to the meat there was something that Maggie even had a hard time describing. It was like a white film made from milk that was fairly bland tasting and two brownish balls that were liquidy when you poked them and those were made from meat and that's all I can tell you about that. The shortribs however were jam-packed with flavor and super tender and delicious (as they should be after being cooked for 80+ hours!). The corn was a bit funky (do they even grow corn in China?), but the meat was soooooooooo yummy.

Beef Short Ribs ($13.95)

We were also sent out a dish of the curry chicken ($9.95), which is on the chef specialties list even though curry is not typically found in Sichuan food Maggie told us. Still, the meat was delicious and the sauce full of flavor.

Curry Chicken ($9.95)

We opted for the vegetable happy family as our last entree because, well, you can see that we had been eating fairly heavily before that. I was a bit puzzled by this dish but it was very fun to look at. It had some boiled pieces of pumpkin, sweet potato, potato and squash and was served with a radish foam, tomato/pepper puree, spinach jello like things, and dried flakes of different vegetables. I'm still not sure exactly how this is Chinese, but it was nice so have some fiber included with the meal.

Vegetable Happy Family

All in all I'd say we did pretty well. We got some looks from the other patrons when Maggie kept bringing out dish after dish. I'd venture to think they got some kicks out of seeing us eat those Dan Dan noodles. We turned down Maggie's offer of dessert because we were so full, but they did bring us some orange slices and fortune cookies to round out the meal.

Our table once we'd given up

Orange Slices and Fortune Cookies

I must say that I've got to rethink my entire opinion of Restaurant Row after eating at Grand Sichuan. Maybe there are some more [authentic] hidden gems on that stretch of West 46th Street, and I'll definitely add this to the list!

 

Take it to the Street [Eats]

Remember that tried and true annual food event put on by the Village Voice that I rave about year after year? Well awesome folks, the weather has warmed and a food truck only event by the same people who brought you Choice Eats is only weeks away. I give you Choice Streets!

Unfortunately the May 7th event is sold-out, but I'm sure you can find some tickets on Craigslist if you're really excited (and you should be). Choice Streets, which takes place on the Intrepid (HOW COOL!?), will feature more than 25 of NYC's best food trucks including some of my favorites like Coolhaus, Wafels & Dinges and Kelvin Natural Slush Co. (can you tell I have a thing for dessert?). Since switching jobs almost 2 years ago and relocating to an office outside of the standard food truck territory  I haven't been able to keep up with the latest in street eating, but I'm very excited to get reacquainted.

Here's a video recap of the 2012 event:



Who's going to Choice Streets this year? If you miss it, be sure to stay tuned for my post-even recap right back here :)

Don't Hyde From Broadway's Latest Thriller

Broadway's Spring 2013 season is chock full of surprises, but nothing I've seen has been as thrilling as the revival of Jekyll & Hyde. Starring Constantine Maroulis of American Idol fame and the powerful R&B artist Deborah Cox, the show transcends typical theater boundaries while telling the story of a scientist struggling with the duality of life's good and evil aspects. Maroulis plays a suitable Dr. Jekyll but is transformative as Hyde and almost seems to present himself as two different people. Meanwhile, when Cox sings just about anything, you feel yourself unable to even thing about anything else, her voice is just that good.

I had the pleasure of being invited to see the show a few weeks ago with a reception at The Paramount Hotel beforehand. While I wouldn't recommend this show to everyone (ie: children and people looking for a traditional la-dee-da musical), I was definitely entertained and left with much to talk and think about once the curtain fell.

Jekyll & Hyde is only on Broadway as a limited engagement so get your tickets now! Use the discount code HYDE to save up to 30% on tickets through May 26. For Monday - Thursday shows, orchestra/front mezz tickets will be $89 (reg. $125) and for Friday - Sunday shows they will be $99 (reg. $135 - $142). Use this discount by visiting Ticketmaster.com, calling (877) 250-2929 or mention this offer to the Marquis Theatre Box Office (46th St between Broadway and 8th Ave).

Burlesque in a New Light

Nathan Lane is one of those actors whom I would go see in any show, ever, period. He's amazing, and his performance in Lincoln Center Theater's newest show, The Nance, is no exception.

The show takes place in New York City in the 1930s, when burlesque impresarios welcomed the hilarious comics and musical parodies of vaudeville to their decidedly lowbrow niche. A headliner called "the nance" was a stereotypically camp homosexual and master of comic double entendre - usually played by a straight man. In The Nance, Nathan Lane plays Chauncey, the decidedly funny burlesque performer yet rather melancholic middle aged man dealing with a difficult double life. Though the show deals with an intense and somewhat depressing period in our society's past, it will have you laughing out loud and wishing this kind of  burlesque was still a thing.

Directed by 3-time Tony Award winner Jack O'Brien, The Nance also showcases the wonderfully raw and honest Johnny Orsini, who is making his Broadway debut playing Chauncey's lover Ned, Lewis J. Stadlen excellently playing the head performer Efram, and the spunky trio of Cady Huffman, Jenni Barber and Andréa Burns, who play the strippers.

Before the show, I was invited to a buzzmaker event at The Strip House, honestly one of the better pre-theater events I've been to. We were welcomed to the lush venue bedecked in red banquettes and photographs of 1930s burlesque stars (how apropos!)  with a signature Nance-inspired cocktail akin to a passionfruit and orange martini. The passed hors d'oeuvres were excellent, and I particularly enjoyed the crispy shrimp and the bacon and Stilton popovers.

The Nance Cocktail

Spicy Tuna and Cucumber

Golden Beet Rounds

Crispy Shrimp

Crabcakes

Bacon and Stilton Popovers

Steak Crostini

Stomachs full and thirsts quenched, we stuck around for the raffle, though I didn't win anything (my juju must be off), but I did go home with a Nance logo shot glass, a Mac lipstick in a dark and mischievous shade of red called Dubonnet, and delicious homemade potato chips and white chocolate, pistachio and cranberry fudge from Joseph Cuccia Catering.

Need Saturday Night Plans?

It's raining outside and the thought of getting your act together and making plans for tomorrow night seems incredibly daunting, right? Good thing some awesome plans were already made for you! I'm hosting an open bar event tomorrow night to benefit the National MS Society at Turtle Bay in midtown (987 2nd Ave; between 52nd St. & 53rd St.), and all my awesome readers are invited!

For $40, you will get an open bar from 8-11 including beer, wine and well liquor, with $10 going to fight MS. When you get to the bar say "MS Walk" and you will be able to purchase your open bar wristband. Our group will have a reserved section in the back of the dining room and I hope to see you there! Invite all your friends -- it's going to be an awesome night for sure!