May 22nd, 2013 by Lynn Rickert
Most movie theaters offer overly buttered popcorn 
and fountain drinks at the concession stands; however, at Williamsburg’s Nitehawk Cinema, moviegoers can enjoy a full meal with beer and cocktails from the lobby bar. The theater, which shows newly released films and cult classics, offers a wide-ranging menu for dinner or brunch. Because Nitehawk has wide aisles for waiters to pass through, you can order your meal and have it delivered right to your seat.
Last week, I visited the theater for its Beer Dinner and a Movie series. I watched Army of Darkness while enjoying five beer tastings from Founders Brewing Co. and a three-course dinner prepared by Nitehawk’s chefs. Both the beer and food were created to perfectly pair with certain parts in the movie. The main course, two different cuts of steak and a glass of Founders’ Double Trouble IPA, accompanied a scene in which main character Ash fights an evil version of himself.
The next film in the series, The Goonies on June 12, will be paired with beers from Captain Lawrence Brewing Company and a four-course dinner. For details and tickets, visit nitehawkcinema.com. Also, be sure to ask in advance for a vegetarian meal option.
Tags: beer, Brooklyn, food, Founders Brewing Co., Movies, Nitehawk Cinema
Posted in Dine, Drink, Entertainment | No Comments »
May 21st, 2013 by Mackenzie Allison
A few weeks ago, I went to a one-woman comedy show at Magnet Theater. I headed to the small storefront venue in
Chelsea to see Jolene Turner perform Doll Talk. The show is a very creative retelling of Turner’s journey from a thirtysomething-year-old server at the Mall of America’s American Girl Store café to using the job as her ticket to relocate to NYC and follow her dreams. This often-quirky show includes digital media, a high-energy soundtrack and Victorian-era American Girl doll Samantha Parkington in a pivotal role. Check out Turner’s YouTube page to view more of her work. The line-up at Magnet Theater also includes shows ranging from long form improv, musical improv, scripted sketch comedy and more. If you want to take a stab at the stage, several improv classes are available.
Tags: Chelsea, Doll Talk, improv, Magnet Theater, sketch comedy
Posted in Entertainment | No Comments »
May 20th, 2013 by Mackenzie Allison
Last week, I went to an event at MEGU—a chic Japanese restaurant in Tribeca. The large, two-floor space is
beautifully designed—bathed in a sea of beige, cool concrete and accents of red. The dining room boasts a large ice sculpture at its center—a feature brought in from Brooklyn each night—and an enormous spherical iron chandelier hovering above. Upstairs, the bar area is a kaleidoscope of color, with spools of fabric mounted behind glass on the walls. The nearby lounge, which overlooks the dining room, is the perfect place to people watch while enjoying a smart cocktail. MEGU offers a diverse array of sushi, sashimi and inventive dishes, including MEGU Original Crispy Asparagus and Foie Gras Chawanmushi a la Rossini—the restaurant’s original creation of egg custard with black truffle. Also visit the restaurant’s midtown location.
Tags: Japanese, MEGU, Midtown, Tribeca
Posted in Dine | No Comments »
May 17th, 2013 by Lynn Rickert
Usually on Friday nights, I’ll go home after work and watch 
Netflix on the couch or go to a nearby bar, but last Friday I ended up at Hunkomania, an all-male strip show for women. Although watching muscular men dance their clothes off to both classic and recent top 40 hits sounded entertaining, I was worried about the audience participation portion of the evening. I was relieved to discover it’s not mandatory. If you don’t want a lap dance, the hunks would love to just tell you their life story or offer to get you a drink from the bar—unsurprisingly Sex on the Beach is the house special.
If you are interested in dancing with a hunk, just ask any of them about purchasing a “hot seat.” This side-of-the-stage seating is encouraged for bachelorettes, women celebrating birthdays and even recent divorcées who wish to join in the show. During each themed segment, the men strip down to their underwear, then begin dancing with the hot-seaters and hoisting them into the air.
The New York club has been in business since 1998 and currently operates Thursday through Sunday nights at Elegance Nightclub. The show runs from 9 to 11 p.m., but doors open at 7:30 to allow time for pre-show drinks and mingling with the hunks. Before last week’s show, my friend and I learned that some of the dancers had been with the show since its early days, while some had more recently joined, working their way up from bartenders. During the week, a lot of the men have part-time or full-time jobs, but many spend their days resting and working out to perfect their bodies for the weekend.
Hunkomania has locations in Manhattan, Atlantic City, Chicago, Philadelphia, Las Vegas and Houston. If you’re in one of those areas, but would like a dancer sent to you instead, the men are also available for party rentals. Find more information at hunkomania.com.
Tags: Hunkomania, male strip club, Midtown
Posted in Entertainment | No Comments »
May 16th, 2013 by Mackenzie Allison
Love great food, drinks and music? Then head to Brooklyn this weekend for Great GoogaMooga. This three-day
festival, held May 17-19 in Prospect Park, will welcome 85 of the city’s top restaurants, selling delicious bites in hand-painted booths—reminiscent of old New York storefronts. The diverse range of offerings will include everything from foie gras doughnuts and Guinness stout brownies to duck sausage, grilled Maine lobster and several vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options. Festival-goers will also find more than 100 brews from more than 30 brewers, as well as more than 100 wines from around the world. Friday’s Kickoff Concert will include musical acts Yeah Yeah Yeahs, plus The Flaming Lips and The Darkness. For more information, click here.
Tags: Brooklyn, festival, Great GoogaMooga, Prospect Park
Posted in Dine, Drink, Entertainment, Events | No Comments »
May 15th, 2013 by Mackenzie Allison
Taste of Tribeca is a culinary festival that celebrates downtown, local cuisine. Stop by this Saturday, May 18, from
11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and taste some of the best cuisine from the area’s top chefs and restaurants, including Tribeca Grill, Landmarc, Kutsher’s Tribeca, Bubby’s, The Palm, Blaue Gans, Duane Park Patisserie and newcomers, such as Dirty Bird To Go and Aamanns-Copenhagen. The festival will also boast a special VIP section, live entertainment, wine tastings and more. Ticket options include a General Taste Ticket ($45/advanced purchase and $50/day of event), which provides six tastes from any of the participating restaurants; Premium Ticket Market Table Seat ($175 per person), which includes personal food runners, reserved seating, designer t-shirts and a gift bag from the Taste of Tribeca sponsors; and Taste Table Reserve ($950 for table of six), which features the above premium ticket amenities. All tickets may be purchased here and all proceeds from the event will ensure the continuation of arts and enrichment programs at local public schools PS 150 and PS 234. Taste of Tribeca will take place on Duane Street, btw Greenwich and Hudson sts.
Tags: Taste of Tribeca
Posted in Dine, Drink, Events | No Comments »
May 14th, 2013 by Lynn Rickert
Last night, I got to try a few appetizers at Pera Soho, a gorgeous Mediterranean 
restaurant on Thompson Street. The restaurant occupies a large space with plenty of indoor and outdoor seating, including a roof deck with views of midtown and the Empire State Building. We ate in the walled garden area on street level, directly across from the entrance and bar. The appetizers we tried—hummus with crunchy pita chips, lamb and chicken skewers, flakey Phyllo rolls filled with feta cheese—all had a hint of spice, are available on their dinner menu and even helped me keep warm in the wind.
Pera also has a midtown location. For more on both Mediterranean bistros, visit peranyc.com.
Tags: Mediterranean, Pera Soho, small plates, SoHo
Posted in Dine | No Comments »
May 13th, 2013 by Mackenzie Allison
Everyone knows that Manhattan is home to some of the most diverse cuisine in the world, but keep in mind
that the other four boroughs also boast plenty of great eats. You can find out what Queens has to offer at Queens Taste 2013. This culinary event, held tomorrow, May 14, from 6 to 9 p.m. at Caesars Club, Citi Field in Flushing, will welcome approximately 50 restaurants and other food and beverage purveyors. Guests may nibble on delights from Austin’s Steak & Ale House, Cookie Fairy Sweets, McClure’s Pickles and more. For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.
Tags: Austin's Steak & Ale House, Caesars Club, Citi Field, Cookie Fairy Sweets, McClure's Pickles, Queens Taste 2013
Posted in Attractions, Dine, Drink, Events | No Comments »
May 10th, 2013 by Mackenzie Allison
If you want to get your casino fix, there’s no need to rack up the frequent flyer miles with a trip to
Las Vegas. Resorts World Casino New York City is a world-class destination for gaming and entertainment, minutes from anywhere is NYC. Located in Queens, this is the one-and-only casino in the five boroughs, and it’s a lot of fun. A few friends head to the casino on a regular basis, and I understand why. Visitors can enjoy more than 5,000 games—including the Hangover, Wheel of Fortune and Sex and the City, grab a bite to eat at one of the many restaurants, watch the big game or sold-out concert on an 18’ by 26’ TV screen and enjoy entertainment at Bar 360 and the third-floor, 70,000-square-foot Central Park event space—which hosts everything from disco and reggae nights to fashion and comedy shows. This is also the first casino in the country with European Single 0 Roulette and the No. 1 revenue earning slot casino in the country since August 2012. For directions, click here.
Tags: Resorts World Casino New York City
Posted in Dine, Drink, Entertainment | No Comments »
May 9th, 2013 by Mackenzie Allison
Remember that movie Showgirls? I’m almost certain you do. It had Saved By The Bell’s neurotic
Jessie Spano—aka Elizabeth Berkley, Kyle MacLachlan of Twin Peaks fame and Gina Gershon—who always seems to play some sort of dead-eyed borderline psychopath. Well, as you probably know, this movie didn’t make out so well in theaters. The odds were stacked against it from the get-go: an insane amount of erotic sexuality and sexual violence—way too much for audiences 18 years ago, graphic language and horrendous, cringe-inducing overacting by its star. This little nugget got smacked with an NC-17 rating and then crawled into a hole to die. However, this film, which somehow reached cult classic status, now has a home Off-Broadway with Showgirls! The Musical—playing at XL Nightclub, Cabaret & Lounge in Midtown from May 15 thru June 15. I saw this raunchy show a few weeks ago when it was still performing Off Off-Broadway in the East Village, and I have to say it is pretty true to the movie. All the parts you quietly mocked are greatly exaggerated in the show—think the sexual tension between Berkley and Gershon’s characters, the aloofness of Berkley’s best friend and the cheesy dance numbers. This is a funny show; however, it’s not for everyone. If you don’t mind nudity, foul language and incredibly crude jokes, Showgirls! The Musical is definitely worth the $20 ticket. For more information, click here.
Tags: Cabaret & Lounge, Midtown, Showgirls! The Musical, XL Nightclub
Posted in Entertainment | No Comments »
