Our Town November 3, 2011

NEWS: Bringing New York’s Past into the Present November 3, 2011

GRAND OPENING (Late October)

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HALLOWEEN FREEZES OVER

Notes from the neighborhood Compiled by Megan Finnegan & Aspen Matis

TAXI OF TOMORROW UNVEILED

AARP MEETING ADDRESSES SENIOR ISSUES Want to learn about and discuss senior living, programs, abuse and health and financial issues? At 1 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 10, the Yorkville AARP chapter will hold its monthly meeting in the Immanuel Lutheran Church parish hall, located at 1296 Lexington Ave., between 87th and 88th streets. The meeting will feature speakers State Sen. Liz Krueger and Ken Onaitis of the Burden Center for the Aging.

Refreshments will be served. Be sure to enter through the red doors next to CVS. For more information, call 917-573-3296.

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NO NEED TO FREEZE THIS WINTER Those worried about being able to afford their heating bills this season can check out the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). The program helps millions of low-income households pay their energy bills; with an average benefit of $450 per recipient, 1.3 million New York households last year received enough assistance to cut their heating costs in half. LIHEAP also offers bill payment assistance, energy crisis assistance, weatherization and energyrelated home repairs.

State Sen. Adriano Espaillat has opened his office to constituents in need of help with the LIHEAP application and follow-up process and he emphasized the need to seek assistance before the weather drops to dangerously cold temperatures.

“Some people resort to unsafe methods to keep their homes warm, including the use of stoves and improperly vented portable heaters, which are fire and carbon monoxide hazards,” Espaillat said in a statement. “We do not want to see people on the streets because they can’t afford to pay their heating bills.”

The LIHEAP application can be found at liheap.ncat.org/profiles/NY.htm, or call the National Energy Assistance Referral (NEAR) project toll free Monday through Friday, 9 a.m.-7 p.m., at 866-674-6327.

CENTRAL PARK MOURNING LOSS OF TREES With barely enough time to bounce back from the damage caused by Hurricane Irene last month, Central Park was badly hit by the freak pre-Halloween snowstorm that took New York and much of the East Coast by bitter surprise on Saturday. The Central Park Conservancy is seeking donations to help with the cost of cleaning up and restoring after the lat-

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New Yorkers have a chance to preview the “Taxi of Tomorrow” today through Saturday, Nov. 5 at the Nissan design expo exhibit on the pedestrian plaza across from the Flatiron building at Broadway and Fifth Avenue. The exhibit will be open 8 a.m.-9 p.m. on Thursday and Friday and 8 a.m.-6 p.m. on Saturday.

The minivan-like design was selected by the Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) to become the exclusive vehicle available to taxi drivers starting in 2013. The taxi’s features will include a transparent roof panel, outlets and USB ports, airbags for the back seats, more legroom and cargo space and antimicrobial seats.

While many New Yorkers will welcome the upgrades, some disability advocacy groups and elected officials have blasted the design for being inaccessible to wheelchairs.

Upper East Side Assembly Member Micah Kellner holds Mayor Michael Bloomberg accountable for choosing what he calls “an inaccessible cardboard cut-out” for the taxi of tomorrow, and has called for it to be scrapped in favor of a completely accessible design.

The federal justice department is currently investigating the TLC for noncompliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

A stilt-walking devil walks through a snowcovered landscape at the 2011 Pumpkin Festival in Central Park.

The free event featured a patch of 10,000 pumpkins, live performances and a haunted house.

est mayhem, which it estimates will ultimately cost the park about 1,000 trees.

The Conservancy called this blizzardlike winter preview “far more extensive and severe than what we witnessed in August,” noting that much of the damage was concentrated just below 86th Street, a highly trafficked section of the park.

Many trees throughout New York suffered due to the fact that most still had their leaves, which further weighted down the branches when the icy snow fell.

EXPLORE THE AMAZON WITH THE EXPERTS The Explorers Club will host a public lecture with Scott Wallace, a journalist and photographer, who will recount his experience following explorer Sydney Possuelo on his mission to find some of the last uncontacted tribes of the Amazon, including the , or “People of the Arrow.” Wallace will regale attendees with the dramatic tales of his journey into the jungle

while on assignment for.

Possuelo, the head of Brazil’s Department of Isolated Indians, sought to gather information about the elusive tribe, known for showering encroachers with deadly arrows, without actually contacting them while traveling with a 34-member expedition team. The lecture will draw on anthropology and the history of the Amazon to delve into the mysteries of the flecheiros and their ways of life.

Tickets are $20 for nonmembers, free for members. Student tickets are available with proper ID for $5. An additional $35 per ticket includes the postlecture buffet dinner. Reservations are suggested and will be given on a firstcome, first-served basis. Call 212-6288383 or email reservations@explorers. org. The event will take place Nov. 7, with a 6 p.m. check in for a 7 p.m. start at the Explorers Club headquarters, 46 E. 70th St. Tapped In continues on 33 N EW S YO U LIV E B Y

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news

Bringing New York’s Past into the Present Historical Society opens its doors after three-year overhaul

By Megan Finnegan The New-York Historical Society has been transformed.

Reaching the end of a three-year renovation, the 207-year-old institution will reopen on Nov. 11 with transparent new doors designed to protect its collection from errant gusts of weather, beckoning passersby with illuminated displays—showing light where there were previously only shadows.

The renovation takes the building from its previous incarnation as an imposing fortress on Central Park West to a more welcoming, open, airy center housing the city’s history. The Society hopes that the changes will encourage people to think of it less as a musty repository for old documents and more as a living space to understand our past and present historical moments.

“History is exciting,” said Louise Mirrer, president and CEO of the Society, stepping

around the last remnants of construction littering the new lobby. “We want people to understand that we’re always going toward new territory.” Recently, for example, staff members have collected first-hand accounts and information from the Occupy Wall Street movement, documenting it as it happens.

New content may draw new visitors, but the design of the building is the most obvious change at the Historical Society. While carefully working around the restrictions of the building’s landmark designation, architects transformed the lobby into a bright, open, high-ceilinged passage where visitors can check out highlights of the exhibits on display on video screens embedded into columns. The walls will be lined with artifacts, and touch-screen computers aimed at the wall will display historical information for each piece. Curious viewers can click through each topic, delving as deeply as they want into the collection before they ever see an exhibit.

That was one goal of the renovation, said Mirrer: to give the public access to more of its vast collection of historical objects, which number 10 million.

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A statue of Frederick Douglas greets visitors at the renovated New-York Historical Society.

“We’ve expanded very significantly our display opportunities,” Mirrer said, pointing to the cases built into the walls and the columns, as well as glass portals underfoot.

The portals will hold objects found in New York City soil, like a 16th-century Native American arrowhead and a bottle of wine from the 17th century belonging to colonial pioneer Anne Hutchinson, which was dis-

covered in Pelham Bay Park.

They’ve also expanded the capabilities of the first-floor theater, adding 120 seats, a state of the art lighting system and a 75-foot-wide video screen that screens a slickly produced, dramatic video of New York City’s past. The voice of actor Liev Continued on 33

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November 3, 2011

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ecently, GQ named Brooklyn the “Coolest City on the Planet” for foodies. While we agree that the borough is first-rate in a number of things—hipster watching, finding a cheap apartment with antique molding—we are inclined to believe that Manhattan is still king. Brooklyn isn’t a cocktail that people in Idaho can order. Woody Allen has yet to direct a film named after that borough. And there is one distinction that Manhattan will always hold: It’s the birthplace of New York City, an urban metropolis that captivates our collective imagination to this day.

Manhattan is the best mix of the old and the new, the elegant and the seedy, the popular and the obscure. This borough, the smallest of the five in terms of geography but the third largest in population, presents every flavor of society—if you know where to find it.

“Best of,” a tradition started here by the New York Press, is meant to inspire an air of wonder in New Yorkers, some of whom may be more ground down by their daily haul than others. Though “discovered” over 400 years ago, Manhattan still retains a sense of mystery and the same excitement of discovering a new land. This is the borough where you can find wares you didn’t know you needed, experiences you weren’t aware you were lacking and foods you never imagined were edible.

After a year in which Manhattan has survived an earthquake, a hurricane and a freak snowstorm in October, it’s time to put your stamp on this borough and claim it as the best in the universe.

Contributors to the Best of Manhattan issue: Nancy J. Brandwein, Wickham Boyle, Thomas Chan, Shoshana Davis, Leonora Desar, Sharon Feiereisen, Danny Gold, Matt Harvey, Andrea Hilbert, Regan Hofmann, Anna Margaret Hollyman, Layla Khoury-Hanold, Amy Kraft, Roland Li, Aspen Matis, Sherry Mazzocchi, Beth Mellow, Lorraine Duffy Merkl, Evan Mulvihill, Chris Opfer, Mark Peikert, Josh Perilo, Adam Rathe, Robby Ritacco, Josh Rogers, Max Sarinsky, Miral Sattar, Hilary Snell, Doug Strassler, Colin Weatherby, Tracy Weiss, Ashley Welch and Noah Wunsch. All illustrations by Evan Soares.

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BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011 | EATS & drinkS

BEST PLACE To drink An AuThEnTiC CuP of PAkiSTAni ChAi for $1: LAhori kEBAB 124 lexington ave. (betw. e.

28tH & 29tH StS.), 212-400-1166 Craving a hot drink to wash down your dinner? Forget the redundantly named $4 chai tea lattes and head over to Lahori Kebab to drink an authentic cup of chai.

Any South Asian will tell you that a cup of chai is not made with frothed milk or nutmeg but a concoction of tea leaves boiled in water and cooked with milk, cardamom and sugar added to taste. Only $1 will get you a styrofoam cup of chai to go. The first sip brings warmth, the second sip brings contentment and the whole cup brings zen.

BEST frEE PoPCorn: hoLidAy CoCkTAiL LoungE 75 St. MarkS pl. (betw. 1St & 2nD aveS.), 212-777-9637

EATS & drinkS ShorTEST rESErvATion BEST mom-And-PoP LiST for A “dArk dining” CAfé: 11Th STrEET CAfé rESTAurAnT: CAmAjE 327 w. 11tH St. (betw. greenwicH & 85 MacDougal St. (betw. bleecker & HouSton StS.), www.caMaje.coM If dark dining isn’t on your bucket list yet, it needs to be. As simple as it sounds, the European craze of eating without vision is a kind of sensual journey in which the avid food appreciator can dine without the distraction of eyesight. Very few NYC restaurants offer this intriguing experience (and even fewer have any openings left for 2011), but Camaje hosts these special occasions about two to three times a month. Their process is, however, a little outside of what has become the norm; while most restaurants hold the events in a pitch-black room (many of them are also handled by a blind wait staff ), Camaje’s darkness is simulated with a specially designed blindfold. This allows their staff to serve meals in a hazard-free environment and allows you to take a bathroom break without crashing into other patrons.

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waSHington StS.), 212-924-3804

Forget Chipotle and the lunchtime rat race. Step into this adorably tiny West Village cafe for a long, delicious, anti-chain lunch.

While you’re at it, get to know Maud and Philippe Bonsignour, the charming husband-and-wife team behind the operation.

Maud hails from France’s Basque country, while Philippe has a proud Parisian pedigree. The two met as children somewhere romantic in France, and have been opening friendly cafés ever since they were married— Philippe in the chef’s role, Maud as manager extraordinaire. “I know every single customer,” Maud said. “I know their grandmothers.

Everything.” For breakfast, the bacon, egg and cheese biscuit is an artery-clogging, hangover-busting delight—or, if you’re in a rush, get their eggs-in-a-coffee-cup to go (exotic toppings like pineapple and gruyère are optional). For lunch, the turkey sandwich with Danish blue cheese, frisée, lingonberries and honey mustard is simply brilliant.

BEST PLACE To hAvE An ACTuAL ConvErSATion ovEr CoffEE: CAfé grumPy 224 w. 20tH St. (betw. 7tH & 8tH aveS.), www.cafegruMpy.coM In an era when entitled customers expect Wi-Fi, table service and an endless reservation on their chair, Café Grumpy’s no-laptop policy feels curiously antiquated. But while it does drive away über-achieving students and part-time bloggers, it brings in a much preferred crowd: the Chatty Cathys of the world. Eavesdrop on grad students explaining to clueless sorority girls why a Foucauldian reading of the text might be more insightful than a Marxian, start-up types chatting about plans to oust the CRO and the CFO and Chelsea boys plotting their sloppy conquests later. If you get desperate for some digital stimulation, discreetly check your smart (or dumb) phone or tap on an iPad under the table. Did we mention they have great coffee?

This East Village dive’s longtime owner no longer slings drinks, but Holiday Cocktail Lounge’s interestingly stocked jukebox, surprisingly decent beer selection and glorious popcorn remain.

The new owners are Yankees-loving locals whose accents and propensity for buying barflies a beer every few rounds are welcome in a neighborhood where both comforts are no longer standard. If Mad Men teaches us anything, it’s that just about the only constant in this city is change.

Don, Roger and the boys might not be saddling up to the Holiday’s U-shaped bar for an old fashioned any time soon, but it’s nice to know there’s a place where thirsty city dwellers can drink a pint and talk shit about A-Rod with a stomach full of free popcorn.

BEST gLuTEn-frEE PizzA: PiE 124 4tH ave. (betw. 12tH & 13tH StS.), www.piebytHepounD.coM With its quirky, no-frills decor and thincrust, gluten-free options, Pie is the buzz among vegans jonesing for the perfect slice of grilled eggplant pie as well as the average pizza lover craving a plain cheese slice. Since you pay by weight, Pie is perfect for commitment-phobes who want to mix and match toppings. The way the pizzas are chopped up into small squares also makes sharing—and swiping—an easy option. Whether you want to devour a whole pound or just sample a couple of toppings, their inexpensive beer ($2 for Miller High Life; $2.50 for Budweiser) will help you wash it all down.

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BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011 | EATS & drinkS

BEST ChEApEr ThAn A Trip To FrAnCE: Lyon

BEST FrEE LunChTiME ArTiSAnAL Food SAMpLing: nEw AMSTErdAM MArkET

You’ve stood in line at Ladurée for 45 minutes on your lunch break, but there’s an easier way to get your Francophile on. Lyon, a quaint and relaxed bouchon, offers all the greatest hits from the country’s gastronomic center. Enjoying an aperitif of méthode traditionelle champagne in a cozy wooden room peppered with red-checked tablecloths, you’d swear the restaurant was brought across the Atlantic board by board. The charcuterie is decadent enough to turn vegetarians into carnivores. Each barnyard friend is represented better than the next, including a Lyonnais riff on New York City’s beloved hot dog complete with salted pretzel roll. Adventurous eaters should try the tripe; the rest can find perfection in the standards: roast poulet, salad with bacon and poached egg and a rich onion soup of hearty broth, tender brisket and rich marrow jam. As the French do, wash it all down with a glass (or three) of their slightly chilled Beaujolais. Julia Child would surely be there nightly. Bon appétit!

100 Peck SliP (At Front St.), 212-766-8688

118 Greenwich Ave. (betw. w. 12th & 13th StS.), www.lyonnyc.com

In a parking lot fronting the now defunct Fulton Fish Market, rows of plank and trestle tables are laden with the best chocolates, breads, cheeses and meats that money can’t buy—at least when you’re sampling the artisanal wares. This year-old reinvention of the Public Market has been a quiet success, perhaps because of its non-hip location or the high ratio of market fare to prepared foods.

One could easily make a meal of dark Nordic bread, cucumber, and cheese, Mexican chocolates, bratwurst from well-tended piggies, smoked duck breast, Berkshire blue cheese and crisp slices of Bosc pears or Mutsu apples. All you need is a toothpick and no shame (when you circle back for more). And if you still feel peckish, purchase a porchetta sandwich ($6); succulent pork and crisp cracklings in a hard roll. Eat it on benches fronting the East River with a spectacular view of the Brooklyn Bridge.

BEST MEAL AT A MiChELin-STArrEd rESTAurAnT undEr $75: ALdEA 31 w. 17th St. (betw. 5th & 6th AveS.), www.AldeAreStAurAnt.com The Michelin committee doesn’t screw around; they guide you toward your next superior meal of greatness.

But unless you’re working with a trust fund, picking up the tab can be daunting. Unlike some of the other restaurants on the famed list, Aldea has an approachable attitude to fine dining.

Chef George Mendes’ cooking pedigree will wow you, as will his fresh, modern Portuguese flavors. Iberian-inspired dishes, like their creator, are both sexy and unpretentious. Aldea’s interior is an organic foil for its cuisine—it shimmers with natural wood, light and sparkling glass. Your date will be impressed. The obvious way to sample the fare without breaking your piggy bank is to take advantage of the ever-present, threecourse lunch for $24.07. But if you can find a way to make it for dinner, focus on the seafood and fish. The exception: a drool-worthy arroz de pato, with crispy duck confit and chorizo. To come in under budget, order it and share the Spanish octopus a la plancha starter.

Your friend can order any of the mains and be happy. Or simply consume a liquid dinner at the bar by sampling three of Brian Block’s amazing cocktails.

Either way, it’s a win-win.

O u r T o w n N Y. c o m

BEST rEASon To EAT STAnding up undEr ThE MAnhATTAn BridgE: Xi’An FAMouS FoodS 88 e. broAdwAy #106 (At ForSyth St., AlSo 67 bAyArd St. At mott St., 81 St. mArk’S Pl. betw. 1St & 2nd Ave.), www.xiAnFoodS.com The Silk Road started in China’s Shaanxi province, in Xi’an, a city that melded Middle Eastern and Chinese foods to create a unique cuisine characterized by star anise and cumin-spiked lamb dishes, hand-pulled noodles and a distinctive white flatbread—like soft English muffins. Xi’an Famous Foods brought one family’s interpretation of this cuisine to Flushing and then to Manhattan, first at this simple kitchen/counter under the

Manhattan Bridge. Too bad there are no seats, because the $3 lamb burger, stewed pork hand-ripped noodles or spicy and tingly “lamb face salad” will bring you to your knees. No worries. Walk to the Bayard Street Xi’an, this one with tables and chairs. Food is sloppy to share off one Styrofoam plate (especially when you dig a fork in and discover that it’s all one long noodle!), so get extra plates and lots of napkins. Cold flowery teas are great accompaniments to the more fiery dishes.

BEST wAy To ShuT CALiForniAnS up ABouT MEXiCAn Food: doS ToroS vAriouS locAtionS, www.doStoroS.com Californians who come to New York are always moaning about our lack of acceptable Mexican food. It’s one of those things we’re just supposed to accept as being wrong with New York. You can now safely tell these interloping West Coasters that they are dead wrong. Taco-obsessed brothers Leo and Oliver Kremer, originally from the Bay Area, opened the first branch of Dos Toros just below Union Square in 2009 and have since expanded their mini-empire to the West Village and Upper East Side, thanks to their simple, delicious tacos and burritos (the pork is especially outstanding and the quesadillas are a delight) and beautifully constructed spaces.

This isn’t fancy Mexican with tableside guacamole preparation, but it’s certainly the sort of place to bring a friend for tacos and beers, especially if that person needs convincing that superb Mexican food can be found right here in Manhattan.

BEST pLACE To Find AuThEnTiC puErTo riCAn Food: LA TAzA dE oro 96 8th Ave. (At w. 15th St.), 212-243-9946 Though Chelsea has changed quite a bit in the last 50 years, this neighborhood staple has not. La Taza de Oro, a familyrun eatery that has been in business for over 60 years, serves up traditional Puerto Rican dishes to neighborhood natives and curious tourists alike. Open Monday through Saturday for breakfast, lunch and dinner, this cozy restaurant offers fingerlicking good menu items like stewed beef and fish, pollo al horno (roast chicken),

ropa vieja (pulled beef) and chuletas fritas (fried pork chops). Daily specials, such as stewed codfish and goat stew, offer a healthy variety to the menu as well. Each entrée is served with a large helping of yellow rice and beans. The price is extremely reasonable, too—almost every dish is under $10. Whether you’re looking for a quick bite or craving that mofongo you tried on your trip to San Juan, La Taza de Oro will have something to sate your appetite.

BEST pLACE To prETEnd you’rE on A wong kArwAi SET: noM wAh TEA pArLor 13 doyerS St. (betw. bowery & chAthAm Sq.), www.nomwAh.com It’s become more and more difficult to step into true time warps in Manhattan, but Nom Wah Tea Parlor is sticking to its mid-century guns. Originally opened in the 1920s, the honey-colored walls, red vinyl booths, Formica lunch counter (be sure to try one of their signature almond cookies on display) and 1950s appliances all act as a refreshing alternative to those faux-historic, taxidermy-happy restaurants that seem to be de rigueur these days.

Wally Tang has kept the place running for the past 60 years and, although lovingly updated by nephew Wilson Tang (a former banker, ladies), the place still makes you feel you should dress in your brightly colored Sunday best and drink your tea slowly and seductively, à la In The Mood For Love.

And oh, the dim sum is good, too. The steamed chinese greens in oyster sauce (updated with a “gluten free” identifier on the menu) and taro dumplings are delicious. Prices range from $1.25 to $9.95 and $5 Tsingtao beers only sweeten the highly stylized mise en scène—I mean, deal.

BEST FrESh-SquEEzEd JuiCES ThAT don’T CoST hALF your pAyChECk: LiTE dELighT 51 e. houSton St. (betw. elizAbeth & mulberry StS.), 212-966-4471 “Oh my God, I’m going on a week-long juice cleanse,” said a girl at a house party the other night. Really? So you’re basically going to pull $20 out of your purse and light it on fire for a week straight? Face it, “juice cleanse” means instant bankruptcy in this town, with many 12-oz. cups starting at $6 a pop. Deli Fresh, a holdout on Houston since the ’90s, allows the rest of us to attempt to be healthy without robbing us blind. Fresh combos like Hangover Helper, with beets, apples, cucumber and carrot, or the Warm Up, made with ginger, apple and carrot, are $3.50 for a regular or $4 for a “jumbo.” Their early bird specials from 7-10 a.m. knock the prices down to $2.50 to $3.75, allowing just about anyone to dabble in the raw juice cleanse movement. They’re only fruits and vegetables, after all.

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EATS & drinkS | BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011

BEST PlAcE To cATch dinnEr And A BAnd: PiAnoS 158 LudLow St. (at Stanton St.), www.pianoSnyc.com There are lots of great venues around town in which you can see great live music. There are also, of course, about a million fantastic places to have dinner.

But if you want to do both of them in one place, where do you go? Pianos, of course.

Serving upscale pub grub that’s just right before a rock show, the Lower East Side space manages to move its delicious food quickly, even when there’s a crowd packed in, and diners rarely feel rushed. Tuck into the Mediterranean nachos and one of the truly excellent (and affordable) burgers before seeing some of our brightest local talent or tomorrow’s hot new band today.

If you’re around for happy hour, don’t miss the $5 appetizers and sandwiches or the famous margaritas that are a favorite among New York’s rock set.

BEST nEw PlAcE for locAlS To EAT nEAr TimES SquArE: qi BAngkok EATEry 675 8th ave. (at w. 43rd St.), 212-247-8991 Eating on 42nd Street, unless you’re grabbing something from a cart near Bryant Park or are lucky enough to frequent the Condé Nast cafeteria, is generally a horrifying proposition for New Yorkers.

Thanks to Qi, chef Pichet Ong’s opensince-April Thai debut, that’s no longer the case. Qi features a menu of well-executed Thai dishes—mostly outstanding versions of those treasured standbys but with a few surprises, including outstanding and exotic curries (try the chicken and pumpkin) and eccentric desserts. Surprisingly for the neighborhood, the prices are

exceedingly reasonable. Not to mention the restaurant, with a modern motif and a helpful staff, has the feeling of a place that’s much more expensive—and in an entirely different neighborhood.

BEST ouTEr-Borough imPorT: fATTy ’cuE 50 carmine St. (betw. bLeecker & bedford StS.), www.fattycue.com Chef Zak Pelaccio is no stranger to Manhattan. He runs Uptown and Downtown branches of nouveau Malaysian favorite Fatty Crab as well as the traveling Fatty Snack food truck. Until recently, though, his newest restaurant, Fatty ’Cue, was only in Williamsburg. Luckily, in September a new branch of Fatty ’Cue opened on Carmine Street in the spot where Pelaccio’s restaurant Cabrito used to be. The food, a mash-up of classic barbecue and Malaysian ingredients, features unusual and finger-licking dishes like smoked lamb shoulder with house-made pita bread and goat yogurt (our favorite!) and a buttermilk-fried half-rabbit. If you want hip, Brooklyn dining without venturing to a poorly lit block beneath the Williamsburg Bridge, this is your chance.

BEST nEw rESTAurAnT for PEoPlE wATching: ThE duTch 131 SuLLivan St. (at prince St.), www.thedutchnyc.com Chef Andrew Carmellini (Locanda Verde) opened The Dutch to much fanfare in April, and with good reason: the place is great. From the buzzy crowd to the delicious food (those oyster sliders are not to be missed), the restaurant became the place to eat this summer. Almost better than the eating, however, is the scene.

From the windows that overlook both Prince and Sullivan streets’ stylish SoHo

foot traffic to what’s happening inside the restaurant itself—first dates, business deals and every clued-in person below Houston Street piled in at the bar—the views are almost as exciting to consume as the striped bass with mussels in lemongrass curry broth. Space can be tight, so for optimal people watching grab a seat in the back room’s bar, where you can peek out the window and around the corner, or take advantage of the standing room to case the joint and check out the other patrons from every angle—you won’t be sorry you did.

BEST ThAi food ThAT’S noT whAT you’rE ExPEcTing: ZABB ElEE 75 2nd ave. (betw. e. 4th & 5th StS.), www.zabbeLee.com Foregoing the same old items available at most of the five boroughs’ Thai restaurants, Zabb Elee instead focuses on the cuisine native to northeast Thailand, near Laos and Cambodia. Lively meat salads called larb are bright and delicious, mixing your choice of meat—we like the duck— with crushed peanuts, spices and toasted rice. An epic menu of grilled meats, wellstocked soups and more familiar all-dayspecial-type plates are also offered, though few are anything that even adventurous diners will be used to. In our experience, it’s best to order a cheap bottle of wine to kick off and then pick a variety of dishes— asking the supremely helpful staff for recommendations—to finish out the meal.

Nothing we’ve had has been bad (though a fish dishes have been a bit too spicy—and that’s saying something), and some, like par ped moo krob, a mixture of eggplant, crispy pork, peppers, basil, ginger and curry, have been memorable enough to order on every following visit.

BEST PlAcE for SummEr drinking: ThE BEEkmAn BEEr gArdEn BEAch cluB 89 South St. (betw. beekman & John StS.), www.beekmanbeergarden.com New to The South Street Seaport last summer, The Beekman offers a massive drinking area with unparalleled views of the Brooklyn skyline as well as a number of bridges, depending on how far you’re willing to crane your neck. Open from noon to 3 a.m. daily, the restaurant has a winterized indoor area, plenty of games (ping-pong, billiards, foosball) and a sand-filled outdoor space that’s perfect for warm—or even just warm enough— weather. In addition to a full bar and a healthy beer selection, there’s a menu of delicious and not-too-pricey food, including a Pat LaFrieda burger and a bratwurst served on a pretzel bun that make the trip east of the FDR worthwhile. The Beekman might not come into its own until summer, but why wait until the crowds swarm the place to make yourself a beloved regular?

BEST dollAr oySTEr SPoT: SAlT 29 cLinton St. (at ave. b), www.SaLtnyc.com Dollar oyster specials have picked up steam in the city of late, though they are still few and far between. Salt’s been doing it for a while, though they recently cut back the hours. Never mind, it’s still one of the easiest places to do it, with cheap drinks and other appetizers to boot. There’s no long lines or crowded bars here. The ambiance is laid back and chill, with dark

BEST ouT of ThE wAy froZEn dElighTS: chinATown icE crEAm fAcTory 65 bayard St. (at mott St.), www. chinatownicecreamfactory.com When you walk down Mott Street on the east side of Chinatown, ignore the Häagen-Dazs and instead turn onto Bayard Street, where you’ll find ice cream with a local twist. With flavors such as lychee, red bean and the sublime Zen Butter, a combination of peanut butter and ground sesame seeds, Chinatown Ice Cream Factory has some of the most exotic tastes this side of the Pacific. Philip Seid opened the shop some three decades ago and his daughters Christina and Katherine continue the family tradition. As its website proclaims, ice cream has been said to have been invented in China during the Tang Dynasty, but it’s taken a few thousand years to come up with this particular take on the dessert.

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BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011 | EATS & drinkS wooden tables and candlelight setting the perfect mood for oyster slurping. The oysters themselves aren’t going to bowl anyone over, but they’re pretty damn good for a buck each and still pack a good taste.

Most importantly, we’ve sampled the wares many times and never once been sick, and that’s pretty much the be all, end all when it comes to cheap seafood.

BEST PlAcE To GET FriEd crickETS: rhonG TiAm 154 Orchard St. (betw. rivingtOn & StantOn StS.), www.rhOng-tiam.cOm To be honest, there really aren’t that many. But at Rhong Tiam, you can order the Thai popcorn, a few dozen lightly fried and seasoned inch-long crickets. In Thailand they’re considered a delicacy and are readily available on street corners, though the version here is a little more upscale and gourmet than the Thai street version. And while the novelty of eating giant bugs might wear off after one or two, rest assured that the rest of the food on the menu is more standard Thai fare and is pretty damn tasty. And while the crickets are not exactly great for date night, they are great for dining with your friends.

Or you can get ’em to go, then hit the bars and dare strangers to eat them to enliven a dull night. Never fails. Just remember to remove the head and legs. Nobody wants to cut their night short because they got a thorax stuck in their throat.

BEST BAr To lurE Your BrooklYn FriEndS in: BAr 169 169 e. brOadway (betw. JefferSOn & rutgerS StS.), www.169barnyc.cOm If you’re like most of us, your friends are probably split between somewhere south of 14th Street and Brooklyn. This can make for some infighting when it comes to drinking decisions; thankfully, Bar 169 is perfect to unite all. Downtown enough to avoid frat boys and college kids, this ragtag dive features cheap drinks with generous pours, a raw bar, cheap dumplings till 4 a.m., loud music, a Bettie Page lookalike who sometimes dances on a pole and an attractive, friendly crowd.

It’s tough to have a bad time. There’s just something about the New Orleansinspired atmosphere, with all of the crap on the ceiling and the weird lighting and raw bar station, that leads to a sloppy, debauchery-filled fun night. It’s a complete sensory overload, and just the right mixture of unpretentious without attracting too douchey a crowd. It gets crowded, but never too crowded that you have to wait long for a drink. It’s close enough to the trains that go to north or south Brooklyn, and it’s got Brooklyn prices.

O u r T o w n N Y. c o m

BEST WAY To SPEnd $1.25 AFTEr midniGhT: inSomniA cookiES 405 amSterdam ave. (betw. w. 79th & 80th StS.), www.inSOmniacOOkieS.cOm Step aside Mark Zuckerberg—the undergrads who created Insomnia Cookies are geniuses. A mere $1.25 gets you your choice from their warm mint chocolate, double chocolate, peanut butter or snickerdoodle cookies, to name a few. For a little bit more you can indulge in an ice cream sandwich, deluxe cookie or a glass of milk. And these whizzes are baking masterpieces to the tune of The Grateful Dead or Bob Marley until 2 a.m. So whether you’re studying hard or partying harder, this is the place to go for that latenight sugar craving. Too drunk or lazy to leave the house? They deliver, too! Genius.

BEST FiliPino TAPAS: kumA inn 113 LudLOw St., 2nd fL. (betw. deLancey & rivingtOn StS.), www.kumainn.cOm If you’re looking for some sweet sangria, salty fried cod and fluffy yellow tortas—don’t come to Kuma Inn. But if you’re looking for some of the best Asian-inspired cuisine served up on dishes too big to be dim sum and too small to be entrées, check out the best Filipino tapas this side of the LES. Packed in a hustleand-bustle space right

by Delancey Street, the service is like the food: fast and good. Personal favorite: the eastern omelette—Chinese sausage, scallions and bean sprouts.

Second personal favorite: their awesome BYOB policy. Great for a date. Best for a party.

BEST SEcrET PArT oF PAriS in nEW York ciTY: AnSoniA hoTEl 2109 brOadway (at w. 74th St.), 212-721-0076 It’s really hard to divulge the location of this charming French patisserie tucked into the Ansonia Hotel—what if it becomes swamped and loses its sweet, secret allure? So you’re on your own when it comes to finding the doorway. With a

narrow corridor of eight marble tables with two chairs each, this place is perfect for trysting lovers or longtime friends who want a quiet place to stare soulfully or just catch up. Even long-married couples will enjoy ignoring each other behind separate sections of the New York Times. But it’s not just the venue that attracts, it’s the victuals, like the excellent tuna salad and brie sandwiches or the hearty vegetarian soups like lentil or creamy mushroom. Of course, most people come for the baked goods. Some favor the coconut or almond croissants, while others crave the flaky layered Napoleons. Almost everyone agrees the coffee is “so-so,” but c’est la vie.

BEST inExPEnSivE, unPrETEnTiouS, ThrEE-hour mEAl: lA BEllE 973 cOLumbuS ave. (betw. 107th & 108th StS.), 212-866-2355 Sharn, the jack-of-all-trades owner/ maitre d’/waiter/chef, will take care of you just right. So what if he wears a Yankees cap and baggy jeans? With service this friendly, you’ll forget you’re in the heart of New York City.

Just be sure to bring a few bottles of wine (the restaurant is BYOB), soak in the eclectic collection of classical figurines and antique clocks and be prepared to unwind from a long day while Sharn perfects the meal in a kitchen smaller than your grandmother’s.

BEST ukrAiniAn homE cookinG: ukrAiniAn EAST villAGE rESTAurAnT

140 2nd ave. (betw. 8th & 9th StS.), 212-614-3283 While the East Village is no longer the Ukrainian-centric neighborhood it once was, the cultural footprint remains, especially in the cuisine department. One of the best and most authentic spots to hit for your pierogi fix is called, simply, The Ukrainian East Village Restaurant. Foregoing the slickness (and inflated prices) of Veselka, The Ukrainian is unassumingly tucked away inside a strange-looking office building, at the end of a hall that looks like something out of a DMV. But once inside, it’s like you took a trip back

in time to grandma’s house, if grandma lived in Kiev circa 1930. The usual suspects are the stars of the show here.

Pierogi, blintzes, chicken Kiev and kasha varnishkes with mushroom gravy are the must-haves. And if you eat too much, don’t worry. You can always go have a shvitz around the corner at the Russian and Turkish baths afterwards.

BEST mArS BAr rEPlAcEmEnT: SoPhiE’S 507 e. 5th St. (betw. aveS. a & b), 212-228-5680 When the Bowery’s beloved—and infamous—haunt Mars Bar finally closed in August, the question on its regulars’ lips was, “Where can we go now?” Every year, the East Village sheds a few more dive bars only to add several more upscale speakeasies with velvet ropes and fancy cocktails. One option that kept coming up was Sophie’s, a nondescript watering hole on E. 5th Street between avenues A and B. Luckily for Sophie’s gentler bar staff, not every Mars ex-regular heeded the call, but there’s no question that—excepting weekend nights, when NYU flocks have been thicker on the ground lately—even the grizzliest Bowery type will feel comfortable bellying up to Sophie’s bar for its generous pours and static prices. While the jukebox isn’t quite as provincially exceptional as Mars’ (what juke could be?) it’s filled with old East Village anthems from the likes of the New York Dolls, the Velvets and David Bowie. And extra points for its well-kept pool table.

BEST holE-in-ThE-WAll PAkiSTAni/indiAn Food: SirTAj 36 w 26th St. (betw. brOadway and 6th ave.), 212-989-3766 For tasty Pakistani/Indian food, this is it! Inside it’s bare and funky and a bit dingy, but the food is consistently fresh, with some dishes as good as pricier places around the city. Try the chicken tandoori, chicken saag, navratan curry, or the chicken makhni—and don’t forget the naan. Deliveries can be slow at lunchtime because the neighborhood knows it’s a gem. Oh, and the prices are so low you’ll think they’re typos.

BEST mAcAronS: lAduréE 864 madiSOn ave. (betw. 70th & 71St StS.), 646-558-3157 The mother of all Parisian macaron shops, the centuries-old Ladurée went international in 2011 with the opening of their first New York City location. Lest you think they would leave anything to chance, the macarons are flown in every day from France. At $2.70 apiece, the patisserie’s small, sugary confections are

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EATS & drinkS | BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011 as much a price indulgence as they are a caloric one—not that you’d know it by the line that consistently forms outside the diminutive shop. Why? Because when it comes to macarons, none are as crumblicking worthy as these. Also stocked in the shop are chocolates, pastries, sorbets and the brand’s collection of candles along with limited edition boxes (think orange/passion fruit macarons in a black box with gold trim for Halloween). Just remember, buy Ladurée’s macarons with caution—once you pop one, it’s hard to stop.

BEST rESTAurAnT HEAdEd By A Top CHEf: CATCH 21 9th Ave. (betw. LittLe w. 12th & 13th StS.), 212-392-5978

Restaurants run by former Top Chef contestants are a dime a dozen, and that’s not always a good thing—when was the last- time youArt heard someone say they N ORDER Email went to the Mondrian SoHo for the food? rth One sure fire bet amidst the mixed bag, Media however, is Catch. The latest venture from the owners of, among others, Abe h St. Y 10018& Arthur’s, Lexington Brass and Tenjune, the multilevel space dishes out seafood 724 Fax:prepared (212) 268-0502

by Top Chef winner Hung uction@manhattanmedia.com Huynh (formerly the executive chef at Ajna Bar), most of which is designed to be th@manhattanmedia.com shared. Eats are prepared in several parts of the restaurant, including the raw bar, .687”H,the 1/8open-air page kitchen and by the central wood-burning oven (yes, the place is as Ad on Thursday, 11.03.11 big as it sounds). The sprawling eatery also boasts a sushi bar, a tapas station, a cocktail bar and a glass-enclosed rooftop lounge. Flavors are big—and so are the prices—so reach for your LBD and skyhigh pumps and prepare to be pleasantly surprised by food that’s as good as the setting it’s served in.

BEST plACE for BrEAkfAST 24/7: VESElkA 144 2nd Ave. (At 9th St.), www.veSeLkA.com Time was that one of the only restaurants where you could get a decent brunch in the East Village was Veselka, which has served just about the same fare—Ukrainian “soul food”— in the same location since the mid-’50s. What with seemingly several faddish new venues offering brunch popping up every year just skipping distance from Saint Marks Place, though, those days are long gone. It’s a testament to Veselka’s staying power that crowds still line up weekend afternoons for its breakfast standbys—buckwheat pancakes, thick strips of bacon, granola and its famous kielbasa—as if it was the only show in town. But the old eatery’s main appeal to neighborhood residents is simple: a 24-hour breakfast menu.

Photo by Flickr user Food of the Future

BEST plACE To TAkE BEST EAST VillAgE your kidS And lET undErdog: rAy’S your rAinBow flAg fly: CAndy STorE 113 Ave. A (At 7th St.), 917-340-7855 CAfé forAnT 449 w. 51St St. (betw. 9th & 10th AveS.), www.cAfeforAnt.com Most former fag hags eventually marry and breed, but that doesn’t mean we leave our fab BFFs behind. If you’re stymied about where to take your 3-year-old and your own personal Stanford Blatch to brunch, hit the best-kept secret in Hell’s Kitchen. Chef Lea Forant serves up organic, postmodern interpretations of comfort food along with Parisian fare tony enough to elicit an “ahhh” from even the most jaded Isaac Mizrahi wannabe. Expect her wife Carolyn to introduce their son Eli and their terrier Jack, and don’t be surprised if the cabaret-star-cum-waitress belts out a show tune or two by the time you’re toasting with barista-worthy coffee drinks and house-made lavender lemonade.

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This East Village institution, which opened in 1974, has survived recent run-ins with the city’s Department of Health and the neighborhood’s gentrification. Owner Ray Alvarez got a boost last year from his neighbors, who organized a fundraiser to help pay the space’s $3,000-per-month rent. Ray’s offerings include Belgian fries, milkshakes, burgers and egg creams, and it has become an icon of the area. In October, the artist Chico painted a tribute on Ray’s awning for Bob Arihood, an East Village photographer and blogger who recently passed away. Arihood’s portrait faces Alvarez’s, along with the motto “Truth, Justice and the Comics.” It’s not the first time the eatery has paid tribute—during the last presidential election, items were “Obamafied,” adding the candidate’s name to form “Obama coffee” and “Obama burgers.” No word yet if Ray’s will do the same next year.

BEST plACE for A MAd HATTEr AfTErnoon TEA: TEA & SyMpATHy 108-110 Greenwich Ave. (betw. 7th & 8th AveS.), 212-989-9735

On most days at Tea & Sympathy, you will find troops of English girls in floral flocks navigating a small room, delivering steaming pots of tea to patrons squeezed into tiny tables. The digs might be cozy, but the blends are unbeatable.

Opt for the Rosie Lee and the “afternoon tea” for one, which includes a tower of perfectly cut tea sandwiches (the cucumber, chicken salad and egg salad are the best), crumbly scones with clotted cream and jam and toothache-inducing cakes.

With mismatched china, floral tablecloths, colorful teapots and an electic clientele, it is quintessentially English and therefore a bit mad.

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November 3, 2011

BEST HoTEl BAr for Work or plAy: pArAmounT BAr in THE pArAmounT HoTEl 235 w. 46th St. (betw. broAdwAy & 8th Ave.), 212-827-4134 There’s no lack of drinking establishments in Midtown, but if you’re looking for a place you could bring a client and perhaps have a special someone meet you there an hour later, well, there aren’t too many spots that fit the bill. Enter Paramount Bar. Open since April, this sliver of a space in the lobby of The Paramount Hotel is easy to miss (a friend recently bypassed the space and emailed us grumpily from a seat in the lobby, proclaiming there was no such bar in the hotel) but worth finding. Expertly made cocktails are served in a chic, calm room either at the bar or by a helpful if unobtrusive staff. Seasonal concoctions like the Dark and Stormy come and go, but there’s a solid menu of standbys and a helpful bar staff willing to whip up whatever you need.

A small but sturdy wine list is also available. The only thing missing is a menu of small bites, considering that once you enter the bar, it’s unlikely you’ll want to leave for dinner.

BEST rESTAurAnT HEAdEd By A Top CHEf: CATCH 21 9th Ave. (betw. LittLe w. 12th & 13th StS.), 212-392-5978 Restaurants run by former Top Chef contestants are a dime a dozen, and that’s not always a good thing—when was the last time you heard someone say they went to the Mondrian SoHo for the food? One sure fire bet amidst the mixed bag, however, is Catch. The latest venture from the owners of, among others, Abe & Arthur’s, Lexington Brass and Tenjune, the multilevel space dishes out seafood prepared by Top Chef winner Hung Huynh (formerly the executive chef at Ajna Bar), most of which is designed to be shared. Eats are prepared in several parts of the restaurant, including the raw bar, the open-air kitchen and by the central wood-burning oven (yes, the place is as big as it sounds). The sprawling eatery also boasts a sushi bar, a tapas station, a cocktail bar and a glass-enclosed rooftop lounge. Flavors are big—and so are the prices—so reach for your LBD and skyhigh pumps and prepare to be pleasantly surprised by food that’s as good as the setting it’s served in.

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BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011 | EATS & drinkS

BEST Block for oldSchool food ShopS: BlEEckEr STrEET BETw. 7Th & 6Th AvES.

BEST dEEp-friEd hoT dog: crif dogS 113 Saint MarkS Pl # 2 (betw. 1St ave. & ave. a), 212-614-2728

On Bleecker Street, you’ll feel as if you dropped back in time or took a trip to Europe as you wander from one tiny food shop to another—no mega stores here.

Make a list or be inspired by what is fresh and cook up a storm. Start near Seventh Avenue at Ottomanelli, where fourth-generation butchers really know their meat, from quail to rabbits and the best fresh turkeys in town. Cross to Faicco’s, where for over 60 years brothers have sold everything to concoct the perfect Italian feast: mozzarella, sausages and marinara sauce made fresh. Waddle a few doors down to Murray’s Cheese, only around for a couple of decades, and sample from over 250 different aromatic, creamy or pungent varieties. Luckily, there’s a bench out front where you can sit and look at the cakes in Rocco’s Pasticceria. If you cross the street and open the door, the aroma of anise and butter will seduce you. There is a green grocer at either end of the street, so you can find a veggie or two to round out your feast.

Whether you call them hot dogs, frankfurters or some kind of wurst, bun-wrapped, tube-shaped meats are hardly ever something to write home about, forget about line up for—and deal with tip-hounding moonlighting college kids—at 2 a.m. But whether you get one of their bacon-wrapped Tsunami dogs or a grilled, “cooked to order” (read: prepare to wait) veggie specials, Crif Dogs’ franks are indeed worthy of their good press. And for a graduate course in patience, you might want to queue up to wash your dog down with one of the elegantly mixed cocktails served at the “secret” nextdoor speakeasy, PDT (Please Don’t Tell).

But for that, really be prepared to wait because, as every concierge and tourist guidebook will tell you, “Psst...the entrance is through the phone booth.”

Photo by Flickr user star5112

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“An Intimate Place to Learn in the Heart of a Great City” Dear Parents: You are cordially invited to attend one of our OPEN HOUSE at York Preparatory School.

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November 3, 2011

NEWS YOU LIVE BY

BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011 | manhattan living

Best Reason to hail a CaB: the C tRain Morning commuters are getting restless as they shift their weight back and forth on the Upper West Side’s 72nd Street subway platform, waiting for a train they feel may never come. “This just makes me crazy,” one woman exclaims, tapping a black patent leather heel and shaking her head.

Maybe that’s why they named it the C train, or maybe it’s because of the creeping, crawling way it snakes through subway tunnels, like Charon’s doomed ferry steering through the underworld—when it finally does decide to show up.

Tying for the worst of the 18 subway lines as rated by NYPIRG’s Straphangers Campaign in their 2011 “State of the Subways” report card, the C has the least daytime service and breaks down more than any other line. But at least it’s clean and you’re likely to get a seat after all that heel tapping—probably because no one else wants to ride it.

Best PlaCe to RedisCoveR the ComiCs and memoRaBilia of YouR Youth: foRBidden Planet 840 Broadway (at E. 13th St.), www.fpnyc.com Have you ever found yourself walking toward Union Square and suddenly noticed a plastic Yoshi staring at you from a nearby shop? That would be Forbidden Planet, and beyond its doors is an impressive collection of comic books, manga and graphic novels. However, Forbidden Planet is perhaps best known for its multimedia-themed collectibles and merchandise. From apparel to toys to posters to virtually whatever, Forbidden Planet is a treasure trove of products to keep your closet geek at bay. But if merchandise and memorabilia don’t completely satisfy your nostalgic needs, the store also hosts regular in-store appearances and signings by comic book authors, illustrators and the like.

After all, the only thing more appealing to your inner geek than an out-of-production Wolverine action figure is one that has been signed by someone from Marvel Comics.

O u r T o w n N Y. c o m

manhattan living Best new PuBliC tRansPoRtation: east RiveR feRRY The subway is hot and crowded and the bus can be unreliable, but thanks to this year’s latest transportation innovation, The East River Ferry, getting around Manhattan, or even to far-flung destinations like Queens or Governors Island, can be easy, cheap and scenic.

A $4 ride, which you can pick up at East 34th Street or Pier 11 in the Financial District, will shuttle you quickly to a number of spots, from Williamsburg to Dumbo or even Long Island City, with the oddly is-this-really-New-York-City

feeling of being on a boat. On nice days the decks are the place to be, taking in the sun and watching the East River glisten almost as if it was the Mediterranean. On less pleasant days, stay indoors and thank your lucky stars that you’re not shoved into a speeding box with a thousand other wet, unhappy commuters. Besides fostering an appreciation for the waterfront we never had before, the ferry has made heading to hard-to-reach parts of town a snap and made everyday city life a bit more like a day trip. In our experience, nautical garb only makes the journey more pleasant.

Best PiCniC aRea in CentRal PaRk: west 100th stReet neaR the Pool Let’s face it: Central Park is too damn crowded, at least during the times you want to be there. But the tourists haven’t yet figured out that the park extends north of the reservoir, so enjoy the space while it lasts. There are quite a few nice spots up there to spread a blanket and take off your shoes, but none better than facing the pool, the charming pond near the park’s northwest corner that receives more shade than any of the main lawns, where rushing waterfalls provide the background noise.

November 3, 2011

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manhattan living | BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011

Best Place to meet the the Best Place to KnicKs: the sKy Room use the RestRoom in nyc: times squaRe 330 W. 40th St., 33rd Fl. (betW. 8th & maRRiott 9th AveS.), 212-380-1195 There’s a world above our world in Manhattan; from the street, The Sky Room (on the rooftop of a Times Square building) blinks like a distant star. But the trip up costs only your coat (they often lose it), and when you pop up on the sky top, you may, depending on the day, feel like an alien—a midget among Knicks.

But they’re gentle giants, and you’ll soon relax. And marvel: from the Sky Room’s sky-nested deck bar, Manhattan glitters like red, green and gold star shards, a metropolis unlike the one you live in. And looking down at this other Manhattan— and up at the tall, tall men—can even be affordable; just order a soda.

Best PaRK foR live music: Washington squaRe PaRK

1535 broAdWAy (At 45th St.), WWW. mArriott.com/hotelS/trAvel/nycmq-neW-york-mArriott-mArquiS The lines for the bathrooms can be outrageous during the intermissions of Broadway shows. Homeless people have populated the restrooms of Starbucks. So where is someone in the know supposed to duck in for the bathroom? Try the Marriott Marquis’ second-floor bathrooms. Clean and well-populated with stalls and urinals, the Marriott is close enough to the majority of Broadway theaters to make standing in an endless line unnecessary.

Best Place to Rescue a smalleR Dog: BiDeaWee 410 e. 38th St. (betW. Fdr dr.& 1St Ave.), WWW.bideAWee.org

Steve Earle walks his dog here, and Strokes frontman Julian Casablancas can occasionally be seen pushing a stroller under Washington Square’s massive white arch, but it’s the impressive and varied assortment of amateur and semi-professional musicians that make this West Village park the best spot for live (and free!) music. Drum circles, impromptu acoustic jam sessions and staged sets from jazz-infused NYU trios set the soundtrack for an afternoon around the Square’s fountain. Sure, Central Park’s SummerStage brings in the big name acts, but without stilts and a pair of binoculars, you’ll have a hard time getting a glimpse of the action at those jam-packed sweat fests.

Instead, head over to Washington Square on an early Sunday afternoon, snag a bench or a spot by the fountain and open your eyes (people watching opportunities abound) and ears to the musical majesty awaiting.

Trying to adopt a pet at the city’s pounds and countless animal rescues is a daunting task, with lots of large dogs and special needs cats. Not everyone is equipped to nurse these animals back to health. Bring in Bideawee. This no-kill animal rescue has been a New York establishment since 1903. The staff at Bideawee brings in animals from the street, kill shelters and a multitude of other places and readies them for a family. They have programs to fly in smaller dogs from California pounds that are harder to adopt there than in our small-dogloving city. New pet parents can rest assured that they’ll have support from the organization, as each pet comes with a free vet visit to Bideawee’s animal clinic to confirm that your new friend is in good health when they go home.

Tenebrae www.tenebrae-choir.com

Sunday November 6, 2011 at 8PM

PASSION

&

PRECISION

Church of St. Mary the Virgin 145 West 46th Street New York, NY 10019

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Best RecoRD stoRe: otheR music

52 Prince St. (betW. lAFAyette & mulberry StS.), WWW.mcnAllyjAckSon.com

15 e. 4th St. (betW. broAdWAy & lAFAyette St.), 212-477-8150

This bilevel Soho book mecca is always packed, and that shouldn’t be surprising.

It’s stocked with a large but well-curated selection of books, from fiction to travel guides and cookbooks, and boasts an impressive selection of readings, in-store book clubs and seriously good-looking patrons. There’s even a coffee shop off to the side of the main level in case you find yourself under-caffeinated or unable to leave the store without tearing into your new purchase. What’s most appealing about McNally, though, is the feeling of shopping at a locally owned store that’s not at all lacking in selection. There are none of the impersonal touches that chain stores can have and all of the New York charms they could never cultivate if they tried. Sure, you can order any book you’d like online, but the experience of shopping at McNally is more than worth the effort.

November 3, 2011

Most people are downloading their music these days, whether they’re buying it on iTunes or downloading it illegally.

But if you’re looking to buy records—yes, the good old-fashioned kind—or CDs, Other Music in NoHo is the place to go.

Staffed by knowledgeable if slightly aloof young people who seemingly live in hip Brooklyn rock clubs, the shop stocks not only the best in new, must-have music but a nice collection of used LPs and CDs that are discounted in price and offer a bit more eclectic a selection. The real secret about Other is that while the staff can seem a bit too cool, they’re actually quite helpful, whether you’re looking for the newest release from a practically unheard of band or something a bit more mainstream. If you’ve ever missed the classic record store experience or found yourself looking for something that hasn’t yet hit the store that lives in your computer, give Other Music a spin.

Going to the Airport?

1-212-666-6666 To JFK . . . . . . . . .$48 To Newark . . . . .$47 To LaGuardia . . .$33 Tolls & gratuities not included.

Prices subject to change without notice.

12/31/11

“We’ll Be There For You!”

Works by Gustav Holst, John Tavener, Ralph Vaughan Williams, including U.S. premiere by Paul Mealor.

Tickets: $35

For tickets visit: www.brownpapertickets.com/event/202924 18•

Best BooKstoRe: mcnally JacKson

12/31/11

Toll Free 1-800-9-Carmel

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BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011 | manhattan living

Best Reason not to miss law & oRdeR: all tv shows still Filming in new YoRk Some of them (The Good Wife) use New York to stand in for some place else. Some of them (Boardwalk Empire) film in New York to evoke days of yore.

And some of them (Bored to Death, Damages, Gossip Girl, White Collar) take advantage of their filming location to show off the Big Apple’s many trendy and hidden sites in all their glory. All of them, mercifully, provide employment for the many local performers who feared they’d lost a home when the Dick Wolf evergreen came tumbling down in 2010. And as a result, terrific actors like Jayne Atkinson, Heather Burns, Len Cariou, Santino Fontana, Lisa Joyce, Danny Mastrogiorgio, Laila Robins and Paul Sparks don’t have to flock across the country to find work.

Best touRist-FRee outdooR shopping mall: 5th ave. Betw.

14th and 23Rd sts.

Let’s face it, sometimes New Yorkers just need to step into an H&M that doesn’t make us feel like we’re in the middle of a strange, touristy, pop-music-filled torture chamber. Sometimes we need to impulsively buy a leopardprint shirt from Zara that we’ll only wear once because it’s been a long week and we don’t want to battle attractive Italian people who can afford to buy the entire store. Other times we may need to walk down the street and not worry about crashing into large, immobile groups of midwesterners in Hollister T-shirts holding maps on Broadway because we just want to pop into a J. Crew, Club Monaco or Madewell to scan the sale racks. That’s why lower Fifth Avenue is a New York shopper’s “safe space.” Spacious sidewalks allow you to avoid the tourist obstacle courses that usually end in passive-aggressive shoulder checks and nine times out of 10, the stores will have your size. It’s our very own private Mall of America—let’s just pray the out-oftowners don’t catch on.

Best $20 gYm not in a CReepY Basement: Blink Fitness E. 4th St. (at Broadway), www.BlinkfitnESS.com Tiny basements with limited ventilation and budget-friendly gyms just don’t mix. Blink Fitness manages to buck tradition with spacious, light-filled, airy facilities so pleasant, you will actually O u r T o w n N Y. c o m

find yourself wanting to go to the gym.

A little sister of Equinox, Blink has every piece of up-to-date equipment your fancier gyms have, minus the classes to keep costs down. But who really enjoys those sweat-filled rooms full of Zumbadancing strangers anyway? At $20 a month, there’s no reason not to join.

Best BuskeR: asian hipsteR at the 1st ave. l station There’s something about the hipster Asian gentleman who often sits at the First Avenue L station, guitar in hand and harmonica perched on his neck. His voice isn’t classically good. His notes are not exactly crisp. He kind of sounds like a drunken, high-pitched Tom Waits at times. His accent is a bit off, as is his pronunciation of certain words, but I’ll be damned if he doesn’t melt you heart every single time you hear him. He just sits there on the benchs, playing a Rolling Stones cover, unperturbed by the masses walking by, singing his heart out.

What he lacks in correct enunciation he more than makes up for with his perfectly mournful tones. There’s nothing better to hear when you’re returning to Brooklyn after a night that didn’t exactly go as planned.

Best suBwaY to oCCupY (and woRk on) wall stReet: no. 2 & 3 While other trains are stuck in the station, you can beat your broker Downtown and Occupy Wall Street with a 15-minute ride from the Upper West Side. While the A train has the largest “big play” express jump in Manhattan from 59th to 125th streets—which made for comic fodder in the indie classic The Brother From Another Planet—and the additional glamour of inspiring a jazz standard (“Take the A Train”), stop for stop, nothing moves you up and down Manhattan quicker than the 2 and 3 trains during rush hour. Added bonus: the No. 1 is often waiting across the platform if you are looking for a local station.

Best stReet exempliFYing the exCesses oF Capitalism: FReedom plaCe, tRump plaCe 66th StrEEt at frEEdom PlacE This street is actually named in honor of three civil rights workers slain during the Freedom Summer of 1964. But like all idealistic endeavors, it eventually succumbed to the pressures of capitalism and is now lined with residential towers emblazoned in gold lettering with the namesake of Donald Trump. If

you haven’t had enough development in the 14 years since its groundbreaking, Trump Place is expected to expand by another seven buildings before it’s complete. By then, you may be able to watch the Donald sporting an oxygen machine, sitting at a boardroom table in outer space tell a 39-year-old, fresh-outof-rehab Justin Bieber, “You’re fired.”

Best lawn that’s emptY on a weekend aFteRnoon: RoCkeFelleR univeRsitY Campus, tuRtle BaY On-campus housing is limited at Rockefeller University, so you pretty much have this oasis to yourself when class is out of session. Between ignoring your cell phone and getting engrossed in a novel, be sure to explore Manhattan’s forgotten campus, home to one of the world’s best biological sciences program. The rustic sculpture installation on the campus’ north end makes you question whether the old cliché about scientists in lab coats never seeing the light of day could possibly be true.

Best plaCe to expeRienCe new YoRk like it’s 1608: inwood hill paRk indian Caves inwood hill Park (at dyckman St.), 212-304-2278 Some folks would probably argue that NYC has been going downhill ever since Henry Hudson started poking around

out in the harbor. That’s fine, because in New York City, there’s even a place for the naysayers. The Wiechquaesgeck indians used the caves in Inwood Hill Park as a sort of pre-Columbian summer camp, complete with shellfish feasts and cool summer breezes. It is one of the very few places in Manhattan where it is actually conceivable to pitch a tent and frolic in the woods. Imagine a slightly more rustic version of the Hamptons and you get the idea.

Best oFF-the-Beatenpath FiRst date spot: les enFants teRRiBle 37 canal St. (at ludlow St.), www. lESEnfantStErriBlESnyc.com Way down on the Lower East Side there exists a radius of a few blocks that avoid the collection of sidewalk stumblers, women walking barefoot while holding their high heels and guys in collared shirts fighting in the middle of the street. In that space is a hip little French (or is it Brazilian?) restaurant/bar full of attractive people, good music and dark lighting. Les Enfants Terrible can get a little crowded, but it’s intimate and not too bustling and has a general vibe and out-of-the-wayness that will give your date the idea you’re in the know. Sure, your date’s eyes might linger a little too long on the younger version of Audrey Tautou seated next to you or the scruffy, scarf-wearing cigarette smoker hanging outside, but chances are that will end up rubbing off on you by the end of the night.

Best outdooR ConCeRt seRies: summeRstage www.SummErStagE.org Working in over 750 parties citywide, SummerStage offers what is undoubtedly the most comprehensive and interesting outdoor musical offerings in New York City. This past summer’s slate included Yo-Yo Ma, hip-hop legend Funkmaster Flex, indie rockers Friendly Fires, local up-and-comers Milagres and a whole lot more. And it’s not just music: SummerStage offers dance and theater performances as well. The main stage, where the biggest concerts take place, is at the Rumsey Playfield in Central Park near Fifth Avenue and East 69th Street and features, in addition to performance, food and drink vendors curated by The Brooklyn Flea. The best part? Most of the shows are free. And the paid ones are usually fundraisers, which is hard to say no to when you’re enjoying so much complimentary culture each summer.

Photo by Flickr user yosoynuts

November 3, 2011

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manhattan living | BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011

Best Place to Live a Jimmy Buffett Lifestyle: West 79th Street Boat Basin W. 79th St. (at the Hudson River), 212-496-2105 Everyone knows that living on a boat is just about the coolest thing you can do. But living on a boat and simultaneously paying $417 a month for rent may also be the smartest decision you ever make. There are only 116 slips and the waiting list is a mile long, but register now and there may be a chance you could spend those golden years sipping rum drinks under the roar of the West Side Highway. There are only three prerequisites to starting your Manhattan yacht life: A boat, a sweet beard and a weathered stash of urban-themed Hawaiian shirts.

Best Small Outdoor Dog Run: Madison Square Park www.madisonsquarepark.org On the west side of the park near 25th street, just north of the regular dog run, is a nice play space for smaller canines. A friendly assortment of owners bring an equally interesting array of dogs to play, chase balls and, frankly, tire them out. Here people know their little darlings won’t get seriously pounded by a Siberian husky 50 times its size as in the bigger dog park. Water bowls are provided and if they’re not full, you can enter the big dog park and fill them with the hose at the south end. The small dog run is a great place for puppies to get socialized without getting traumatized. The first time I brought my new puppy there, she was filmed by CUNY.TV for a promo about how animals can keep you healthy. It doesn’t get much better than that.

Best Place to See the Stars: Columbia University Stargazing and Lecture Series The Roof of Pupin Hall, 538 W. 120th St. (betw. Broadway & Amsterdam Ave.), outreach.astro.columbia.edu During the 2004 blackout, the Milky Way was visible from New York City for the first time in decades. Some people called 911 because they didn’t know what it was. Light pollution is an urban astronomer’s nightmare, washing out nearly all of the heavenly bodies. But Columbia University’s astronomers understand that people shouldn’t be deprived of seeing the rings of Saturn, the Seven Sisters or the mighty Orion.

Every other Friday night, stargazers can enter Pupin Hall’s observatory and

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Best Place to Find an Action Figure of Public Enemy’s Chuck D: Toy Tokyo 91 2nd Ave. (betw. 5th & 6th Sts.), www.toytokyo.com Is it a rubber ducky with Mr. T’s head that catches your fancy? Or perhaps you’ve always wanted to try a Ghostbusters energy drink? These and other unique items line the somewhat out there and completely whimsical shelves of Toy Tokyo in the East Village. The shop, which boasts exclusive items including an action figure of Public Enemy’s Chuck D, as well as classic Star Wars and Wonder Woman toys, is a collector’s dream. Cool cache from around the world arrives on shelves every week, so whether you are looking to buy another Kid Robot or your very first Monchichi doll, you’re in luck.

Vending machines filled with mini action figures can be found at the front of the store not far from the Justin Bieber sticker books, the one touch of irony in this toy oasis.

peer through their five telescopes at the night sky. Even on cloudy nights, the free movies and lectures on black holes, colliding galaxies and the latest in astronomical discoveries make the trip worthwhile.

Best Meatpacking District Hot Spot Hotel: Dream Downtown 355 W. 16th St. (betw 8th & 9th aves.), dreamdowntown.com Move over Standard, step aside Jane, and forget you, Soho House—these days, there’s no topping The Dream Downtown.

A hospitality mecca, the sprawling hotel boasts two restaurants: a steakhouse called Marble Lane run by the same team that operates Tao and Romera, which specializes in “neurogastronomy” and has one seating per night of an 11-course, $245-a-person dinner prepared by acclaimed chef and neurologist Dr. Miguel Sánchez Romera. To top it off, The Dream Downtown boasts a spacious penthouse lounge, PH-D, equipped with an elevated DJ booth and a state-of-the-art sound system housed between two floor-toceiling glass walls, one of which opens onto an expansive outdoor terrace. Down below there’s a basement lounge, Electric Room, run by Rose Bar’s Nur Khan. One things’s for sure: this is one hotel where few people come to sleep.

November 3, 2011

Photo by Flickr user joo0ey

Best NYC Afternoon Without Spending a Cent: Hudson River Park www.hudsonriverpark.org Begin your journey at 23rd Street, cross the West Side Highway and enter the Hudson River Park. Once you get beyond the bedlam known as the bike path, you’ll find a delightful pedestrian walkway that moves at a much more civilized pace.

Wander, perambulate and rejoice in the beauty of the river, the fresh air, the sky and the immaculate landscaping.

Remember and celebrate the fact that you live on an island. Sit on a bench and read a book you’ve been meaning to get to, feel the sun on your face, reflect and hang out.

Be aware of each moment in the present as it cascades into the next. Sit in the sun or find some shade and rest on the totally dog-free lawns. Stroll for hours. Revel in the idea that you’ve found joy without money for just one day.

Best Home Brewing Supply Store: Whole Foods Market Bowery Beer Room 95 E. Houston St. (at Bowery), 212-420-1320 With the closest home brew shop a lengthy subway ride into Brooklyn away, I was relieved when the Whole Foods Market Bowery Beer Room opened at the Houston Street Whole Foods. Besides having one of the most

impressive local beer selections in the five boroughs, they have anything and everything you’d need to get your own brew started in your very own kitchen.

Bottles, hops, tubes and the all-important, hard-to-find beer yeast are all there for the perusing. Sure, this stuff is all available online, but it’s always better to see the stuff in person. Cheers to a welcome addition to the do-it-yourself landscape of Manhattan!

Best Place to Feel Like Edith Wharton: The Old Mercantile Library Center for Fiction, E. 47th St. (betw. 5th & Madison Aves.), www.centerforfiction.org Ascend the staircase of The Old Mercantile Library, select a clothbound novel from the shelves, settle down in a wingbacked leather chair and visualize yourself a regency noble or Bostonian spinster poetess. Or ride up in the gloriously claustrophobic, rickety elevator and read literary quotes from the decoupaged newspaper pages and clips that line its walls. It’s practically a ghost town during weekday business hours, when members can treat the Henry Otis Chapman-designed spaces as their personal drawing rooms. Don’t forget to visit the stacks in the recessed bowels of the building. Dark and empty, we imagine more than a few live bodice rippings might have taken place among the tomes.

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BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011 | manhattan living

Best By-the-hour CuBiCle: ParagraPh 35 W. 14th St. #3 (betW. 5th & 6th AveS), WWW.pArAgrAphny.com If you find yourself without an office and are sick of writing at home, Paragraph—a rental space for writers—awaits. Grab a first-come, first-served cubicle and silently glance at the Wooly Cap Guy, the Literary Glasses Girl or the Intellectual Loner while you pretend to work, basking in the glow of your laptop. For around $150 a month, there’s free coffee and candy in the kitchen, along with the chance to strike up a conversation about Rilke or Egan with someone who might actually know who they are.

Best suBway art— offiCial: 14th street a/C/e Platform Most MTA art ranges from the spectacularly inoffensive—mosaic waterfalls and literary snippets under the NYPL—to the hopelessly misguided—the “interactive sound experience” on the 34th Street N platform that begs tourists and drunks to bombard innocent bystanders with a cacophonous din of rain sticks and xylophones. None of it inspires any emotion—that is, except for Tom Otterness’ “Life Underground.” In a corner of the system used primarily by Meatpacking clubgoers lurks a world of featureless, mildly sinister characters going about the same business of subway-riding as everyone else, only cuter. Otterness’ signature figures scrounge for change (in sacks of gold coins), sleep on benches (with top hats pulled over their eyes) and get pulled down open manholes by equally adorable crocodiles. Equal parts Rich Uncle Moneybags and the industrious Doozers from Fraggle Rock, the foot-high figurines will inspire at least one emotion while you wait for the train: delight.

Best suBway art— unoffiCial: mta “serviCe advisories” Since the sanctioned art scene belowground is so dull, many industrious artists have taken it upon themselves to liven up the scene, bringing the mountain to the MTA’s Mohammed. Of course there’s the graffiti and Poster Boy’s (née Henry Matyjewicz) iconically iconoclastic corruption of station billboards, though recent legal hassles have slowed his once-prolific output, but for the best of the bunch, our money’s on the fake MTA posters. About six years ago, a genius with an ax to grind and some amazing Photoshop skills discovered they could perfectly replicate the MTA’s service advisory posters and created their own, warning riders about the transit corporation’s corruption, greed and indifference to its customers. Though the format has since been cracked and is

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now available for any average Joe to crank out a poster, the biting, politically strident originals used the medium to subvert itself and its viewer’s expectations, the true test of high art.

Best neighBorhood to wind uP an extra on tv: triBeCa In the space of 10 blocks below Canal Street you can go from the pan-Asian bustle of Chinatown past the imposing monuments to justice of the court system down to a world of wider-than-average cobblestoned streets and family-friendly, post-industrial lofts. Nowhere else in New York has less of a unifying aesthetic, making Tribeca the perfect choice for those trying to simulate just about anywhere in America, from big-shouldered Chicago to tony West Hollywood as well as New York City itself. Though Law & Order no longer films daily in and around The Tombs, a number of series have picked up the slack and neighborhood residents are now immune to the thrill of walking past craft services tables and sneaking a peek inside trailers. Walk down any street and you’re sure to end up in a crowd scene or two— hang around long enough and you may just get discovered.

- New York’s greatest film treasury specializing in Foreign, Classic, Children’s films and British TV - Same day delivery anywhere in Manhattan

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most ColorCoordinated Brownstone: 48 w. 10th st.

48 W. 10th St. (betW. 5th & 6th AveS.) 10th Street is, end to end, quite possibly the most beautiful residential street in the city. From St-Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery on the east side through the restored brownstones of the middle Village to the starchitect high rises on the Hudson River, it’s enough to inspire severe homeowner’s envy. Best (or worst) of all is the block between Fifth and Sixth avenues, a perfect row of brownstones with verdant window boxes and baroque ironwork that ends at the gorgeous clocktower of the Jefferson Market Library. Nestled in its center is a scene that has to have been planned: a single-family dwelling of brighter-thanusual red brick with vibrant turquoise shutters, outside of which is parked a trim turquoise Vespa with a brick-red seat.

We’re convinced the Vespa’s for show only; in at least five years, it’s never once been away from its post.

You want to resent the excess, but it’s just too perfect a picture.

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CLASSES FOR ADULTS ALSO AVAILABLE

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NEWS YOU LIVE BY

Your doctor retired to where?

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November 19 at 1pm

Visit our “Discovery Room” Bookstore featuring a wide selection of new thought and spiritual growth publications—Self-Help, Metaphysics, Meditation and Mysticism – Books

by Eric Butterworth, Emmet Fox and many other Interfaith Authors. We also feature music cd’s and meditation recordings on various topics, such as relaxation, stress prosperity and uplifting the soul. We also feature recordings of all of our past Unity lectures.

Bookstore Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 11 am – 6 pm, Sunday 10 am – 12:30 pm Closed on Monday, Friday and Saturday

Tired of waiting days, even weeks to see a doctor?

has a weekly e-mail blast!

Sign up at

OurTownNY.com

to receive your weekly dose of East Side news and be entered to win FREE theater tickets!

Call us toll free at 855-MDTODAY to see a board certified physician TODAY or at a convenient time for YOU! With 2 convenient locations on the Upper East Side (East End Ave/84th St) and Midtown Manhattan (Madison/33rd) We offer: Same day appointments || Open 6 days per week including Saturdays 2 Convenient Locations || Primary care visits, Sick visits, annual physicals, cardiac consultations || Most Insurance plans accepted Let us help fit your healthcare into your day. Please call us to schedule an appointment in a private office setting.

Call us toll free at 855-MDTODAY. We are in your neighborhood!

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November 3, 2011

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BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011 | arts+entertainment and choreography by professionals Larry Pressgrove and Ben Hartley. But the annual musical is only one of several excellent productions by LaG students. On Nov. 4, you can hear the smooth-as-velvet Senior Jazz Band and rousing symphonic band for $10.

There are choral events, gospel concerts, dramas, art shows, dance showcases and even operettas. You just might see the next Jennifer Aniston, Tichina Arnold, Laurence Fishburne or Al Pacino (all LaGuardia alums) take the stage.

Best sexual experience with Your clothes on: stripped stories Upright Citizens Brigade theatre, 307 W. 26th st.

(BetW. 8th & 9th aves.), WWW.UCBtheatre.Com

arts+ entertainment Best immersive Best decadent theatrical production: nightlife experience: dances of vice sleep no more 530 W. 27th st. (BetW. 10th & 11th aves.), WWW.sleepnomorenyC.Com Voyeuristic thrills. Venetian carnival masks. Wicked murderesses in bloodstained bathtubs. And that’s just the froth of the witch’s brew that Punchdrunk is serving up with Sleep No More, a Macbethinspired participatory theater experience that’s like nothing you would recognize from 10th grade English class. With six floors and over 100 rooms as your playground, you’re not watching the action but becoming a part of it. As you rifle through clues and follow Duncan down twisting, labyrinthine corridors to his doom, you’ll find yourself seduced—not only by witches in scarlet Art Deco-era evening gowns but by the whole delicious phantasmagoria.

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WWW.danCesofviCe.Com It’s midnight on a Saturday and you’ve wandered straight into what can only be described as the black-and-white wonderland of an Edward Gorey illustration.

No, you’re not dreaming, just lost in the sumptuous, anachronistic surreality that is a Dances of Vice event. From baroqueflavored masquerade balls to Victorian murder mystery spectacles to Blade Runner-inspired afterparties, Dances of Vice makes you feel the way Charlie did after he unwrapped the golden ticket.

Best BroadwaY QualitY theater at a tenth the price: fiorello laguardia high school of music, art and the performing arts 100 amsterdam ave. (at 65th st., Behind linColn Center), WWW.lagUardiahs.org Pssst. Students at Fiorello LaGuardia High School of Music, Art and the Performing Arts (the Fame school) are putting on Guys and Dolls from Dec. 8-18, and it only costs $20 for adults and $10 for students! Last year’s school musical, Hairspray, electrified sold-out audiences with its Broadway-quality singing, dancing, acting and set design—and musical direction

Remember the thrill of playing “never have I ever” in the basement of your best friend’s home after homecoming? Bring that game full circle once a month and join in for a few rounds with 200 fellow pleasure seekers. Giulia Rozzi and Margot Leitman host Stripped Stories, a fun-loving, sexthemed storytelling show at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre.

The Chelsea location is home base for the duo, who tour with Stripped Stories around the U.S. The show encourages audience members to laugh at their own sexual misfortune through comedians revealing their own on stage. At the end of the night, the audience is asked to join in for an interactive audience game of “never have I ever.” The rules are simple: Everyone starts standing up, the hosts ask a question and if you’re a no, you sit down. The winner is the last person standing, who is then interviewed about their sexual escapades on stage.

Best uptown/ downtown mash-up: poprallY at moma 11 W. 53rd st. (at 6th ave.), WWW.moma.org A series of collaborations between artists working in different mediums, PopRally brings the sort of cutting-edge programming usually left to Downtown warehouse parties to the upscale environs of the Museum of Modern Art. Past events have included a screening of the film Old Joy paired with a live performance by indie stalwarts Yo La Tengo, an evening of skateboarding videos, afterdark gallery tours and an evening of art trivia hosted by artist Ryan McNamara and DJed by hot Brooklyn band Tanlines. This beingthe Modern, it’s a bit more upscale than your average night out, but take that as a challenge and dress up, have a nice dinner first and soak in the sort of cultural cocktail that it would be impossible to find anywhere else.

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BEST OFF-OFFBROADWAY THEATER COMPANY: PARTIAL COMFORT PRODUCTIONS PARTIALCOMFORT.ORG You get Uptown quality for Downtown prices with this nearly 10-yearold theater troupe, currently on a roll after a trio of trenchant works: Thomas Bradshaw’s The Bereaved, Samuel D. Hunter’s A Bright New Boise and company co-founder Chad Beckim’s After.

(Molly Pearson is Partial Comfort’s other parent.) PCP—which has an ongoing residence at Alphabet City’s Wild Project—prides itself on presenting fresh plays that refrain from giving easy answers and quick resolutions. These plays examine the quiet corners of human emotion and do it in ways that are wholly accessible and entertaining. The only thing not genuine is the name— when it comes to a salve for the theatergoing soul, these guys go all the way.

BEST PLACE TO SEE THE NEXT BIG BAND: (LE) POISSON ROUGE 158 BLEECKER ST. (BETW. LAGUARDIA PL. & THOMPSON ST.), WWW.LEPOISSONROUGE.COM (Le) Poisson Rouge (French for “The Red Fish”) is a veritable cornucopia of nightlife and entertainment options. Concert hall, nightclub, karaoke lounge, art/ poetry/fiction gallery, cabaret—you name it, they host it. But particular recognition goes to their concert hall for regularly showcasing up-and-coming bands at an affordable price (the majority of their shows are just $15). In the past year, (Le) Poisson Rouge has featured buzzworthy acts like Beach House, Dan Deacon, Lykke Li and the ever-so-trendy Florence and the Machine. Occasionally, they even get the opportunity to showcase major performers like Paul Simon and Lou Reed (these shows are generally attached to a benefit or charity and are a bit more expensive). But the true price of a concert lies beyond just the cost of the ticket, and (Le) Poisson Rouge accommodates accordingly by serving up some cheap drink deals like $3 Rolling Rocks and $5 well drinks.

BEST PLACE TO KEEP THE GHOSTS OF BROADWAY PAST ALIVE: MUSICAL MONDAYS AT SPLASH 50 W. 17TH ST. (BETW. 5TH & 6TH AVES.), WWW.SPLASHBAR.COM Carol Channing, Hugh Jackman and Mary Martin never got together and threw back kamikaze shots—at least, not to our knowledge. But video jockey John Bantay (a Broadway baby himself, having recently appeared in the

revival of The Ritz) provides the next best thing for rabid show tune fans on Monday nights at Splash Bar, with an encyclopedic vault of musical songs on celluloid. Crowds rock out to such staples as Wicked’s “Defying Gravity,” Funny Girl’s “Don’t Rain on my Parade,” The Drowsy Chaperone’s “Show Off” and even the Jersey Boys medley from the 2006 Tony Awards telecast. You can also catch recordings of musical numbers from films like Little Shop of Horrors, Pennies From Heaven and The Wiz. Famous fans like Christina Applegate, Kristen Chenoweth, Cheyenne Jackson and La LuPone have even been known to turn out. And remember, newbies: The show ain’t over until Jennifer Holliday sings.

BEST-KEPT THEATER SECRETS: SUSAN LOUISE O’CONNOR AND WILL ROGERS These two marvelous New York actors rarely stop working and yet have managed to stay under the radar, charting a course that’s a testament to both their impressive range and stunning depth along the way. Take O’Connor’s incisive work last spring in Kari Bentley-Quinn’s Paper Cranes at Packawallop Productions and compare it to her zany antics in Joshua Grenrock and Catherine Schreiber’s Desperate Writers, the show that followed merely days after the close of Cranes. Rogers embodied a similar onetwo punch, bounding from his subtle work as a Harvard undergrad getting an unintentional education in Classic Stage Company’s Unnatural Acts to turn in the sharpest performance in Jeff Talbott’s The Submission at MCC Theater. Both have played a litany of roles with effortless grace and have never stolen the spotlight. It’s time that spotlight shone on them.

Photo by Alan Howarth

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BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011 | arts+entertainment

11 W. 53rd St. (at 6th ave.), WWW.moma.org Yeah, it was the Alexander McQueen exhibit at The Met that broke records with their labyrinthine lines this summer, and it was an interesting, if anemic, showcase. At the same time, though, it conflated fashion with costume design, two worthy but distinct areas of art. This MoMA exhibit is on sturdier artistic footing. It makes a thorough case for the many merits of abstract expressionist art and why Willem De Kooning might just be their best representative—even more so than his more famous colleague, Jackson Pollock. Organized by John Elderfield, chief curator emeritus of painting and sculpture, the retrospective covers the entirety of the Dutch artist’s seven-decade-long career. This is the rare art exhibit whose works are powerfully palpable, justifying every scrape, line and brushstroke. It demonstrates how de Kooning’s oeuvre wasn’t just a reflection of his own life but of everyone’s.

Best pLaywright we hope never gets coopted By hoLLywood: crystaL sKiLLman Awards and accolades have a habit of continuously being flung in the direction of Skillman, the unconventional and uncompromising scribe of such Downtown successes as Nobody, Birthday, Crawl, The Vigil or the Guided Cradle and Cut. Skillman has a unique voice, both irreverent and soulful, and her plays are of-the-moment instant classics. She is unafraid of challenges and has experimented with such formats as the Western, musicals and graphic novel adaptation. There is seemingly no world this exemplary talent cannot create within the sandbox of her own mind—which begets the fear that one day the tempting hand of Hollywood will come calling. Let’s hope that day is far away—we need Skillman here to help keep New York theater organic for a long time to come.

Best UndergroUnd strip cLUB: saint venUs theater WWW.SaintvenuStheater.com You need to apply to get on the invite list to this elite traveling strip club. Parties are hosted at a rotating roster of destinations, and the only way to find out where is to be accepted and receive their weekly email. Each party requires a $40 admis-

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sion, which includes 2-for-1 drinks and a complimentary lap dance. Yay! Once past the doorman, a bevy of beauties await, and it is the girls who make this pole worth dancing. Saint Venus holds casting sessions looking for the best and the brightest, so if you go to Columbia or NYU and want to check it out, be prepared to run into some scantily clad classmates.

Best video rentaL store (yes, they stiLL exist): video room 300 rector Pl.(at rector Park) or 1403 3rd ave.(betW. 79th & 80th StS.), 212-962-6400 or 212-879-5333 This is a confusing time for home video entertainment. Blockbuster is dead, signaling the end of the chain movie rental store as we know it. However, the combined price increase for Netflix’s DVD service coupled with their paltry online streaming selection makes one pine for the days of the corner video hut. Keep hope alive, children!

The video store lives! One of the best remaining rental stores in the city, Video Room, is carrying on as if it was 1985. With two locations (one on Rector Street in Battery Park City and the other on Third Avenue on the Upper East Side), this place has every movie. Seriously. And if it doesn’t exist on DVD, they’ll have it on VHS. Yes, they carry over 12,000 titles on video cassette. As if they weren’t awesome enough already, they also deliver. Fire up those VCRs and set your time machines to 198-awesome!

Robin,62, Substitute Teacher & 92Y May Center Member There’s no substitute for this teacher’s workout. She hits the elliptical four times a week and is in her best shape ever. The lesson here? At any age or any fitness level, you’ll find healthy inspiration at the 92Y May Center.

Best venUe to see ’90s reLics: mercUry LoUnge 217 e. houSton St. (betW. eSSex & ludloW StS.), WWW.mercuryloungenyc.com Anyone suffering from a lack of moping, guitar fuzz and twitchingly catchy choruses in their lives should head directly for Mercury Lounge. Over the last 12 months, the LES stalwart has played host to such ’90s alterna-rock icons as J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr., Juliana Hatfield and Evan Dando of The Lemonheads, among others. The intimate back room with its pleasantly cluttered, lower-thanaverage stage is small enough to keep from intimidating skittish performers who may not have been on stage in over a decade. Plus, the only way on and off the stage is through the crowd—dust off your back issues of Sassy and bring them in for an autograph. Strangely, there’s less plaid here than in any Bushwick hangout—kids these days.

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Best exhiBit to stand in Line For: de Kooning: a retrospective at moma

*Restrictions apply. First time visitors only. Savings based on the purchase of an annual adult preferred membership at full price. This offer may not be combined with any other. Offer expires 11/30/11.

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city services | BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011

Best Undiscovered Jewelry shop: reinerland Jewelry 162 Allen St. (betw. Rivington & StAnton StS.), www.ReineRlAnd.com Housed in a shared space with fedora purveyor Charm NYC, Reinerland is the brainchild of husband-and-wife team Cristina Taranu and Reiner Mengesdorf. In 2006, they opened up shop on the Lower East Side, specializing in one-of-a-kind and custom jewelry with an ancient Roman inspiration. “We go to The Met and observe old jewelry,” said Taranu. “We want an unfinished, hammered feel.” In that vein, animals and talismans abound: snake earrings, a heart-shaped necklace with a skull on the bottom. It’s all presented on pieces of reclaimed materials ranging from weathered slate to driftwood salvaged from the East River.

Best etailer who can actUally MeasUre yoU: BonoBos 45 w. 25th St., 5th Fl. (At 6th Ave.), www.bonoboS.com/getFit If you’re a man in the 18-to-40 demographic, chances are you’ve seen ads for Bonobos’ pants on Facebook—often featuring a shapely behind sheathed in brightly colored khakis. With its not-too-boxy, nottoo-slim fits, etailer Bonobos says they are doing their part to “eliminate khaki diaper butt” while still allowing the wearer to retain his masculinity. The pants have been a big hit among Wall Street and Madison Avenue types—though this Downtown dude is a big fan himself. Bonobos avoids the pitfalls of online commerce by allowing unlimited free returns, but Manhattan customers would be well advised to step into Bonobos’ Flatiron office, where you can receive personal assistance from savvy employees in their “Fit Ninja” program. The Fit Ninjas help fit and measure you so you know exactly which of their sizes fit you best—hang

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city services on to the numbers, as they could serve you at future fittings too. The Ninjas also consult on style, so you can get the best selection for your taste and wardrobe needs. Plus, they’re called ninjas! Hi-ya!

Best aBove and Beyond service for watches: Jwatch 39 w. 14th St., Ste. 501 (betw. 5th & 6th AveS.), 212-695-4270 In a city where you get what you pay for, it’s a treat to experience great customer service even when money doesn’t change hands. On a recent visit for a battery replacement (or so we

November 3, 2011

thought), JWATCH’s experts advised that maintenance at a manufacturerauthorized location was required.

An energetic blond printed the other company’s service request form and even filled in our watch’s details for us.

Turns out she was JWATCH owner Jamie Brown, a rarity in the male-dominated world of watchmaking. Brown hails from Dalhart, a small town in the Texas Panhandle, where she says going the extra mile to help people was instilled in her at a young age. Between Brown and watchmaker Antonio, who has 45 years of experience, JWATCH can fix almost any timepiece—even antiques and collectibles. And if they can’t, they will help find someone who can.

Best locksMiths: Greenwich locksMiths 56 7thAve.(betw.bARRow & commeRce StS.),www.gReenwichlockSmithS.com Phil Mortillaro, the longtime proprietor of Greenwich Locksmiths, would like to make one thing very clear. They are locksmiths, not a hardware store with keys. Locksmiths through and through, Mortillaro and his handful of employees view their profession as a craft, something to be mastered over years of experience. That might be why the 31-year-old shop is a favorite of local building superintendents. Greenwich Locksmiths repairs antique locks, opens broken safes and cuts keys by hand. Just don’t call

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Intrepid Ad Campbell:Layout 3

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BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011 | city services

The Dignity Memorial Vietnam Wall

®

if you’re locked out at 2 a.m.—Mortillaro thinks the pricing is too exploitative to offer the service.

Best Downtown Haircut witH uptown talent: little Hair sHoppe 54 E. 4th St. #B (BEtw. 2nd AvE. & BowEry),www.littlEhAirShoppE.com Little Hair Shoppe stylists used feathers before they were cool and have perfected a natural red so real and rich even Julianne Moore would covet it. Even better, they’re not the hired guns you’ll find at the soulless blow-dry bars popping up around the city. Most are ex-Frédéric Fekkai talent who busted out of the confines of Midtown to create a home in the East Village.

Sipping wine surrounded by exposed brick and hip, talented people, you almost forget why you came—to get pretty. Pre-event or post breakup, the artists of the Little Hair Shoppe will listen to both what you and your hair need.

Color that says, “You owe me that raise, boss lady,” or a cut to make you look thinner, these mane magicians can fix a bad cut or a crappy day at the office, all at incredibly reasonable prices. You leave the salon feeling well-coiffed and cared for.

And if you ask nicely, they’ll procure you Tater Tots from the pub down the street.

What more could you want?

Best place to Get pants HemmeD for $5 or less: orcHarD express tailor sHop 136 orchArd St. (BEtw. dElAncEy & rivington StS.), 212-677-1099 When you just spent more than $100 on that Bar Mitzvah suit for your son, you don’t want to spend another $30 getting the pants and sleeves shortened to fit his not-quite-a-man’s physique. Orchard Express hems pants for $3 to $5. You put on your over-long duds in one of two makeshift dressing rooms, a tailor makes a deft mark and, presto, they’re hemmed in 15 minutes. It’s truly a “While-U-Wait” service, so you might want to bring in a batch and then go holiday shopping at the terrific Lower East Side Tenement Museum Shop on Delancey or satisfy a craving at Economy Candy on Rivington. And

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Orchard Express can do more than hem; they fixed the torn pocket on a treasured leather jacket for $15. Just don’t give them anything too complicated. As one Yelp realist said, this is the “Dollar Chinatown Dumplings of Hems.”

Best place to Buy Dream catcHers, moccasins anD fancy Jewels: love, aDorneD 269 ElizABEth St. (BEtw. w. houSton & princE StS.), www.lovEAdornEd.com Love, Adorned is one of those rare spaces in Manhattan that conjures up fantasies of packing it all in and driving out west to live on a commune in Topanga Canyon with attractive artisans who make intricate handmade jewelry on gorgeous vintage Persian rugs.

Owned by the folks behind New York, Adorned, the tattoo and piercing shop in the East Village, Love, Adorned is a thoughtfully curated store that allows you to slip into a temporary mini-vacation.

Tasteful body jewelry is sold alongside beautifully executed succulent terrariums (custom made by manager Vincent Martinelli, also the genius behind the Drake and Hen waxed canvas bags). Estate jewelry and up-andcoming designers create a perfect balance of old and new. You walk in a window shopper and walk out with a petrified wood side table, a one-of-akind dream catcher and the unnatural desire to move out to Santa Fe and go all Georgia O’Keeffe (with a pierced nose, of course).

A Time to Remember, to Reflect, to Heal.

Tuesday, November 8 through Sunday, November 20, 2011 at

INTREPID

SEA, AIR & SPACE MUSEUM COMPLEX

Free and open to the public 24 hours a day at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, this traveling replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., stands eight feet high and 240 feet long.

It is inscribed with the names of more than 58,000 service men and women who died or are missing in Vietnam and is dedicated to all Vietnam veterans.

DONATIONS AND VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED, CALL 212-288-3500 OR VISIT INTREPIDMUSEUM.ORG FOR DIRECTIONS AND MORE INFORMATION.

Frank e. Campbell the funeral chapel

known for excellence since 1898 1076 madison avenue at 81st street 212.288.3500 www.frankecampbell.com george m. amato, president dominic carella, vice president THIS FIRM IS OWNED BY A SUBSIDIARY OF SERVICE CORPORATION INTERNATIONAL 1929 ALLEN PARKWAY, HOUSTON, TX 77019 (713) 522-5141

The Original Teachings of

Theosophy

as recorded by H.P. Blavatsky & William Q. Judge

Theosophical Forum Saturday, November 12th 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.

"Evidences of Reincarnation"

This is the most ancient of doctrines and is believed in now by more human minds than the number of those who do not hold it. The millions in the East almost all accept it; it was taught by the Greeks; a large number of the Chinese now believe it as their forefathers did before them; the Jews thought it was true, and it has not disappeared from their religion; and Jesus, who is called the founder of Christianity, also believed and taught it. In the early Christian church it was known and taught, and the very best of the fathers of the church believed it and promulgated it. - William Q. Judge

Best unofficial personal stylists: in GoD we trust 265 lAfAyEttE St. (At croSBy St.), www.ingodwEtruStnyc.com “I have nothing to wear,” goes the common defeatist phrase uttered by many on a weekly basis. God forbid something like a wedding or other noteworthy event happens, because that can send one into an instant existential tailspin. Enter the gals at In God We Trust, a store with distinct style specializing in Americanmade women’s and menswear, who will solve any last-minute fashion emergency, listen to your style conundrum and offer instant solutions. The best part is, they

SUNDAY EVENINGS

All Meetings Free No Dues No Collections

7:30 to 8:30p.m.

Nov.

6 20

Influences of the Theosophical Movement Karma and Free Will

Dec.

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Mankind's Evolutionary Pilgrimage The Mystic Cycle

TV Channel 57 Fri @ 9:30PM For full program contact:

The United Lodge of Theosophists

Theosophy Hall Phone (212) 535- 2230

347 East 72nd St., New York, NY www.ULT.org

November 3, 2011

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city services | BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011 never pressure you into buying and give you their honest opinion 100 percent of the time. Can’t afford one of their dresses?

They might suggest investing in some of their highly affordable, handmade jewelry to jazz up something you already own.

Want a dress you can wear for years?

They’ll personally pull pieces that they know will look good on you. Hell, they’ll even help you design a wedding band and act as your personal therapists while you do it. Is there anything they can’t do?

Nope, pretty sure they do it all with style and panache.

Best, smallest independent nail salon: my nails 7th Ave. (betw. 21st And 22nd sts.), 212-229-2566 If you’re tired of chain-type nail salons that are super sleek and expensive, get thy hands to My Nails. My Nails’ charm is that it’s not fancy and you can get a really good manicure/pedicure for a great price. It’s a long, narrow space decorated with wilted plants, a fish tank with no fish and a cat clock with bulging eyes and a paw that moves as it counts the seconds. Owned by a woman and her daughter originally from Nepal, the shop is clean, efficient and has a relaxed atmosphere. Get a manicure, pedicure, massage or wax.

Sunday through Wednesday, a mani/pedi is only $22.99 (plus tax)!

Best place to strike thrift store Gold: the mystery shop 1672 1st Ave. (betw. 87th & 88th sts.), 212-423-9920 It’s no mystery why the Second Hand Rose contingency of the Upper East Side swears by this five-year-old thrift store.

This narrow but deep treasure trove houses so much antique/vintage/other people’s used goods (call it what you will) that their host of unusual objects spills out on to the sidewalk, always drawing a crowd and adding to the “granny’s attic” cachet. Most items come from residents of the neighborhood. Sometimes it will be a piece of furniture or art work you can’t believe you’ve finally found for a couple hundred dollars, other times it will be a pair of earrings that call your name for a buck. They specialize in lighting and rewire lamps. There are no set hours, though; in general, the shop opens in the afternoon and closes around 11 p.m. Says owner, Grant Captanian, “You never know what’s coming. It’s always a…” Do we really have to say it?

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Best tailor Who proposes marriaGe: pin point tailorinG 255 w. 33rd st. (betw. 2nd & 3rd Aves.), 212-685-4706 A man who can flatter your figure and your ego? Yes, please! Anyone who expects alterations to be a simple errand hasn’t lived in NYC long. Lies of “Come back tomorrow, I give to you,” and zippers breaking mid-party have plagued Manhattan’s fashion forward for years. Enter Pin Point.

Looking in the window, the shop presents a portal to the past. Seasoned tailors Ismail and Celal are throwbacks to a time where clothes were fitted and women could be fawned over without a sexual harassment suit. If Statler and Waldorf were true lovers of the female form, they’d be these guys. A running commentary of your beautiful figure and lovely sense of style continues for the length of your visit.

(It’s not just for me—I checked.) More importantly, changes to your clothes are flawless and can be turned around in a day or two. They push Snickers minis to encourage weight gain, thus giving them repeat business. Ismail has proposed marriage with every visit—and for a discount, I might take him up on his offer.

Best hard-core Workout: Barry’s Bootcamp 135 w. 20th st. (betw. 20th & 21st sts.), www.bArrysbootcAmp.com A longtime L.A. favorite, Barry’s Bootcamp has finally opened a studio in New York City. Known for their heartpounding, calorie-burning 60-minute workouts, each class ($32) combines cardio work on the treadmill with strength training on the floor. Classes are so sweatinducingly effective they’ve even lured in the likes of Kim Kardashian—without

November 3, 2011

makeup. Unlike what the phrase “boot camp” conjures up however, instructors at Barry’s push students past where they thought physically possible without succumbing to drill sergeant yelling. The 3,500-square-foot New York City space is the mini-chain’s largest to date and comes complete with locker rooms stocking Malin + Goetz beauty products, showers and a Fuel Bar serving up shakes and smoothies to replenish parched post-workout bodies.

Best pamperinG hair salon for men: hommaGe atelier By Julien farel 605 mAdison Ave, penthouse (betw.

57th & 58th sts.), 212.752.2100 Ladies have more wallet-thinning, pampering beauty treatment options than they know what to do with. When it comes to giving the gents indulgent

treatments tailored to their needs however, that’s a different story. In comes Hommage Atelier by Julien Farel, a bespoke grooming enclave designed specifically with the man in mind. Master barbers, technicians and hair stylists have all been hand-selected by famed hair stylist Farel and are equipped with iconic straight razors, shaving accoutrement and the professional skincare products that Hommage is known for.

A full list of man-centric services, from a basic straight razor shave to unique services like hand grooming to ease carpal tunnel syndrome caused by excessive Blackberry use, is offered in the James Bond-worthy atelier. Among the amenities you can expect are a glassencased fireplace, a skylight, $13,000 chairs on which the grooming services are performed and a personal attendant to ensure that all your needs—including steaming your jacket or bringing you a glass of single malt—are met.

NEWS YOU LIVE BY

BEST OF MANHATTAN 2011 | CITY SERVICES

Join the thousands of homeowners who have saved up to $700 on their annual home energy costs*

NYSERDA’S HOME PERFORMANCE WITH ENERGY STAR® PROGRAM IS ONE OF THE NATION’S LEADERS IN MAKING HOMES MORE ENERGY EFFICIENT. Most New Yorkers qualify for a free or reduced-cost comprehensive home assessment, also referred to as an energy audit, and low-interest loans.** Additionally, participants may be eligible for cash-back incentives. All our Home Performance contractors are accredited by the Building Performance Institute.

For complete information, go to nyserda.ny.gov/residential or call 1-877-NY-SMART.

1711 3RD AVE. (AT E. 96TH ST.), 212-722-5234 Get off at the 96th Street stop of the 6 train, look east and you’ll see the bluegreen-domed Islamic Cultural Center of New York filling a whole city block. The largest mosque in the city opened its doors to the public in 1991. The center, commonly known as the “96th Street Mosque” fits over 1,000 people within its walls ands boasts that it was the first mosque in NYC built from the ground up.

The geometric form of the domed mosque, based on a recurring theme of square units, lines its walls. During the day, an abundance of light shines through the windows, making for a great wedding backdrop. Once you step inside the gates, you feel like you’re in Cairo instead of the Upper East Side. Don’t forget, no shoes allowed.

BEST PLACE FOR A BOSOM TUNE-UP: BRA*TENDERS 630 9TH AVE. (BETW. 44TH AND 45TH STS.), WWW.BRATENDERS.COM Is your inner Jessica Rabbit is tired of being caged in a pigeon’s body? Then nip in to Bra*Tenders, hidden on the 6th floor of the fabulous Art Deco-lobbied Film Center building. It’s so super-secret, it’s practically Fight Club. Once you’re in, though, you’re in, joining the ranks of idols from Gloria Steinem to Bette Midler. Follow warm Mamaleh Lori or one of her ladies behind the curtain where chests are transformed.

O u r T o w n N Y. c o m

RES-HP-adv1-feb11

BEST MOSQUE TO GET MARRIED IN: ISLAMIC CULTURAL CENTER OF NEW YORK * Actual savings may vary based upon efficiency measures selected, age of home, appliances, equipment and other factors.

A participating contractor can help evaluate potential savings. ** Financing, energy audits, and workforce development opportunities made available through the Green Jobs-Green NY Act of 2009.

BEST PLACE TO GET A TATTOO FROM A GRAFFITI ARTIST: TUFF CITY 2 17 ESSEX ST. (BETW. GRAND & CANAL STS.), WWW.TUFFCITYSTYLES.COM A spin-off of Tuff City Styles on Fordham Road in the Bronx, this tattoo shop on the Lower East Side retains the same combination of street cred and professionalism as its parent. The inside resembles a subway car complete with a pole, subway seats and turnstiles.

A colorful mural of cans of spray paint covers one wall, fitting because the majority of the tattoo artists here are also graffiti artists, whose work is on display both in the shop and in the courtyard out back. The personable staff has the skill to calm a nervous first-timer one minute then find a way to add a unique piece of art to a body already covered in tattoos the next. Whether you want a monarch butterfly on your ankle or the New York City skyline on your back, these guys can draw it up and etch it onto your skin with the extreme precision and creativity that only true artists can offer.

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It’s Not Too Early To Think About Summer Camp For 2012!

New York Family magazine and the American Camp Association, NY and NJ are teaming up for two Camp Fairs in November!

• Meet over 30 different camp directors • Local Day Camps • Sleepaway Camps • Great for children ages 3-17

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NEWS

Historical Society Continued from 2 Schreiber takes viewers through a panoramic history of the city: the war for independence, the Draft Riots of 1863, the Great Depression (the Society holds the closing ticker tape from the day of the crash, Oct. 29, 1929), both World Wars, the gritty ’70s and ’80s, the booming ’90s and the day that changed New York forever in 2001. The 18-minute video ends with the strains of Jay-Z’s “Empire State of Mind” dubbed over majestic images of the nighttime skyline, creating a nostalgia-chic atmosphere that makes history seem, well, cool.

Mirrer said they want people to see New York as a “window to the rest of the nation,” especially since it was one of the first major metropolises in the country and an important port for many decades. Two new statues erected outside the building will call attention to elements of American history that people may not know have connections to New York City.

“We want to intrigue people,” said Mirrer.

“What are these two men doing here, one from Maryland and one from Illinois?” She’s referring to the life-sized likenesses of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. Mirrer explained that Lincoln “really was made in New York,” when he gave his famous speech at Cooper Union in 1860 and then sat for what became his iconic portrait at Mathew Brady’s photography studio in the city. Douglass experienced his first taste of freedom in New York City after escaping slavery in the South, and wrote about the new world that opened up to him when he arrived here.

Other new features will be a new restaurant, Caffe Storico, serving Italian small plates helmed by chef Jim Burke from Philadelphia; a revamped gift shop; and a children’s museum in the basement, which immerses kids in a Native American Lenape landscape and lets them become “history detectives,” scouting for clues to historical mysteries. One important old standby will remain, however: the strange hyphen connecting the “New” to the “York.”

Mirrer explained that when the NewYork Historical Society was founded in 1804, it was common practice to hyphenate compound nouns (i.e. New-Jersey, OysterBay, etc.). During the big renovation, they debated whether or not to drop the hyphen, as it has fallen in and out of the official name over the years and is often left out by people anyway. But ultimately they decided to keep it, despite its potential awkwardness.

“We want to respect history,” Mirrer said. “And that’s our history.”

O u r To w n NY. c o m

DEMOCRATS MEET THE COMPTROLLER The Lenox Hill Democratic Club will hold its monthly meeting with special speaker City Comptroller John Liu Thursday, Nov. 10, at 7 p.m. at the Brown Gardens Community Room, 225 E. 93rd St. Liu will discuss the state of the city’s finances, the power of the audit and recent audit reports, challenges to his office and current events like the Occupy Wall Street protests. Pizza, soda and light snacks will be served. Discussion to follow.

A PUBLIC DISCUSSION OF THE FEMALE INTELLECTUAL The Municipal Art Society of New York’s Jane Jacobs Forum is hosting a panel to examine the evolving role of women as critics in our everchanging society. Through discussion of Jacobs, Rachel Carson, and Betty Friedan— three pioneering women who reimagined the world—attendees will explore

the role of women as public intellectuals, critics and scholars and as voices for the voiceless. Robin Pogrebin of the New York Times will moderate a panel that includes an urban critic, a political science professor and a gay rights activist. Tuesday, Nov. 8, from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. in Elebash Hall at the CUNY Graduate Center, 365 Fifth Ave. Free with registration; visit mas.org/programs/ jane-jacobs-forum-2011 or call 212-9352075 to RSVP.

Do you have a healthy brain?

NYU Langone Center of Excellence on Brain Aging Presents

Healthy Brain Aging Fair Identifying Risk and Preventive Factors for Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease and Related Brain Diseases Associated with Aging Thursday, November 17 10:00 am – 2:00 pm (Presentations 11:00 am-12:00 pm) Farkas Auditorium, NYU Langone Medical Center 550 First Avenue at 33rd Street, NYC Free Screenings and Information

Confidential Memory Screening Lung Capacity/Lung Age Screening Chair Yoga and Meditation (1:00 pm - 2:00 pm only) Smoking Cessation Counseling Parkinson’s Early Warning Signs

Blood Pressure Screening Body Mass Index (BMI)/Obesity Evaluation Nutritional Counseling Cognitive Remediation Information and much more

Presentations from Nationally Renowned Speakers Lifestyle Modifications and Healthy Brain Aging James E. Galvin, MD, MPH, Professor of Neurology and Psychiatry, Director of Clinical Operations, Center of Excellence on Brain Aging

Research Update on Alzheimer’s Disease Ralph Nixon, MD, PhD, Professor of Psychiatry and Cell Biology, Director, Center of Excellence on Brain Aging

Free giveaways and lunch will be provided Reservations are not required For more information, please call 212.263.0731, or visit aging.med.nyu.edu

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CLASSI FI E DS Classified Advertising Department Information Telephone: 212-268-0384 | Fax: 212-268-0502 | Email: advertising@manhattanmedia.com Hours: Monday - Friday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm | Deadline: Monday 12 noon for same weeks’ issue

EmPLOYmENT

Early Education coordinator WantEd Coordinate 3 early childhood education centers in the Northwest Bronx. Programs include child care (private pay and funded). Head Start and UPK for children 1-5 years old.

Supervise large staff, develop budgets, and work with Board and Parent Association.

Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education NYS teacher’s Certification (birth-2nd grade) 10 years administrative experience in ECE required. Supervisory Licenses, SDA, SAS and SBL recommended.

Resumes and 3 letters of reference to employment@mmcc.org.

PErsonal oFFicE assistant nEEdEd Office Assistant needed. Typical duties includes; • Pack Shipments Supplies; • Track Shipments; • Receive Shipments and Stock Inventory; • Data Entry; • Routing Mail; • QA Inspections.

Experience & proficient in Quick book, Excel and Word Applications. e-Mail resumes to “davewalshdesk@att.net Interested Applicants must be 18+ yrs above.”

sITuATIONs wANTED

HousEKEEPEr/coMPanion Expert service. Experienced.

References. Car available.

917-937-1178

LEgAL NOTICEs

Opening fOr 2 hairstylists.

Upper east side salOn

Call geOrge’s 212 249-7161

sErvICEs

ManHattan ExPrEss dEliVEry Moving & Delivery Servicing NY/ NJ/ CT $10 OFF Furniture Delivery $100 OFF Moving Jobs over $800 call: (646) 509-8181 ProFEssional driVEr looking for driving postion. Will drive to the airports,the Hamptons, etc. Non-smoker, very reliable. 917-734-4676

212-406-6969

TRACK BY JACK

TRACK-LIGHTING SPECIALITSTS

INSTALLATION • SALES

UPDATE OLD CANS W/SMALL, EFFICIENT, LOW-VOLTAGE HALOGENS. WHOLESALE BULBS DELIVERED

INsTruCTION COuNsELINg

want less clutter & more space?

soFtWarE instructor aVailaBlE A+ technical training and MS Office.

Call 646-241-9279 aFFordaBlE tHEraPy By csW! Get help for life stresses related to weight,work, aging, relationships, health, etc. Short/long term, phone sessions, home visits available, Call 212-286-9674 for free consultation.

Let me help! / Free consult / $50 hourly

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BaYsiDe, Bell BlvD medical center, (directly opposite Bay Terrace shopping center) Furnished & Equipped. perfect for: DDS, MD, psych, other professionals. On-site valet parking. P/T & F/T. Signage!

Location! 718-229-3598

TELECOMMUNICATION DEVICE FOR THE DEAF (TDD) 212-504-4115

BuY/sELL Place your ad here.

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for the unbelievable price of $149

Laptop Screen Repair Data Recovery $49.99+up Virus Removal $55.99 20% discount to all students with ID on all services 15% on parts and merchandise 10% on laptops!

Not a student? Get 10% off on everything!!

Experts In Understanding and Handling Seniors’ Computer Issues Call IT Doc NYC Today!

212 -758-9280

GENERAL

Sudoku-Pu

235 E. 25th St. NY, NY 10010

www. 212-725-6633

Sudoku, Kakuro & Futos

Abe Buys Antiques

Silver, Chandeliers, Paintings, Rugs, Brick-a-Brac, Estates & All contents from homes.

718-332-9709

Sudoku 12x12 - Medium (146415161) 2

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Request for Bids

RENOVATION, OPERATION&MAINTENANCE OF TWO (2) NEWSSTANDS, VERDI SQUARE, MANHATTAN All bids submitted in response to this RFB must be submitted no later than Friday, November 18, 2011 at 3 pm.

For more information, contact: Jeremy Holmes, Revenue Inspector, Division of Revenue and Concessions, 830 Fifth Avenue, the Arsenal-Central Park, Room 407, New York, NY 10065 or call (212) 360-3455 or to download the RFB, visit http://www.nyc.gov/parks/businessopportunities and click on the “Concessions Opportunities at Parks” link. Once you have logged in, click on the “download” link that appears adjacent to the RFB’s description. You can also email him at jeremy.holmes@parks.nyc.gov.

COMPUTER

REFURB SPECIAL We Will Completely Refurbish Your Old Computer

Laptop and desktop repairs upgrades & service

roomsforimprovement@gmail.com

www.roomsforimprovement.net

Interior, exterior and corner offices.

Conf. rooms. Secretarial & IT support.

Flexible plans. Private offices $1450/up.

Virtual offices $90/month. www.410park.com Call 212-231-8500

Everyone Saves at Nettech PC Solutions!!

rooms for improvement Home Organizing for New Yorkers!

917-763-0478

rEAL EsTATE

revocable consent agreement may be addressed to: Department of Consumer Affairs, Attn: FOIL Officer, 42 Broadway, NY, NY 10004. noticE is HErEBy GiVEn that a license, Serial # Pending for Beer, Wine & Liquor has been applied for by the undersigned to sell Beer, Wine & Liquor at retail in a restaurant known as: Green Tree Chinese Restaurant Inc d/b/a 123 Nikko under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law at: 1280 Amsterdam Avenue, NY, NY 10027 for on premise consumption.

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Buys for Cash

Paintings, Silver, Jewelry Bric-a-Brac, Pottery, Furniture Anything Old

917-74 TRACK 917-748-7225

noticE is HErEBy GiVEn that a license Number 1256773 has been applied for by Mozaik Inc d/b/a Mahzen to sell Wine & Beer in a restaurant at retail for on premises consumption under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law at: 739 Grand Street, Brooklyn, NY 11211 noticE is HErEBy GiVEn that a license, number Pending for Beer & Wine has been applied for by the undersigned to sell Beer & Wine at retail in a restaurant under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law at 102-16 43rd Ave., Corona, NY 11368 for on premises consumption. El Madrono Corp d/b/a Restaurante Gaby. nyc dEPt. oF consuMEr aFFairs will hold a public hearing on Wed. 11/9/2011 at 2pm at 66 John Street, 11th Fl., on a petition from Hi-Life Second Avenue LLC. to continue to maintain and operate an enclosed sidewalk cafe at 1503 Second Avenue in the the borough of Manhattan for a term of two years.

Requests for copies of the proposed OUR TOWN

Manhattan Antiques

POLICY NOTICE: We make every effort to avoid mistakes in your classified ads. Check your ad the first week it runs. We will only accept responsibility for the first incorrect insertion. Manhattan Media Classifieds assumes no financial responsibility for errors or omissions. We reserve the right to edit, reject, or re-classify any ad. Contact your sales rep directly for copy changes. All classified ads are pre-paid.

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November 3, 2011

The Joy of Touch & Ultimate Relaxation

212-768-1996 34th St & 5th Ave. Location www.SensualReiki.com

NEWS YOU LIVE BY

OBITUARY

Agnes Allon, 1926–2011 Manhattan Media CEO Tom Allon’s mother, Agnes Allon, passed away last Wed. Oct. 26 after a brief illness.

Here are excerpts from the eulogies given by her sons, Tom and Richard, and grandson, Jonah, at her memorial service on Oct. 28 at Riverside Chapel.

A Mother Like No Other

By Tom Allon

O

ne thing about my mother is that she always had a great sense of humor and she loved to hear jokes and tell jokes, especially off-color ones.

As she was being wheeled to the operating room at Mt. Sinai two months ago and I trailed alongside her, she looked at me and said: “Did you hear the one about the 7-year-old boy who had a six-month old brother and asked his dad what the ‘economy’ meant?”

I looked at her, incredulous that she could tell a joke at this moment.

But she went on, unfazed. “The father said: ‘Hmmm...well, the economy is like your family. I’m business, your mother is management, the maid is labor and your little brother is the future.’”

“That night the boy was awakened at 3 a.m. by his baby brother’s cries. He saw that his diaper was full, so he went next door to his parent’s bedroom and saw that his mother was asleep. Then he went to the maid’s room and saw that his father was having sex with the maid. So, he went back to his bedroom, changed the diaper himself and went back to sleep.

“In the morning at the breakfast table, he said: ‘I think I know what you mean about the economy, dad.’ “‘Great,’ said his father. ‘Tell me.’ “‘Well, it seems that management is asleep. Business is screwing labor. And the future is full of shit!’

We had a good laugh then, in the waiting area outside of the operating room; my mother comforting me, like she always did, in one of the toughest moments of her life. She had that very impish smile that told you that she not only enjoyed telling the joke, but she re-

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Agnes Allon, with son Tom, grandchildren Tess and Lena, and daughters-in-law Janet and Hope. Photos by Richard Allon. ally enjoyed laughing along with you.

That is the image of my mother I’d like all of you to take away today. That is the lasting image that I will always have of her. And that moment tells you more about my mother than a lifetime of eulogies could explain.

She was a saint. Saint Agnes, my brother and I jokingly called her. The first Jewish saint that ever lived.

Her life was an incredibly rich one, a long life full of lots of jokes, good times with my father, loving years with me and my brother Richard and an incredibly rewarding 17 years as a grandmother.

“I don’t feel cheated at all,” my mother said to me in the hospital last month during that long Labor Day Weekend we got to spend together where she reminisced about her early life and how she met my father.

Their’s was a love affair that sounds

November 3, 2011

too good to be true. A love that started when they were 11 and 12 years old, in a different century, in a different culture, in a world much more innocent than the one we live in today. My parents were first cousins who met during the summer of 1936, when my father came to Hungary to spend the summer with my mother’s family. “He was so handsome, I fell in love with him the first time I saw him,” my mother told me that weekend.

“He was wild and fun and we had only eyes for each other.” The wild part, I still find hard to believe, for those of you who knew my dad, but everything else rang true.

The next summer, my father was bar mitzvahed and my mother went with her dad, my father’s uncle, in a strange genetic twist of fate. Their romance deepened, as much as a 13-year-old and a 12-year-old can be said to have a

romance.

Excuse me, I have to interrupt here and say something to my two daughters: Lena and Tess, don’t try this one...it happens only every three generations.

And then came the war and the Holocaust, and both my parents lost parents and siblings and all that was left was their love for each other. Their whole world had come crashing down and this helped solidify their already strong bond. They embarked on a new life as a couple in their early 20s, facing a world that had already shown them that life was precious and fragile.

So, after a few years of living the cosmopolitan life in Vienna and Paris and Budapest, my parents decided to move to New York, my mom told me, because New Yorkers were so much nicer about Continued on next page »

NEWS YOU LIVE BY

Anyu

(In Hugarian and English)

By Richard Allon

A sivem szakad A faydalom nagy A lelkivilagom semved Somoru egy nap ez My heart is torn The pain is huge My inner world is shaken I am unmooredSad, this day

You were so in your skin. So you.

So absoulutely comfortably, unapologetically you! Anyu— And how priviledged and fortunate I have been to have you, my mother, for all these 58 years.

Mindenem. Bodyo edes. Tshilagom.

Aranyom. Botzikam. Szerelmem.

Kedvensem.

Kish bodyo. Nagy bodyo. Apuka.

Edes andyalom. Imadshag.

Ezek a nevek—amik nem fogom halani megint teoled My everything. My dear little seed.

My star. My golden one. My love.

My favorite one. My Little seed. My big seed. My dear loved one. My dearest of all dears.

These are the names I will no longer hear you call me.

Anyam. Baratam. Tanitom. Yavitau.

Anyam edesh edesh anyam.

Ishtenem, Miyen egy dyeneru embert hosztal a vilagra Esh miyen jo sivu egy anya, esh miyen lelki gusdug…

Miyen [pechem van hogy iyen egy anyat talaltam….

My mother, My friend. My teacher.

My fixer. Repairer of all things My dear, dear one and only mother.

God, what a beautiful person you brought into the world.

What a good-hearted and deeply contented soul.

kids than the French. Thus began their odyssey as Americans.

But my mother and father did not leave their European roots of elegance, style and love for family behind, they merely recreated it on the Upper West Side. Their best friends were expatriate Hungarians who moved to the city.

Their social life revolved around the oldworld Hungarian businessman’s club on 73rd Street, off Central Park West. My parents and my aunt and uncle moved to West 86th Street and raised me and my brother and my cousins in a new world that was a generation and worlds removed from their childhood.

My mother did everything she could to make sure that my brother and I lived a safe and happy childhood. And to make us look good. That was very important to them. As an expert seamstress, she actually designed and made

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Richard and Agnes Allon Yol halgatal. Yol latal Yol vitseltel.

Nagyon jol vitseltel . Yol rehegetel Az a Friedmani chaladi rehegsheg.

Minden oyan edseruen neset ki.

Megkertunk valamit toeled esh aba a pertsbe vagy a kevetkese napon el volt intesve.

You listened well. You saw me well.

You told jokes so well. So well. You laughed so well.

That Friedman family laugh, with

our clothes. I still get a little embarrassed when I see pictures of me at 4 years old wearing purple velour short pants that my mom made for my brother’s bar mitzvah. Or the white leather pants my mom designed and had me wear to elementary school. That is perhaps why my only rebellion towards my mother has been my utter lack of interest in fashion. I think that was one of my mother’s few disppointments in me. Just the other night, when I came to visit her at home and leaned over her bed to kiss her, she strained to say something. I thought, I’d better lean in, this could be very important. And then she said, “Is that a stain on your shirt?”

My mother was not just a saint but a modern woman who was not afraid to work and raise a family and be proud to do both well. Every day, she made sure my brother and I were ready for

November 3, 2011

the endless, endless tears.

Everything seemed so easy. One asked you for something and it was done in that very easeful moment or the next day.

Te tanitotal hogy kel leni, hogy emberi leni, hogy dolgosni, hogy piheni, hogy betegen leni esh most hogy halni.

Mi yol ishmertunk egy masht—mi yol megertetunk egymasht.

You taught me how to to be, how to be a human being, how to work, how to rest, how to be sick and now, how to die. With grace, with dignity—in life as in death.

You taught me to enjoy the pleasures of a midday nap, enjoying a fresh warm strudel, a good paprikash chirke nokedlival.

You taught me how to be in a room alone, all alone—doing something I love.

You taught me to count my blessings, to be grateful for the little things.

You were such grace—such amazing grace.

And we knew each other well. And we understood each other well.

So wise. So naturally wise. So much everyday profound common sense.

I loved to hear your counsel—earthy, loving, no bullshit, direct, clear.

I loved to hear you tell me you love me—I loved to tell you I love you.

Such a sweet and familiar refrain : Imadlak. Imadlak. Imadlak.

Anyu, tudom hogy miyen boldog vagy hogy eshkudtem Hopal,

school, then she went off to her fashion boutique with my aunt and was home again by 5:30 p.m. to prepare dinner for our family. My father and me and my brother were so well taken care of, and she made it look so effortless, that she ruined things, unwittingly, for any woman who dared enter our family.

Sorry, Janet and Hope, but Mom did not plan to spoil me and Richard forever.

My mother lived for her family and her kitchen was her castle, and even when it was small on West 86th Street, she made everything taste good, she baked the most amazing cakes and she took joy in watching us all eat her food.

A

fter my father passed away suddenly, almost 13 years ago, life changed dramatically for my mom. Her soulmate was gone. It took her almost a year to

esh hogy menyira imadod eht.

I know how happy you are that Hope and I got married just a few weeks ago, And I know how much you love dear, dear Hope.

Az ishten aldyon meg teged.

Ishten agyon neked eresheget esh beket.

Ishten vigyazon rad, Apukan, Bebon esh az eges czaladra.

Anya czak egy van, Anya czak egy volt. Anya czak egy les May God watch over you, bless you. May God give you strength and peace.

May God take care of you, of Apu, of Bebo, of all the departed cardplaying Hungarians….

I was thinking that if Apu was a good toothpick—you are a thread, a needle, a thimble, a button.

You wove your healing into all the beautiful shawls, afghans, sweaters and clothes that you made for all of us endlessly—tirelessly.

Anyu, pihenyel, ne feyel, mi it vagyunk.

Mi yol vagyunk. Mi emlekesni fogunk. Mi elere nezunk Esh mint te – mi fogyuk elvesni az eletet amedig biryuk Vis latish Anyuka. Vis latash. Vis latash.

Anyu. Rest. Don’t be afraid. We are all fine. We will all remember what you’ve taught us.

We are all faring forward.

And like you, we will relish and enjoy every last minute for as long as we are able.

See you again. See you again.

See you. Again.

find her footing, but she did, and she reveled in her times with my children, with me and my wife, Janet, with Richard and his wife Hope, and in going out to the theater with her friends Vera and Judka and Judith and in seeing her friends in Florida and the Hungarian Club and the neighborhood. She loved her niece and nephew, Ester and Peter, and always invited my uncle Max over for family dinners and holidays. We had a lot to celebrate together these past 13 years: our kids’ graduations, birthdays, Jewish holidays and just being together as a family.

And my mother was the glue that held us all together. She always cooked and shopped and made food days in advance so we were all well fed. Now, we will have to follow her example and Continued on next page »

NEWS YOU LIVE BY

OBITUARY Continued from previous page keep close to our relatives and friends and make life a joy each day, inspired by her incredible example.

I

’ll never forget one conversation my mom and I had while we were walking in the hospital that Labor Day weekend just two months ago, when we still had hope, but my mom knew that things may not go as we all hoped it would.

Out of the blue she said: “What took you so long?”

When I looked at her with a puzzled look she shot back that impish smile.

“You know what your father will say when he sees me? ‘What took you so long?’”

Although there is no way to be sure, of course, I am optimistic that mom and dad are now reunited in some other place, resuming the greatest love story I have ever witnessed, either in fiction or real life.

These past 12 and a half years since my dad died have been a gift to me and my brother, to our wives, Janet and Hope, to my children, Jonah, Tess and Lena and to all of you who knew and loved my mother.

A big part of my mom died that bleak February day in 1999, as it did in June 2002, when her beloved sister, Eva, died and as it did on a number of bleak days in 1942 when she lost her mother and two sisters during the Holocaust, but she nonetheless remained a positive, loving, warm, caring, selfless, thoughtful woman whose life made everyone’s better around her. Almost everyone thinks their mom is the best mother ever, and most of them are right. But Richard and and I were truly blessed with a mother like no other; she loved us unconditionally, praised us when the world was telling us otherwise and lifted our spirits when we were low and in need of the love only a mother can provide.

And now, we must grow up completely and become the people our mother taught us to be. Straightforward, but compassionate; loving, but not fake. Caring and nurturing and positive and striving each day to make the world around us a better place.

Because that’s what she did and hers will be a very tough act to follow.

Mom, yes, the future is full of shit, as your punch line so prophetically and poignantly pointed out. But your life and the memories of our time with you will always be a blessing and an inspiration to all of us.

Rest in peace.

And say hi to dad, and tell him we miss him, too.

Tell him it’s our fault you took so long.

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Agnes Allon and her grandson Jonah. Photo by Richard Allon.

A Grandma’s Strength

By Jonah Allon

I

first realized that Anyu was dying when I saw her middle finger in her waning days. She hardly had any strength in her voice, her skin had taken on a ghostly pallor, and she was fading in and out of consciousness. But her middle finger was conspicuously unpainted. I had never seen any of her bare fingernails in my entire life prior to that. They were always richly coated in red whenever we played Rummikub on the kitchen table or whenever I watched her elegant fingers push needles through fabric by the dim light of the TV screen. I felt immediately as though I had stumbled on something shameful, like walking in on my mother naked. My grandmother was fully exposed to me for the first time in her life. It was a moment of heartbreaking profundity for me as I held her hand, hoping that the nail polish would simply reappear.

Right now, I’m mentally preparing myself to embark on the most significant rite of passage since my barmitzvah. I’m going to college next year. I’ll be out on my own for the first time. My mind is oriented toward the future, toward all of the promise and possibility it holds for me. But when Anyu passed, I reluctantly took a step back into the uncomfortable realm of memory.

I’ve been dwelling there for the past few days.

I remember the Vh1 Top 20 Countdown with a Nutella sandwich in my hands, Anyu beaming as she watched me eat, contentedly. I remember trying to explain how a computer works to a woman from a different generation. I remember our trip to Debrecen, her hometown in Hungary, where our family revisited the courtyard of the building where she had grown up.

I remember the smells from her kitchen. The holiday

November 3, 2011

dinners with the whole family where she told her trademark jokes. The wistful reflections on photographs of her and her beloved Apu. They were a movie-star couple, happy with their lot and their American dream.

Throughout all of this, I haven’t cried once. I don’t say that to boast. There are times when I have welcomed that catharsis, but it just hasn’t come yet. Some people have told me it’s just taking me time to digest and react to this. Some people have said that she will go away in fragments—I’ll notice the absence of her weiner-schnitzel, wonder why my father isn’t visiting her more often, walk by her house dreamily – and she’ll begin to fade away, gradually. But I’d like to provide another possibility: after a life of loving, selflessness, and generosity, Anyu has decided to bestow on me her greatest gift— the gift of strength. It was evident throughout her life that she had an abundance of strength—the Holocaust took most of her family away from her, her husband and the love of her life died suddenly, and in her last 10 years she had no shortage of personal hardships. Yet somehow she maintained an enduring vivacity of spirit, a will to live despite all of the obstacles she faced in her long and full life. And now, poised on the edge of a new chapter in my life, it’s my responsibility to follow in her example and carry on that legacy of strength that has continued to inspire me every day.

Colleges caution potential applicants against the “grandma essay,” where applicants talk about the lessons they’ve learned and the qualities they’ve emulated in their grandmothers. Often, the grandmother ends up seeming like the more appealing candidate.

But the lessons I’ve learned and the newfound strength that Anyu has passed on to me aren’t appropriate for something so mundane. As my old tennis coach so eloquently put it, I would be doing her memory a disjustice. So instead, I’m here to thank Anyu for teaching me unconditional love and for giving me the gift of her strength, which I’ll take forward with me, whatever the future might hold. I hope that, wherever she is, she’s happy. I hope she’s with Apu. I hope she’s re-applying a fresh layer of her signature red nail polish.

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