#it's a korean deli in manhattan?

[morathor]

Not that long ago on Um, Actually, Mike Trapp and Brian David Gilbert had a talk about the New York breakfast sandwiches they missed, and Trapp said something about like, "Eggs and sausage and cheese, on a roll. It's gonna cost five dollars and it's gonna be incredible."

I'm in New York. Went to a random shop this morning. Got a five dollar breakast sandwich, on a roll. It was incredible. Thank you Mister Trapp.

[taruntravell]

7 of the Most Delicious Food Halls in New York City

New York City is known for its diverse culinary scene, and food halls have become a popular way to experience a wide variety of cuisines in one location. Here are seven of the most delicious food halls in the city:

Chelsea Market: Located in the Meatpacking District, Chelsea Market is one of the city's most iconic food halls. It offers a mix of artisanal vendors, gourmet shops, and restaurants. You can find everything from fresh seafood to handmade chocolates here.

Eataly: Eataly is an Italian food emporium with locations throughout the city, including Flatiron and Downtown Manhattan. It features a wide range of Italian products, including fresh pasta, cheeses, meats, and gelato. There are also several restaurants within Eataly serving authentic Italian cuisine.

Gotham West Market: Situated in Hell's Kitchen, Gotham West Market is a trendy food hall offering a diverse selection of culinary options. You can enjoy dishes from ramen to tacos to artisanal sandwiches, all under one roof.

Urbanspace Vanderbilt: Located near Grand Central Terminal, Urbanspace Vanderbilt is home to various food vendors serving a range of international cuisines. Whether you're in the mood for Korean barbecue, sushi, or a classic burger, you'll find it here.

Turnstyle Underground Market: Situated underground at Columbus Circle, Turnstyle is a unique food hall that combines shopping and dining. It features a variety of eateries, cafes, and shops offering a mix of cuisines and artisanal goods.

Essex Market: The Essex Market on the Lower East Side is a historic market that recently underwent renovations. It's now home to an array of food vendors and shops, including fresh produce stands, bakeries, and international eateries.

DeKalb Market Hall: Located in Downtown Brooklyn, DeKalb Market Hall is a spacious food hall with over 40 vendors offering a diverse range of cuisines. From traditional New York deli sandwiches to global street food, there's something for every palate.

These food halls are just a taste of the culinary diversity you can experience in New York City. They provide the perfect opportunity to sample a wide range of flavors, making them a must-visit for food enthusiasts exploring the city.

[power-chords]

Bux, visiting NYC for my winter break this year. Wanna go out to eat a lot. I'm no stranger to the city, and I have plenty of ideas, but I figured I should ask an expert: What are your favorite places to eat in Manhattan & Brooklyn? If you're willing to share. I have to assume there's a lot, but I wanna hear them all. As for something specific--I need to know a nice place to take a date in midtown. Dinner. Thanks a bunch, hope you're doing well!

OH, OH, OH. I love this. I am happy to share. Eager to share. I live to dine in New York, and to tell others where they ought to dine. It's the best thing we've got going for us, arguably.

I will add to this list of recommendations as I think of them, but for now, off the top of my head:

MANHATTAN: Ivan Ramen on Clinton Street (make a reservation, order the spicy ramen if you can take it, the chicken paitan if you can't). Ippudo NY is always a solid backup plan. And speaking of spicy: Somtum Der for outrageously good Isan Thai food (everything is good, but whatever you get, make sure to order the grilled coconut rice to staunch the burn). A nice dinner date in Midtown demands Keens Steakhouse, if you ask me. You should eat at a David Chang restaurant, ideally Ssam Bar. Those rice cakes... oh man. Via Carota, if you can get in (green salad as big as your head + divine pastas), I Sodi if you can't (lasagnaaaa). I like to go alone and sit at the bar for an early dinner; means I don't have to wait. Dhaba in Curry Hill is my favorite restaurant on the island for Punjabi Indian food, Dhamaka if you're feeling a little more adventurous. Her Name Is Han for Korean, Ma La Project for Sichuan dry pot, Hanoi House for pho/Vietnamese, and Nom Wah Tea Parlor is a dim sum institution for a reason. Katz's Deli is mad expensive these days, but you know what? You should still go.

All of these are Midtown or south of Midtown. If you need UES/UWS, Harlem, Morningside Heights, Inwood, let me know. These are all, also, sit-down-for-a-proper-dinner restaurants. If you want some fast casual/food hall-type options, let me know. Plenty of those, too.

BROOKLYN: I'll come back to you. Being in Westchester, I don't get out there much. And it's huge, so if you're going to be staying there, let me know which neighborhood. But I bet @authorityissues can weigh in, if he's so inclined :)

[bulbspoon9-blog]

New York Travel Guide: A Taste of Midtown

Planning a trip to New York City? Join me for our family’s picks on places to eat, sleep and visit while in Midtown New York in this New York Travel Guide. I am excited to share some hometown favorites with you AND collaborate with my very own brother, Andre Legaspi, who is a talented NYC-based street and lifestyle photographer. Photos by Andre Legaspi Photography.

Photo by Andre Legaspi Photography.

My New York Travel Guide is long overdue. I was born and raised in New York, and head back regularly to visit family and friends, and of course, for work. I try to keep a finger on the pulse of the city and check out what’s new (and what is still around), so it’s about time I shared some of my must-sees with you. As a New York native who now calls California home, I offer a perspective that comes from someone who loves and misses her hometown and feels like a tourist at the same time.

Let’s start with A Taste of Midtown, shall we? Midtown may not have the cool factor of lower Manhattan, but between you and me, it’s my favorite. The light is brighter, the streets make sense, there’s always a show to catch, and my offices used to be in midtown, so I feel like I know it best.

Stay

My favorite place to stay when visiting as a family of four is the Andaz 5th Avenue. Across the street from the New York Public Library, it’s away from the zoo that is Times Square, but within walking distance to so many locations, particularly Broadway theatres and Grand Central Station. The suites are roomy, with little kitchenettes, and the food and room service is superb.

The London NYC is another gem. This hotel used to be an apartment building, making its all-suite rooms spacious by NYC hotel standards.

Eat & Drink

Have ramen at Ippudo Westside. Don’t forget the pork buns!

The Oyster Bar at Grand Central Station has been serving up oysters and seafood since 1913.

Indian Accent serves up a taste of New Delhi inside the beautiful Le Parker Meridien.

For more casual Indian food, check out Bengal Tiger. This tiny gem used to be a favorite when I was working in the area.

If you won’t be going into Flushing, stop into Joe’s Shanghai for some slurp-worthy soup dumplings. The crab soup dumplings are the best.

Start your day with bagels and lox! If you’re on the west side, head to Best Bagel & Coffee (love their non-dairy schmears!). On the east side, go to Ess-a-Bagel. My husband loves to surprise us by bringing home a dozen when he goes back. They ship, too!

Grab pastrami on rye and a knish at the Carnegie Deli.

Tim Ho Wan is now in Midtown! No need to fly to Hong Kong for dim sum and barbecue pork buns, though you will definitely have to wait.

Serendipity 3 – if decadence is what you’re after, this is your place. Back in the day, my friends and I would stop in just for dessert and order the Outrageous Banana Split — it was HUGE, and this was before Instagrammable desserts were a thing.

Sarabeth’s has been a favorite for brunch for decades!

Magnolia Bakery has grown since they opened their first store in NYC, but if you’re craving something sweet, why not pop in for their famed banana pudding?

Bibble & Sip – craving cream puffs? Stop in for a sweet treat and a coffee, maybe before catching a show?

Check out Eclair Bakery for a taste of Paris in New York!

Danji for delicious Korean! Try the shrimp and scallion pancakes, beef sliders, pork belly sliders, egg over rice, and tofu ginger scallion dressing. Perfect place to grab dinner before watching a show!

Explore The Plaza Food Hall, downstairs in the Plaza Hotel — you can find everything from doughnuts to lobster, and everything in between. You can do a whole food crawl in this spot alone.

Whenever I’m in a rush, I look for a Halal Guys food truck (street food various locations). It’s a great way to get your gyro or falafel fix.

I’m guessing you’re looking for a slice of pizza while in Midtown…so stop in NY Pizza Suprema near Penn Station.

Need your bubble tea fix? Go to ViVi Bubble Tea on 7th, Gong Cha on E44th or Kung Fu Tea in Koreatown.

Looking for vegan food? We love P.S. Kitchen – perfectly located in the Theater District for dinner before a show, the food is absolutely delicious and all profits are donated to charity. Blossom in Chelsea has been a vegan standby, and there’s also a wonderful location on the Upper West Side. For fast vegan food, by CHLOE has several locations throughout Manhattan, including one in Rockefeller Center.

Craving fresh produce? Just around the corner from the United Nations Plaza, the Dag Hammarskjold Plaza Greenmarket is open every Wednesday and is host to farmers from the tri-state area.

Photo by Andre Legaspi Photography.

See & Do

Catch a Broadway show.

The New York Public Library is worth a peek, especially for book lovers.

Bryant Park is one of my favorite spots and is right behind the New York Public Library. If you’re in New York during the summer, stop by Bryant Park for their outdoor movie nights. Winter brings ice skating. I used to eat many picnic lunches here back in the day!

Top of the Rock for the views! And if it’s Christmas, take in the twinkling tree and go for a skate in Rockefeller Center.

Catch a performance at Radio City Music Hall. If it’s the holidays, you can see the Christmas Spectacular with the Radio City Rockettes!

Even if you’re not catching a train, stop into Grand Central Terminal. There are tons of eateries housed in the beautiful terminal.

Explore the exhibits at the Museum of Modern Art.

Go shopping! Flagship stores abound, from the three B’s (Bloomingdales, Barneys New York, Bergdorf Goodman) to Saks 5th Avenue. Plus, there are The Shops at Columbus Circle if you’re looking for a mall that happens to have high-end restaurants such as Masa and Per Se.

Sneak away from the urban jungle and stroll along the High Line. The High Line stretches down into Chelsea and Lower Manhattan, which is where we’ll pick up the guide again next time!

Photography by my very talented brother, Andre Legaspi. Follow Andre on Instagram and check out his work at andrelegaspi.com.

MORE FAMILY TRAVEL GUIDES

Paris Travel Guide: A Taste of The City of Lights A Taste of London: A Family Travel Guide A Taste of Hong Kong: A Family Travel Guide A Taste Of Cruising the Mexican Riviera: Travel with Princess Cruises A Taste of Deer Valley, Utah: A Family Ski Travel Guide

Source: https://kitchenconfidante.com/new-york-travel-guide-a-taste-of-midtown

[cloverorgan83-blog]

In New York City, experience the world without a passport - Minneapolis Star Tribune

Ellis Island draws more than 3 million visitors each year. They ferry to the island off the southern tip of Manhattan to learn about the 12 million immigrants who passed through the echoing halls, often seeking a better future in the gleaming metropolis just across the bay. But on a recent trip to New York with my husband, Mike, the closest we got to Ellis Island was the view from the Staten Island Ferry.

I did want to learn about how immigrants have shaped our country’s largest city. Ellis Island, though, was not the best place to do that. After all, the facility served as a processing center for incoming arrivals only from 1892 to 1924. It reflects a sliver of the immigrant experience, which spans from the 1600s through today.

With foreign-born New Yorkers making up nearly 40 percent of the current population, the city’s immigration narrative is woven into the city itself.

Many of New York City’s most iconic symbols can be traced back to immigrants. Neapolitan-born bakers created the classic New York pizza slice. Eastern European Jewish immigrants brought bagels. Thousands of immigrants helped construct the Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park and the first subway tunnels. Even now, the city’s foreign-born residents fuel New York City’s renowned culinary scene — 26,000 restaurants and counting — with global flavors and their labors.

One of the best places to take a deep dive into New York’s immigration history is the Tenement Museum on the Lower East Side. Eastern European Jewish immigrants who settled there at the turn of the 20th century may be the neighborhood’s most famous occupants; since that time, the iconic Katz Deli has served diners just a few blocks away. However, Germans preceded them, arriving in the 1840s, when the neighborhood was called Klein Deutschland, or Little Germany. Chinese immigrants took hold in the 1960s.

The Tenement Museum explores that whole expanse. Over the decades, the museum’s two apartment buildings housed 15,000 immigrants from 20 nations who came to the Lower East Side to find a new life. Today, various tours through the museum’s restored apartments recount the lives of actual residents and how their stories fit into the social, economic and policy issues of the day.

On the Shop Life tour, we learned about John and Caroline Schneider, a German couple who operated a saloon on the apartment building’s lower level in the mid-1800s. As one of America’s first waves of non-English-speaking immigrants, Germans encountered prejudice and discrimination, and John Schneider became active in local politics to effect change. An interactive exhibit at the end of the tour details some of the later business tenants as the neighborhood’s demographics shifted, including a kosher butcher shop, auction house and undergarments store.

After a quick break (the Tenement Museum recommends that you allow yourself 30 minutes between tours, just enough time to grab a slice), we jumped ahead nearly a century to the Under One Roof tour. It tells the story of some of the people who lived at 103 Orchard St. throughout the 20th century: Bella Epstein, whose parents survived the Holocaust; Jose and Andy Velez, whose mother left Puerto Rico in search of economic opportunity; and the Chinese-American Wong siblings, whose stories shed a light on the neighborhood’s once-thriving garment industry. Our tour educator highlighted how many of the immigration policies and attitudes that affected apartment residents are still relevant decades later, leaving us with plenty to consider in the days ahead.

A global tour

Like in the bygone eras we learned about on our Tenement Museum tours, contemporary New York is home to many ethnic enclaves that offer visitors a glimpse of the modern-day immigrant experience — and the chance to sample a world’s worth of cuisines without a passport. While the most famous are Manhattan’s Little Italy and Chinatown, globally influenced neighborhoods span the city’s boroughs, including Little Guyana in Queens, Little Sri Lanka on Staten Island and Brooklyn’s Little Odessa.

Also known as Brighton Beach, Little Odessa is an oceanside neighborhood that takes its moniker from a Ukrainian city on the Black Sea. Eastern European Jewish immigrants settled in the area in the early 20th century, and thousands of Holocaust survivors arrived after World War II. Today, the neighborhood is home to Ukrainian, Russian, Uzbek and other immigrants from the former Soviet Union. Many shop signs are lettered in Cyrillic, and we overheard more Russian than English. After browsing through some of the many specialty grocery stores — I couldn’t resist the Russian chocolate bars — we dined on soup and dumplings on the leafy patio of an Uzbek restaurant.

Another favorite neighborhood we visited was the “other” Little Italy, in the Bronx. Manhattan’s Little Italy feels more like a theme park than an actual neighborhood, with the majority of restaurants and shops geared toward crowds of tourists. The Bronx’s version is trickier to access (between the subway ride and a mile of walking, it was a 90-minute one-way trip from our Brooklyn Airbnb). However, we were rewarded with a relatively quiet neighborhood where firefighters enjoyed their slices at sidewalk tables outside the corner pizza joint, customers lined up to purchase pork chops at the butcher shop and a woman bought canned tomatoes by the pallet from a local grocer.

The centerpiece of Bronx’s Little Italy is the Arthur Avenue Market, opened in 1940 as part of an initiative by Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, himself a child of Italian and Jewish immigrants. Browsing the stalls feels a bit like stepping back in time, with a handful of elderly patrons chatting in Italian and craftsmen hand-rolling cigars. At the nearby Madonia Brothers Bakery (a neighborhood fixture since 1918), we got cannolis filled to order with a dense ricotta cream studded with shaved chocolate. Other modest storefronts sold fresh mozzarella, olives by the pound and piles of fresh pasta.

Many languages in Queens

The best place to get a feel for New York’s modern immigrant character is Queens, where nearly half of the population is foreign-born. We hoped to get a food tour of the Flushing neighborhood’s many international flavors. When our guide was a no-show, we struck off on our own. As we walked down Main Street, we overheard Spanish, Korean, Creole, Mandarin and several languages that we couldn’t identify. Tropical fruits and vegetables spilled out of produce stands onto the crowded streets, a vendor had arranged a row of fresh fish on the sidewalk, and tiny stores were stocked with everything from shoes and cellphones to custom-decorated cakes and perfume.

The nearby New World Mall bills itself as one of the largest indoor Asian malls in the Northeast. Whether that claim is true, dozens of stalls offer a wide range of Korean, Chinese, Thai and Vietnamese fare. We saw skewers of meat, steaming bowls of noodles, pho, piles of shrimp meant to be eaten family-style, fried chicken and squid, plus dumplings stuffed with every variation of meat and vegetables imaginable. I settled on a sort of omelet-pancake hybrid, stuffed with vegetables and carefully folded into a paper wrapper. Mike ordered pork and cabbage dumplings that came with a little bowl of kimchi on the side.

Before the subway ride back to Brooklyn, we stopped by the Flushing branch of the Queens Library. The shelves of the International Language Collection were lined with books in more than 30 languages from Arabic to Yiddish, and there were Chinese, Korean and Spanish reference sections. A pile of local newspapers included many foreign-language publications, and the Chinese edition of Cosmopolitan was available on the magazine rack.

The library was bustling on a Sunday afternoon, much like my Hennepin County Library branch at home. Earbud-wearing students pored over textbooks, elderly men perused the newspapers and toddlers played with toys in the children’s section.

As they go about their daily lives — working, studying, shopping, starting businesses, marrying, having children, becoming citizens — these modern-day residents of Queens are continuing a story that stretches back hundreds of years: the Germans and Eastern European Jewish immigrants who settled on the Lower East Side; the Chinese and Italian immigrants who defined their namesake Manhattan neighborhoods; the Koreans, Haitians, Senegalese, Irish, Ukrainians and more who have made the city their own over the decades.

Perhaps more than any other place in the United States, New York is a city that has been and will always be shaped by its people, many of whom were born somewhere else. By stepping off the well-worn tourist path to Ellis Island — by visiting the Tenement Museum, enjoying a meal in an immigrant-owned restaurant in Little Odessa, taking the No. 7 subway line up to Queens — a visitor can engage, however briefly, with that narrative.

  Stacy Brooks is a Minneapolis-based food and travel writer who blogs at tangledupinfood.com.

Source: http://www.startribune.com/in-new-york-city-experience-the-world-without-a-passport/502110602/

[todaynewsstories]

Romaine is on the menu at some New York delis despite E.coli warning

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Romaine lettuce still had a place at the salad bars of some cafes and delicatessens in New York City on Wednesday despite a blanket warning to Americans from U.S. public health officials that none of the lettuce was safe to eat because it might be contaminated by E.coli.

Romaine lettuce is displayed on a grocery store shelf in New York City, U.S. November 21, 2018. REUTERS/Gabriella Borter

The warning, precipitated by an E.coli outbreak in 11 states and Canada, was issued on Tuesday. Some shops said that romaine was still being sold because officials had not specified the source of potentially contaminated romaine, such as a farm or company.

“It’s up to the customers to choose to eat it or not,” said Alex Hwang, manager of Dali Market in midtown Manhattan. “Whatever we have, it’s the same thing we had yesterday. They ate it, and we had no issues with it.”

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Tuesday that 32 people in 11 states had been sickened by E.coli between Oct. 8 and 31.

The Public Health Agency of Canada issued food safety alerts on Tuesday urging consumers to throw out romaine and sanitize shelves where it had been stored while authorities sought to identify the source.

“To protect consumers from this foodborne outbreak, we are urging New York families, retailers, grocers and restaurants to adhere to the warning and pull any romaine lettuce from their shelves and menus,” New York’s Department of Agriculture and Markets Commissioner Richard A. Ball said in a statement on Tuesday. Two of those infected are in New York.

The New York City Department of Health said on Wednesday that it was alerting restaurants during regular inspections about the advisory and reaching out to industry trade groups to spread the word.

“If inspectors observe romaine being sold, they will order the establishment to dispose of the product,” Health Department spokesman Michael Lanza said. “If the establishment does not dispose of the romaine, the Health Department may close the restaurant for an uncorrected public health hazard.”

On Wednesday, Reuters visited nine independently owned delis and cafes in midtown Manhattan, where salad bar lines at lunchtime are typically long. All but one were selling romaine lettuce, some of which had been delivered on Wednesday.

“No one came by and told us. We didn’t know,” Irivia Spivey, a salad tosser at Mamaroo, a Korean cafe, said as her manager stood by.

Moe Eli, the deli manager at a shop called Carve, said that the business’ food distributor Sysco had told them on Tuesday about the recall. He said he had stopped accepting new deliveries of romaine but was still selling romaine received before the warning. “We’re selling the old ones. Sysco knows,” Eli said.

Sysco spokeswoman Camilla Zuckero said the company had no comment.

On Wednesday, Scott Gottlieb, head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration told NBC News that the lettuce that caused the E.coli infection may have come from California.

CDC spokeswoman Candice Burns underscored in an email to Reuters that the agency “provides public warnings so that people can take action to protect their health,” but it is not a regulatory body.

Slideshow (2 Images)

A sample by Reuters of 12 grocers and supermarkets in Chicago, Detroit and Denver found that romaine had been removed from their shelves.

“As soon as I heard on the news yesterday, I threw everything in the trash that had romaine lettuce – salads, romaine itself,” said Mike Fisayo, manager of Chicago’s South Loop Market.

Large chain grocers like Whole Foods Market, owned by Amazon, and nationwide salad retailers such as Chopt and Fresh & Co told Reuters that they had stopped selling romaine as soon as the warning was issued.

Reporting by Gabriella Borter and Gina Cherelus Additional reporting by Peter Szekely in New York, Nick Carey in Detroit, Renita Young in Chicago and Keith Coffman in Denver Editing by Frank McGurty

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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[popradar]

Weekend Planner: Holiday Edition with 15 of the Coolest Things to Do in Los Angeles

A number of venues are going dark for the Christmas holidays, but we still found these 15 awesome events happening in L.A. this weekend. Want the 411 on additional events and happenings in LA? Follow @christineziemba on Twitter or Instagram.  

If you like what you’re reading, consider donating to PopRadarLA.com to help defray the costs of the site. Thank you! 

FRIDAY, DEC. 22

LITTLE DOM’S UGLY SWEATER CHRISTMAS PARTY (Food + drinks)

Little Dom’s in Los Feliz holds an Ugly Sweater Christmas Party on Friday. Come dressed in an ugly sweater and get a free mini martini or mini Manhattan from 5:30 pm-close. Must be 21 or older, and it must be in a ugly sweater. Drinks while supplies last.

SUMO DOG (Food)

Friday is the last day of the collaboration between Chef Jeffrey Lunak of Koreatown's Sumo Dog and Jon & Vinny. The hot dog is served up with Chow Chow and Spicy Jewish Deli Mustard and available only at Sumo Dog. The collaboration series continues next with Nancy Silverton on Jan. 10. Proceeds Proceeds from the special dogs will go to charities of the chefs' choice. 

THE EL VEZ MEX-MAS SHOW! (Music)

The Mexican Elvis impersonator El Vez celebrates Christmas with the EL VEZ MeX-mas Show at the Echo on Friday at 8:30 pm. Pony Death Ride opens. Tickets: $12.50 in advance, $15 day of show. Ages 18+. 

FISHBONE (Music)

Fishbone headlines The Roxy on Friday night for an all-ages show. The House of Vibe Allstars with MC Supernatural opens the show. Doors at 8 pm, show at 9 pm. Tickets: $20.

DECK THE HALL (Holiday)

The LA Phil’s 2017 Deck the Hall Holiday Concert Series continues on Friday night with a concert by Naturally 7 at Walt Disney Concert Hall at 8 pm. The a cappella group will raise spirits with a special holiday-themed program. They ­re-create instrumentation including drums, bass, and guitars to horns, harmonicas, flutes...even turntables with their voices. Tickets: $38-$98. 

THE GROWLERS (Music)

The Growlers return to The Wiltern on Friday and Saturday for The Snowball. Doors at 8 pm, show at 9 pm. The Pit is first come, first served. All ages. Tickets start at $35.

GROUNDLINGS HOLIDAY (Comedy)

The Groundlings Theatre troupe presents its Holiday Show on Friday and Saturday at 8 pm and 10 pm. They’ll perform sketches and improv with a holiday twist. Tickets are $25. 

IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE (Film)

Family in town? Here’s the perfect solution where you can all hang out and not talk (politics). It’s a Wonderful Life screens at the Egyptian Theatre on Friday at 7:30 pm and at the Aero Theater on Saturday at 4 pm and 7:30 pm. Tickets: $12. 

SATURDAY, DEC. 23

DECK THE HALL (Holiday)

The LA Phil’s 2017 Deck the Hall Holiday Concert Series continues on Saturday with two White Christmas Sing-Alongs at 3 pm and 8 pm. While the 1954 film with Bing Crosby, Rosemary Clooney, Danny Kaye and Vera Ellen is shown, the lyrics to songs like "The Best Things Happen When You're Dancing," "Snow," "Sisters" and the iconic "White Christmas” are superimposed on the screen. Tickets: $33-$68. 

REINDEER RUN (Sports)

A Better World Running presents a Reindeer Run on Saturday with a 5K, 10K, 15K and Half Marathon. The races start at 7:30 am at Lake Balboa Park. Online registration ends on Friday at 5 pm, but race day registration is available: 5k - $30; 10k - $35; 15k $40; and Half Marathon - $45.

FESTIVUS PARTY (Beer + games)

Dutch’s BrewHouse in Long Beach holds its 2nd annual Festivus Party on Saturday beginning at 7 pm. There will be an Airing of Grievances, Feats of Strength, the aluminum pole, a Festivus dinner, miracles and beer.

ERIC & LOREN’S (VAGUELY) HOLIDAY SHOW (Music)

Eric & Loren’s (Vaguely) Holiday Show is at Upstairs at Vitello’s Supper Club at 8 pm on Saturday night. The Eric is Eric McCormack of Will & Grace who teams with his bud Loren Gold (The Who) for a night of rare songs by Billy Joel, Elton John and Eric’s other teen idols. Tickets: $30, $50 VIP. A minimum of two items ($20.00) is required per person while occupying a table. 

HOLY TRINITY: SMITHS/CURE/DEPECHE MODE NIGHT (Music)

Club 90's & Blue Mondays, and Coven 13 present Holy Trinity: Smiths/Cure/Depeche Mode Night at the Teragram Ballroom in DTLA. Starting at 10 pm, the club night is dedicated to the music of the bands of The Smiths, Cure and Depeche mode with a few other dark ‘80s and ‘90s tunes thrown in the mix. Tickets: $5 entry before 10:30 with RSVP.

SUNDAY, DEC. 24

TART’S CHRISTMAS EVE DINNER (Food)

TART holds a special Christmas Eve Dinner on Sunday from 5-10 pm. Chef Aloise Kieffer offers a three-course, prix-fixe dinner that won’t break your bank account. For $40, the menu features choices such as Chicken & Dumplings, house made spaghetti and more,, and includes a glass of white, red or champagne. 

There’s a free L.A. County Holiday Celebration at the Music Center on Sunday. | Photo: Timothy Norris

L.A. COUNTY HOLIDAY CELEBRATION (Holiday)

L.A. County’s 58th Annual Holiday Celebration takes place at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion at The Music Center on Christmas Eve. The free, three-hour music and dance spectacular (from 3-6 pm) features performances by ensembles, choirs and dance companies from various SoCal neighborhoods and cultures to celebrate the season. Performers include: Harmonic Bronze Handbell Ensemble, the Palmdale High School Choral Union and Sunday Night Singers; the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department Band; MUSYCA Children’s Choir; Mostly Kosher; Jung Im Lee Korean Dance Company on Korean drums; and Las Colibri, among others. Doors to the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion open at 2:30 pm (but the line forms much earlier). 

—by Christine N. Ziemba

[halsteadproperty]

Five Things to Know about Sunnyside Before Moving There 

By Jennifer Hsu, Lic. R.E. Salesperson in our Long Island City Office 

1. Close to the city, but small town feel. There aren't hi-rise buildings in Sunnyside (not yet anyway!) and a majority of the properties here are attached single family homes built in the 1920's, for a quaint village feel and plenty of sky and sunshine when walking about. There are local parks and libraries on either side of Queens Boulevard and lots of buses that will take you both into Manhattan, and deeper into queens if you don't feel like taking the subway.

2. Sunnyside Gardens This is a historic community with some shared gardens and access to a private members-only park which you can only join if you're within the designated borders. Some perks are additional outdoor space, tennis and basketball courts, and a picnic area.

3. Excellent Asian food, Delis and Farmer’s Markets   Probably outside of Elmhurst, this area has the highest concentration of excellent Thai food in Queens. SriPraPhai, Thai Diva, M Thai, Blu Orchid, are some of the best out there. Very good Japanese can be found Takesushi, Oki sushi and Ariyoshi. And Sik Gaek, Natural Tofu and Doma round out the Korean food set.

We have ethnic delis: a cute Irish Deli called Butcher Block on 41st street, a Japanese grocery store called Taiyo Foods on 44th, and Parrot Coffee has wonderful eastern european staples. Lastly, not only is there a farmer's market every Saturday on Skillman at Lou Lodati Park, but the neighborhood CSA (community supported agriculture) sources excellent fresh items from local farmers.

4. Nonprofits and Community Activities One of Sunnyside's biggest benefits is the plethora of social services provided by the local YMCA which has a pool and at certain times of the year waives its membership fee, Sunnyside Community Center (local CSA and activities and resources for the elderly), LaGuardia College with its movie screenings and speakers. Even tech nonprofits such as Coalition 4 Queens run programs here.

5. Falchi Building Falchi Building is becoming quite the exciting building. It most notably houses the Taxi & Limousine Commission and Doughnut Plant (which in my opinion is way better than Dough), the manufacturing center for Juice press and a variety of food vendors and nonprofits.

To connect with Jennifer, visit her agent page. 

[yahoonewsdigest-us]

Jimmy Breslin, hard-boiled New York columnist who won Pulitzer, dies at 86

Arts

Jimmy Breslin, hard-boiled New York columnist who won Pulitzer, dies at 86

Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper columnist Jimmy Breslin, a self-described “street reporter” who chronicled New York City life for decades and won acclaim for his coverage of the "Son of Sam" serial killings, died on Sunday morning at age 86. Breslin died at his Manhattan home of complications from pneumonia, his stepdaughter, Emily Eldridge, said. Breslin was a hard-boiled newspaperman born in the New York City borough of Queens. The Irish-American in a rumpled suit with unkempt hair, a drink in his hand and a cigar between his lips had a sharp eye for detail, a keen ear for dialogue and was plugged into sources ranging from the criminal underworld to the corner newsstand. A deli counter man in Staten Island did not need a dictionary to read a Breslin column. He told his stories in an abrupt, straightforward style that New York magazine once described as "equal parts Dickens and Yogi Berra."

Breslin is an intellectual disguised as a barroom primitive.

Jack Newfield and Wayne Barrett in their book "City for Sale"

Breslin grew up in working-class Queens with his sister and a mother who supported them as a teacher and welfare department worker after their alcoholic father abandoned them. He would go on to work for several New York City newspapers, but he first blossomed in the 1960s at the Herald Tribune, where he and Tom Wolfe were among the pioneers of what became known as "new journalism," a more literary approach to news reporting. Breslin took his column to the Daily News in 1976 just as a random killer who came to be known as Son of Sam was terrorizing the city. Breslin became a player in the drama when the killer, a postal worker named David Berkowitz, sent a four-page letter to Breslin's home, promising more murders. Breslin co-wrote a novel about the case. He gave up regular column writing in 2004 when he resigned from Newsday, saying he wanted to concentrate on books. The eccentric, entertaining Breslin was known as a working-class hero, but acknowledged he was prone to fits of pique and a bad temper. After spewing ethnic slurs at a Korean-American co-worker in 1990, Breslin apologized.

I am no good and once again I can prove it.

Breslin

[blondbohemian-blog]

Favorite spots in New-York

New-York is such vibrant city with a wide variety of places which means there is something for everyone. But it can sometimes be difficult to find just the right kind of spot you are looking for as a newcomer to the city and when traveling there on a short period, you definitely want to be able to make most out of your stay. So, here is a sample of my favorite must-try adresses around the Big Apple : from restaurants, hotels and cafes, to bars and rooftop terraces. 

The Russian Tearoom                                                                                            (150 West 57th Street,NY)

I found this restaurant by chance on a cold and rainy day as I was coming back from the MoMA. 

The luxurious and Russia-themed decorated restaurant offers gourmet cuisine and delicious options for tea-time from 2PM to 4.30PM everyday.

Advice : if going there for lunch or dinner, order the grilled salmon : you shall not be disappointed. 

The “Supernova” bar at Novotel, Times Square                                                 (226 W 52nd St, NY) 

This incredible rooftop bar overlooks the famous Times Square and is an ideal point from which you can observe the madness on the street from a more relaxed angle. 

Greenacre Park                                                                                                     (217 E 51st St (between 2nd & 3rd Ave), NY)

Hidden out in Midtown, you would be surprised to find this well-kept secret spot in a quiet street planted with blooming cherry trees. The buildings are man-sized so that your first instinct would be to think you just ended up in Greenwich Village or somewhere in the southern part of Manhattan. And you wouldn’t be crazy to think so. I was astonished myself when I discovered this little hide-away in between two houses. 

It is simply the best spot to escape the craziness of Midtown without having to go too far. 

Le pain quotidien, at Bryant Park                                                                          (42nd E 5th Avenue, NY)

Right behind the great Library of New-York lies the intimate Bryant Park and, at the end of the meadow, the tiny house that is “Le Pain Quotidien”. A kind of little deli offering organic foods and drinks for lunch, brunch or just an afternoon snack you can enjoy whilst sitting at one the many garden chairs and tables surrounding the park offering a contrasted view between the old building of the library and the new sky scrapers behind it. 

“Korea Way”                                                                                                            (32nd E 5th Avenue, one block after the Empire State Building, NY)

You might have heard of New-York’s “Chinatown” or “Little Italy”(both of which are not worth the detour if you’re asking me : I will talk about it in another post) but high chances are you haven’t heard about the “Korea Town” or “Korea Way” as we commonly call it. If you haven’t, then you definitely should continue reading. In the last years, Korean cuisine has began spreading around the world and conquering new audiences and food enthusiasts with their now-famous “Korean barbecue”. I had already been to a fair amount of Korean restaurants before going to the Big Apple but I have to say that this place is definitely one of the best spots to eat Korean food (except maybe in Seoul itself). As you wander through this tiny street you will find all kinds of charaoke bars and restaurants where it is rare to see tourists. The food there is of good quality and the portion size well over worth the money you are paying. It is definitely a must-try. 

Magnolia Bakery                                                                                                      (401 Bleecker Street and W. 11th Street,NY)

A trip to New-York wouldn’t be complete without trying one of the famous cupcakes sold all-around the city. Wether you are a “Sex and the City” fan or just a regular cupcake enthusiast, you fill find your happiness at Magnolia Bakery, the star of all cupcake shops. 

Juice Press                                                                                                           (10 E 53rd St, NY) 

This all organic juice bar and deli offers cold pressed juices, smoothies, salads and wraps which are perfect to have in your bag to fuel you with energy on a long day of wandering through the city or just to have a healthy little picnic in Central Park. 

The “Love Me” juice with green apple, kale, lemon and spinach is a favorite. 

The Plaza Hotel                                                                                                      (768 5th Ave, NY) 

Even before coming to New-York, I had this idea of staying at the plaza, a hotel I had engraved in my memory perhaps from seeing it featured in several movies I watched as a child. So, when time came to plan my trip to New-York I already knew where I wanted stay. 

Situated right on the fifth avenue and overlooking Central Park’s “duck pond”, the Plaza is the perfect spot to experience as much of the city as possible : the shops on the Fifth Avenue, the Rockefeller Center, Broadway (only a few minutes away), and of course Central Park. 

Newly renovated, the old rooms has been modernized with a tablet commanding light and other elements of the room. 

The service and maintenance is impeccable, the room being made up twice a day : once in the morning and one before bed-time. 

The Plaza also offers a wide array of services from gym and spa, to its very own shopping center located in the basement of the hotel with a food court and shops.  

                                      Breakfast at the Palm Court 

The Plaza is without a doubt the most iconic hotel of New-York City and overshadows hereby the many other five-star hotels there are in Manhattan. It is the brightest embellishment to every New-York stay. 

I hope that this sample of my favorite places in New-York will inspire you and help you find your culinary path around the city. 

Take care, 

xo Marie