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July 8, 2008
Drinking in New York has long been reserved for private homes or establishments with liquor licenses (or speakeasys!), but how well is the law enforced when it comes to drinking on a stoop or in a public park? Apparently, and unfortunately, the law is still being upheld very well. A few years back the tabloids wondered why cops looked the other way when it came to Chardonnay swilling audiences listening to the symphony in Central...
Continue Reading "Should Public Drinking Be Allowed?"
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add to del.icio.usThe Van Leeuwen Artisan ice cream truck rolled up to DUMBO for a couple hours this afternoon, affording Gothamist a taste of creamy ecstasy. And not a moment too soon; driver Dan Suarez told us that a turf war had already broken out on Main Street with rival truck Tommy’s Ice Cream, whose owner told Dan he’s been working the block for four years. One could see why Tommy would be threatened: there was an...
Continue Reading "Van Leeuwen Ice Cream Truck Spotted, Tasted"
The beloved Manhattan Special was featured in the NY Times yesterday as siblings Aurora and Louis Passaro are experiencing a new resurgence in popularity in the coffee soda specialty. The drink, which has been made in a Brooklyn factory since 1895, is now available online, but it's not always easy to find locally. It has been spotted in Inwood, at Manganaro's Hero Boy, Bruno's King of Ravioli, the Associated Supermarket on 14th Street and First...
Continue Reading "Serving Up a Manhattan Special"Restaurant lawsuit season is in full swing! The latest is a $5 million lawsuit filed by a former employee against the Gramercy Park Hotel Chinese restaurant Wakiya, which Times critic Frank Bruni once derisively described as “a swindle.” A Dominican Republic-born American citizen is suing the owners for firing her for speaking Spanish when she was allegedly assaulted by a Spanish-speaking co-worker in the employee cafeteria. Her lawyers are seeking $5 million, which is “the...
Continue Reading "Restaurant Worker Says She Was Fired for Speaking Spanish"July 7, 2008
Seems those choir boys at Water Taxi Beach really believe all that stuff about giving being better than receiving. So take advantage of their munificence by eating free BBQ chicken at their Long Island City oasis Wednesday night – the handout is a reprise of yesterday's fowl philanthropy at WTB: “We had such a good time giving away free BBQ Chicken on Sunday that we are doing it again. We have 3 cases of fresh...
Continue Reading "Free BBQ Chicken at Water Taxi Beach!"Advertisement: Gothamist Continues Below!
July 7, 2008
The rabble-rousers protesting against the proliferation of "yuppie wine bars" in the East Village may now need to expand their opposition to include crappy pizza wine bars. A lone worker inside the St. Mark's Place Pizzanini on Saturday said the joint's "Wine Bar" awning has been up for a couple weeks. But when we requested a couple glasses of Montepulciano to wash down our lasagna slices, he informed us that there was no wine....
Continue Reading "We Are All Wine Bars Now: Pizzanini on St. Mark's"July 6, 2008
Homemade marshmallows are a cinch to make, and these lemon marshmallows will make your s'mores more interesting this year....
Continue Reading "Recipe of the Week: Lemon Marshmallows"
Restaurant workers seem increasingly ready to hit their employers with lawsuits over tips – Buddha Bar and Tao are two of the latest to have their Zen calm shattered. But owners are also fighting back even after they lose, as three waiters at the Old Homestead Steakhouse are finding out. After winning $36,000 in a lawsuit over ripped-off tips, they’re suing their bosses again for harassment. The main gripe is that they’ve been punished by...
Continue Reading "Waiters Cry Harassment After Tip Lawsuit"July 5, 2008
Mercadito Cantina: This is newest advance in the expanding Mercadito empire; besides the original Alphabet City Mercadito there’s also Mercadito Grove. This one is not far from the original, on Avenue B, and packs a lot of Mexican fixings into a dainty space that stays open ‘til 1 a.m. The main action here is at the make your own taco bar, where heavy rollers can choose from eight guacamoles and ten salsas, all made from...
Continue Reading "Openings Roundup: Mercadito Cantina, Eton, The General Greene"July 3, 2008
You may have already learned, with equal parts dread and anticipation, that TV personality and terrorist-scarf-wearer Rachael Ray is writing a memoir. Working title: EVOhno. Anyway, now it looks like she’ll have to add another chapter about eating disorders and workplace sensitivity, as an anorexic ex-employee has just filed a lawsuit in New York State Supreme court against CBS and The Rachael Ray Show. Payroll accountant Aaron Ferguson, an admitted anorexic for the past six...
Continue Reading "Rachael Ray Show Employee Suing for Discrimination"
If you're staying in town this weekend and still don't have plans for the 4th, it's not too late to catch the spirit of '76; there are plenty of barbecue options within the five boroughs, whatever your budget or neighborhood. All the events below take place tomorrow, July 4th, unless otherwise specified. Head to Water Taxi Beach for the next best thing to the Hamptons. $25 gets you a regular evening at the beach, but...
Continue Reading "Festive Food for the Fourth"
When salmonella first ruined the tomatoes, some carnivores laughed at the distraught vegetable lovers; now an E. coli outbreak has prompted a nationwide beef recall, and the only ones left to laugh are the breatharians. 530,000 pounds of beef have been pulled from supermarkets nationwide; over 40 people may have been sickened in Michigan and Ohio by contaminated beef sold by the Kroger chain. Symptoms to watch out for at tomorrow’s barbecues include stomach cramps...
Continue Reading "Just in Time for July 4th: E. Coli Beef Outbreak"July 2, 2008
After last year's Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest, six-time world hot-dog-eating champ Takeru Kobayashi declared: "I will definitely beat him next year." His opponent, Joey Chestnut, had won by eating 66 HDB (hot dogs and buns) to Kobayashi's 63. Despite not earning his way in to the contest as a regional qualifier, last year's loser be on hand this year in an attempt to earn back the title. The Brooklyn Paper (jokingly) says Kobayashi...
Continue Reading "Kobayashi Returns as "Sponsor Exempt" Contestant"
Heartland Brewery has just announced what they believe to be the Largest Glass of Beer Commercially Available (an application has already been filed with the Guiness World Records), it is dubbed: "The Beer Goddess." The three-liter glass holds 6.3 pints, 101.4 ounces, or 8.5 cans...and no matter what way you measure it, it's likely to be warm by the time you reach the half way point. The glass can be filled to the brim with...
Continue Reading "Heartland Introduces XL Beer"
Last month Tavern on the Green settled a discrimination lawsuit for $2.2 million dollars; today the Times has a detailed profile on the lead complainant, an East African immigrant who grew up in refugee camps before escaping to the U.S. as a teenager. She says that while working at Tavern as a hostess, “I was asked to perform sexual favors in great detail by this manager. And when I refused, I was told that I...
Continue Reading "Former Tavern on the Green Hostess Tells All About Harassment"Advertisement: Gothamist Continues Below!
July 2, 2008
Starbucks has announced it's closing 600 stores in the U.S., bringing the total number down to approximately 9 gazillion, most of them located in Astor Place. Stocks have fallen 24% so far this year, and its second quarter was its weakest as a public company. The Seattle-based chain says it will try to relocate employees to other stores, but thousands of layoffs loom. Financial analyst Sharon Zackfia tells the Times, “I don’t think it’s overly...
Continue Reading "Starbucks to Close Stores, Fire 12,000 Employees"
A week after the Sun declared that “disappointment is deeper” at Bar Milano, the Denton brothers’ (Lupa, 'ino, and ‘inoteca) trendy and noisy northern Italian place (pictured) in Gramercy, the Times’s Frank Bruni has seconded the emotion by quipping that “an Italian restaurant that bungles its pasta dishes is like a Las Vegas resort that doesn’t let you gamble. There’s still plenty to enjoy, but you’re likely to feel that the essential point and signature...
Continue Reading "Midweek Special: NYC Restaurant Review Roundup"July 1, 2008
It’s been a long time coming, but today’s the day the city’s ban on trans fat expands from spreads and frying oils to everything served in a restaurant, with the exception of foods served in the manufacturer's original packaging, such as crackers. The city’s anti-trans fat website has plenty of trans facts for restaurateurs and diners, and Sal Picinich of Carlo's Bakery in Hoboken tells the Post that “anyone who needs their trans-fats fix should...
Continue Reading "Trans Fat is History in New York City"While the Unfancy Food Show held its humble affair in Williamsburg this past Sunday, the Fancy Food Show (yes, actual names) has been holding court this week with its annual massive event over at the Jacob Javits Center. Over 6,000 vendors from around the world will give out close to 200,000 samples in what is North America's largest specialty food event. Out of that cast of thousands, the weirdest specimen we spotted was Jelly Belly's...
Continue Reading "Fancy Food Show 2008 Ends Today at the Javits"
The state-controlled price for a gallon of milk went up another 44 cents this morning, bringing the maximum amount that a retailer can charge to $4.37. But an investigation last month revealed that many retailers haven’t even heard of this law and charge whatever they want. The rising prices are due to high fuel costs, corn shortages and floods in the Midwest, according to WABC. And at $4.37 a gallon, inventors’ dreams for a milk-powered...
Continue Reading "Start Crying Over Expensive Milk"