Or so they say. Well, maybe, maybe not, but regardless, we wanted to give you some options for food and drink-related events on Valentine's Day. Targeted at those out there for whom Valentine's Day is not a welcome occasion, the Sunburnt Cow is having a "No Love at the Cow" party. $25 gets you all you can drink, beer, wine and “Anti-Love” juice, plus a "1980s style disco experience," complete with an ice slide for......

Hot chocolate's all the hype these days with Jacques Torres, City Bakery, Cocoa Bar, and MariBelle all pouring decadent brews at their downtown locales. And, while we have to admit that we’re more likely to stop in one of these spots below 14th Street, there are plenty of reasons for heading further uptown during this holiday season—say, for ice skating at Rockefeller Center, a trip to Central Park, or a visit to the Met. The......

Hot chocolate aficionados are likely well-aware of The City Bakery's on-going Hot Chocolate Festival through the end of February, but for the layman of the hot chocolate world, Gothamist reminds you to stop by for a cup of the coma-inducing cocoa. With a new flavor each day, including Monday's (2/19) beer, Thursday's (2/22) cinnamon, and next Monday's (2/26) chili pepper varieties, there's sure to be a cocoa for any type of chocolate lover. Notoriously......

This week'sNew York Magazine wraps up some of the city's best cups of hot chocolate -- you know, the kind that drinks like a meal. Their top choice, the decadent cup at City Bakery ($2), is rich enough to make even the most passionate chocolate lover feel close to overdose levels (don't forget that February is the month where they feature a new hot chocolate flavor every day). Other mentions include the gianduja hot chocolate......

Now that the big tree is lit, Rockefeller Center draws tourists like moths to a flame. You may even find yourself under its sway. The tree is pretty impressive after all—more than 65 feet tall and adorned with more than 30,000 lights. But when the crowds swarm and the cold bites, remember relief is not far away. Just duck into La Maison du Chocolat, around the corner on 49th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues,......

Bruni joins the chorus of unenthusiastic reviews for Lonesome Dove Western Bistro, awarding it no stars. The best he has to say is that chef/owner Tim Love "seems dedicated to getting first-rate cuts of meat" (which the kitchen then overseasons). The Eater boys are off by a star, having put their money on Tim Love's credentials and the assumption that Bruni's visits would improve over time. They didn't. Also at Eater, photos of the dining......

At first when you walk into Tisserie, the new pastry shop at the northwest corner of Union Square, it seems like another high-end traditional French patisserie. A seemingly endless, gleaming glass case displays rows of impeccably crafted sweets: berry tartlets, macaroons, palmiers. But tucked among the croissants and pains au chocolat are little surprises, pastries made with French technique yet unheard of in Paris. There are tiger eyes (little round spongy cakes spotted through with......

It used to be that the only kind of croissants you could find were the fake ones—made without a trace of butter and not flaky at all. Now though it seems there’s an authentic French patisserie on every corner offering up flawless renditions of the pastry. But in the search for the best croissant, Gothamist still prefers the classic crescent at Patisserie Claude. The proprietor here—let’s call him Monsieur Claude—has been holed up in his......

Lizzy Marlin, Founder of Fizzy Lizzy...

In this town you can always find someone to argue with about who makes the best of—well, really anything. Cupcakes? Burgers? Pizza? There are numerous options for each, and passionate defenders for all. When it comes to the best chocolate chip cookie, though, we were surprised to realize that only one option came to mind. We can't even think of any close seconds. City Bakery takes the cake, er, cookie. It's perfect: crisp around......

You are wearing a hat today aren't you? The pressure gradient, the difference in air pressure between the low pressure system passing by this afternoon and the high pressure system that will replace it tomorrow, is very steep today. Steep pressure gradients mean windy weather. A wind advisory is in effect from 9am to 6pm today. Northwest winds will be blowing at 25-35 mph this afternoon with gusts to 50 mph. The winds will continue......

We meant to post on this a couple of weeks back, but it just kept slipping through: check out this walk-through of the environmental materials used in the new City Bakery in the East Village. The walkthrough is a little Flashy for our tastes, so we've pulled out the links for your clicking pleasure: Sunflower and wheat wall boards from Environ Biocomposites Red milk paint from AnnaSova Cork floor from CorkFloor (good name!) Recycled......

There's been a great deal of foodblogger and foodie message board buzz over the past few weeks about the bakery in the East Village whose baked goods bore an uncanny resemblance to those at the beloved City Bakery. New York mag reveals the source of the confusion -- City Baker's owner, Maury Rubin. His goal is to have his patrons focus on the space itself—what he believes is the first top-to-bottom green bakery. Rubin, it......

Ask.Metafilter is our favorite answer site-- the NYC tag provides a weekly dose of New York questions and answers. This week, the theme seems to be food: I'm in New York City and I'm hungry. What's a good, cheap place for breakfast? Some answers: - Floridita, 3219 Broadway at 129 St. - Veselka, Union Square. - The Hungarian Pastry Shop We'd add: Cafe Gitane in Nolita (order the waffles!), the Grecian Corner diner in Park......

For the past eight hours, we've been thinking about macaroni and cheese, in no small part due to Julia Moskin's mac and cheese odyssey in the Times' dining section. Even though this will seriously cripple our annual New Year's resolution of losing weight, Gothamist is determined to sate our craving for some cheesy pasta. We might head to City Bakery, but upon reading the article, we really want to try Daphne's Caribbean Express. What are......

HBO is releasing the $299 20-disk DVD set of all Sex and the City episodes tomorrow, and to celebrate that, they've arranged various promotions at different locations Carrie, Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte visited, which you can see here at the SATC's Put Yourself on the Map website. If you think you're getting a real Sex and the City Experience, you'd be wrong, as Barneys, Manolo Blahnik, Jimmy Choo, The Soho House, Tiffany, the Hudson,......

City Bakery's Wasabi Pea Crusted Chicken...

You may have some in your well-stocked pantry, but if not, never fear. It's time for the 13th Annual City Bakery Hot Chocolate Festival! Apparently this year to commemorate the occasion, on January 30th from 12-4, Maury Rubin is going an extra step -- shutting down 18th Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues, bringing in snow to pile up on the sidewalks, and installing a portable ice rink. The day comes complete with free skating......

Damn, it's cold outside. The past few days have made us want to curl up in our flannel p.j.'s and fuzzy slippers, rent movies, and seek warmth and solace in our favorite comfort foods. Near the top of almost everyone's comfort food list is macaroni and cheese, and this week New York Magazine rounds up some of the creamiest, cheesiest versions in the city. We've had the versions at Blue Smoke and the Bar @......

Macaroni and Cheese: 52 Recipes, from Simple to Sublime by Joan Schwartz Gothamist knows it's been a rough couple weeks. Many of us have been drowning our sorrows in liquor and cupcakes. But, as Joe Klein foretold over a year ago, what we're really hungry for following is some macaroni and cheese. Not, however, as a metaphor, for Gephardt or otherwise (though we'd be happy with him as our president!), but actual, gooey, rich, salty,......

New York magazine has an excellent guide for places to go this Sunday to watch the Super Bowl (you can smoke at Play in Elmhurst, Scruffy Duffy's has 12 plasma TVs). NY also has the top places to get the best buffalo wings (made of chicken, of course...or unchicken) - City Bakery, Blue Smoke, and Kate's Joint are some restaurants that make the cut. Or you can make your own wings using some recipes from......

Hurricaine Isabel forced the Harvest in the Square Event to be rescheduled tonight. In its eighth year, Harvest in the Square brings Union Square area chefs to offer tastings of food prepared from Union Square Greenmarket Farmers Market, accompanied by Long Island and other New York Wines. Tickets are $90 in person (cash only), $75 in advance, and will benefit the Union Square Local Development Corporation, which is currently looking to enhance the North Plaza......

The Times magazine looks at grilled chocolate sandwiches (from Maury Rubin, the owner of City Bakery, whose cookies Gothamist loves), but we at Gothamist want to give you an easier and equally delicious option: Toast some bread, spread some Nutella on it, and you're done. But we're sure if you have the time, Maury's recipe would be delicious - we're just impatient.......

Gothamist was too tired from the Gothamist-601AM Happy Hour to face scads of screaming children at various Harry Potter parties around town (though we were tempted to go - believe us - it would have been a lesson in seeing who could be bigger babies). We had stopped by City Bakery on 18th Street, and learned it was staying open late because the Book of Wonder across the street had its midnight Harry Potter party.......