The Sweet List: 5 Great First Date Restaurants Part 2

ChikaLicious makes desserts that will give you something to talk about.

Photo courtesy of ChikaLicious
Location: East Village, NYC
ChikaLicious
203 East 10th Street
Tel: (212) 995-9511

If you don’t want to get dinner and would rather head straight for dessert, then ChikaLicious is the perfect spot. This tiny dessert place has more bar seating than tables, and that’s exactly where you want to be as chefs/owners Don and Chika Tillman happily make you delectable desserts right in front of your face. With a 3-course prix-fixe dessert menu for $12 that includes an amuse bouche, choice of dessert, and petit fours (with wine pairing, $7 additional), it’s a great first date for serious fans of sugar. With desserts like Warm Chocolate Tart with Pink Peppercorn Ice Cream and Red Wine Sauce or Poached Pear with Asian Pear Salad and Lemon-Verbena Ice Cream, it’s no wonder that there’s usually a line out the door to get in, so get there early and bask in the sweet goodness that ChikaLicious has to offer.

Sit at the bar and watch the chefs at Supper cook up close. Photo credit: Myko L.

Location: East Village, NYC
Supper
156 East 2nd Street
Tel: (212) 477-7600

An impressive first date spot with a warm country atmosphere, while being easy on the wallet, is Supper. Dressed in hardwood tables and exposed brick, this Italian eatery has a comfortable and romantic vibe with rustic charm where you can get cozy with one another. If you can, I recommend getting a seat at the bar overlooking the chefs at work as fire rises from their pans high above. Daring and fun to watch, it’s a great conversation starter. While the chefs perform high-risk maneuvers, the food doesn’t suffer one bit. Standout dishes include the “Priest Stranglers” Pasta with Dad’s Sunday marinara sauce topped with fresh soft ricotta di pecora ($12). This is my favorite dish. The half roasted chicken rubbed in wild fennel with rosemary roasted garlic and mashed potatoes ($14.95) is a close second. Whatever you order, you get more than what you pay for.

The Daily Shortlist Jan 31

Have you seen me?

Location: Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Event: Army of Bjork
Venue Stain Bar
Food Chimu
Drink Sweet Ups
Miscellaneous Alligator Lounge

The Stain Bar hosts The Army of Bjork, their annual costume party dedicated to that Icelandic goddess Bjork. Come dressed up and enjoy one of my favorite beverages, Glogg (hot wine) and of course Bjork’s music. This could possibly get insane! If you’re hungry, head to Chimu. This Peruvian steakhouse has some of the most delicious food this side of Peru! Standout dishes include the ceviches and the chicken breast served in a creamy aji Amarillo sauce and peanuts, served over boiled potatoes with rice. Sweet Ups is a bar with décor that makes you feel like you’re in some romance novel. Red velvet wallpaper and black leather couches set the scene here, while happy hour buy-one-get-one free drink specials run from 5:30-8. Still hungry and thirsty? Head to the Alligator Lounge, where you get a free pizza with every drink. If that isn’t heaven, then I don’t know what is!

The Sweet List: 5 Great First Date Restaurants Part 1

The first date is always a big deal. It’s scary because you don’t know what to expect and it’s exciting because you don’t know what to expect. You want it to work and you’re hoping your date doesn’t turn out to be a jerk, married, flaky, flighty, or insane. You’re hoping that you both will just get along and that your never-ending search for someone you can spend some quality time with finally comes to an end. The restaurant where you both decide on meeting for that first time can be the place where one of you makes a complete ass out of yourselves (been there!) or the place that is the beginning of a beautiful relationship. To help you out, in this three part series, I will give you a list of five restaurants that are great starts for a first date. The rest is up to you.

Cornelia Street Café. Romantic with a downstairs performance space.

Location: West Village, NYC
Cornelia St Cafe
29 Cornelia Street
Tel: (212) 989-9319

Nestled on a quiet street right in the heart of the west village, Cornelia St. Café has an ambiance that has the perfect mix of romance and fun. When you enter this well-lit and artsy café, it’s exposed brick walls and wood tables create a great atmosphere where you can talk and get to know each other better, like you’re in someone’s living room, rather than have to scream over loud music. The food is American, some with twists like the Thai Bouillabaisse (shrimp, scallops, mussels, salmon, calamari, snow peas, red peppers & cellophane noodles in a lemon grass coconut milk broth $18) With a history of giving artist’s a place to perform since this café’s inception in 1977, you can go downstairs to a performance space and see local artists play music, read their poems, or catch a new playwright’s work-in-progress. It’s like two dates in one!

The Daily Shortlist Jan 30

Jeffrey Lewis. Photo Credit: Eric Lippe

Location: Lower East Side, NYC
Band: Jeffrey Lewis and the Jitters + Schwervon!
Venue: The Mercury Lounge
Food: China 1
Drink: White Rabbit
Miscellaneous: The Tenement Museum

Singer/songwriter and comic book fanatic, Jeffrey Lewis plays in support of his new album 12 Crass Songs, a set of beautiful and quirky reinterpretations of songs by the early 80s punk band Crass. Joining them is Schwervon! A duo making equally quirky pop music. If you seek irony in your food as well as your music, then you’ll love China 1. Sporting décor more Middle Eastern opium den than Chinatown, the food is the only thing reminiscent to China, with a smaller though better menu than your favorite Chinese take-out joint. White Rabbit, named after a Chinese milk candy, offers an all-white interior, a small Asian inspired menu, and excellent cocktails. For a taste of the beauty and hell that immigrants lived through on the L.E.S. back in the late 1800s, The Tenement Museum is as realistic as it gets. The only thing that’s changed since is the rent!

Album Review: The Mars Volta "The Bedlam in Goliath"

by: Amy Wagner

Prog rockers The Mars Volta are back with another album that, while big in sound takes a few departures in style. There are still plenty of psychedelic leanings and wah-wah guitar solos, but this time out band leaders Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and Cedric Bixler Zavala introduce a myriad of sounds, including shimmering middle eastern echoes and snarly punk growls, to their always eclectic mix. The Bedlam in Goliath, the group’s fourth LP, does run the risk of being overly dense at times (more than one track clocks in at the nine minute mark) but the album manages to stay just this side of comprehensible by bouncing from sound to sound. “The Tourniquet Man” will hypnotize you with it’s Led Zeppelin filtered through Pink Floyd stylings but just as you’re about to get nice and comfortable, The Mars Volta are sure to shake you up with some screeching rock and roll.

The Daily Shortlist Jan 29

Prepare to go to Hell . . . and Back!

Location: Midtown West, NYC
Band: Jerry Springer: The Opera
Venue: Carnegie Hall
Food: Burger Joint
Drink: Bill’s Gay Nineties
Miscellaneous: Tafu

The idea of a pop opera based on The Jerry Springer Show (yes, that Jerry Springer) that opened in London of 2003, sounded like a bad idea. A smash hit since, now it makes a two-night stand at Carnegie Hall, with Harvey Keitel playing you know who. Just as shocking (maybe not) is Burger Joint. Located in The Parker Meridian, this basic burger joint serves up excellent burgers and milkshakes in its curtained off space inside the hotel. The theme at Bill’s Gay Nineties surprisingly is an ode to the speakeasies of the roaring twenties. With a second floor dedicated to the history of entertainment, it even has an autographed poster of Buffalo Bill. The history’s deep here and the drinks are stiff. If you want to get some sort of sanity back after this night, stop by Tafu for some premium Japanese teas and desserts. No chair throwing allowed!

Here’s a little taste of England’s Production of Jerry Springer: The Opera

Relax: Spa Hydra

Get pampered at Spa Hydra

Spa Hydra
35-11 36th Street
Long Island City, NY 11106
Tel: (718) 267-7991

You wouldn’t expect it from outside the converted warehouse across the street from the Museum of the Moving Image in Long Island City, but inside is a seriously chic spa. The floor is laid with white marble and the separate, dimly lit relaxation area is just the type of place you want to chill before or after your treatments, sip your tea and research Britney’s breakdown. Body treatments and facials are available as well as top-notch massages, waxing and nails. Fun fact; did you know that after 10 years your mattress will weigh almost 15 pounds more than when you bought it? For $80 you can have a Signature Salt Body Scrub that smells amazing and leaves your skin so smooth your pants might fall off. It starts with a hot scrub, then a relaxing shower, and ends with a massage using a heated aromatherapy balm. For total enjoyment, promptly go home and get naked. –Sheehan McGuirk

The Daily Shortlist Jan 28

Get Down Latin Psychedelic Style with Chicha Libre at Barbes.

Location: Park Slope, Brooklyn
Band: Chicha Libre
Venue: Barbes
Food: El Viejo Yayo
Drink: Buttermilk Bar
Miscellaneous: The Chocolate Room

For fans of psychedelia and South American sounds, Chicha Libre, the band named after a music craze from the Peruvian Amazon and an Incan corn liquor, are sure to make you dance with the sexy sounds of surf guitar, moog, and farfisa organ. Keeping the night going with latin flavor, try El Viejo Yayo for dinner. This gorgeous and warm restaurant has an elegant dining room and an affordable menu offering Dominican/Latin cuisine. The outside of Buttermilk Bar may look non-descript, but looks are deceiving . . . just not in this case, as this low-key watering hole is where you can grab a cheap drink in a friendly atmosphere, while playing a board game or two. With a near insane menu of chocolates from coffee and tea to delectable dessert, and even beer, The Chocolate Room is a great way to end the night on a high note.

The Weekend Shortlist Jan 25 – 27

DJ Shadow Breaks it down. Photo Credit: Leslie Torre

Friday Jan 25

Location: Upper West Side, NYC
Artists: One Step Beyond: A-Trak + Kid Sister + The Cool Kids
Venue: Rose Center for Earth and Space (at the American Museum of Natural History)
Food: Rain
Drink: Prohibition
Accessory: American Museum of Natural History

Tonight, hip hop goes to the museum with One Step Beyond, a party where turntablist A-Trak (Kanye West’s DJ), Kid Sister, recently signed to his label Fool’s Gold, and retro-rap duo The Cool Kids perform. In the mood for pan-Asian food? Rain is a great bet, with it’s rather large Japanese themed wood paneled space, it has devised dishes like the Jungle Curry Wild Boar with kaffir lime, Thai eggplant, and Shanghai bok choy ($24). Prohibition harkens back to that 20s era full of illegal activity. Fortunately, the bar has an excellent drink menu including 12 different martinis. With pool tables in the back and exposed brick walls covered with paintings of people imbibing drinks, the theme may be prohibition but everyone is having too good a time to notice. While you’re at the museum, check out the exhibit “Water:H20=Life,” celebrating and informing us on that stuff keeping us alive.

Friday

Location: Chelsea, NYC
Event: Hip-Hop Karaoke NYC Championship
Venue: Highline Ballroom
Food: Pop Burger
Drink: Gaslight Lounge
Accessory: Amy’s Bread

So, you wanna be a hip hop star and think you can recite Wu Tang songs to win a championship? Prepare to be humbled as 12 finalist’s battle for a cash prize, and get judged by the legendary Prince Paul and others in this first annual event. Burger joint in the front, upscale lounge in the back, the menu at Pop Burger includes basics like 2 pop burgers for $5 for a quick fix or if your lounging, the likes of tuna tartar with soy truffle jus ($15). The Gaslight, a great hotspot bar in the meatpacking district, is dark and cozy while affordable for the area. If you don’t know Amy’s Bread, when you order a sandwich at a café or restaurant in the city, ask where they got the bread. There’s a good chance it’s from Amy’s because she’s one of the best bread makers in the city.

Saturday Jan 26

Location: Lower East Side, NYC
Bands: The Giraffes & Baby Dayliner
Venue: Mercury Lounge
Food: Katz’s Deli
Drink: Nurse Bettie
Accessory: Ludlow Guitars

Longtime NYC mainstays The Giraffes bring the sex and metal as they break in their new bass player Jens Carstensen, while Baby Dayliner, who sounds like a cross between Sinatra and Morrissey, and one who usually croons alone over hip hop beats, comes full force with a live band, which is a rarity. This show ought to be one for the books. If you’re starving, I mean really starving, head over to Katz’s Deli. This old school deli packs on the pastrami a mile high. The portions are huge and the place is classic NY. For drinks, Nurse Bettie is a chic looking bar with exposed brick walls, paintings of 50s pinups, and offers an excellent cocktail menu. Stop by Ludlow Guitars if there’s time and peruse through some magnificent rare and new music equipment from inexpensive to guitars that you will have to save dearly to afford.

Saturday

Location: Union Square, NYC
Band: Cornelius
Venue: at Webster Hall
Food: Maritime’s Matsuri
Drink: Hiro
Accessory: Cha An Japanese Tea House

Start off the evening at Matsuri*, with Chef Tadashi Ono’s highly acclaimed Japanese food (*make a reservations). At Matsuri the fish is so fresh it’s flown in from Japan daily. I highly recommend the sushi with one of over 200 kinds of sake they stock. After dinner, head to the Japanese-themed bar Hiro for a dimly lit cocktail to lubricate your mind for the music to come. Cornelius, Japan’s finest musical export, lifted his name from Planet of The Apes. He has three albums to blow your mind, playing musical styles ranging from Electronica to experimental rock. He and his band rarely make it to the U.S., so this will definitely be the treat to this rising sun evening. After trying to gather yourself from your musical mind expansion you might want to head down to Cha An Japanese Tea House to sip some Matcha tea and calm yourself down.
–Kevchino

Sunday Jan 27

Location: Union Square, NYC
Artist: DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist + Double Dee & Steinski
Venue: Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza
Food: Yama
Drink: 119 Bar
Accessory: Barnes & Noble (Union Square location)

DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist scratching together in the documentary film “Scratch,” shows just a fraction of what these two can do together. I’m sure this performance will be amazing. Plus DJ legends that inspired the duo, Double Dee and Steinski, open the show. One of the best Japanese restaurants in the city, Yama, serves up some of the hugest and freshest portions of sushi, while not being as expensive as you think. Close to Irving Plaza, 119 Bar is one dive where you can get cheap drinks, play pool, and hang with friends while not standing out or being bothered when you’re a sweaty mess from dancing after seeing Shadow and Chemist perform, and I mean that in a good way! If you’re bored and early for the show, head over to the four floor Barnes & Noble to look through magazines and get a cup of coffee.

The Daily Shortlist Jan 24

Arthur Nersesian. Photo Credit: David Shankbone

Location: Lower East Side, NYC
Artist: Arthur Nersesian
Venue: Bluestockings
Food: Paladar
Drink: Welcome to the Johnsons
Accessory: Economy Candy

From the author who brought you The Fuck Up, Arthur Nersesian’s newest novel, The Swing Voter of Staten Island, combines sci-fi with Orwellian dystopia in New York, sort of, which will make for an excellent reading. Paladar, whose celebrity chef, Aarón Sanchez is from the Food Network show “Melting Pot,” delivers a Pan-Latino concept taking traditional Spanish fare and adding deliciously executed gourmet twists. Feeling retro? Then Welcome to the Johnsons is the place for you. It’s like being in your uncles wreck room from the 70s. With all wood paneled walls, plastic covered couches, and a Pac Man machine, this bar is out for a good time. Stop by Economy Candy and get a small taste of what it might be like to walk through Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, minus the hijinks, as there’s all sorts of candy everywhere. A real NY landmark, it’s been around since 1937.