Yanks

three weeks ago, i journeyed out to the new Yankee Stadium. as B and i got off the 4 train, i shuffled my way to the back staircase, as my dad and i always had used that sortie - assessing that it was the quickest. after taking 30 steps or so, it hit me -- the Yanks don't play in that stadium anymore. the new one is the other direction. it was a moment of confusion, but as shawn offered when i made my second trip last nite to the house that someone built, not unwarranted confusion. even inside, the stadium feels remarkably similar to the old one.

on this journey, i brought my trusty nikon. so, for those that have not been - welcome to the new era of Yanks bball..... stadium - awesome. on the field play this season so far, not so much.


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food. food. and more food!!!

i took a quick stroll through the San Gennaro Festival on saturday. wow! that's a lot of food. it was goooooood too!!! :)


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dad's visit

my dad has been visiting the states with his wife for the last few weeks. whenever he comes, we try to get together for dinner and events, as much as our schedules will allow. this trip - we've been out to some lovely meals at cafe deville, atlantic grill, vezzo, le colonial and buddakan -- and we got the opportunity to go to a yankee game, in this, their last season at the current stadium. (thanks, Al!!!) it was great hanging with him - especially since now that i don't travel internationally for work anymore, we see each other only once or twice a year. fun times, though - no doubt!

eat mor chikin

this past weekend, i went back to philly for my reunion - more on that in the next entry. this one i want to dedicate to chick-fil-A. first thing i did when i pulled into philly on the bus was to go to the Gallery Mall to grab the chick-fil-A strips with waffle fries and polynesian sauce. darryl and raffy thought i was jokin' when i called and offered to bring them some after just having gotten off the greyhound, in the rain. but it is NO laughing matter. :) wow -- it was good. their advertisng, speaking of laughing, is pretty cute. it centers around cows urging us to eat chicken, not burgers. (outdoor ad pictured above - some guerilla mktg clips on youtube). if you live in the northeast, you may not have ever seen an ad though...

ya see, they don't really have locations in new york - or north of it. apparently there is one at an NYU dorm, but i'm not sure if you have to a student/ faculty to get to it... i'll explore it more and report back. so as a result i go whenever i can. i even convinced dan & afia to head to a chick-fil-A directly after jamal/ jess' wedding ceremony in south carolina last summer. i think i might have also opted to fly through atlanta once, in order to score more tasty treats. i'm addicted. anyhow, if you find yourself in any close proximity to a chick-fil-A, stop in. it's good eatin'! -- and PLEASE bring me some.

dumplin' good!!!

right before i left old navy for nokia in 2004, i discovered a lovely place on 23rd between 5th & 6th aves for grabbing a quick bite. rickshaw dumplings features wonderfully crafted sets of little goodies. for the non-purist dumpling eater, like myself, it's a wonderful twist on the traditional - as rickshaw features different dips and accompanying salads or soups to complete your dumpling experience. i prefer the chicken and thai basil, myself. but the shrimp and duck are awfully good too! so as to give you the public's view, as opposed to only my own, i offer you a link to YELP. if you don't know about Yelp, well, now you know. it's a 'regular peoples' zagat. you can log in - read and/or write reviews on eateries, cafes, lounges...etc. if you're in the flatiron district, and are looking to avoid the suburban blight that has supplanted itself (outback, olive garden...) in our fair city, try rickshaw - cheap and cheerful.

monkdogz & art - frank & vera - good food & patti

on thurs, patti and i met up to see some art showcased by monkdogz, at their gallery on 27th between 9th - 10th Aves. they have bi-monthly events displaying new urban art. it's fun to go to the venue because there are numerous other galleries in the bldg that tend to stay open late and allow you entrance when monkdogz have their events. the events are generally well attended - so much so on this occasion, that the coat rack broke under the weight of the garments. (pic above)

patti was planning on meeting a friend for drinks - and invited me to join. we then went to a cute bar/ restaurant called FRANK/ VERA (eatery = frank, bar = vera). i'd been before - raffy used to love to go to the bar next door (Black Star) for their Wednesday reggae night. it's gone now :( -- and we wandered into Vera a few times afterwards. anyhow, the food smelled great, so patti and i decided to grub, as well as drink. we split the arugula salad, she had the mussels and i had the ravioli. good eatin'. the bartender had brought in his ipod that night, and suffice it to say i was pleased with his selections - which included some cuts off Black Moon's Enta Da Stage, and Nas' Illmatic. that's a very good way to get me to have a few more drinks at your establishment. no doubt.

the Florist

my pal from work, Floris (of the Netherlands), had a bunch of us over to his lovely home in Rye, NY this past sunday for some food and many drinks. the cranberry crusted goat cheese was spectacular, as were the chicken and pork sattes Floris made on his super-duper grill. the house his wife found for he, she, their daughter is the coolest place ever for kids. it's like the Webster home with 15 lil rooms and passageways and sucken floors. that - and the fact that the neighborhood contains all families where kids run free from home to home in safety and adulation - makes Fleur, their daughter, extremely happy. they have truly transformed their house to a home.


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straight animal style

tonite i headed out to brooklyn to meet dan & afia for dinner. after some indecisiveness, it was agreed we go to a mediterranean tapas place on bergen called BEAST. bad name - great spot. we shared 5 plates : manchego cheese squares, scallops with pumpkin puree, chicken skewers w. cous cous, chorizo and skirt steak with citrus something or another... then we split a banana pistachio ice cream dessert - but the big money offering of the night was the toffee sticky pudding. ho-lee geez-uss - it was good!!! despite the chill and the rain, i good time was had by all.

a dessert for all peoples

if ever i'd doubted that my sweet tooth was genetic, i put that doubt to rest yesterday at christmas dinner. after a lovely dinner of shrimp bisque to start -- beef tenderloin, yams, green beans, corn, russet potatoes and some other stuff i did not eat -- we finished with -- i swear to you -- 9 desserts. almost an individual dessert for each person there. (14 of us)

the run down:
-fruit cake
-dates, dried apricot, nut plate
-christmas cake (yellow cake dyed green and red)
-(4) types of cookies
-pound cake
-merenques (santa-hat shaped)
-a yule log
-german chocolate pie
-some kind of parfait

i came home with a plate of sweets, suffice it to say - and have been eating since i awoke this...yum afternoon. i weighed 175 lbs on Dec 15, let's see how i hold up.

say "fromage" !!!

my buddies Howard, Jonathan (of local theory) and I went to dinner last night at Artisanal. it was a celebration, partly of my birthday, and partly of the success of our program surrounding Cannes which I blogged about earlier this year. we created a show of it and that show will air on MTV globally starting in the 20th of December. cool, huh?! anyhow, back to the dinner >>> "HOLY QUESO, Batman!!!" it is 12 hours after we gorged - and i'm still completely full. we started with a 100 cheese fondue - a different flavor in every bite. then like 5 appetizers -- including cheese puffs. then i had a main and the guys split a seafood course for two. we ended with an order of mac & cheese, a cheese plate, and coffee and profiteroles. soooo much food -- and all good. still full.

krazy kamar

my friend at nokia -- and "the other brown guy in the office" :) -- kamar had a birthday shin-dig this weekend. alot of work folks, which is not my first choice for a party. i kinda see enough of them at the office, and conversations end up being centered around phones and company politics, ya know? but kamar is a great guy - so i journeyed out to wish him well as he embarks on his 37th year on earth. though he was a bit under the weather, he still did it up for the crowd. and kamar's wife jennifer found a great lil spot on rivington, jadis, for the festivities. i'll definitely head back there for the bacon-wrapped scallops! that's good eatin'!


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amongst friends

this weekend i had the opportunity to see many of my good friends (almost all from college) -- share stories, laugh a lot, eat some food, watch a riveting movie and catch a super live show. yes, much was accomplished these last coupla days. raffy came to town, as did dmax. jamal, dan, darryl & i went to see lil brother at highline ballroom (an astoundingly energetic show!) - after we'd caught up with felix, jav, alvarez, raffy & johnny nightlife at cafe noir for the saturday afternoon reggae session. the PENN reunion was completed today when rich joined the crew for sunday brunch at the barking dog - then drinks at vertigo while we watched all 6 active nfl games. finally, a few of us caught 'michael clayton' before adjourning back my apt to watch my most recent DVD purchase -- 1990s rap videos mixed by dj souljah. a perfect way to culminate the reminiscence weekend.

so far... in south africa

FRIDAY : Jo-burg

landed here on friday morn, surprisingly rested, as i used a bunch of miles in order to fly first class for te 12 hour flight. just relaxed, saw rafique's apt and neighborhood. since we were planning to head out that night, raffy, varooj and their cousin mike - who is living here in jo-burg working as a model - decided to invite some people over to pre-party. not too many folks showed, but many many drinks were had. the party was good -- funny how you travel all the way to the other end of the world to hear the same music. :) we arrived home at 5am - and were off to the airport to head to cape town at 5:30. because as mike says "THAT'S HOW WE ROLL!"

SATURDAY : Cape Town

arrived in cape town at around 9am. headed to Raffy's friend Tsepo's place (actually it's his uncle's place but whatever). a fabulous 3 bedroom where we'd all crash for the weekend. after a brief sit down we headed out to see the sights. photos taken on my N95 : here. more to come from my other camera soon. after touring the fishing village / antique area and getting a great seafood lunch, we went back home for a nap. after a lie down we went back out for a drink at a lounge over-looking the water at sunset. gorgeous. then to a posh hotel -- and finally out for the night. 6 bars/ lounges/ clubs... from all black -- to almost all white (except for us) -- to all "colored" or mixed people. quite a night.

SUNDAY : Cape Town

we woke up quite late, but decided to push through and head to wine country. after doing a tasting, we headed for a wonderful lunch at nice Victorian-style hotel. food aplenty -- they had a full room just for dessert. fantastic. malva pudding is my new find. recipe here. it was raining at this point, so the boys just kicked back had some scotch and cigars attempting to wait out the downpour. no dice. a few hours later we ran to the car to head to airport back to jo-burg. needless to say w all passed out on the flight.

MONDAY/ TUESDAY : Jo-burg

Mon -- i slept all day. mike and i only left to go get a bite to eat and hit up the ATM. varooj headed home, so now it's just the 3 amigos.

Tues -- jet-lag sprouts its ugly head/ compounded on my 14 hours of sleep on Monday. :) . i was up from 3am - 8am. :( but back to sleep until 2pm. gotta love vacation! i headed the mall -- featuring gucci, prada, nike shops.. the works! not what i expected, but the highlight was Nelson Mandela Square adjacent to the mall. pic leads off this entry. raffy and i enjoyed a nice indian dinner after my nearly 3 hour journey through the mall and adjoining sights.

more adventures to come...

***In case you missed the link earlier -- all photos taken to date are here

una mescla tremendo

only in NYC can you find a mix like this!!!

on 14th street on the west side, there is CHINESE/ LATIN eatery.
they are called Ch(ee)na-Latina, aqui en Nueva York.

"i'll have the number 4, please -- Chorizo to start - with Pork Fried ... Rice - and Beans, Chicken and Broccoli for my entree - Platanos on the side - and Flan and Fortune Cookies for dessert."

nutty - kooky - crazy.

ride 'um, cowboy!

back in 2002, i started djing at a new lounge in the east village called 2nd Nature. A cool non-pretentious place to go for a drink to hang out with friends. one of the few bars i'd been to in NYC that looked as good with all the lights ON as with them off. after 3 years of successful business, they sold it off for a profit. their next venture was opening an upper scale restaurant called Gin Lane, where i still periodically dj today.

their latest place is called Johnny Utah's - a bar/ restaurant place near rockefeller center that features a western theme -- and YES - a mechanical bull. no bulls**t. they really have one. in fact, it's pictured here. see --- i told ya! so, stop on in - and jump on.

a park in soho?

today, my mom and i walked around soho and nolita. when we both got hungry my mom spotted a place i'd wanted to check out for months but hadn't yet - so, perfect opportunity. the place is called SOHO PARK - but it's really a garden -- a beer garden -- and an eatery. we chowed on belgium frites with garlic aioli and curry mayo dipping sauces to accompany our '0 grams of trans fat' hot dogs. yum! i'll go back for beer another time. de koninck is my new favorite belgium beer. what's yours???

a sunny saturday of shopping and eating

my mom and i wandered to the upper west side today. i have been procrastinating on doing my renovation, and tasked my self and her with coming up with solidified plans for bathroom and kitchen and actually buying stuff. so, in the past few days we've found bathroom faucets and some fixturing, kitchen appliances and strategized on how to re-do the rooms in the cheapest way possible, while maintaining our high standards. :) we got some great ideas today at Gracious Home. tomorrow we choose tiles. on the back-end of our excursion, i treated mom to lunch at a lovely restaurant, with a lovely little garden in back - called Bello Giardino. as many of you are aware, i'm no foodie - but this place is good. check it out. the tiramisu was magnificent. additionally, our waiter had the same Tibetan ring as i -- and reminded me what it said, since i'd forgotten. OM MANI PADME HUM - "hail to the jewel in the lotus" - a buddhist mantra - written in sanskrit.

cookin' in the afternoon

i don't often cook for myself, but was inspired to yesterday afternoon, while working from home. i'm doing concepting for a food project for work, so that might have had something to do with it. anyhow, this is moroccan chicken (i used grilling paste from williams sonoma which they dont have on their site) with quinoa. not half bad, i must say -- and pretty simple and quick to make. i also had a small green salad. (not pictured). In July, i'm heading to an event we are sponsoring at Lincoln Center that features 50 top chefs from NYC - that should be fun. maybe i'll pick up some pointers from them.

not your average coffee shop

for many years, my friends & i have frequented the coffee shop. on union square west and 16th street -- steps from NYU dorms, the park, tons of shops -- it's a perfect meeting spot for a beverage or a quick bite. but most importantly, for whatever reason, the coffee shop has a history of hiring the most ridiculous models as waitresses. though the caliber of girls is no longer what it used to be, it's still pretty darn good. the lunch/ dinner food is pretty good too. i usually opt for the coconut shrimp or calamari to start. it's also a wonderful spot for a early morn/ late nite breakfast. additionally, there is a downstairs lounge where my boy DJ EMSKEE, of the controlled substance radio show spins on select fridays/ saturdays. hot chics & good music. perfect.

street fairing

summer in the city means street fairs. lots of them!!! i must admit, most offer the same junk - sunglasses, socks, t-shirts...etc. i still enjoy going to them - the people-watching is great. also, they usually feature some wonderfully unhealthy food product that i love. today, i got an arepa. apparently, they can be plain - or sweet. i like the sweet kind best. additionally, i bought some new sheets. they say they are 600 thread count - which is obviously a lie, but hey they were 20 bucks and feel nice. two weeks ago i did a load of laundry, and stained my light blue sheets - they now have a pink hue to them. not a good look. this is why i usually leave laundry to the experts, aka. the chinese laundry up the street, which delivers.