I've been in a rut lately. I will admit this to anyone within earshot. Loudly.
My writing has taken a backseat and my ambitions for world domination are on indefinite hold.
So what to do?
Take in a movie about the 1982 war in Lebanon, that's what you do.
First let me explain that Waltz with Bashir is an amazing film. It is an Israeli animated sorta-documentary, kinda-memoir, animated film that is their 2009 Oscar nomination for best foreign film. It was made by Ari Folman, and he is the central character. The plot follows his attempts to remember the war and the eventaul massacres at the Sabra and Shatila settlements.
The animation style reminds me of theold Jonny Quest cartoons from the 70s. It is thickly outlined and stiff. It works in this setting and someof theimages, especially of the war, arebeautiful and unsettling. At othertimes the style holds everything back and themovie has this dead rotoscope look to it. The faces are the main problem. They emote little, though at times the eyes of Ari seem to be weirdly lifelike.
Go see it though...it's hard hitting and the type of social examination that we rarely see on the big screen.
After the movie, which put me in a decidedly down mood, we headed from the Sunshine theater to Boca Chica on the corner of 1st and 1st.
The restaurant is painted purpleand green. Despite this Incredible Hulk color scheme the restaurant is adorable once inside. They have small diner-style tables andsturdy wooden seats. The staff is small but fast. We got our food in about 15 minutes.
I had achicken sandwich which I didn't note the spices or sauce of to my discredit, but it was amazing. It came with fried yuca and a light salad which had a lot of cilantro in it but was very refreshing.
I find myself immediately planning my next trip to the area despite it being in one of the most inconvinient areas for me to reach from my neighborhood in Brooklyn.
Two people can safely eat for under $50. We spent $35 but didn't have any alcohol with our dinner.
16 January 2009
12 January 2009
Letters
I should share an odd obsession I have. I read blogs about currency. By this I mean about national currency. Spend some time at the Engraveyard won't you?
Also.
I have been on dates with typographers recently. Which is a strange thing to think about in itself. Before August I could honestly say I never even met a typographer, but now I have gone on dates with 3. If you have never thought about the ways of letters, I strongly suggest you look around you at this very moment and so that thing.
Also.
I have been on dates with typographers recently. Which is a strange thing to think about in itself. Before August I could honestly say I never even met a typographer, but now I have gone on dates with 3. If you have never thought about the ways of letters, I strongly suggest you look around you at this very moment and so that thing.
29 December 2008
Henry's End & Some Sirens
Dec.19
I met Rex at work and we made our way to Henry's End to meet Jack, who promised us an amazing dinner on him. My shoes were filled with gallons of slushy black NY snow water by the time we stumbled into the cardboard covered entry way of the Brooklyn Heights establishment.
I was in love with the brick wall and the sadly filled in fireplace. They have a neon sign right in the middle of the wall that looks like it would be at home on the set of an 80s TV show. It's green and pink versions of the Brooklyn Bridge and Twin Towers seeming almost Miami-esque. It borders on being tacky but is saved by its obvious connections to the history of the restaurant.
The room is close, you are always at elbows with someone, but the atmosphere is too friendly to let this get in your way. The service is pitch perfect and the staff is very knowledgeable about the food and wine.
The wine list is pretty great. I know little to nothing about wine but the bottle of pinot the waitress suggested was spectacular.
I opted for the Pear, Walnut & Blue Cheese Chicken. The tastes blended very well and aside from the cheese being slightly overpowering the dish was perfect. Rex had Blackened Shell Steak and Jack went for the Raspberry Duckling. Henry's is fairly well known for their duck dishes.
We shared a Chocolate Confusion for dessert. This is essentially chocolate bread pudding covered in sauce and ice cream. It was lovely.
Overall the whole experience was great. The food was filling and incredibly well made and the wine list has something for everyone. It might be one of my new favorite places to eat in Brooklyn.
We ended the night at a lovely holiday concert called Sirens of Brooklyn. It was a benefit for viBe Song Makers, a non-profit performing arts organization for teenage girls. The concert was held at the First Unitarian Church's Revival Gothic Sanctuary in Brooklyn. The choir performed beautiful new arrangements of old Christmas standards and traditional songs. I found a new favorite as well - Snow is Falling by Yoko Ono!
I know I'm tardy in updating this thing but I plan on beingmore onthe regular in the new year. I also want to expand the scope to include general awesomeness in food, art, design, etc...
I met Rex at work and we made our way to Henry's End to meet Jack, who promised us an amazing dinner on him. My shoes were filled with gallons of slushy black NY snow water by the time we stumbled into the cardboard covered entry way of the Brooklyn Heights establishment.
I was in love with the brick wall and the sadly filled in fireplace. They have a neon sign right in the middle of the wall that looks like it would be at home on the set of an 80s TV show. It's green and pink versions of the Brooklyn Bridge and Twin Towers seeming almost Miami-esque. It borders on being tacky but is saved by its obvious connections to the history of the restaurant.
The room is close, you are always at elbows with someone, but the atmosphere is too friendly to let this get in your way. The service is pitch perfect and the staff is very knowledgeable about the food and wine.
The wine list is pretty great. I know little to nothing about wine but the bottle of pinot the waitress suggested was spectacular.
I opted for the Pear, Walnut & Blue Cheese Chicken. The tastes blended very well and aside from the cheese being slightly overpowering the dish was perfect. Rex had Blackened Shell Steak and Jack went for the Raspberry Duckling. Henry's is fairly well known for their duck dishes.
We shared a Chocolate Confusion for dessert. This is essentially chocolate bread pudding covered in sauce and ice cream. It was lovely.
Overall the whole experience was great. The food was filling and incredibly well made and the wine list has something for everyone. It might be one of my new favorite places to eat in Brooklyn.
We ended the night at a lovely holiday concert called Sirens of Brooklyn. It was a benefit for viBe Song Makers, a non-profit performing arts organization for teenage girls. The concert was held at the First Unitarian Church's Revival Gothic Sanctuary in Brooklyn. The choir performed beautiful new arrangements of old Christmas standards and traditional songs. I found a new favorite as well - Snow is Falling by Yoko Ono!
I know I'm tardy in updating this thing but I plan on beingmore onthe regular in the new year. I also want to expand the scope to include general awesomeness in food, art, design, etc...
17 February 2008
Chicken Vindaloo
I made a beautiful meal!
It's Chicken Vindaloo with coconut and squid ink pasta. I threw in some green peppers for color and spice! It was fun. The sauce was from Maya Kaimal. I added a lot of olive oil to the sauce and some extra chile pepper.
I finished it off in about 10 seconds. By myself.
And...look at that awesome plate.
It's Chicken Vindaloo with coconut and squid ink pasta. I threw in some green peppers for color and spice! It was fun. The sauce was from Maya Kaimal. I added a lot of olive oil to the sauce and some extra chile pepper.
I finished it off in about 10 seconds. By myself.
And...look at that awesome plate.
13 January 2008
Spring Street Natural
So let me start off by saying that everyone I talked to yesterday seemed to be in a terrible mood. I know I was.
To counter act the terrible I went shopping for paint for my dining room. I decided on a lovely pale yellow color called Fresh Creme from Pratt & Lambert. It goes very well with the dark purple I painted sections of my living room last week.
From the paint store I walked down 6th Ave in Park Slope. I never explore this street and I stumbled on a lovely vintage store. I got two pairs of light wool pants, a summer weight sports coat and an amazing Dior tie all for around $100.
My mood had improved obviously.
I ended the day at dinner with Hayley. I met her at Spring Street Natural on Spring and Lafayette in SoHo. She was in an even worse mood than I was, so we talked ove ran appetizer of hummus. For the meal I chose a very tasty ground chicken burger with chipotle mayo on brioche. It was under $10 and had fries with it.
After we took in Before the Devil Knows Your Dead. A supposedly good film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke. Terrible film. Bad script, bad directing, and terrible performances from Mr. Hawke and Marisa Tomei (she spends the whole film awkwardly naked).
The day gets to go to hell for everyone being in a bad mood.
The meal was great and it lifted our spirits : A+
The movie gets -F for making me question Philip Seymour Hoffman as a smart actor.
To counter act the terrible I went shopping for paint for my dining room. I decided on a lovely pale yellow color called Fresh Creme from Pratt & Lambert. It goes very well with the dark purple I painted sections of my living room last week.
From the paint store I walked down 6th Ave in Park Slope. I never explore this street and I stumbled on a lovely vintage store. I got two pairs of light wool pants, a summer weight sports coat and an amazing Dior tie all for around $100.
My mood had improved obviously.
I ended the day at dinner with Hayley. I met her at Spring Street Natural on Spring and Lafayette in SoHo. She was in an even worse mood than I was, so we talked ove ran appetizer of hummus. For the meal I chose a very tasty ground chicken burger with chipotle mayo on brioche. It was under $10 and had fries with it.
After we took in Before the Devil Knows Your Dead. A supposedly good film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke. Terrible film. Bad script, bad directing, and terrible performances from Mr. Hawke and Marisa Tomei (she spends the whole film awkwardly naked).
The day gets to go to hell for everyone being in a bad mood.
The meal was great and it lifted our spirits : A+
The movie gets -F for making me question Philip Seymour Hoffman as a smart actor.
06 January 2008
Stress and Holidays
Lately I've been in a funk.
I've painted my apartment and bought new clothes in response. This is irrational and silly. But everything looks fabulous.
On the food front I've been boring. Doing the usual breakfasts at Perch, eating a burger at BLT. Grabbing a slice of pizza at Roma in Park Slope.
So this is where I've been.
Things I've loved recently:
- fresh apples from the farmer's market in Grand Army Plaza
- butternut squash lasagne at Hayley's
- my sister's orange sugar cookies
It's been unseasonably warm. I think this weekend I am going to pick a random restaurant and travel to it. I will report back.
Happy New Year
I've painted my apartment and bought new clothes in response. This is irrational and silly. But everything looks fabulous.
On the food front I've been boring. Doing the usual breakfasts at Perch, eating a burger at BLT. Grabbing a slice of pizza at Roma in Park Slope.
So this is where I've been.
Things I've loved recently:
- fresh apples from the farmer's market in Grand Army Plaza
- butternut squash lasagne at Hayley's
- my sister's orange sugar cookies
It's been unseasonably warm. I think this weekend I am going to pick a random restaurant and travel to it. I will report back.
Happy New Year
21 November 2007
Six Things - Two Days
On Monday I went out to:
Alchemy on 5th and St. Marks in Park Slope. Great little bar restaurant with a nice staff. Only downside was the incredibly bright lighting. But even that can be forgiven. Try it out for a low-key evening. Great early bar, it's quiet.
Union Hall on 5th Ave and Union. Crazy busy but beautifully put together bar. They have a really good list of draughts and bottled beers. They make great food. We had some of the Saga Cheese Balls...which were ridiculous, but awesome. Can be filled to the brim on some nights, be prepared for crowds. They have music in the basement.
We finished the night at Tea Lounge on Union and 7th Ave. On Monday nights they have free movies at 9:30. Some Like It Hot was showing this night.
On Tuesday there was more fun:
I started out at the movies. Margot at the Wedding was a very strange but great film by Noah Baumbach. It stars Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Jason-Leigh, and Jack Black.
Corner Shop Cafe on Broadway and Bleecker. I had a great feta and walnut ravioli. I ate with Tyler who had a PB sandwich that was two inches thick. The space is beautiful and it was comfortable. The website is all in flash, which is just annoying, but the menu is simple and good. Go there.
Quarter Bar is on 5th Ave and 20th in Brooklyn. It's right smack in the middle of a stretch of laundromats and bodegas. Great dim bar with an awesome jukebox. I recommend trying their meat pies. Delicious. They also have a nice list of signature cocktails to try out.
Alchemy on 5th and St. Marks in Park Slope. Great little bar restaurant with a nice staff. Only downside was the incredibly bright lighting. But even that can be forgiven. Try it out for a low-key evening. Great early bar, it's quiet.
Union Hall on 5th Ave and Union. Crazy busy but beautifully put together bar. They have a really good list of draughts and bottled beers. They make great food. We had some of the Saga Cheese Balls...which were ridiculous, but awesome. Can be filled to the brim on some nights, be prepared for crowds. They have music in the basement.
We finished the night at Tea Lounge on Union and 7th Ave. On Monday nights they have free movies at 9:30. Some Like It Hot was showing this night.
On Tuesday there was more fun:
I started out at the movies. Margot at the Wedding was a very strange but great film by Noah Baumbach. It stars Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Jason-Leigh, and Jack Black.
Corner Shop Cafe on Broadway and Bleecker. I had a great feta and walnut ravioli. I ate with Tyler who had a PB sandwich that was two inches thick. The space is beautiful and it was comfortable. The website is all in flash, which is just annoying, but the menu is simple and good. Go there.
Quarter Bar is on 5th Ave and 20th in Brooklyn. It's right smack in the middle of a stretch of laundromats and bodegas. Great dim bar with an awesome jukebox. I recommend trying their meat pies. Delicious. They also have a nice list of signature cocktails to try out.
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