Can I Kick It?
Yes You Can (if you're between 5'5" and 5'10 1⁄2" tall)
And just like that it’s the night week before Christmas and Hanukkah! I’m incredibly proud of the stuff I’ve written in the last couple months, which is honestly proof to me that I function so much better outside of the grasp of capitalism and the standard work week. I wish more than anything that I could sustain myself as a little newsletter nymph and a cat sitter, but unfortunately this is America. All that is to say that I’m very happy to have folks reading and commenting on the stuff that I’m writing and even happier that a few of you pay for it. You the real MVPs!
Shoutout to the fabulous Heather for becoming my latest paid subscriber. And a big hello to a large chunk of folks who I think came over from the most recent Cafe Anne post. Anne was kind enough to feature my NYC tattoos after folks in her comments section wondered whether it was possible for anyone to have a good pigeon tattoo. I, a person wholly dedicated to their craft, happily sent over some pics of my rat and pigeon tattoos along with their backstory. is a newsletter that I really enjoy and Anne is basically who I would like to be when I grow up (I say as someone who is technically already grown up).
Even though I feel like I’m on an absolute run at the moment, I think I might take the last week or two of the year to chill a bit. I might send out some more posts if I happen upon something great (I’m currently stewing over what to write about Joker: Folie à Deux) but BCLF might be offline until the new year. I’ve been trying to get through some reading material to prep me for the NYC Tour Guide exam, so I’d love to have some time to focus on that! For those of you who read this on Substack vs just over email, I’ve been trying to post more tiny content snippets on Notes, so you can likely find me there in the meantime!
Earlier this year I finally tried the tacos at Taqueria Ramirez and the verdict was: I loved them. Los Tacos No. 1 is probably still my go to taco in the city just because they have more locations, but Taqueria Ramirez’s offerings are admittedly tastier. So when the team behind TR opened Carnitas Ramirez in Alphabet City this summer, I knew I had to make the trip to East 3rd and Ave B.
While Taqueria Ramirez excels with its limited offerings (just 6 options, take it or leave it!), Carnitas Ramirez expands the menu albeit with a particular focus: carnitas, duh. As someone who essentially grew up with “white people taco night,” I thought carnitas just meant “juicy pulled pork”. In fact, canitas means “little meats ☺️” and refers to all parts of a pig cooked in its own fat, lard or cooking oil - basically a Mexican pork confit. In the US we usually just cook the pork shoulder because it’s both a tasty and safe cut of meat, but in Michoacán, Mexico, where carnitas are said to have originated, it’s very common to find every piece of a pig simmered, sliced, and slung into a tortilla. It’s this Michoacán tradition of cooking “nose to tail” that Giovanni Cervantes studied when he decided to follow up Taqueria Ramirez with Carnitas Ramirez.
The Carnitas Ramirez space is ever so slightly larger than Taqueria Ramirez, but exudes the same casual atmosphere. The tacos are all served simply, just meat + tortilla, and you’re invited to add your own toppings. I love their green salsa and I definitely recommend adding some pickled onions and lime to help cut through the fat. There is slightly more seating available which is very welcome; you can choose from a few stools at the counter near the meat vats, some overturned buckets on the opposite wall, and another smattering of stools in a small backroom. Lorenzo and I chose to eat our tacos at their enclosed outdoor counter because the meat vapor kept steaming up our glasses inside.
Cervantes wasn’t kidding when he said he was cooking nose to tail - peep all those piggy cuts available! I was very excited to try some of the more unusual cuts, but we just so happened to show up on a night that CR was closing early for their staff holiday party, so they were out of both the ear (oreja) and cheeks (cachete) that I really wanted 😭. We ended up getting 3 of their head tacos (similar to sisig, these contain assorted head bits), some pork butt (maciza), jowl (papada), and shank (chamorro). We also got a side of chicharrones to share and these were probably some of the most legit chicharrones I’ve ever had; be sure to add a squeeze of lime and some salt. We realized afterwards that for $1 you can also add chicharrones crumbles to any of your tacos and I will definitely be trying that next time.
Each cut of meat tasted delicious but you’re not coming here for the taste. Well I mean you are, but not solely for the taste. They’re all cooked in the same porky garlic broth, so the true majesty of the carnitas is in the texture of the meats. Each cut is going to give you a different mouthfeel, which is something that we don’t think about much in the US, but is pretty common elsewhere. Some of the cuts are a bit chewy, some crispy, and some very fatty. CR’s website and Infatuation do a really good job of describing each cut, so do a little research before going and consider which textures you think you’ll enjoy. Adding some of those chicharrones crumbles to the fattier cuts will definitely be the move!
Like Taqueria Ramirez, each taco is $5 and the staff is super friendly and helpful if you’re not sure which cut you want to try. Your tacos will also be served almost instantly after you order, so don’t be discouraged if the place looks packed because folks cycle in and out pretty quickly. Lorenzo’s verdict was that these were the best tacos he’s ever had and I’m honestly torn between putting Carnitas Ramirez or Taqueria Ramirez at the top. I promise you’ll be very happy no matter which location you go to, but if you go to Carnitas Ramirez please try one of their lesser known cuts because you just might discover something delicious!
When you think of NYC at Christmastime, you inevitably think of Rockefeller Center - the tree, the ice skating, and the Rockettes! Being that the Rockettes perform at Radio City Music Hall in Rockefeller Center, most folks infer that the dance troupe is simply named after the venue. I mean, it would make sense! But to that I say:
Our story does, however, begin with Rockefeller Center. Despite the US being in the midst of the Great Depression in the 1930s, John D Rockefeller and RCA led the construction of a huge media complex at this time. Rockefeller Center is a collection of a bunch of buildings, most of which house tenants in the media industry (basically everything NBC-related). The original Rockefeller Center had two theaters onsite - Radio City Music Hall and The Center Theater (originally called the RKO Roxy Theatre, more on that later). Since these theaters went up just as media was moving away from radio and more towards visual storytelling, they ended up being used to screen movies. In between each film screening, the theaters would also host variety shows. This is where our dancers come in, but first we need to travel to Missouri of all places. Yep, like lots of notable New Yorkers, these famous dancers aren’t even from NY!
Russell Markert was a choreographer who got his start on Broadway as the dance director of the popular revue "Earl Carroll's Vanities." A dance guy through and through, Markert was a fan of the Tiller Girls, a precision dance company from the UK. He saw them perform on Broadway in the early 1900s and immediately thought:
It’s unclear how or why, but in 1925 Markert went to Missouri to build his precision dance troupe of ladies between 5’2″and 5’6” (although the height requirement has since increased, apparently I would have always been too small to make the cut). He auditioned women who were proficient in tap, modern, jazz and ballet and were able to kick at least 6 inches over their heads. His original lineup would include 16 women and thus was the birth of the Rockettes Missouri Rockets! This would be the group’s first moniker, so named because the precision and the force of their movements reminded Markert of…the precision of rockets? Idk man it was like 100 years ago, we hadn’t landed on the moon yet (maybe we still haven’t?), tap dancing was the epitome of cool.
The Rockets were an immediate sensation in their home state of Missouri and quickly took their show on the road. One of their performances took them to NYC as they danced in the Broadway show Rain or Shine. Unbeknownst to them at the time, one person in the audience would become absolutely enamored by their performance: Samuel Roxy Rothafel. And if that “Roxy” name sounds familiar it’s because this is the guy who ran the Roxy Theater in Rockefeller Center. Rothafel immediately turned to Markert and said:
And so the Missouri Rockets’ world tour was cut short and they stayed in NY for a while! Roxy doubled the lineup to include 36 women and they performed a routine to “With a Feather in Your Cap” at Radio City Music Hall for opening night on Dec 27, 1932. Two weeks after opening, Radio City Music Hall premiered its first film, The Bitter Tea of General Yen and quickly became the premiere first-run theatre for films. A first showing at this theater nearly guaranteed a successful run in others around the country. Soon after, the dancers would receive their first name change to “The Roxyettes” and they would go on to perform regularly at the nearby Roxy Theater in between movie screenings.
By 1934, the Roxyettes had become so renowned that they outgrew the Roxy Theater and began performing more frequently at Radio City Music Hall, as well as in venues across the country and abroad. When WWII began, they were amongst the first entertainers to volunteer for the United Service Organizations (USO) to travel overseas to perform for military troops. Thus, their second name change came about and they were dubbed the Rockettes to more closely align with the Rockefeller Center name at large.
They performed in the first Radio City Christmas Spectacular in 1933 and two elements of that first show have carried onto every show since - the Parade of the Wooden Soldiers, choreographed by their founder, Russell Markert, and The Living Nativity routine. Markert actually stayed with the dancers until his retirement in 1971 as their retirement in 1971 as their chief choreographer, image-preserver, and resident father-figure.
The Rockettes would later perform in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1957 and begin making appearances on televised variety shows. All the while they lived in dorms at Rockefeller Center as their resident fancy dancers, often performing in multiple shows per day. However, something that the official Rockfeller Center website won’t tell you is that in 1967 they went on strike for about a month asking for better pay. The website also won’t tell you that in 2002, in order to avoid a strike, Radio City offered payouts to veteran members of the Rockettes after initiating a mandate that every dancer must audition annually to maintain their position on the kickline (as if doing their job and actually performing in shows all year wasn’t audition enough).
The Rockettes are basically synonymous with Christmas in NY and I’m very lucky to have seen them perform when I was just a naive little bebe. I can definitely be a bit of a scrooge, but even I had to admit that the Christmas Spectacular is, in fact, pretty spectacular. It’s just one of those things that commands your attention throughout and puts you in a happy lil mood - that is until you step outside of Radio City and into the throngs of tourists and dollar store Santas immediately outside 😵💫
Last week I visited Luna Luna (very cool) and today I got an email letting me know that its residency has been extended for an additional month through the end of Feb!
My love for Salty Lunch Lady knows no bounds and I’m delighted to tell you that they’re having a Lasagna Party this Sat Dec 21. Is this lasagna + accoutrements dinner worth the $50 price tag? Ask yourself this: does Garfield hate Mondays?
I swear I will finally attend a clothing swap before the end of the year if it’s the last thing I do! Worn Not Torn Exchange is hosting a swap on Dec 22 at P.I.T. in Williamsburg. I’m not confident that I’ll find stuff that’s my style in Williamsburg, but I’m gonna try!
Julianne had a clothing swap at Bushwick’s Cherry on Top a while back and the venue is incredibly fucking cute. This NYE they’re having a Prom! No tickets required - just show up to enjoy snacks, punch, slow dances and a midnight toast. If going out for NYE isn’t your thing, Cherry on Top is also having a Hanukkah Party on Dec 20. No tickets needed for this either and you can enjoy latkes with various toppings!
Spending NYE in Times Square is about as close to a living nightmare as I can imagine. If you have a penchant for marveling at big sparkly numbers, but hate crowds, you can visit the New Year Numerals in nearby Duffy Square through Dec 22. You can also have your wishes added to the confetti that’ll rain down when the clock strikes midnight. Stop by the Wishing Wall, or remain inside and submit your wish via a handy online form. Also a reminder that one guy and a bunch of volunteers drop all of the NYE confetti by hand each year.
I generally “don’t get” modern art, but the 24 hour movie ‘The Clock’ sounds just like the kind of weird shit I’d love to make. It’s a movie that simply displays the time on various watches and clocks, with each shot pulled from a movie. Stitch all of those shots together, and you have every time of the day displayed. What a concept. It’s currently playing at MoMA through Feb 17.
Apparently I’ve been living under a rock because I didn’t realize the new season of Squid Games was nearly upon us! I’ve been wanting to try Orion Bar, which opened in my beloved Le Garage’s space, and the Korean bar will be having a screening party for the premiere on Dec 26.
The Clock is so great, and tonight, MoMA is keeping the museum open for the whole 24-hour run of it. Looks like it is sold out but walk-in tickets may be available. Enjoy your break!