Vacation mode: activate 😎
Stay slay while I'm away 😜
Thanks for taking a detour with me last week while I wrote about the WGA & SAG-AFTRA strikes that are going on. So many of you reached out to say that you found that information helpful and that makes me so happy! I’ll likely continue to cover bits about the strike and I’m happy to do a deep dive into this or any other topic - let me know what you want to read!
We’re back on track with NYC content this week, but then I’m taking the next 1-2 weeks off while I’m on vacation in Canada! I’ll be trekking through Banff National Park, so please send me your local recs because I’ve never been. And just so I’m not leaving you empty handed, I created an index that links to everything I’ve written about so far. So please enjoy some back issues the next couple weeks while I’m hiking up mountains and guzzling maple syrup.
1. Noshing 😋
Girl Dinner has been making the rounds on tiktok (Popeye’s just added it to their menu) and even got a piece in the NYT - it generally consists of a bunch of tiny dishes, often involves minimal to no cooking, and is ideally meant to be enjoyed by one person. Although Laser Wolf bills itself as a group dining experience, I can imagine its salatim platter & skewers being an amazing (and surprisingly affordable-for-NY) solo girl dinner. I managed to get a reservation there last week for Beef’s Monthly Fancy Dinner™ and it really is worth the hype.
If you get a 5pm res like I did, make sure you stop downstairs at their bakery, K’Far, to grab some pastries for later. I wasn’t impressed by their rugelach (Breads Bakery is my fave), but I cannot resist a savory boureka. I got one of each flavor because I couldn’t decide and loved them all (Lorenzo liked them too). The door upstairs to Laser Wolf doesn’t open until exactly 5pm and we awkwardly rode the wrong elevator before figuring that out. If you’re into views, you’ll be treated to a great one once you’re upstairs. The restaurant is basically a wrap around balcony that overlooks Bushwick Inlet Park and you have good views of the Empire State Building and Chrysler Building, two art deco beauties.
Every table gets a never-ending salatim platter - this contains hummus, pita, and a mix of tiny snacky dishes (aka girl dinner). Our favorites were the pineapple, bean, and cucumber snackies. For meats, we got the chicken, steak, lamb, and brisket; I wanted the cauliflower, but the rest of my party refused, so I obviously have to come back. The brisket was our favorite of the meats, but we’re a bunch of Jews so honestly what did you expect? You technically have to order at least 1 skewer to get the salatim platter, but I could have enjoyed a girl dinner of just pita and dips. The skewers are about $50 each, which is why I feel like this could be an affordable-for-NY solo dinner.
The meal also comes with dessert automatically, so I am obviously a fan of this practice. Every meal should come with french fries and/or dessert, I don’t make the rules. The dessert here is a brown sugar soft serve with a tahini shell, cherries, and sesame crunchies. It was so good that Beef and I fought over my mom’s ice cream leftovers because we each wanted more. The tahini shell really helped to cut the sweetness of the ice cream and the literal cherries on top were a delicious end to the meal.
2. Watching 👀
In solidarity with the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes going on, I won’t be writing about any new tv shows or movies. I’m just a “regular-schmegular” person so it wouldn’t really be crossing a picket line, but I’d rather err on the side of more support than play with technicalities.
I’m taking you way back to 1993 to start - I’ve just begun watching The X-Files and because I’m me, I have thoughts. Every few years there’s a big “supernatural” show running on tv (sometimes the show is even called Supernatural) and this is one that I just sort of missed because I was only 4 when it began airing. I remember seeing X-Files stuff at the “big kid” stores at the mall and now I feel like the theme song is used to comedic effect whenever something spooky is going on. The show was a big deal and aired for 11 seasons - I’m currently in the middle of season 2. I’ve gotta say, so far it’s not good. I have two main issues with the series up until now:
1) David Duchovny is not acting, he is simply reading lines and existing. I did not see him show a hint of emotion until the episode where Scully goes missing and even then, it was brief. His face barely lights up when his sister (who was abducted by aliens?) returns. This is even more apparent when contrasted with Gillian Anderson, who is in fact acting and carrying the whole damn show. I always heard so much about Scully and Mulder’s chemistry and I get it from Scully, but unfortunately she has chemistry with a wall (Mulder is the wall). I’ve resorted to scouring the internet to see if I’m the only one who feels this way (I’m not) and apparently his deadpan delivery is endearing to people? I’m a poster child for deadpan delivery and even my eyes would reflexively widen if I saw a freakin alien. Watching him is painful, not endearing. I’ve seen David Duchovny in other things and he knows how to act, so is he simply choosing not to?
2) This is another Mulder thing, which leads me to believe I may just hate Mulder, or at least I hate how he was written. In the season 1 episode Fire, Mulder explains that he’s afraid of fire because “When I was a kid, my best friend's house burned down. Had to spend the night in the rubble to keep away looters. For years, I had nightmares about being trapped in a burning building.” I was immediately skeptical of the quality of the show I was watching when I heard Mulder utter this line with complete sincerity and then move on with his life. Sorry, but what adult leaves a child in charge of guarding a burned down house from looters? Who is looting a house that’s burned down? Things got even worse when in the second season, we learn that Mulder grew up in Martha’s Vineyard. Apparently Mulder’s fear of fire via looting was taken from the series creator’s actual childhood, but make it make sense.
As a fan of supernatural shows (particularly the one called Supernatural), I’m surprised that I wasn’t immediately into The X-Files. I’m obviously going to watch all 11 seasons to see if things improve (my partner tells me the T1000 actor is in later seasons and that’s a man who can act). I’m not hopeful that it will get better, but I want to believe 🛸
Note: late last night I watched S2E20 - Humbug and it was by far the best episode yet! I don’t know if it was good or just good compared to what’s come before, but maybe things are looking up?
3. Exploring 🗺️
Excellent friend Brittney invited me to an event at The New Museum a couple weeks ago and I got to explore all of the exhibits while I was there! There were two exhibits that I really enjoyed: Mire Lee: Black Sun and Wynnie Mynerva: The Original Riot.
Black Sun was housed in it’s own little enclosure and I loved that it caused a completely immersive experience. Upon entering, your senses immediately pick up on 1) humidity and 2) gushing sounds. The various works around the room are very dystopian and biomechanical - this is what I imagine the innards of replicants are like. To me, this speaks to the intersection of humans and technology - we’re practically all cyborgs to some degree at this point with our airpods, heart monitors, IUDs, and metal hips. People used to die so much younger because we didn’t have all of these extra things to keep us going and sure living is cool, but sometimes I wonder if we’re doing something bad in delaying a natural process. Anyways, go for the Cronenberg vibes, stay for the gushy noises.
The Original Riot reimagines Eve and Lillith forming an alliance, with Eve gifting Lillith her rib bone “as a token of their pact against patriarchal power”. This piece was huge and stretched across a long wall, so it was pretty fun to look at. I loved searching through the brush strokes to find all of the abstract female forms (and one iguana). As someone named Eden, I’ve had people recount to me the story of the Garden of Eden more times than I can count, and I’m all for the reimagined mythology that diminishes Adam’s role (maybe he’s the iguana?). In addition to the painted piece, the artist removed a piece of her rib bone and placed it on display.
I remember reading a while back that the idea of Eve coming from Adam’s rib might actually be a mistranslation anyways. Apparently, “Of the 39 times the word “rib” appears in the Bible, 38 are translated as “side.” Only in Genesis 2:22 is it translated as “rib.” So instead of a woman being created out of a tiny piece of a man (that is apparently inconsequential and can be removed), she is instead created out of one entire half of a man. This translation seems to depict men and women as equals, which is likely why it was changed by….men.
4. Learning 🧠
I met a new person at work yesterday and they asked what my favorite thing I’ve learned about NYC is (I swear this actually happened). My answer to this would probably vary depending on the day, but one thing I’m always ready to talk about is the water tower - an icon of the NYC skyline. While I was on the balcony at The New Museum, I pushed through the groups of people dancing and wearing fashionable clothes to snap this pic of this water tower because you usually don’t get to see them up close!
The water towers in NYC are a symbol of innovation and the desire to create taller and taller buildings. NYC gets its water from upstate NY and as it travels to the city by gravity, the pressure creates enough force for it to service buildings up to 6 stories tall. If you want a building taller than 6 stories you need a water tower on top to get water to the top floors, but they’re not needed on shorter apartment buildings. Take a peek atop taller buildings and you’ll see the wooden structures all over. If you don’t see a water tower on a tall building, it’s likely being hidden behind walls or within additional construction because the landlord deemed it “unsightly”.
Anyways, my top fact about water towers is this: they contain no glue, nails, or screws - just a bunch of wooden planks held together by steel rings and water pressure. The wood is generally yellow cedar or California redwood and it provides enough insulation to prevent the water from freezing in the winter. There are only about 3 companies that make these water towers in NY and they’ve all been around for over 100 years. It’s absolutely wild to me how something so simple can be so sturdy.
When I was at Laser Wolf, I saw a strange looking water tower on the hotel roof across the street; half if it was glass. This water tower was turned into a bar by the Williamsburg Hotel. If you’ve ever traveled along the BQE or been on the Brooklyn Waterfront, you’ve also likely seen the stained glass water tower sculptures by Tom Fruin. I’ve never really noticed if other cities have water towers like NY’s all over, so if you live in another city please look up and let me know.
5. What’s Good 😎
I somehow just found out that it’s possible to create a giant Reese’s Cup at the Hershey’s Store. For $20 you can walk in and add a shit ton of peanut butter to a chocolate shell and also mix in whatever else you want. I would normally never ever tell you to go to Times Square, but for my fellow peanut butter lovers, this might be worth it.
These maps show the difference between where tourists and locals take photos in cities. It’s always interesting to me to see where different groups of people congregate and I’m acutely aware that my NYC is much different than someone else’s NYC experience. That’s why I’m hoping that this newsletter will expose folks to different parts of the city - and I hope to learn new things from you all too!
Delmonico’s in FiDi will be reopening in September after being closed since early 2020 due to Covid. I’ve never been, but if it’s anything like another famed steakhouse in NY, I’m not sure I’d be impressed. I actually thought that the Delmonico’s exterior was used as the Continental Hotel in the John Wick movies, but apparently it’s the nearby Beaver Building that looks pretty identical. There aren’t that many “corner buildings” like this in NY so I was surprised to learn this!
Summer Streets starts back up this weekend, beginning in Staten Island & Queens July 29, followed by Manhattan Aug 5, and Brooklyn & The Bronx Aug 20. Huge swaths of streets will be closed and there are usually some food vendors and activities. My pro-tip is to use this opportunity to explore around Grand Central Terminal. There is no pedestrian walkway around the roadway that winds around there, so this is literally the only time you can be up close to the building!
Supporting Indie films is the way to go right now during the strike and the film festival I used to work with, The Art of Brooklyn, is hosting a free screening of films in Owl’s Head Park in Bay Ridge this Friday July 28 at 8:30pm. Check out the lineup of films here!
NYC Teachers - ReMix Market is giving away free classroom supplies! It’s wild to me that teachers have to buy their own stuff for their classrooms, so pull up and get ya free shit!
Oh also - aliens are real? 👽
See ya when I’m back from Canada - enjoy the back issues while I’m away!
I always think of the animaniacs when in see that water tower lol
I thought Delmonico's was featured in the John Wick movies as well! Thanks for clearing that up for me!