Sufjan Stevens plays at the Benefit for Tibet House

Location: Midtown West, NYC
Event: Tibet House Benefit Concert
Venue: Carnegie Hall
Food: Gordon Ramsey at the London
Drink: Social
Miscellaneous: Tuck Shop

This annual benefit for Tibet House has an amazing cast of indie and classic rockers playing including Sufjan Stevens, Band of horses, Ray Davies, Tom Verlaine, and Philip Glass. Everyone’s favorite celebrity chef, who most are likely afraid of, Gordon Ramsey serves a three-course French menu with international flare at Gordon Ramsey at the London. Make reservations early and wear a jacket, as the place only has 45 seats. If you’ve seen his shows, I’m sure you know that you don’t want to piss off this chef! Social, a three floor bar and lounge is big enough to never get bored in and is a great place in that area of town to drink and, well you know the rest! For something different, check out Tuck Shop. This small Australian eatery serves individual sized meat pies wrapped in pastry you have to try if you’re in the hood.

She & Him Ready "Volume One"

by: Amy Wagner

Back in 2006 M. Ward got together with Zooey Deschanel (the sister from Almost Famous who leaves home to become a stewardess) and recorded a duet. They had fun and wouldn't you know it, she (Deschanel) just happened to have a ton of home recordings hidden away. She shared the demos with Him (Ward) and the story ends/or begins with the upcoming release of She & Him's debut album Volume One due out March 13, 2008 on Merge Records. The twelve track disc includes covers by The Miracles and The Beatles. The album celebrates the musical styles of some of their favorites - artists like Nina Simone, Chet Atkins, Linda Ronstadt and the Carter Family. It's hard to imagine a singular cohesive album coming from such an eclectic array of influences, but if the album's first single, the Ronstadtish "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here" is any indication - their musical melting pot works! Track Listing - Volume One 1 "Sentimental Heart" 2 "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?" 3 "This Is Not A Test" 4 "Change Is Hard" 5 "I Thought I Saw Your Face Today" 6 "Take It Back" 7 "I Was Made for You" 8 "You Really Got a Hold on Me" (The Miracles) 9 "Black Hole" 10 "Got Me" 11 "I Should Have Known Better" (The Beatles).

Find a Mate and a Pet at Leashes and Lovers Valentine's Day Party

Location: Lower East Side, NYC
Event: Leashes and Lovers Valentine’s Day Party
Venue: Crash Mansion
Food: La Esquina
Drink: McSorley’s Ale House
Miscellaneous: Rice to Riches

With Valentine’s Day a few days away, the heat is on to find someone special. If you love your dog as much as you’re hoping your future boy/girlfriend will, then this singles party at Crash Mansion is where you may find the perfect companion and pet. My new favorite Mexican taco stand, La Esquina, serves up amazing tacos and tortas. Try the Aguacate Con Queso taco with avocado, queso fresco black bean, pico de gallo, and salsa verde ($3.25). This place will blow your mind. If you can get in, McSorley’s is the oldest bar in NYC, having served up pints since 1854, it has the chair President Lincoln sat in when he stopped in for a drink after a big speech at Cooper Union, among other artifacts. Serving rice pudding in a variety of flavors, this SoHo located dessert shop is as funky as it sounds, in a good way!

Location: Prospect Heights, Brooklyn
Event: Spelling Bee
Venue Freddy’s Bar & Backroom
Food The Smoke Joint
Drink Total Wine Bar
Miscellaneous The Old Brooklyn Parlor

Bone up on your wordsmithery if you want in to this Bee as Freddy’s Bar hosts a spelling bee for adults. Being that it’s in a bar I’d guess that’s because there’s liquor? If you like your meat bbqued, The Smoke Joint is where it’s at. With a menu that gets straight to the point, offering hacked chicken, beef, or pork among a few other menu items, like southern sides and a variety of local beers, this place will keep your fingers joints deep in Southern fare! Total Wine Bar creates a warm atmosphere, but it’s the wine list that’s the draw, offering a reasonably priced and eclectic selection leaving you with more than enough dough to order some cheeses and snack foods on menu. For a taste of Brooklyn from yesteryear, hit up The Old Brooklyn Parlor and grab yourself an old school Brooklyn Egg Cream or Lime Cherry Rickey.

Siouxsie Sioux. Still Goth and Still Great.

Friday Feb 8

Location: Gramercy Park, NYC
Band: Siouxsie Sioux
Venue: Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza
Food: Souen
Drink: Revival
Miscellaneous: Trader Joes

At 50, Siouxsie Sioux is still cool. On her new first-ever solo album Mantaray, she still sounds as good as she did back in the 80s. While the big hair is gone, the attitude, substance, and eyeliner are still there. For fans of the vegan lifestyle or if you want to try something new, Souen is one of the best places to go for macrobiotic food. With a menu offering mostly tofu and seitan, the closest you will get to any meat is fish if you can’t handle a meatless meal. Speaking of revivals, Revival is a two story bar nearby with a lounge up top and a cozy garden in the back open till midnight on weekends. If you’re feeling dangerous, step into Trader Joes. Once you get over the insane shoppers and lines, the very moderately priced gourmet goods will make you understand why the lines here are never-ending.

Friday

Location: Chelsea, NYC
Band: Fountains of Wayne
Venue: Highline Ballroom
Food: Pastis
Drink: Red Rock West Saloon
Miscellaneous: Ninth Street Espresso

Indie-rock band Fountains of Wayne have been writing catchy songs like “Stacy’s Mom,” the video featuring former supermodel Rachel Hunter (Me-ow!), since 1996. On tour in support of their new album Traffic and Weather, they stop off at the Highline Ballroom. If French cuisine is what you’re after, Pastis a French bistro run by Keith McNally offers some of the best classic French food and bistro fare in the city. Usually crowded, it’s not known for its intimacy. Also not known for being quiet, Red Rock West Saloon is a biker and blue collar bar where you can throw back a beer and listen to some Southern rock. What’s a night in NYC without a great cup of coffee in a low-key café? Ninth Street Espresso offers that kind of setting on top of a well-chosen and executed selection of coffees.

Saturday Feb 9

Location: Greenpoint, Brooklyn
Band: Beat the Devil + Renminbi + Stray Volts
Venue: Club Europa
Food: Shanghai Lee
Drink: Black Rabbit
Miscellaneous: Peter Pan

Beat the Devil, a Brooklyn based three-piece band comprised of Mishka Shubalay on bass, Mitchell King on drums, and singer Shilpa Ray are amazing live. Shilpa’s hypnotic voice belts out dark and brooding lyrics as the band creates beautifully warped songs. For dinner, get your Chinese food cravings under control at Shanghai Lee. Though serving your standard Chinese fare, the atmosphere here is fun and the cocktails drinks come in special tiki glasses. Black Rabbit, the newest bar in Greenpoint, with its dark wood and dark lighting make this place look like a pub transported from somewhere deep in England. With a great vibe and even better beer selection, grab a booth and hit a button when your cup is empty. Genius! If you like donuts, then Peter Pan will be your downfall. Making huge donuts stacked with creams and jellies, they are well-worth the stomach ache to come.

Saturday

Band: Human Bell
Venue: Sound Fix
Food: Juliette
Drink: Spike Hill
Miscellaneous: Reel Life

Blending blues and experimentation, Nathan Bell and Dave Heumann create a beautiful landscape of instrumental music. Catch them at this FREE show before they get BIG. What used to be the club Red & Black not too long ago, is now the French restaurant Juliette. This 2 floor (the second being an open air terrace) outdoor restaurant is quite impressive. The food, though not cheap is excellent. The Moules Frites ($16) are some of the best steamed mussels in white wine, shallots, and thyme I’ve had. An Irish Bar right in the heart of Williamsburg, Spike Hill has a pretty tight selection of single malt Scotch and beers on tap. You can call it the Kim’s Video of Williamsburg, but Reel Life is the best video store in the hood with a great selection of everything from new releases to cult classics.

Sunday Feb 10

Location: Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Band: Nomo
Venue: Zebulon
Food: Relish
Drink: Radegast Beer Hall
Miscellaneous: Iona

Combining afrobeat with dance music, Nomo is a horn heavy electronic band that will make you dance till dawn. Tonight they play Zebulon for FREE, so go check them out! What looks like a diner from the 50s is actually far from it. With a menu classified as “New American,” Relish also takes its culinary cues from European, Spanish, and Middle Eastern cooking creating dishes like the Pork Tenderloin Mignonette, made with Spanish rose wine, pear, honey and rosemary sauce, served with garlic roast potatoes and watercress salad ($21). For drinks, the recently opened Radegast Hall is a beer garden in the heart of Williamsburg with a wide selection of German, Austrian, and Belgium beers. For one last drink of the night, head over to Iona, a bar with a bit of local flavor mixed with the occasional live DJ spinning records into the wee hours of the night.

Location: Union Square, NYC
Event: Luc Sante
Venue: The Strand Bookstore
Food: Oyama
Drink: Bowlmor Lanes
Miscellaneous: The Virgin Megastore

More New York than Ray’s Pizza, social critic and New York historical writer, Luc Sante reads from his new book “Kill All Your Darlings,” a book of his essays from 1990 to 2005. My favorite 50% off sushi joint, Oyama serves good and cheap sushi including inventive rolls like the Oyama Special Hand Roll, which includes lettuce, tobiko, cucumber, avocado, shrimp, and mayonnaise ($5.95). For drinks, sitting at a table in Bowlmor lanes is a good way to enjoy watching people fall on their behinds trying to bowl in this rather large bowling alley. What better way to waste anywhere from a few minutes to several hours than at the Virgin Megastore. With two floors filled with CDs, DVDs, books, games, and plenty more, you can catch up on what’s hot and figure out what’s worth buying.

Get Some Cranberry Pancakes at Tom’s Restaurant.
Photo Credit: Keyboard Samurai

Tom's Restaurant Brooklyn
782 Washington Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11238-4506
Tel:(718)636-9738

Despite the line to get in, Tom’s Restaurant is well worth the wait. For your troubles, the staff brings out trays of coffee and random food, like fries with chipotle sauce to snack on. This is the kind of love waiting for you inside. While being the place Suzanne Vega wrote the song “Tom’s Diner” about, the random photos of celebs and locals on the walls tell you this place is famous for other reasons. The menu, filled with breakfast and lunch items has an eclectic variety of pancakes like lemon ricotta or pumpkin walnut and egg dishes like crab cakes florintine. While Tom, the man who opened the restaurant in 1936 has passed away, it’s his son, Gus Vlahadhas, who currently runs the establishment, playing host, shaking everyone’s hand and joking around like you were family. Fortunately, the food here is as good as the line out the door would have you believe.