Krazy!

The Saturday before last, the ladies and I ventured to far (north) east Manhattan for a Manga/Anime/Video Games exhibit at the Japan Society called "KRAZY!
 The Delirious World of Anime + Manga + Video Games."

The show was small in size but big in visual stimulation. Highlights included a Nintendo Game Cube, mounted to the wall in a bubble (I have one in my living room! Should I sell it to a museum?") and sketches from a book called "The Afterlife of a DJ" (I can relate.)

The first room contained an enormous bookcase that you could browse through. The walls were covered in choice excepts. The second paid tribute to classic video games (think Super Mario Bros. 2) with stations where you could play them. The last room's massive walls were lined with numerous screens and smaller viewing spaces where you could watch Anime (provided you have a killer attention span as they were all playing at once.)

We zipped through it all pretty quickly but for anyone out there who's been laid off or just has lots of time to kill, I recommend checking it out as you could entertain yourself for hours (that is if Manga, Anime or video games are your bag.)

The show is up until June 14.

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Nara at Niagara

Remember when Japanese artist Nara was arrested the night before his gallery opening earlier this month? B and I unveiled more pieces to this puzzle at Niagara bar in the East Village the week before last.

We hit up Niagara for the Antagonist Art Movement's weekly party and more precisely, the musical stylings of the one and only J-Stroke. We were pleasantly surprised as we made our way through the narrow bar by the drawings on the wall. It seems Niagara was the thirst quenching spot frequented by Nara before his arrest and the bar owners allowed him to cover the wall space with black marker drawings of his characters.

Obviously, if I was in a foreign country and someone let me go to town all over his or her bar walls, I would assume this was par for the course and whip out my Sharpie to leave my mark upon every stop of my journey as well.

My favorite part of this story is that while Niagara had the foresight to cover Nara's drawings with plexiglass and leave them up for all to enjoy, perhaps realizing that they could fetch a nice chunk of change at some point, the MTA washed off the brick he drew on at the First Avenue L station and called it a day. And in the meantime, we have to eat their deficit with a massive fare hike. Geniuses.

Check out pics and other artwork from the Antagonist Art Movement party below!

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K-Town

(This is a bad example of food porn because I did not photograph the meals till we were done eating.)

This Thursday evening, a team of carnivorous set out for the Korean food challenge, hitting up the famous "Korean Way" block (32nd between 5th and 6th street). As we navigated the raining, bustling street, lined with hotels, karaoke bars and 24hour Korean restaurants I noticed that K-town was a hot bed for young Korean hipsters. We decided on Kun Jip a quaint restaurant with impeccable service! We started the night out with a few Hites, a Korean beer I had never had before and the usual Korean picked side dishes, featuring fan favorites, dried squid and a steamy egg dish. We also sampled some of the dumplings which we decided not to call home about and then decided on Korean BBQ, a grilled spicy pork and boneless short ribs, a seafood bibimbob and a spicy pork bone, potato casserole/soup. Everything was delish, transporting one restaurant guest to his "homeland" and his mother's cooking! The evening was rounded out with a lovely cold tea drink laced with Cinnamon and honey and a tea rice porridge.

Future K-town adventures will have to include a night of karoake!

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AWESOME! We do have something to do this summer!

According to the NY Times, JellyNYC will relocate their free summer concerts/dodge ball hipster tournaments formerly held at McCarren Pool to le banks of the east river (btwn N. 8th and N. 9th Sts) in Willy-b. The space has a capacity of 6000 same as the pizzle but with the cool breeze of the river front and spectacular views of the Manhattan skyline. Oh yeah!

(Image from Gothamist)

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Shake Shack

You know what Spring means: inhaling SHAKE SHACK burgers, cheese fries and shakes while sitting outdoor on a lovely patio in the middle of Madison Square Garden. YAHOO! Just make sure you check out their Shake Shack webcam before trekking there, the line can be atrocious.

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Funky Face Disguises

you know you want one . . .

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Infinity +1

I'm not sure what's going on with A-Trak's album art work (see right). I certainly didn't feel compelled to buy it on a T-Shirt last night and would even go as far as to say that the mere presentation of it on a shirt confused me.

Though while the design may be questionable, one thing is for sure: the mix album, which will be pre-released on iTunes next week and available in stores on March 31st, should be a killer.

A few of us headed over to Studio B to check out the NYC stop of the "Infinity +1" tour in support of the album last night. DJ’s on deck were A-Trak and Medhi. When we arrived, Nick Catchdubs was finishing up and soon afterwards A-Trak and Medhi hit the stage for a 3-hour tag team set.

I was initially stoked at the concept of a collective set from these two but the reality of it was a total letdown. A-Trak is an amazing DJ, Medhi, not so much. Their styles weren't really cohesive and every time Medhi would lay down a tune, I found myself ready for A-Trak to get back on.

They played a lot of fun stuff including a couple Laidback Luke jams, Bodyrox’s "Yeah Yeah" and Treasure Fingers' "Cross the Dancefloor." The highlight of the night for me was a house remix of Animal Collective's "My Girls", possibly this version.

This was by far the most packed I've seen Studio B since they reopened, making dancing quite a challenge. Is Studio B back?

Note to self, Studio B - you need more bartenders. Also $8 well drinks? You're in Brooklyn! And a side note to Studio B goers - you get a free drink with your car service or taxi receipt now, so remember to show it at the door to get your drink ticket.

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Killing it all the way to Vermont

The '08-09 snowboarding season has not proved to be a great one for my crew. Not one, but two of my friends found themselves in surgery by the end of it. But those of us who are still standing were treated to a very special experience this past weekend courtesy of Override Events.

Between the "should be at work" hours of 1 and 2pm on Friday afternoon, a bus picked us up outside the Volcom store in Soho. We climbed over many large coolers to secure the three-seater spot in the back, cracked open a Brooklyn Winter Ale and the rest is history.

Our bus was a party on wheels the full length of the ride up to Vermont. With two headphone splitters in tow, we tried to keep it low key and watch movies but once we heard Onyx's "Slam!" (duh duh duh, duh duh duh - Let the boys be boys!) over the PA system, we let out a collective "F*ck Rachel and her wedding!" and got up to join the party.

I've never danced on a bus before. It's pretty awesome. It's even better when the selection ranges all the way from American Analog Set to Dr. Dré.

The weekend was filled with good, yet slushy riding in soft snow and a lot of fun times with new friends and interesting characters.

For those New Yorkers who partake in the daily weekend trips organized by local shops such as Emilio's and Paragon, I highly recommend looking into Override's trips as an alternative. The guys who run them are super cool, it's a blast and two days of shredding is always better than one.

Ovrerride is doing one final trip this year to Stratton that happens to fall on one of the organizer's birthdays. Check out the pics below for an indication of the amount of fun to expect just on the way up and see you on the slopes!

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Nara at Marianne Boesky Gallery

Last Saturday evening, on a very cold winter's day, I decided to go west and much further uptown than I've been in a very long time to Chelsea. This is by no means a small feat but somewhat more tolerable when your companion is obsessed with the NYC bus system and can navigate you there with minimal walking in a very reasonable amount of time.

The purpose of this quest was to attend the opening reception of a show by Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara at the Marianne Boesky Gallery.

This exhibit was the fourth solo show by the artist at this particular gallery. It featured a number of drawings and paintings of Nara's trademark girl character. The most interesting part was two immense hut-like houses that were constructed in the back of the gallery, one filled with stuffed animals.

Inside sources revealed that the artist almost did not make it to his own opening reception because he spent the previous night in jail for defacing public property. A few drinks, an artist and a marker can really only lead to one thing. Who can blame him? The world is his canvas.

The show is up until March 28th.

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Viva La Arepa

Sitting in Bushwick Country Club on Tuesday night, retrieving drinks with dinosaurs, I found myself beyond befuddled when fellow robot Sondra informed me that she had never been to East Village Arepa eatery, Caracas. Unacceptable!

To you readers lucky enough to reside in the NYC vicinity or to anyone planning a visit, I kid you not, run, don't walk to Caracas. It has been one of my favorite spots in the city since I first discovered it. The Village location is small and bustling on most nights but you can always opt for a quick bite at the convenient adjacent takeout restaurant.

And by no means is this still news but I think it's worth noting. Caracas recently opened up a second Arepa Bar on Grand Street in Willamsburg near Roebling!

The new location is, for now, BYOB (which I decided over the weekend to start pronouncing as a word rather than letter by letter..."byob!" - it really rolls off the tongue.) The decor is very interesting. It looks completely unfinished with bare wooden planks, glass and metals covering the walls. And even more exciting, there is an outside area. I am already envisioning the endless brunch opportunities once the weather warms up!

Two tips:
1. Don’t even ask what’s in the sauce. They won’t tell you. It’s delicious!
2. Order the Yoyos appetizer – but get it for dessert.

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