Guess what?! All throughout the month of May, our recent Race to My Place contestant, Energy Kitchen, is offering 50% off all smoothies and salads. This discount has come just in time for the hot and humid weather we’ve had all week! Grab a smoothie and enjoy Andrew Zuckerman’s Wisdom exhibit at the WFC, a stroll along the Esplanade, or check out some of the landmarks in our “Places” Tab!
Energy Kitchen
71 Nassau St
New York, NY 10038
(212) 577-8989
When the original Iron Man blasted its way into theaters two years ago, the film — like its armored antihero — was most definitely flying below the radar. Robert Downey Jr. was not yet the roguishly charming, bankable leading man that he is today; Iron Man wasn’t exactly a superhero with a gargantuan built-in fan base like, say, Superman or Batman; and, speaking of Batman, there was that other comic-book movie, The Dark Knight, also opening in summer 2008… and the anticipation for that may have overshadowed Iron Man just a wee bit. So imagine the near universal delight of moviegoers when Downey’s bravura turn as hard-living-smartass-weapons-manufacturer-turned-not-so-secret-superhero Tony Stark helped Iron Man explode expectations, catapulting the comeback kid (well, comeback adult) back onto the A list in a big way and setting up soaring expectations for a sequel.
A couple years and one hell of a stacked cast later, that sequel has arrived, steeped in such ridiculous buzz it might seem destined to crash and burn. Well, exhale deeply and smile — because Iron Man 2 is pretty darned good. Sure, the two-hours-plus running time could have been trimmed down and the various intertwining plots wouldn’t have suffered from some tightening, but all the goods that made the original such a hoot are still there. Badass action: check. RDJ (that’s what we call Robert Downey Jr., because we’re pals) at the top of his one-liner-spewing game: check. Palpable sexual tension between Downey’s Stark and Gwyneth Paltrow’s Pepper Potts: definitely check.
When part two of the saga begins, Tony Stark is reveling in his newfound national-hero status. He’s basically achieved world peace and, unlike pretty much every other superhero that’s ever graced a movie screen, he’s not opposed to being worshiped for it. He’s a less altruistic Superman, he’s what Batman would be if Bruce Wayne dressed up in costume, got hammered and entertained party guests by blowing stuff up with his neat-o weapons (oh yes, that happens in this movie). Stark is happy to yell from the mountaintop — or to a Senate hearing committee chaired by Gary Shandling — that “I am Iron Man. The suit and I are one.” And that’s what makes this superhero character so intriguing: He doesn’t want an alter ego; he wants credit for his good deeds.
The witty script, from Tropic Thunder scribe Justin Theroux, highlights Stark’s lovable narcissism, giving Downey plenty of great moments for grandstanding (emphasis on the grand), at the same time that it depicts his more vulnerable side. You see, this time around Stark has three foes: Cackling Russian baddie Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke), who’s got a vendetta with the Stark family, a brain as sharp as Tony’s and a weird fondness for cockatoos; rival weapons developer Justin Hammer (a comically snide Sam Rockwell); and, perhaps most lethally, toxic side effects from the very heart that’s keeping him alive.
The plot goes something like this: Vanko wants to kill Stark, so he builds his own suit in the hopes of whiplashing Tony into oblivion. Meanwhile, the U.S. government wants the Iron Man technology for itself, so it hires Hammer to work on a prototype. Vanko, in need of better resources to execute plan Obliterate Tony Stark, joins forces with Hammer, who’s the kind of guy who wipes his butt with Benjamins, eats elegant meals in airplane hangars, and wants to build a whole fleet of iron men to fight in the U.S. armed services. At the same time, Tony is living like a man with a death wish and trying to find a cure for the deadly side effects of being Iron Man. Oh, and Samuel L. Jackson still wants Tony to join the covert S.H.I.E.L.D. force, and Tony’s got a new assistant in the shapely form of Scarlett Johansson, who — surprise, surprise — is a skintight-leather-wearing undercover agent named Black Widow.
If that sounds convoluted, that’s because, well, it kind of is. But it won’t take away from your enjoyment one iota. If you liked the first one, you’ll be Stark raving mad for the second.
Get tickets for Iron Man 2 at the Regal Battery Park Stadium 11.
Temperatures approaching 90 degrees couldn’t keep kids and parents from flocking to yesterday’s Tribeca Film Festival Family Street Fair. Thousands turned out to enjoy the festivities, which ranged from the universally fun zeppole-eating and BMX-stunt-watching to kid-centric activities such as storming a gargantuan cardboard castle, making kites and cavorting on a bouncy Coca-Cola polar bear (kind of like a bouncy castle, only shaped like the aforementioned beast instead).
The event, which took over Greenwich Street between Chambers and Harrison (as well as all the side streets) from 10 AM to 6 PM, capped 10 days of movies and free events that comprised the ninth annual Tribeca Film Fest.
The extravaganza kicked off with a live performance by the cast of the Broadway musical Wicked at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center, and only got wicked better from there. As part of ESPN Sports Day, BMX daredevil Dave Voelker was on hand with his crew of bike-riding pros to put on an aerial stunt display the likes of which had never been seen in Lower Manhattan. “Oohs” were followed by “aahs” … and questions along the lines of, “Mommy, can Daddy show me how to do that on my Schwinn?” Let’s hope he didn’t try.
Children also lined up to grab some air of their own on the numerous bouncy castles strategically positioned on just about ever side street. One was a regular old castle, another was ESPN-themed, and still another took the shape of the iconic(?) Coca-Cola polar bear.
As if that weren’t enough, there was also a Chinese parade, ESPN-sponsored games such as free-throw shooting and tee-ball, face-painting, a puppet show, and enough junk food being consumed to make all the dentists in the area smile wide. Heck, Mr. Met and his entourage were even wandering around, much to the delight of children and female Mets fanatics.
As a nice reward for parents, the festival got an adult-friendly boost at 3 PM, when Mike D of the Beastie Boys led an epic guitar jam at the Church Street School for Music and Art. All in all, it was a beast of a time.
For each installment of Race to My Place, we pit two restaurants with similar cuisines, estimated delivery times and prices against each other to see whose delivery reigns supreme. This Friday, our contestants are Sun Cafe and Tokyo Bay Japanese Restaurant.
We ordered a Rainbow Roll to test both their sashimi and their California Rolls, a Spicy Tuna Roll, and a Shrimp Tempura Roll for those who are squeamish about eating raw fish.
Delivery Speed: TIE
I was extremely impressed — both restaurants somehow managed to deliver the food in exactly 16 minutes! This does make me worry a little about whether or not they have the rolls pre-made, but we didn’t order anything that would take too long to prepare, so I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt.
Packaging & Presentation: Sun Cafe
Sun Cafe won the packaging and presentation category by a landslide. It is rare for a restaurant to put so much effort into presentation for deliveries, but it really helps give a good first impression. I was so taken with the small touches and attention to detail that Sun Cafe demonstrated, that I was almost ready to name Sun Cafe the winner right then and there.
Yeah, that’s right, that orange blob you see is a butterfly carved out of carrot. How cool is that? They also included a cute little plastic tray to use for mixing soy sauce and wasabi, which I really appreciated. I always have a hard time getting the right wasabi-to-soy-sauce ratio in those sauce cups that normally come with delivery.
Tokyo Bay opted for a neater, plainer presentation, simply packing all three rolls into one container.
Quality & Taste: Tokyo Bay
Tokyo Bay redeemed itself with its quality and taste. The sashimi used in their Rainbow Roll was fresh and delicate, unlike the tough and fish fare from Sun Cafe. Tokyo Bay also had a better rice-to-fish ratio. Additionally, the rice was soft and sticky — the way good sushi rice should be.
When I looked beyond the carrot butterflies (apparently there to draw attention away from the actual food) that came with Sun Cafe’s sushi, I noticed just how thick the layer of rice was on all of their rolls. This definitely made their rolls more filling, but it made the sushi less enjoyable and more difficult to chew. It probably didn’t help that their rice was really hard: I couldn’t tell if it was undercooked or stale.
Sun Cafe’s spicy tuna roll had zero heat to it, but instead had a strong sesame flavor. Enjoyable, yes, but a spicy tuna roll it was not. On the other end of the spice spectrum was Tokyo Bay’s spicy tuna, which had a nice tongue-tingling spiciness –just enough to be exciting, but not so much that I was reaching for my water. Both shrimp tempura rolls were decent, although I should note that Tokyo Bay added avocado and cucumber to the roll while Sun Cafe did not. I found the cucumber a little overwhelming, but it did add even more crunch to the tempura.
Value: Tokyo Bay
I had a difficult time deciding the winner for this category. Here is the price breakdown:
Sun Cafe
Spicy Tuna Roll: $6
Shrimp Tempura Roll: $6
Rainbow Roll: $9
Tokyo Bay
Spicy Tuna Roll: $5.50
Shrimp Tempura Roll: $5.95
Rainbow Roll: $12.95
As you can see, there wasn’t much of a difference between the spicy tuna and shrimp tempura rolls. Sun Cafe’s rolls were a little bigger, but they also used a lot more rice. The main difference in value was the Rainbow Roll. However, the extra $4 for Tokyo Bay’s Rainbow Roll is definitely worth it, because Sun Cafe’s was inedible to the point that not even their cute presentation could compensate.
To sum it up, although Sun Cafe’s presentation and packaging skills almost won me over, the poor quality of their rice and sashimi was unforgivable. Tokyo Bay’s plain-looking but higher quality sushi was the winner of this race!
Sun Cafe (3/6 pizza slices)*
67 Reade Street
New York, NY 10007-1821
(212) 608-3822
Tokyo Bay Japanese Restaurant (4/6 pizza slices)
183 Duane Street
New York, NY 10013
(212) 431-8666
This new Eats segment will focus on finding places to wind down after work and enjoy a drink with coworkers, friends or even a hot date. Every week, we’ll be taking one for the team and hitting happy hour at a different Battery Park City watering hole. We’ll report back on the quality of the venue’s libations, the specialness of their specials and the tastiness of the food on which we nosh to prevent ourselves from descending into a stupor.
For our seminal happy hour, we headed to SouthWest NY, which, it ironically turns out, does not have any happy hour deals of which to speak. Still, now that the weather is warming up, the venue’s waterside location in the World Financial Center Plaza and its bountiful outdoor seating make it an ideal place to grab a drink and watch the sun set.
New York City has recently announced a proposal to limit the number of art vendors in city parks and public spaces. And Battery Park likely won’t escape the effects of these plans, which some are calling Bloomberg’s attempt to privatize public space.
The proposed restrictions would supposedly ease congestion in heavily trafficked areas, including Union Square, Central Park, the High Line and Battery Park. Last Friday a public hearing was held to hear the opinions of art vendors, their critics and their staunch advocates. According to the New York Times, the protest had some of the best looking signs you’d ever seen.
So we decided to check out the congestion ourselves. During a leisurely walk through Battery Park today, we counted north of 30 different art vendors. However, they seemed evenly dispersed amid the nearly 25 acres of land. The restrictions, should they be approved, would allow only nine vendors along the perimeter of the park between Pearl Street and West Street.
Here’s a quick look at the numbers based on the proposed restrictions:
Battery Park: 25 Acres | 9 Vendors
Union Square: 3.59 Acres | 18 Vendors
High Line: 2.15 Acres | 8 Vendors
If you do the math, or simply go for a stroll through Battery Park, it is painfully obvious that the the BP art vendors would be getting one helluva raw deal. For starters, the vendors don’t even come close to creating congestion on a weekday. And, while Battery Park could easily engulf both Union Square and the High Line combined, it would be allowed fewer than half as many vendors as Union Square should the proposal come to fruition.
We spoke with Asif Javed, an art vendor who has been selling his photography in the park for nearly 10 years, to get his take on the matter. For his part, Javed believes that the legislation should not be aimed towards the art vendors: “[The rules] are aimed at those people who are selling 9-11 disaster books on the streets who make congestion.”
It’s quite clear speaking with Javed that the situation in Battery Park would be dire should 35 to 50 art sellers have to pack up shop and move elsewhere. Since most vendors work solo, coming to a decision on who gets to stay and who gets the boot would be difficult indeed. “It’s going to be a big chaos,” warns Javed. “It’s my work. I don’t want to lose this job! Unemployment is already at 9 point something percent and going up. [Deciding] is going to be a big mess, and I don’t think we can manage it.”
Javed seems hopeful that a resolution will be found as art vendors have faced similar issues in past years. “Last year, the same thing happened. [The City] was against us, and we beat the city. We’ll take it to court again. Our leader Robert Lederman is already working with our lawyers and legislatures. We are hoping the mayor will reconsider.”
Javed says that he and his colleagues are hoping for an opportunity for discourse with legislators. “If we sat down with administrators we could come up with a solution for this problem easily.” Let’s hope that happens.
One of the great things about the Tribeca Film Festival is that most of the movies in the lineup aren’t bloated studio blockbusters with millions of dollars of marketing budget to burn (tough break, Michael Bay). They’re smaller independent films that rely on word of mouth and dedicated tub-thumping stars to get the buzz going, which ultimately results in cool events where said tub-thumping stars mingle with the public and promote the everliving crap out of their movie.
That’s exactly what happened at the Apple Store in SoHo last night, as recognizable actors Oliver Platt (A Time to Kill), Rebecca Hall (Vicky Cristina Barcelona), Thomas Ian Nicholas (American Pie) and acclaimed writer-director Nicole Holofcener (Friends With Money) gathered to chat about their new flick, Please Give, as part of TFF’s “Meet the Filmmakers” series.
Continue reading ‘Please Give’ Cast Pleased to Give Apple Store SoHo a Thrill
We’ve all had those days. It’s 7 PM, you’ve just come home from work, exhausted, and the last thing you want to do is cook up some food- especially if you’re feeding more than one mouth. You consider ordering delivery, but you’re starving and don’t want to wait an hour for your food to get there. That’s where we come in.
For each installment of Race to My Place, we pit two restaurants with similar cuisines, estimated delivery times and prices against each other to see whose delivery reigns supreme! We compare delivery speed, packaging and presentation, quality and taste, and value. For this health food race, our contestants were Energize Me Foods and Energy Kitchen.
After eating greasy take-out everyday for a week, my stomach was begging for a break. I decided to reward it with more delivery, but this time, with health food! Today we are comparing two similarly named restaurants, both claiming to serve food that will boost your energy AND keep that spare tire off your midsection. Let’s see if there’s any truth to their claims.
Not every kid grows up to confront the incarnation of his childhood nightmares — but that’s exactly what I got to do at this Friday’s Tribeca Film Festival Drive-In screening of the 1988 Tom Hanks classic, Big. You see, I was on tap to interview Zoltar (for the uninitiated, he’s the card-dispensing, wish-granting carnival mannequin from the film). And my memories of the guy were that he was trapped in a box (possibly because he was too dangerous to unleash on the public), had scary red eyes, and his mouth opened with a frightening breathing sound as he silently demanded you make your wish for a quarter. That’s pretty scary stuff for a 7-year-old kid to witness! Continue reading Hitting It Off ‘Big’-Time With Zoltar
Today, BlackboardEats.com is offering a pass code that will give you 30% off of lunch or dinner at Landmarc. And, if you have a Visa Signature card, you can also get a free dessert tray for your party of four or less. The offer is valid at both Tribeca and Columbus Circle locations!
You have until April 27th at 8:30 AM EST to get this deal, and the special expires May 26th.
http://www.blackboardeats.com/sp/30-percent-off-lunch-or-dinner-at-landmarc-new-york
Landmarc [TriBeCa]‎
179 West Broadway,
New York, NY 10013
(212) 343-3883‎