Talking Dirty

PHOTO OF THE EARTH ROOM FROM NYC TACO. PHOTO OF RUBEN OCHOA EXHIBIT FROM PETER BLUM WEBSITE.

With "Art Museums" showcasing toilets as sculpture and elephant poop as art you'd think you could just throw some dirt in a room and call yourself an artist. Wait, (shocking) that has already been done here in NYC. Actually twice. In fact - even stranger - twice on Wooster street, to be exact.

Yesterday while strolling through west Soho, I visited two, totally separate, galleries that were each a large room full of dirt. The Earth Room at 141 Wooster street fills the entire second floor with about a yard deep of dark rich earth, or 280,000 pounds of it. The gallery has a wonderful mossy earthy smell, much like the smell of old houses in the East in the humid summer months. I have to say that it was an interesting and usual site - quite a weird juxtaposition of an urban Soho loft with the expanse of natural earth unnaturally filling the space. The dirt is very dark, soft and fertile looking. Apparently they mist the dirt and rake over it several times a week to keep it in shape. The Earth Room opened and has not been altered since 1977, and so I wondered, quite practically, if the floor of the loft has decomposed at all? I also wondered if gallery viewers are ever tempted to throw a handful of seeds across the art? One also inevitably thinks about what a large and beautiful Soho apartment this would be sans the dirt.

The second stop on Wooster street was the Peter Blum Gallery, just south of the Patagonia store. The one-room gallery simply holds one large slab of concrete leaning against the wall, with mounds of dry reddish looking dirt piled against the concrete. This dirt is entirely different, instead of looking rich and agricultural it had the feeling of dirt dug up at a construction site and left to bake dry in the sun. The interesting thing about this exhibit is its theatrics of presentation: You can walk under the exhibit to the back side to see how it is constructed. Like a theater set, the "concrete" slab is a hollow prop. The "mounds" of dirt aren't really mounds, but instead just a thin layer of dirt spread across a hollow hill of wire mesh and canvas.

Both are open to the public. The Earth Room, by Walter De Maria is open Wednesday - Saturday noon-3:00pm and 3:30-6:00pm. It is closed during the summer months. The Peter Blum Gallery is located at 99 Wooster St. and is open Tuesday - Friday 10:00-6:00 and Saturday 11:00-6:00. The exhibit of dirt in the Peter Blum gallery is by Ruben Ochoa and is showing until July 24, 2009.

Curry Hill vs. Brick Lane

One of my favorite cuisines is Indian, and luckily New York does not disappoint in its quantity of Indian restaurant offerings. From the upscale Indian tasting menus of Devi to the colorful take-out joints like Curry in a Hurry, Indian food is never far. Though Indian restaurants can be found anywhere in Manhattan, the two competing Indian epicenters seem to be Curry Hill in Murray Hill and Brick Lane in the East Village.

While Brick Lane is much more colorful - often with live musicians and restaurant windows bedecked with thousands of twinkling lights - Curry Hill seems to attract a bit more Indian clientele. Both neighborhoods claim some very good options.

Brick Lane, which is 6th street between 2nd Ave. and 1st Ave. has many cheap dinner options and the atmosphere in many of the restaurants is lively. But don't get lured in simply by the lights and music. Not all the restaurants are worthwhile. The three best I've tried are: Ghandi, Banjura and Brick Lane Curry House. Ghandi and Banjura are on the far eastern end of 6th street, and Brick Lane Curry House is on the far western side. Ghandi and Banjura both offer very reasonably priced meals, and are always tasty. Brick Lane Curry House is slightly more expensive ($15 - $20 per entree). Though this post is about Indian food, I can't talk about 6th street without mentioning Zerza - a wonderful Moroccan restaurant (next door to Brick Lane Curry House).

Curry Hill roughly stretches from 30th to 26th on Lexington, and overflows somewhat on the the side streets. My favorite in this neighborhood place for a good chicken mahkni is Curry Leaf, which is on Lex at 27th. The pricing of the Curry Hill restaurants varies much more than on Brick Lane. You can find extremely cheap (and somewhat dingy) takeout joints as well as more upscale chic restaurants. In addition to restaurants, Curry Hill holds a variety of various Indian shops - from sari shops to grocers. The best thing to be found in this neighborhood is Kalustyan's grocery (on Lex between 28th and 27th). Kalustyan's is a grocery offering exotic foods (with a bent more toward Middle Eastern than Indian). Explore the shelves for labne (heavy cream), baklava, teas, incense, spices, dozens of varieties of rice and lentils and all sorts of tasty international treats.

The Hidden Parks of Manhattan: GreenAcre Park

With spring beautifully in full bloom, I decided to enjoy the season with a visit to GreenAcre Park. Never heard of it? Until recently, neither had I. It's one of the many small parks hidden around the neighborhoods in Manhattan.

GreenAcre Park is located on 51st street, between 2nd and 3rd Aves., next door to a synagogue. It is just a small nook off the street, but it has a stunning 25-foot waterfall cascading over a rock and concrete wall and small man-made rock-bed stream running down to the pool. It is a quiet secret oasis in midtown where you can enjoy lunch or read a book while the soft spray of the waterfall mists across the small gardens and flowering trees.

There are three different levels to the park, each with tables and chairs overlooking the waterfall from different vantage points. Shady trees project dappled sunlight upon the water, tables and chairs and the landscaping envelopes the park with lovely manicured flower beds and lush greenery. There is also a small refreshment stand, which I hear offers excellent apple pie.

The park is open to the public, but privately maintained by the Greenacre foundation.

Take a Bite Out of The Big Apple

At risk of sounding like an Apple computer evangelist, today I am posting about the great FREE classes offered at the Apple stores. With its latest addition of the West 14th street location (fittingly in the tragically hip Meatpacking District), Manhattan now holds a total of three Apple stores. Which means there is a free computer class going on just about every hour of the day. People, take advantage of free learning!

Obviously this post is somewhat limited to those of you with Macs (the rest of you. . . your next computer should be a Mac. . . again, not to proselytize or anything). But for those of you who do use Macs, or want to, the Apple classes are a great opportunity to learn everything about your computer and its programs. They are the missing classes you always wish you had when you wonder how other people seem to know all those little computer secrets.

The classes range from 'Getting Started on a Mac Computer' to Adobe CS4 classes such as using Illustrator and Photoshop. There are classes covering all the Apple programs - iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie, GarageBand, etc. There are various classes covering the operating system (Mac OS X Leopard), teaching you all the new features, tips and tricks. They offer in depth two-hour classes covering programs like Final Cut Pro and digital photography using Aperture. They also have classes on iPhone, iPods, wireless networking and all the peripherals. Besides the extended in-depth sessions and the hands-on sessions most of the classes are an hour long.

The Soho store hold the classes in a comfortable upstairs auditorium (as compared to the Fifth Ave store, which just holds the classes in a more informal setting around a large table). I've always felt comfortable asking questions and the teachers are happy to show you everything. In addition to the classes, keep an eye out for special free events they hold - business networking events, music performances, lectures, etc.

So for whether you just want to get up and running on a new Mac computer or whether you want to learn something about a particular program, take a look at all that's offered and start learning.

How Did the Elephant Cross the Road?

PHOTO BY Melissa Blemur

Q. How do you transport a troupe of circus elephants onto the island of Manhattan (when they are too big for a truck and all the trains into NYC are just passenger trains)?

A. They walk.

Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the circus! Each March the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey big top comes to the Big Apple, but the most unusual site to see is not one of the circus acts, but the informal "Elephant March". They lead the elephants through the Queens Midtown Tunnel and across 34th street to Madison Square Gardens the midnight before the opening night. The last time I gathered along 34th for the Elephant March was in 2007. It was an extremely unusual and surreal site to see a line of pachyderms walking down the streets of Manhattan!

This year the Elephant March is rumored to happen the night of March 23 (Monday night/Tuesday AM). Crowds will begin gathering along 34th street around 11pm. Often the elephants are late, slightly after midnight, but once they enter Manhattan they're surprisingly fast and you don't want to miss them.

One Food Wonders

One Food Wonders (OFWs): I'm talking about those trendy food joints that have popped up just in the last few years all around Manhattan that offer only one type of food (usually simple, perhaps even retro foods, but with new marked up prices). OFW joints must also have a long line of people out the door, excited to pay those high prices for a bowl of say, rice pudding.

So here's a short run down of a few of Manhattan's singular pleasures:

S'mac
Yes, good old mac n' cheese, but now in 12 haute flavors - from Swiss Alpine to Masala. (My favorite is the buffalo chicken). Very tasty. Where: 345 East 12th Street (btwn 1st and 2nd).

Pommes Frites
Not to be out done, Pommes Frites serves up Belgian fries with 25 different dipping sauces. I've tried several, but I think I might have to go with the Dill Lemon Mayo as my top choice. I have yet to try some of the more exotic sauces like the Vietnamese Pineapple Mayo or the Sambal Olek Hot Chili Paste. This is another East Village find (yes, do you notice a trend here? The East Village seems to attract OFW joints like skinny jeans and fedoras). Where: 123 2nd Ave (btwn 7th and St. Marks).

Rice to Riches
Probably the most well known place on the list, (as well as one the tastiest, if you are of the sweet-tooth variety), this place offers a daily rotating menu of about 20 different flavors of rice pudding. French toast, cappuccino, cream-cicle, honey graham, chocolate rocky road . . . you'd think we were at Baskin Robbins with this variety! They'll offer one or two samples before you pick your poison, so be sure to take them up on this and try some of the wilder flavors. Where: 37 Spring Street (btwn Mott and Mulberry streets).

There are of course the many creperies, gelato bars, cupcake bakeries and arepas, hot dog, empanadas, and dumpling joints that come close to making this list by focusing on one food type, but technically they do offer other foods as well. Crif Dogs, Caracas Arepa Bar, The Dumpling Man, Empanada Mama and Grom (gelato) are a few of these pseudo-OFWs.

I will be sure to update you with more true OFWs as soon as I find them.

Bollywood Bhangra

Today's the first Thursday of the month . . . which means . . . BASEMENT BHANGRA at S.O.B.s tonight!!! Get over to the Sounds of Brazil at Varick and Houston tonight after 9pm for some seriously funky South Asian rhythm.

Though more and more people are discovering Bollywood film, music and dance and American pop singers are infusing their songs with dance-inducing eastern undercurrents, still it's hard to find a dance club that outright uses the label bhangra. S.O.B.s is one of the few places in town I've found that devotes a night entirely to this dance style. Music is mixed by DJ Rekha, who seems to be somewhat of the national DJ for Indian dance music.

Here's the details: Doors open at 7pm, with free mojitos from 7-8pm. It's $5 before 8pm and $16 after 8pm (although with this printed web flyer you can get in for $13 after 8pm). I strongly recommend paying the extra money (though use the flyer), and come later in the evening when the dance floor is pulsing. There is a free bhangra dance lesson at 9pm, which is worthwhile if you want to brush up on your shoulder shimmying.

S.O.B.s is located at 200 Varick Street, on the corner of Houston. Closest subway is the 1 train to Houston. S.O.B.'s phone is 212-252-2392.

Moi, a model?

Ladies, who would like to enjoy a free hair style, cut and color from a world renown salon? Ever heard of Bumble & Bumble Salon? That's right. . . . free! Just one of the many luxuries of living in New York City - Bumble & Bumble headquarters happens to be located right here in town and they are always looking for models! Not the skinny 5 ft. 8 models (though there happen to be a lot of those here in the city as well), but anyone with a full head of hair and time to relax at the salon.

Here's the deal: Bumble & Bumble runs a hair school, called B&B University, and just as they do for their regular customer salons, their University is top notch. They offer their students live models (not a plastic mannequin head) to practice on. So, I took the opportunity to sign myself up as model. All you have to do is sign up online and then show up for a scheduled "model audition" (which is just showing up with your hair brushed and they check to see if you have an appropriate length). Once you are an approved model, the fun starts. You can sign up for as many styling, cutting or coloring sessions as your schedule allows. Ever fantasized about being the practice-body for a massage school? Well, this is one of those instances.

Each session is about two hours, and each time I've left with an amazing new style. The students are always very nice, and usually are professional hair dressers themselves who are just attending to get B&B certification credit. They are from all over the world - the last session I attended the students were all from France. To encourage loyal models, each time you attend a session, B&B gives you a $10 credit toward any of the Bumble products (as if you needed this extra incentive?). And just as an extra bonus, the B&B Uni salon is on the 6th floor of a beautiful glass-and-steel Meatpacking district building, complete with skyline views of the city!

My only word of advice is that you should be sure to schedule a dinner date that eveing, as you'll be looking too fabulous to simply return home for the day. Go to the B&B University Model page to sign up and for all the details.

Pick a Card, Any Card

For today's post, I am not merely recommending one NYC restaurant, but 52. That's right, 52 - as in the number of weeks per year, or the number of playing cards in a standard deck (minus the jokers). I would like to introduce The Diner's Deck, by City Shuffle.

The Diner's Deck consists of 52 cards, each card being a NYC restaurant pick and a $10-off coupon at that restaurant. (With 52 cards, theoretically one per week, that is a savings of $520 if you were to try every restaurant. The deck itself costs $29.95). The restaurants range from great burger and fry joints to upscale Argentine, and all seem to be great discoveries. I've explored the City's restaurants for two years using The Diner's Deck as my guide and none of the restaurants have disappointed. If not even for the $10-off coupon, the deck itself is simply a savvy guide for choosing a new restaurant.

Each card gives a short restaurant description (often times suggesting an extra-special dish), the cuisine, the price range, the address and website and the neighborhood. Sort them and methodically try each restaurant, or be wild and pull one randomly from the deck. This is a fun way to break the usual habit of going to that same neighborhood Vietnamese place each weekend.

You can buy decks for Manhattan restaurants, Downtown Manhattan and Brooklyn restaurants, or Manhattan bars & lounges. The deck is valid for the calendar year, so start the new year off right and pick up a 2009 deck today!

(For purchasing info, see: cityshuffle.com)

A Noble Pursuit

Every once and a while you discover something in the city that is both FREE and truly WORTHWHILE. This is one of those things: Nobledesktop. I've been telling all my designer/photographer friends about it, so naturally I decided I must mention it here.

Nobledesktop is a learning center offering an array of design-oriented multimedia classes and seminars. They have full pay-per multi-day classes, which I am absolutely sure are amazing, though I've only so far attended their free one-night seminars. Check them out at Nobledesktop.com. Their free seminars are always dead on, providing real-life tips and information on how to get started immediately on topics ranging from 'how to build an HTML email campaign' to 'the latest and hottest web technologies' to 'creating photo compositions/collages in Photoshop.' The lecturers who present the seminars are not only knowledgeable and engaging but also surprisingly entertaining. Frequent-seminar lecturer Dan Rodney, in particular, is always spot-on in managing to address a certain issue just before you raise your hand to ask that very question.

So if you are in the design/photography field (and have not already heard of them) definitely check them out and try one of their many free seminars. As for me, as soon as I can scrap together some extra cash I'm going to try one of their full courses, as I am sure it is worth every penny.

Nobledesktop is located right on Broadway in Soho, their address is: 594 Broadway, suite 1202.