The Weekender

Oh, the Superbowl is upon us. Usually I'll care a remote bit if there's a NY team involved, but this is American football. I'm much more interested in European football. Nonetheless-Go Giants! And, as of Wednesday 16 days to pitchers and catchers reporting for Yankee spring training...rock ON!

If you want to watch the Superbowl, Astoria's got the spots. My recommendations would be McCann's, Broadway Station, Dillinger's and Sunswick. Also, The Quays, who have a sign up saying if the Giants win, beer is on the house until 4AM. All great places to hang out. Great beers on tap (Sunswick has 24!) and good time shall be had. I'm still contemplating girlie movie night, or venturing up the McLean Ave for the game (yes I know, what? Jenn leave Astoria? But John may head up to see the game with his old roomie).


Tonight through Sunday is Porkfest at the Beer Garden. Here's what they have:
*Traditional Czech Pork dishes, music and raffles.
*Friday open 5:00pm - 12:00pm.
*Saturday and Sunday open 12:00pm - 12:00am
*Live entertainment Saturday and Sunday 1:00pm - 5:00pm.


Coincidentally, I happened to stumble on this really cool collection of short stories from Akashik Books called Queens Noir, with a few stories representing Astoria, Ditmars and Long Island City. If you are interested in learning more about it the Jackson Hts branch of the Queens Library is hosting an event tomorrow with the editor and some writers who will read and discuss their finely crafted tales of crime set in the neighborhoods of Queens. Books will be available for sale and signing.


Waltz Astoria bring us the tunes once again. Tonight at 9pm, original and experimental Jazz group, Project3tet takes the stage. And tomorrow at 7pm Jazz duo Connie Brooks and Ryan Olsen will be preforming jazz standards. Both have a $10 cover and a $10 drink minimum.

Enjoy the weekend!

Mojave-Southwest comes to Ditmars

John and I made it to Mojave (31st & Ditmars, under the train on the west side of the street) on Saturday night, and WOW. The place was packed when we got there around 8:30. We actually got the last table for 2. We sat all the way in the back, which wasn't bad. Even though the tables were kind of close (usually a huge pet peeve for John) we didn't feel like we could hear other diners and be heard ourselves. But that probably had more to do with the music being a little too loud for dinner. More than a few times I had to lean over the table to be heard. The seating against the wall is just a tad bit too high. I didn't feel like I towered over John but I could notice the difference. If you are tall and going with a shorter companion, let them have the seat along the wall.

Our waiter seemed a bit frazzled, but was very apologetic and came by when he could, which for frazzled was often enough to be attentive but not overbearing. It did take a little bit to get our orders placed, but I'll give them a pass since it was packed. It wasn't so long that I was annoyed, and I have a short fuse. It did give me enough time to take in the ambiance. The soft yellow walls with the soft lighting really added a tranquil, chill and even slightly romantic vibe (how could it not be romantic when I'm dining with my honey?). Any decorations were kept to a minimum, the light fixtures themselves were enough. The bar area in the back seemed to be cool, but I didn't get a good enough look (this time).

(the ceiling from my seat) (the bar/the back)

John surprised me by doing like the Romans and getting a Dos Xs, which I have never seen him drink and he did quite like it. Must be a difference when it's draft. I went for a frozen blood orange margarita, which I wasn't too happy with. The first few sips tasted like I was sucking out of a tequilla pond. It's probably more my fault for usually drinking super fruity margaritas and this was more traditional (albeit frozen) with some syrup around it for a slight flavoring. In retrospect I should have gone for the sangria, which someone a few tables over ordered and it looked yummy. The one margarita kind of went to my head quickly so I abstained from investigating drinks any further.

Our appetizers didn't take much longer to appear. John got a bowl of the chili which was so good he came dangerously close to licking the bowl clean. They also gave him a tiny spoon that got lost between the plate and bowl, he used a fork until he got to the end and found it. It also came with warm tortillas for dredging through the meatiness.

I decided on the Hand Hacked Haas Avocado Guacamole with blue corn chips. The only complaint about that one is that I was expecting a lot of guacamole, which considering is the name of the appetizer it was shockingly short on. As you can see in the picture you get a cute and tasty fried tortilla shell as the vessel for the guac, but it shares its space with both sour cream and a whole lot of diced tomatoes. It was pretty much two thirds tomatoes, one third sour cream and one third guacamole. Now, I dig that I got the tomatoes and sour cream, because I am not a huge fan of the green sauce this also comes with, but the ratio should be two thirds guac and so on. It was really really good guacamole, I just wished there was more of it. And I wished I had sampled the tasty tortilla vessel first, since it was way better than the run of the mill blue corn tortialla chips it came with. Lessons learned for next time.

Our dinners came just at the right time, not immediatly after the appetizers and not so long after that I was full from it. However I was full enough that I didn't finish my meal-not a bad thing, I had leftovers!

John, the carnivore, went for the Shortribs of Angus Beef with mole Colorado & chili-corn mashed potatoes-which earned a thumbs up from the waiter. The meat just fell off the bone as it should, and it wasn't too fatty. The mash, which was a different take on what he's used to was a nice compliment and very tasty.

I decided to take it light, and went for the Grilled Adobo Chicken Breast, Chiles & Cheese Quesadilla. I only have 2 complaints. For the price of the quesadilla ($12/13 don't recall off the top of my head), which is a pretty simple dish, it should have some rice or something accompany it, other than the sour cream, tomatoes and guac on top. Also, there were sooooo many chiles in it! I had meant to say easy on the chiles, but like I said our waiter was frazzled and I couldn't spot him after placing the order to say so. I just figured, how many could they put in? Enough that I was kind of deconstructing the poor quesadillas. That was my fault, I'm just not a spicy kind of person. Other than that, the chicken was great, the tortillas were crispy to perfection, and the cheese was gooey and melty-my favorite way. I had this with a side of the Frijoles Negro Borrachos Beans. I just like that Borracho translates to drunk. I neglected to ask if this had any meat in it (I don't eat red meat or pork and often find out too late that beans have pork added into the mix). I'm still not sure. They were spicier than I was expecting, but John helped me out (he likes spicy way more than I do).

This is where I got stumped. I just couldn't keep eating. Which bummed me out because I always look forward to dessert. I took a look at the dessert menu to see what I was missing out on, and I gotta tell ya, that molten chocolate cake will be sampled on the next visit.

All in all, we were both very happy with Mojave. It's a great addition to our neighborhood. The food is great, the athmosphere is a near perfect setting, they just need to work out the service kinks. Rumor is that managment pulled staff from Agave, the big sister restaurant in Manhattan, to fill in here so they could open faster than if they were staffing locally. Hopefully they'll get some bang up local servers and the frazzleness (did I just make up another word?) will disappear.

Happy feasting!

The Weekender

I do believe this South Astoria gal is having a Ditmars advenure Saturday.

First up, I'm going to take a nice long walk (as long as it isn't freezing) up Steinway to Ditmars. I can't believe how many times I must have failed to notice the Steinway clock. I took a picture of it last weekend. I'll get that up shortly, for anyone else who is as oblivious as I am (it's been up since December 10th).

I'll be stopping in around 2pm to check out the Seeds of Love fundraising event held at Curves (Ditmars and 36th st). I miss the Curves that was on Broadway, but I'm pretty happy with ASC (you know, when I actually go).

While I am up there I think I'll check out the wares at Inside Astoria. I went shopping there over Christmas, but didn't buy myself any presents. They have lots of nifty housewares, kitschy books, cool frames and even jewelry.

Not too sure where I am going to stop by for brunch or a bite, but depending on my mood I could get brunch at Igloo, Fatty's or Sparrow, or a bite at Oleput or Waltz-Astoria. Actually, tomorrow night Waltz is holding a meet and greet. How cool is that? What a great way to meet your neighbors and make new friends in the hood!

If that wasn't enough, later Saturday night, I may get to try one of the two new yummy sounding restaurants in the hood. I'm almost positive we'll be trying the new Southwestern joint Mojave. If we get lazy and stay much closer to home, perhaps we'll give Luna de Juarez a whirl.

Even though we may see a movie Friday night (I've been itching to see Juno) I don't think we'll be eating at the new Applebee's by the Kauffman. While that's some people's cup of tea, there's plenty more places left in Astoria for me to explore through my favorite sense, taste.

Speaking of movies, the Museum of the Moving Image is screening Chop Shop with both the director and star in person to field questions. In case you are unfamiliar with the movie:

2007, 84 mins. 35mm.
A deeply affecting slice of urban neorealism by Ramin Bahrani (Man Push Cart), this Queens-made film, set in the Iron Triangle near Shea Stadium, follows a 12-year-old orphan (Alejandro Polanco) who ekes out an existence with his sister (Isamar Gonzales).
A hit at the 2007 Cannes and Sundance Film Festivals.

Hopefully it's not so cold out that I decide to hibernate!
Make it a good weekend readers!

Doing Good in Astoria this Weekend

Thanks to Helen for sending this my way!

Dear Friends of Seeds of Love,
Hello! We are very excited to announce that we are having another fundraising event! The wonderful ladies of Curves in Astoria have been gracious enough to donate their space to help us continue our mission. We can't thank you enough, Michelle and Maria!

On Saturday, January 28th, we'll be setting up our sale at Curves , located at 36-10 Ditmars Blvd. from 2:00 pm - 6:00 pm. (See attached flyer for more details in jpg and pdf form!) We've got lots of new clothes, (even things for your husbands, boyfriends and sons!) ladies bags, adorable air fresheners, cute accessories and even bed in a bag sets! Seeds of Love t-shirts will also be available for purchase and all proceeds go to our cause.

Curves members will get a free gift with every purchase. If you are not a member yet, and you're curious about what goes on inside Curves, come by, make a purchase and get a coupon for a free-week trial at Curves! (Just think of it as our way of helping you get started on your new year's resolution!) I've been a member for a year, and I love it there!

As always, we have an important cause to focus on for this event. As Jennifer and I sat down to decide on a cause, we contacted the lovely people at the Child Life Center at Schneider Children's Hospital. They requested portable DVD players for the children's oncology department for patients in long term care. Without a doubt, with part of the proceeds of this event, we will fulfill this wish.

And then, I received a heart breaking email from a close friend. Twin babies Zack and Kyle were born on December 1, 2007 with a rare and devisating skin disease, Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB). I know that we have a lot of young seedlings on our mailing list, so I will not go into the graphic details of their condition. It is truly horrific. However, it is important to know that this family in New Jersey needs our help. It's amazing how two working parents with insurance are able to accumulate tens of thousands of dollars in debt in medical bills in just six weeks. If you would like to know more about what the twins are going through, please reply to this email and I will forward more information to you. Details about their condition will be available at the sale. You can also log on to http://www.debra.org/ or google images of "Epidermolysis Bullosa" to find out more about this frightening disease.

Besides cash donations, there is a wish list of supplies needed for the care of these babies. I have spoken to Rick, a very sweet man, who is the proud grandfather of the twins. He is overwhelmed by our efforts to help his family. If you are interested, we will be collecting supplies needed for the delicate care of the babies at our event.

Supplies needed:

Aquaphor healing ointment or Vaseline sterilized ointment

Soft Cling bandages made by Johnson and Johnson,

Any type of Kerlix dressing products which are similar to Soft Cling

En Famil Lipil with Iron – infant formula

Huggies diapers – Size 1

Wet Ones – must be hypoallergenic/fragrance free

Dreft baby detergent

Please feel free to pass this email on to others who you feel may want to help. You can also print the attached flyer and invite your friends and family to come down and shop.
Remember to check out our website for updates at http://www.seedsoflovecares.com/or visit our myspace at www.myspace.com/seedsoflovecares

I recently heard this quote, and it reminded me so much of what we do.
"The true meaning of life is to plant trees under whose shade you do not expect to sit" ~ Nelson Henderson.
Thank your for your time... I'm looking forward to seeing all of you at the sale!
:::::Big hugs::::::Danielle

Holy Hannah! I'm in an ad for Locale!

It's no big secret that I love love love Locale. Sure I get the same entree everytime, but the Linguini Fruitti de Mar (I think I spelled that incorrectly) is so damn good, and not something I would venture to make at home, ever. The crispy artichokes are so good that I reevaluated my feelings on the veggie (and also another thing I would not make at home). The wine list is fantanstic and if I just want to chill with a glass of wine and a panini with a book or my notebook I'm in a great spot. Too bad it's not close enough to my new apartment as it's a bit of a walk, especially in this cold weather.

Anyhoo, one of the last times John and I went with his friend Ruth (early/late fall) I remember someone taking some photos. Now a)I assumed they would use them on their website and b)did not think we were in any of the shots.

I was wrong.

I was thumbing through the latest issue of Ins & Outs Magazine (a great local resource if you can find it; I've only ever found it a few times) and I was really looking at all the ads. It's not often you see full color, high quality ads for our favorite local establishments and I was really into them. I get to Locale and I'm looking at the photo and immediately I think, hey John has that striped shirt...wait a sec, that is John and that's me! I wasn't sure if the third person was Ruth or my old roommate Jamie since we've all been seated at that table multiple times and both gals have a similar shirt. John guessed correctly that it was Ruth. Anyhoo, if you look at the ad below the dude in the striped shirt with his back to you is John, I'm in black directly in front of him (mercifully it's not an action shot of me shovelling food into my face) and Ruth is next to me in the grayish sweater thing).

(end of the gratuitous "look at me!" post)

2008 Street Fair Schedule

I didn't get a chance to post the schedule for the upcoming street fairs like I usually do. Here it is (I forget now which paper it was in, since it came out last month. If I have to guess I would say the Queens Chronicle).

If you are anything like me you'll have this baby printed and hanging next to your calendar in anticipation. I know it's pretty much the same old thing every year, but I kind of like that; I know I can look forward to something and it'll be there.


April 27
Central Astoria LDC
Steinway Street between 28th and 34th Avenues (1 day, 4 blocks)
May 14–19
St. Demetrios Cathedral
30th Drive between 30th and 31st Streets
(May 14 for set up, May 19 for dismantle, 1 block, 6 days)
May 26
Broadway Astoria Merchants & Professionals Association
Broadway between Crescent and 47th Streets (1 day, 17 blocks)
May 31
Dutch Kills Civic Association
36th Avenue between 29th and 35th Streets (1 day, 6 blocks)
June 25–29
St. Antonio Abate Society of Castrofilippo
Ditmars Boulevard between 35th and 38th Streets (June 25 set-up, 5 days, 3 blocks)
July 13
Friends of Community Board 1
30th Avenue between 29th and 42nd Streets (1 day, 13 blocks)
July 24–27
St. Irene Chrysovalantou Church
23rd Avenue from 35th to 37th Streets and on 36th Street from 23rd Avenue to under the Amtrak overpass (2 1/2 blocks, 4 days)
July 27
114 Precinct Civilian Observation Patrol
Broadway between Steinway and 48th Streets (1 day, 7 blocks)
August 10
Steinway Street B.I.D.
Steinway between 28th and 34th Avenues (1 day, 4 blocks)
September 1
30th Avenue Business Association
30th Avenue between 29th and 42nd Streets (1 day, 13 blocks)
September 18–21
Hellenic Orthodox Traditionalist Church of America (St. Markella)
26th Street from 23rd Avenue to under the Amtrak trestles (1/2 block, 4 days)
Sept. 28
Broadway Astoria Merchants & Professionals Association
Broadway between Crescent and 47th Streets (1 day, 17 blocks)

The only thing that disappoints me is that they are never as long as they say they are. I guess they have to account for it being at full capacity, but they never are. I wonder if it's because they can't sell all the spots or they try to not extend it all the way on purpose.

Oh well, yet another thing I can expect. Along with chocolate covered strawberries, falafal, watches, silly tee shirts, games to win a goldfish, $2 jewelry and pink lemonade.

These should tide you over until then:

The Weekender & We're Baaaaa-aack!

Hiya Folks!

Sorry about the hiatus; some posting issues resulting in utter frustration has kept me from my duties of being, as my friends call me "The Goddess of All Things Astoria." Well I am back and ready to enlighten you on what's happening around town.

For those of you with the 3 day weekend LUCKY! We'll be at work, bummer. Make use of the day, enjoy it as fully as possible.

For those schmucks like me, let's make the next 2 days worth it.

I've got artsy things on the brain, so let's start there.

But first, in case you haven't heard we're losing one of our great hidden art spaces, the Flux Factory. Friggin eminent domain.

The Museum of the Moving Image continues it's offering of Ford at Fox, a retrospective of director John Ford's movies for Fox Studios (where he made over 50 movies!). If you're yearing for some classic movies this weekend, they'll be screening: Pilgrimage, Born Reckless, Air Mail and Steamboat 'Round the Bend.

PS1, offers a great assortment of artists exhibits.

LIC's Art-O-Mat offers a great exhibit, Lost Landscapes: Paintings by Diana Freedman-Shea.

The artist is is a realist painter concerned with mood and the effects of light and shadow.

Here's a sample of the work taken from the website:

Can't wait to see the rest!

The Noguchi Museum, up on Vernon, in what I call the triangle of wierd (Socrates Sculpture Park, The Noguchi Museum and Costco of all things?) has a really nifty exhibit. It's a collaboration of the works of Isamu Noguchi and Isamu Kenmochi.

From the website:

One of Kenmochi’s and Noguchi’s many collaborations resulted in a strikingly original woven bamboo chair made in 1950. This actual chair is no longer extant but will be recreated for the purpose of this exhibition. It is a classical sculptural form of texture and beauty as well as representing a technical accomplishment, distilling the natural elasticity and strength of bamboo with the durability and efficiency of iron. Together these two artists and designers made a chair that created a sense of lightness in modern design with a charm of warm, seemingly traditional tactility.

And, just to give you an idea:

And, as always there's the annual Emerging Artists Fellowship exhibit at Socrates Sculpture Park.

Saturday at 1, as part of their Afternoon at the Movies series, the Greater Astoria Historical Society presents: The Great American Songbook.

From the website:

The people and events that put music in our lives are celebrated in this anthology that traces popular music from its roots in minstrel shows through the jazz age and Gershwin to more recent tunesmiths.

Tunesmiths, I like that word.

I know I was kind of art heavy this weekend, but there's not a whole lot going on this weekend.

In other news, have you seen the work that has been happening at our beloved Beer Garden? They have a link to a photo slide show (granted, with only a few photos) on their home page of the work going on. Hopefully that new Beer Garden in Brooklyn means we can actually get into this one when the warmer months get here.

(Sorry for the formatting inconsistencies...one of the many problems I have been having tied into my hiatus...it's just so frustrating when you take the time to write something out and then it either looks wonky or disapppears. The latter being the major reason for the hiatus.)