Cyclo, a new Vietnamese restaurant brought to you by the owners of Tuk Tuk, is scheduled to open next Friday!
Altogether now “banh mi, banh MI, BANH MI!”
Eats
BEER AND ICE CREAM
Beer and ice cream, that sums up my life these days. So I start with a story containing more details about the beer garden coming shortly to LIC via John Brown Smokehouse. Then I follow it up with a story about Malu, our local ice cream shop on Jackson Avenue that makes their own ice cream. It’s absolutely delicious and the store is exactly what every neighborhood strives for, and we here in LIC actually get!
Next up we get to real estate, which as frequently is the case dominates the LIC news, not to mention our lives. Then comes an excellent recap/review of PS1’s Warm-Up last week, which acts as a reminder that it is going on again this Saturday, and every Saturday in the summer. Then comes two other cultural events happening in the ‘hood this weekend. That should be plenty of things to do and see, as we await JB…
LIC Beer Garden To Open This Month – Christmas comes early to LIC! +it mentions a beer festival at Alewife this weekend too
Queens Themed Ice Cream Shop –alright kids, one more beer and we’ll head over to Malu
Apartment Rents Rise At Highest Rate Since 2007 – that’s right, blame it on Generation Y
LIC Penthouse Could Break Record For Queens Condo –now we know where the JB Smokehouse after-party is at
Buyers In A Hurry To Buy At One Murray – i’ll take two!
Micro Apartments Coming To NYC – how ’bout we just convert that 4th bathroom in the Penthouse into one of these?
Fate Of 5Pointz Awaits Approval From City Board – I’m not laying odds on that decision, bye bye 5Pointz
PS1’s Warm-Up Comes to Temperature For Its 15th Anniversary Season – one word sums it all up: hedonistic
Warm-Up Mix Previews – in case you want to get started early
Free Lincoln Center Performances Coming To Queens Libraries This Summer -flamenco at LIC Library this Saturday at 2:30pm
The Stage Party Gets Wild In LIC
To Find Fields To Farm In NYC, Just Look Up – mentions LIC’s own (mis)named Brooklyn Grange’s One Acre Rooftop Farm
LIVE AT THE GANTRIES – SCHEDULE RELEASED
The heat is gone, for the time being, and the news is back, in abundance. First off is the annual release of the “Live At The Gantries” summer concert schedule which kicks off tomorrow(Tuesday) night. The bands are mostly local, and the setting, as we know, is unparallelled! Do not expect the huge crowds that descended on PS1 late Saturday afternoon for the initial 2012 Warm-Up. Despite the oppressive heat, the swarms immersed Court Square like the Deadheads used to do when the band played small cities such as Harrisburg and Utica. In lieu of tie-dyes, Saturdays’ participants sported lots of piercings and ink, but today’s genre seemed just as well-versed in “augmenting” the experience. Whatever your musical tastes might be, the Series attracts people from all over the world and it’s pretty awesome to have this event linked to our small city!
Next up is a story about LIC notable Frank Carrado, aka The Mayor of LIC. He is an LIC lifer who you may have seen hanging around Vernon Boulevard, and he held a not very well publicized photo exhibit this past weekend. He has documented the recent changes in the neighborhood, and his photos and knowledge are fascinating for anyone interested in the recent and not so recent history of the area. Check out the slideshow in the article for a dozen of his pictures.
Finally, the Indian restaurant we told you about on June 12th has opened. It is called Aanchal, it is on 23rd Street between 45th Avenue and 45th Road, and as of now they do not have a liquor license, so you may want to bring along a few bottles of Chateau Lafitte for the time being. If you happen to be out of stock, you can make a quick pit-stop around the corner, see the fourth article for details. Bottoms-Up!
Live At The Gantries 2012 Schedule – Altamont, fear not
Long Island City’s Rapid Growth In Photos – “The old people don’t like it,” he said. “They are not used to the new things.”
Slideshow From The First PS1 Warm-Up Dance Party Of The Summer – I can only imagine what the old people think of this!
Bona Fides Bottled Up In Queens – cool wine store/warehouse hidden in Hunters Point and open to the public, just don’t expect anything in the $9.99 price range!
Kayak Tours Put New Yorkers On The East River – all about local stalwart the LIC Boathouse, another thing we are extraordinarily lucky to have in our backyard!
5Pointz Gonzo, More Details On What Is Replacing It – as told by Crains reporter and LIC resident Amanda Fung
Manhattan Condo Inventory Plummets In Second Quarter – so you want to buy and you want a bargain? Good luck!
Long Island City’s House Of Rust Has Detractors – Jackson Avenue condo building
Off-Duty NYPD Officer Busted For Drunken Driving After Crashing On Jackson Boulevard – nuff said
IN LIEU OF FIREWORKS, LIC GETS RESTAURANT-MANIA
With no fireworks in LIC this Fourth, I am off to Marbella, so there will be no updates for a week. For those of you without easy access to a G5, a share in the Hamptons, a cabin in Maine, or reserved floor space at Snooki’s shore shack, I have a little tip for you. If you’re looking for a more modest getaway and a beachy feel, take a short journey across the bridge(Pulaski) for a lobster roll. The first article provides all the details you need for this jaunt, and for my money just being in Brooklyn is strangely transporting and might help you forget about fireworks for awhile. While we are on restaurant news(it seems to be prevalent this week), let me just mention that Alewife is under new management and Spice is coming to Vernon Boulevard across from Bella Via. As if that weren’t enough gustatorily, the second article is all about a restaurant that has been in LIC forever, Manducati’s, and a trip there will also be transporting, though more in a time-travel manner. A little more formal than it’s offshoot Rustica, behind the door of the unassuming entrance is probably the best wine list in Queens, though in no way should one feel obligated or intimidated by it. The rest of the LIC news is explained in the titles of the stories, concluding with a reminder by the police not to waste your time going to Gantry this July 4th. Thanks for the reminder, I’ve already made alternate plans, see you in a week!
Creekside In Greenpoint – clams, lobster roll, beer; who needs Coney Island?
Old Italian Reds At An Old-School Italian
Long Island BID Holds Annual Meeting – Queens hosted 8.2 million of the 50 million travelers to NYC last year, and 16 of the 41 hotels built in NYC this century have been built in this county
5 Pointz Really Might Get Bulldozed Next Fall
Queens Libraries Spared Closure Under Budget Deal – on, off, on, off, on…
Lakers Ebanks Still Shining – it’s not just Ron Artest Representing LIC in the NBA
Police Issue July 4th Reminder – solely for Darwin Award candidates
JOHN BROWN SMOKEHOUSE MOVING TO HUNTERS POINT
Pinch me! Just when I think things cannot possibly get any better here in LIC we get the news above. But wait, there’s more: there will be a beer garden attached! But wait there’s more: there will be live music! What else can I say? How about it is expected to open in mid-July!!!!!
I should probably stop now, but the weekend, for which I gave you sex and beer in my last post to revel in, is over. So now it’s time to delve into the nuts and bolts. Let’s start with a story ten days ago in the NY Times about the obsessed guide/historian of Newtown Creek, the waterway which separates Queens and Brooklyn and is spanned by the Pulaski Bridge. His name is Mitch Waxman and he writes a blog called Newtown Pentacle that I have always found fascinating, and occasionally exasperating ecologically. I had planned on doing a feature on the guy, but the Times beat me to it, and in reality can do it better and more thoroughly than my short attention span will allow. If you have any interest in the industrial and manufacturing history of LIC and other nearby areas, read the article then go to his website, just make sure you have a few hours to spare. Next up is a story all about the plumbers who maintain and turn on the sprinklers and water fountains in our local parks. Like I said, BBQ notwithstanding, this is a nuts and bolts post. We have FedEx groundbreakings, trains idling, new construction, possible Queens library layoffs, you get the picture: all business.
Ok, ok, I know what happened to Jack when he was so focused on work, thus I will pose the question: Who needs to go to Manhattan for culture? Answer: not the residents of LIC. There’s a new series of plays that will be taking place locally. The final link provides all the information about the group staging them at the Creek and the Cave. So remember residents of LIC: even though most of you work over there, there are now more opportunities than ever to play over here.
John Brown Smokehouse Moving, To Feature Beer Garden And Live Music – this is where I’ll be ‘summering’, who needs the Hamptons now?
Your Guide To A Tour Of Decay – really cool
Behind Those Cool Squirts In Summer
FedEx Breaks Ground On New $56 Million Facility
Van Bramer Wants To Quiet Idling Trains – your weekly VB appearance
‘Linc LIC’ Tops Out – yeah I know it’s a self-serving press release, but it contains all the info on a huge new residential project opening in 2013
Queens Library Workers Hope Layoffs Aren’t Looming – what does this mean for HP Library?