Restaurant, Broadway, and Off-Broadway Week Coming Up!

All the steals and deals Weeks are coming up! 

Broadway Week

When:  January 24th - February 10th

The Deal:  2-for-1 tickets to some of Broadway's hottest shows including American Idiot, Billy Elliot, The Addams Family, Chicago, The Lion King and so many more. 

Off-Broadway Week

When: January 24th - February 13th

The Deal: 2-for-1 tickets to off-Broadway shows AND 2-for-1 drinks after the show.  Off-Broadway only has to do with how many seats are in the theater...not with how great a show is.  Snap up tickets to over 30 shows including Nora Ephron's Love, Loss, and What I Wore and The Fantasticks.

 Restaurant Week

When: January 24th - February 6th

The Deal:  Lunch - $24.07, Dinner - $35. This is the best deal in town with top restaurants offering an uber-reasonable fixed price menu.  Granted you may feel they are trying to turn your table, or you may not get the most perfect service in the world but who cares?!  You just had a three course dinner for $35 at a fabulous restaurant.  Deal.

So find a friend, a date, or even an enemy (gotta keep 'em closer) and stay true to your New Year's resolution to see more shows and eat more great food in 2011.

To book tickets or reserve tables go to nycgo.com.

How To: Saber a Champagne Bottle

I always find it fun to have a few parlor tricks up my sleeve when going to a party, and I think learning how to saber a champagne bottle puts you on that 'renegade meets bon vivant' level of fabulous.  This trick is pretty top tier, so if you don't have the guts to pull it off in front of a crowd I suggest either practicing at home until you can't stand the taste of bubbly or stick to helping your hostess refill drinks. 

Important things to remember:

- Not all champagne bottles will work.

- Keep the metal basket on the cork.

- Use the dull side of the chef knife.

- Do not perform at homes where people have kids (fleshy, pink toes + tiny glass shards = disaster).

- It's more of a punching than a slicing motion.

Cheers!!

Five Drinks Every Lush Should Know How to Make

Oh how painful it is to get back to the grind after a lovely weekend of movie watching, gallery hopping, and hanging with my besties.  I think I will daydream for a few minutes about crisp fall evenings, dinner parties, cocktails, and great conversation.  Ah, pure heaven.  Regardless if you are the host or guest of any such party, it will never fail you to know how to make a few classic cocktails.  Being the mix-master behind these drinks will make you the toast of any cocktail hour, après ski, pool party, or brunch.  

Martini

- 2 oz. premium vodka or gin

- 1/2 oz. dry vermouth

- Garnish (twist of lemon peel or green olive)

Pour vermouth into a mixing glass with ice.  Stir, then strain out the vermouth (the coating on the ice and glass will be just right for a dry martini).  Pour vodka or gin into the ice-filled mixing glass and thoroughly stir.  Strain into a chilled martini glass and add garnish.

Manhattan

- 2 oz. premium bourbon or rye

- 1/2 oz. sweet vermouth

- Dash of bitters

- Maraschino cherry for garnish

Pour liquids into a mixing glass with ice.  Stir well and strain into a chilled martini glass.  Add garnish.  

Margarita

- 2 oz. premium tequila

- 1 oz. fresh-squeezed lime juice

- Lime wedge for garnish

Keep your margaritas simple: pour liquids over ice, stir, add garnish, and enjoy.  (If you must, add a dash of Cointreau--or orange liqueur--to sweeten).

Hot Toddy

- 2 oz. premium rum, brandy, or whiskey

- 1 oz. honey

- 1/2 oz. fresh-squeezed lemon juice

- Lemon wedge studded with cloves for garnish

Combine ingredients in a large coffee mug.  Bring a kettle of water just barely to a boil.  Fill mug the rest of the way with hot water.

Bloody Mary

- 4 oz. tomato juice

- 2 oz. premium vodka

- 1/2 oz. fresh-squeezed lime juice

- 1/2 oz. fresh-squeezed lemon juice

- 2 teaspoons grated horserasdish

- Dash of Worcestershire sauce

- Tobasco sauce and fresh-ground pepper to taste

- Celery stalk, pepperoncini, and olive for garnish

Combine all ingredients except garnish in a pints glass filled with ice.  Stir well.  Add garnish.

Enjoy!

Recipes courtesy of Vanity Fair

Image by Slim Aarons

Delicious Summer Sips

With Memorial Day coming up this weekend, I thought it would be lovely to start thinking about summer rooftop parties, weekends at the beach, and dining al fresco (even if that means a sidewalk table with taxis and pedestrians 2 feet away).  When I'm at a party, I think it's great to have wine, a fancy cocktail, and a special non-alcoholic drink on hand for guests. This way your less-than-hard-partying friends have something fun to sip.  This added element is also critical to keepin' it classy: hot, sunny days = thirsty guests = epic wastedness if the only options are vodka, vodka, and vodka.  So, raise your glasses Shitty-Chic'ers---here's to a wonderful summer!

For Imbibers:

• Cranberry Fizz - Prosecco and cranberry juice poured over crushed ice and garnished with fresh mint. 
• Vodka, champagne, lemonade, with a splash of Grand Marnier - This one is the sleeper.  A friend of mine served this as our fancy cocktail at my birthday party a few years ago.  Funny thing---none of us really remember being at the party.
•  The Mexican Martini - 2 oz. tequila and 1 oz. each of orange liqueur, Sprite, orange juice and a squeeze of half a lime. Unfortunately, I have never seen this served outside of Austin, TX.  People are missing out!  Mix in a shaker and serve in a salted-rim martini glass with olives.
• And on that note....Any type of Mexican beer with a lime wedge (Tecate is my favorite).  Add chips, guac, and salsa and you have a party.
• Rose, Rose, Rose!

For Teetotalers:

• Water with paper-thin cucumber slices - I had this at a spa once and have adored it ever since.  So fresh!
• Arnold Palmers: Lemonade with iced tea - Yes, I cheat and use Crystal Light lemonade.
• Sparkling water (or club soda) with berries or citrus slices

What's your favorite summer pool-side cooler?

Image courtesy of Austin360.com