New York’s Eating Scene Gets Cheap

by Josh Lew on

After you return home from your trip to New York City, what are people going to ask you? Did you see the Statue of Liberty? Did you ride the subway? Did you eat at one of those restaurants?

Your answers in order might be: Yes, yes, and it was just too damn expensive.

Eating in New York is pricey, especially if you want to go for the complete experience at the high end. For the remainder of July, though, more than 200 of the city’s restaurateurs will celebrate NYC Summer Restaurant Week by making their product more accessible to the hot-dog-cart-frequenting, subway-riding masses.

Meal prices are set at $24.07 for lunch and $35.00 for dinner. Sadly, that does not include beverages, tax, or tip.

The best aspect of Restaurant Week is that it is not confined to one neighborhood of the city or one type of cuisine. Diners can try funky fusion dishes at Vong’s in Midtown, rub shoulders with New York tend-setters at the TriBeCa Grill, or swirl pasta on their forks at Centovini in SoHo.

It’s probably best to get reservations at one of the many participating restaurants. That is unless you are prepared to pay a hefty bribe to the maitre d’.

Those who don’t care for the heat of New York in summertime can wait for NYC Winter Restaurant Week, which is normally held in late January.

Photo via Flickr user Plate of the Day

Beijing to be No-Fly and No-Protest for Opening Ceremonies

by Josh Lew on

Cathay Pacific Airlines recently reported that they have had to alter their flight schedule after they were told that Beijing‘s airport would be closed during the opening ceremonies for the Olympics. According to the Associated Press, the airport will be closed from about 7 p.m. until just before midnight on August 8th. This is one of the many precautions that China seems to be taking to increase security during the Olympics.

Certainly, the usual security fears associated with a major international event are part of the equation. Add to that the fact the Olympics would be a perfect stage for people from the provinces of Tibet and Xinjiang to voice their discontent to the world.

Plenty of things could go wrong for China during the month of August. The airport closure is just one example of the actions authorities are taking to make sure nothing that would cause a loss of face for China actually comes to pass.

Another face-saving measure: vetting all opening ceremonies performers for Tibetan sympathizers. You can be certain that Bjork or Richard Gere will not be gracing the stage on August 8th. Those who will perform have been issued a warning by Beijing: “The content of the performance should not violate the country’s law, including situations that harm the sovereignty of the country… incite racial hatred and ruin ethnic unity.”

Attendees have already been given their set of rules. Makes one wonder if it wouldn’t be more of a blast to wait until after the Olympics are over to pay China a visit.

Photo from Flickr user Melinda

MSN’s Top 10 Holiday Event Guide

by Adrienne Wilson on

Tis’ the season to be merry, get out your winter gloves and head out about the town. But where does one find all the happening holiday events without driving through neighborhood after neighborhood checking out lights and inflatable holiday figures (some of which is way over the top IMO)? MSN Cityguides provides a list with some of the top 10 places to go across the country to get into the spirit of the season. Events range from parades to tree lightings and other gnarly sights like Deck the Palms in San Diego, CA where Santa ditches the sleigh and comes cruising in for photo opportunities on his speed boat. That could be groovy, I suppose. Of all the events listed in major U.S. cities the only one you’ll probably find me shivering while oohing and aahing over is the Macy’s State Street Holiday Windows. I’ll be spending half of my holiday season in Chicago and since I’ve never done the full-blown tourist thing – why not?

Know of a cool event taking place in your neck of the woods? Let us know.

Touring America’s Northeast with HP

by Adrienne Wilson on

Just wanted to give everyone here a quick update on my whereabouts since I haven’t sat still all year. Over the next couple of months you can find me riding around parts of America’s chilly north east as one half of Hewlett Packard’s Color Works dynamic tour staff. I’ll be hanging around the local Staples, Office Max, & Office Depot in places like Vermont, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, Virginia demonstrating how laser jets and ink jet printers can benefit small and medium business owners. Why am I telling you about all this? Mostly because I’m hoping to see some of the Gadling readers pop into a store from time to time to say “hi!” With a van like the HP Color Works one I’ll be pretty hard target to miss, so if you see it parked in a parking lot come on inside and I’ll give you the 411 on printers and other HP items.