EVENT: For book lovers and the broken hearted, head over to the Knitting Factory after work for the book release party for "How Not to Date." The series of vignettes will make you feel better as they focus on nightmare dates, relationships and every sordid detail in between. Author Judy McGuire says, "There'll be snacks, a cash bar with happy hour prices, book giveaways, and some surprises (which may or may not include interpretive......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a truck stuck underneath a train platform at 237th St. in the Bronx, an armed robbery on 4th Ave. in Brooklyn, and a burn victim at McKeever Pl. in Brooklyn. The husband who was strangled to death, allegedly by his wife in their new $1 million Long Island home, had a criminal record that included serving several years upstate for rape, robbery, and burglary. A fire at a homeless......

Heathe St. Claire, Aussie chef-owner of Avenue C's Sunburnt Cow, has long had his mind set on bringing a little of his home town to the East Village. Already known for their unlimited $15 brunches, their "moo juice," live showings of rugby games, and bangers and mash, St. Claire has recently added three-course, $16 nightly "counter meals," live music, an an extended happy hour to the restaurant's repertoire. The Counter Meal, a waitress explained......

The first bowling alley to open in Brooklyn in (we can't even believe this) nearly 50 years is about to open up! The Gutter is new...but the feeling old. Brought to you by two of the same people who brought you Barcade, expect a similar vibe. There's a Schlitz globe spinning over the shoe counter, vintage bowling items adorning the bar, old lamps throughout, and even some TVs with rabbit ear antennas. You won't......

We expect a lot from our beer. It needs to be refreshing. It needs to be bold and flavorful. And it needs to keep us as excited on the last sip as we were when the first pass crossed our lips. For us, a truly great beer is the one that keeps going after most beers have stopped. So when we came across Endurance Pale Ale on tap at Drop Off Service in the East......

MOVIE: The 2006 Clark Kent hit the big screen in Superman Returns. Tonight catch the superhero do his thing all over again at the River Flicks outdoor film series. Free popcorn, free film and a nice cold summer breeze. Bring a blanket! Sunset // Hudson River Park, Pier 54 // Free MUSIC:The XYZ Affair has pretty much pounded their new song into our heads via a video starring old Nickelodeon "stars" we don't recognize. Tonight,......

READING: It's New York Murder Mystery Night with novelists Jed Rubenfeld, Joel Rose, and historian Ben Feldman. The trio will be discussing New York’s famous 19th-century murders, including the bizarre events behind Butchery on Bond Street. 6pm // 108 Orchard St // Free EVENT: The Hanger Bar is having a summer soirée tonight. Head over there for an evening of couture and complimentary cocktails. A mixologist and a Prada protege have been brought in to......

MOVIE: Last week Bryant Park was packed as Annie Hall played on the big screen. This week grab someone who's hand you'll be able to squeeze tight as the classic horror flick, The Thing, plays in the park. The timeless flick watches the sci-fi terror unfold as "scientists at an Arctic research station discover a spacecraft buried in the ice. Upon closer examination, they discover the frozen pilot. All hell breaks loose when they take......

“We don’t carry Coors Light,” said the bartender, quick as could be, as a lady patron sat shocked and surprised. “Well, how about a Bud Light,” she said. “Nope.” What does the Henry Street Ale House, a little pub in Brooklyn Heights stuck between a cleaners and an ice cream shop, exactly have? Well, it does have 16 excellent beers on tap, which is not exactly a big deal anymore with places like 4th Avenue......

HAPPY HOUR: You read the Onion, and you probably drink whiskey...so why not combine the two tonight? The Onion crew enjoys the simple pleasures of life in WIlliamsburg with some free Jameson Irish Whiskey in the name of alcohol preservation. 7 to 9pm // Live at Rose [345 Grand St, Williamsburg] // Free, RSVP nypromo (a) theonion.com EVENT: Mikhail Baryshnikov, ballet superstar, has joined forces with illustrator Vladimir Radunsky in creating Because..., a children's book.......

MUSIC: Tonight The Ladybug Transistor (who sadly just lost a band member) have their record release show (band pictured at right). Joining them on stage will be Pipas and Alasdair Maclean from The Clientele performing an acoustic set. Buy tickets here. Listen: Sorry Love Medley.mp3 - Pipas 8pm // Union Hall // $10 Over on the LES, Apostle of Hustle start their residency at Mercury Lounge. Tonight they are joined by Ola Podrida and Murder......

Sample is small. But not like Minibar small, or even Tini, where what you see is what you get. It is long and especially narrow, and feels like it has more to show. We kept expecting to find another room, or a little cove behind some tables. But even the back garden only has enough room for two tiny tables. If you have the misfortune to sit in the middle of the bar you’ll have......

While we can't honestly imagine what kind of pleasure you'd get from sipping on that highly polluted stream, we did do a little bit of research about drinking establishments around Brooklyn’s favorite body of water. Gowanus Yacht Club is really in Carroll Gardens, and 4th Avenue (along with its new bars) are now being taken over by Park Slope. So, you'll have to get closer to the canal then you ever thought possible. The most......

First off, let us set the record straight. Gotham Bar and Grill and Gothamist are not related. We do not share any parent holding company and there is no sordid history to tell of. The experience that we are about to share is an unbiased tale of a wine geek, just trying to find a quality glass of wine and a comfy stool at the bar. After last weeks research on great happy hour deals......

That first sip of wine after six painful hours of meetings is as liberating as loosening up your tie or slipping off your heels. After all, it’s not called happy hour for nothing. Throw in a good deal on top of it, whether it’s a buy one get one free or 50% off, and you may have one of the great pleasures of the work week. With so many deals all over the city, it’s......

Lido is somewhat of an enigma along Columbia Street. Unlike the dark hues of B61 across the street, and the low light of Sugarlounge further down the street, Lido’s front windows show all from the street. In fact, the name means a public open-air swimming pool or beach, which probably explains the bare legged women sprawled out on the sign. With nothing to hide, Lido can either seem very empty or one of the hottest......

You can almost smell the tequila and limes -- Cinco de Mayo is tomorrow. We've pulled together some of our favorite roundups for your fiesta-ing pleasure:New York Magazine hightlights Mexican restaurants with special menus and/or drink specials for the occasion, including Mercadito (their Margarita de Tres Citricos is pictured at right). Andrea Strong gives us a few more, including Crema, who'll be having a happy hour from 4-5:30 p.m. with 2-for-1 Margarita Imperials at the......

EVENT: The Brooklyn Kitchen is hosting a series of live in-store cooking demos with local rockers to help celebrate the release of Kara Zuaro’s new book, I Like Food, Food Tastes Good.. Tonight, Les Savy Fav frontman Tim Harrington will school us all in ceviche while likely wearing one of his very own aprons. 7 to 9pm // The Brooklyn Kitchen [616 Lorimer St] // Free MUSIC: The Wordless Music series is pretty self-explanatory. Some......

If you happen to be wandering around on Myrtle Avenue around say, 10 o’clock, it could surprise one that there is actually a business open. The small stores and beauty saloons (why are there so many of these?) that line the street all shut their gates by the time it gets real dark, and the street can feel like a wall of metal instead of a new strip of emerging restaurants and bars. For......

We don’t find ourselves up in the fruit-named streets of Brooklyn Heights that often, unless we’re romantically strolling along the Promenade, or have gotten lost on our way home from Grimaldi’s. And we can very safely say that we’ve never ventured up there to drink. Brooklyn Heights might be one of the most beautiful stretches of the city, but it’s dining options, not to mention bars, have also ventured towards the safe and reliable, not......

At first glance, Tini doesn't seem that much different from all the other wine bars littered around Brooklyn. It's small, cute, and feminine. But while others are tucked in tree-lined streets, this one is out in Red Hook. And that makes all the difference. Red Hook is awash in memorable bars -a dangerous number for its relatively small size and remote location. But whether it's Pioneer, Bait and Tackle, Liberty Heights Tap Room, or......

You’d think a place called MiniBar in Carroll Gardens would have an inferiority complex. It even stares across the street at Frankies 457 Spuntino, a much more serious eatery and wine bar, with a very high reputation. But it doesn’t seem to care. Because of its size, or lack thereof, Minibar skips on the usual Brooklyn bar accessories. They have no bar games, pool table, jukebox, TV, or back garden. And that’s okay with us.......

- Shortly before the now infamous Bourdain post skewering the Food Network appeared, blogger Jinius put her newly acquired TV writing skills to the test with a piece funneling the stars of the much maligned network into the Lost model. Enjoy and don’t miss riding the wake still behind Bourdain’s post, hundreds of comments from readers, Josh at Grub Street defending RR and Nina Lalli piling on him. - NYPress comes through with a nice......

The aptly titled and recently openedHope Lounge (it's on Hope Street), might might seem a little too tranquil at first. The enormous red walls are sporadically graced with signs and Indian statues, but if there is a theme, it’s not readily apparent. Right now, it is huge, clean, and spare, which accentuates the high ceilings and abundant seating. With so much space they have enough room to house a regular schedule of live acts, most......

Wednesday night, WNBC invited a bunch of bloggers to its first NYC Blogger Summit. Why? As Anil Dash put it, to "engage bloggers and encourage them to provide information and resources to the station's news-gathering efforts, in exchange for credit and exposure." While hearing all of this was exciting and surreal and left some natural questions (see Modern Fabulousity), it was also nice to hear the word "credit" (see Gowanus Lounge) - lots of print......

The déjà vu you may get upon entering Buck's Lodge on Atlantic Avenue is not from the country paraphernalia you’ll recognize from similar southern-tinged bars around the area. Even though there seems to be an overload of deer heads on bar walls, it's not that specifically which will make you do a double take. Just think for a moment, order a drink, plop on the evergreen couch, grab a bowl of peanuts and try to......

Home stretch! Today is the final day to swing by The White Rabbit and check out our little home we've been chilling at all during CMJ. You know the drill by now...Free to come, Happy Hour all day and great music, non-stop. 145 East Houston between Eldridge and Forsyth. Here's the lineup for today: 2:15 - The Prayers and Tears of Arthur Digby Sellers (Listen at Myspace) 3:00 - Judah Johnson (myspace) 3:45 - The......

After months of preparation, the first day of The Gothamist House at The White Rabbit is finally here! Surely you know the drill by now...Great bands, cheap drinks, thanks to the White Rabbit extending their Happy Hour throughout the day, and completely, no strings attached free to attend. So swing by the spot at 145 East Houston (Between Eldridge and Forsyth) and come say hi! Below is the lineup for today. Two quick programming notes:......

Today is officially the first day of CMJ! Starting this afternoon and going strong through the weekend, every music club in the city is going to be jam packed with hours upon hours of the hottest up and coming bands from all over the world. Seeing that we'd expect your regular Gothamist reader won't be equipped with a $500 badge, we decided to highlight some of the standout free events this week. While you will......

- Ed Levine has a short round up of the Il Buco annual pig roast; looks like it should be on the calendar next year. - Check out this podcast from The Gilded Fork Culinary Podcast Network, they have William Grimes discussing the topic of restaurant vernacular. Sample topic - use of the word entrée and the difference in the meaning here and across the pond. - The rise, battle, takedown, and hibernation of E.U.......