The owners of four Manhattan Burger King franchises are locked in a nasty legal battle with their royal overlord. Luan Sadik and his sister, Elizabeth Sadik, rebelled against the mandatory 99-cent menu and the recent dollar Value Menu because the prices couldn’t cover the obscene Manhattan rent and the fast food monarch roared. According to the Daily News, their rent at a Fifth Avenue restaurant is $9,000/month and $18,000.month at a 47th Street location. The......

DRINK: The raucous and ribald cabaret duo Kiki & Herb may be on semi-hiatus, but they’re resurfacing tonight for a very special ‘Eclectic Salon’ event at Bottlerocket, the “dog and child friendly” wine shop in the Flatiron district. It's not exactly clear what kind of performance is planned tonight, but the boozy surroundings are sure to provide ample inspiration. Playfully dubbed “The Year of Magical Drinking,” the evening features free wine tastings to wash......

After a 16-year absence from the beauty pageant circuit, Miss Brooklyn returned this year -- which meant that maybe, just maybe, a Brooklynite would become Miss New York, or even Miss America. Of all the 17 to 24 year olds in Brooklyn, last week's pageant was only seven-strong, and the winner is causing a commotion in the borough. The Brooklyn Paper is reporting on the scandalous move of crowning a "queen who's not from Kings."......

In an extremely embarrassing incident for the Brooklyn DA's office, an audio technician taped over a statement made by a cop killer while in custody. The DA's office will now have to rely on a detective's notes taken during that statement and the videotape recorded during a follow-up interview with suspect Robert Ellis. Ellis was arrested after the fatal shooting of police officer Russel Timoshenko, who was shot in the face at point blank range......

Train muralist James Top (aka JEE 2) was part of the legendary Odd Partners in the 1970s. The Brooklyn crew bombed with throw ups and block letters; they were highly regarded and had a strong presence in the city. These days Top has taken his art indoors -- teaching a graffiti class in the Bronx and, this weekend, opening his first New York exhibit. Afrology opens this Friday and includes the debut of seventeen variations......

Toward 2, by kerfuffle & zeitgeist at flickrToday on the Gothamist Newsmap: shots fired on East 51st St. and Clarkson Ave. in Brooklyn, shots fired at Flatbush Ave. and Ave. I in Brooklyn, and more shots fired at the Kings Plaza Shopping Center in Brooklyn. Philanthropist and Chairman of the Modell Sporting Goods Company, William D. Modell, passed away yesterday at the age of 86. Walk with love: Thundercut wishes a belated Valentine's Day......

Photograph of one of the wooden platform rubbing boards boards at the Kings Highway subway station by Triborough on Flickr In the wake of a 14-year-old's fall into subway tracks after the platform edge crumbled, giving way, concerns are being raised over dangerous platforms at other stations. amNew York listed nine in Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Manhattan: Brooklyn, Q line: - Avenue J: boards are separated from the platform and warped. - Avenue M:......

A lawsuit filed Monday against the City Campaign Finance Board seeks to overturn a recently enacted funding law that opponents assert will just make the City Council richer - and whiter. The recently-enacted campaign finance restrictions reduces the contributions from companies who do business with the city by a whopping 92%. Translation: In a mayoral race, the individual limit on giving is now $400, versus $4,950; in City Council races, it's $250, down from $2,950.......

Stand clear of the platform edge and then some: A 14-year-old boy fell into the tracks at the Kings Highway subway station when the platform partially collapsed. Avi Katz was able to get away before the approaching Q train made it into the station. Katz had been at the station around 6PM on January 29 and, per WABC 7, "stepped onto the edge of the platform to see if his train was coming." The platform,......

"spot on" by ShhPeKo on flickr Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a baby in cardiac arrest on West 96th St. in Manhattan, a shooting on Church and Flatbush Aves. in Brooklyn, and a found grenade on East 196th St. and Bainbridge Ave. in the Bronx. More hand-sifted material has been transported to Fresh Kills, Staten Island. The material does not contain any human remains and is not located on a site that contains landfill.......

EVENT: Angels and Kings is hosting a Nerd Nite, described as: "the Discovery Channel with beer." This evening brings zombies to life, sort of, with a presentation on the undead titled "Zombies Are Real: Actual Zombies of the Natural World And Why You Might Be One." Drink, learn, be nerdy. 7pm // Angels & Kings [500 E 11th St] // Free LECTURE: Come get schooled on "green architecture" tonight at the kick-off event for The......

Kings 4, Rangers 2: Sometimes teams have quality efforts and still lose. That's what the Rangers put forth Tuesday. They had 41 shots on goal -- including 24 in the second period alone -- but only got two by Jason LaBarbera. Henrik Lundqvist wasn't at his best, and that didn't help. The Rangers had won three straight and five of six, but don't view this as a step backward. They still seem to be headed......

Seattle 86 Knicks 85: Make it a clean sweep, for their opponents that is. The Knicks lost all five games on their west coast swing blowing four second half leads along the way. Nate Robinson had a chance for a game-winning shot with time running out, but he missed and the Knicks will take a long flight home and have only a little time to prepare for Monday’s game with the Clippers. Atlanta 104 Nets......

Rangers 4, Flyers 0: Stephen Valiquette didn't really have to work for it, but he got his first career shutout. Even when the Flyers are hot and the Rangers are cold as ice, New York finds a way. Nigel Dawes, Petr Prucha, Chris Drury and Brendan Shanahan all scored. The Rangers hadn't won the road this year. Philadelphia had enjoyed a 12-2-1 streak. The Flyers are in first, but they are only five points ahead......

Knicks 89 Philadelphia 76ers 81: The Knicks enjoyed a team effort in defeating another struggling Eastern Conference team, the Sixers. Five players scored in the double digits, led by Jamal Crawford's 18 pounts and Zach Randolph's 16 points and 14 rebounds. Coach Isiah Thomas said, "We have good shot distribution, everyone feels part of the game, everyone gets to touch the basketball." Late in the fourth quarter, the Knicks' 10 point lead was cut......

Rangers 4 Atlanta 0: Tom Renney shook up the lines and the lineup and the Rangers responded. Playing the opening game in their consecutive home game tilt with the Thrashers, New York set the tone early and played great defense allowing only 14 shots. Sean Avery, placed on the top line with Gomez and Jagr got things started with a goal at 12:12 of the first period. Brandon Dubinsky scored a few minutes later and......

The series of residential structures lining Flushing Ave. in Brooklyn are historic treasures, but they are a little the worse for wear and some legislators can't wait to tear them down. Officers' Row, or Admirals' Row, is a feature at the Brooklyn Navy Yard that has admittedly fallen into sad disrepair, but nonetheless has a rich history linking New York harbor to the naval industry that was a cornerstone of building the United States as......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: an unstable building on 41st Ave. in Queens, a pedestrian struck on 33rd St. and 8th Ave. in Manhattan, and a double stabbing on East 188th St. and Webster Ave. in the Bronx. The New York Post flew a Jessica Simpson lookalike to Dallas and got her seats behind the Cowboys' bench in an effort to distract Dallas quarterback Tony Romo. Has anyone lost a camera in a cab......

Oh no! An 8-month-old baby bitten by a family dog was pronounced dead at Kings County Hospital. The family lives on Ocean Parkway in the Prospect Park South/Kensington neighborhood. According to NY1, the baby had been in his grandmother's care "when the family Doberman bit his head. Sources say the attack may have occurred after the baby touched the dog's paw." WNBC reports police shot the dog with a dart and Animal Control removed it......

After Isiah Thomas said that he was still fit to coach the Knicks on Tuesday, we wondered if he was the most delusional man in the history of sports. That answer emerged yesterday as Thomas proclaimed that the Knicks will win a championship with him AND that he wants to leave a legacy. BWAHAHAHAHAHA. That's the best joke we'll be hearing all year. Seriously though, that smell of bullshit at Madison Square Garden isn't coming......

Yesterday afternoon, the FDNY responded to a fire that broke out in a Midwood apartment building, only to find two girls, ages 1 and 2, alone. The girls' mother had left them with her boyfriend, who went out. Sigh. A neighbor noticed smoke coming from under the front door. Trina Thomas explained to the Daily News, "I ran upstairs to call the Fire Department. I had no idea there were kids by themselves at the......

Nets 96, Magic 95: Vince Carter won this game with two clutch free throws at the end, but it was former Magic Darrell Armstrong who provided the biggest of several sparks off the bench. He had 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting and a critical hand on defense during Orlando's last possession. The Nets outscored the Magic, 31-18, in the fourth quarter and have now won five of six games. If they keep this up,......

An early morning argument Saturday left a 19-year-old dead and a building on Ocean Parkway besieged with heavily armed police searching for the killer. Allen Tahiraj was shot on Ocean Parkway around 3:30am Saturday morning as he congregated with friends. One friend said, "There was a little argument and one of the kids pulled a gun." The argument was overheard as being about "territory" and may have been drug related. Tahiraj was allegedly trying to......

Rangers 4 Pittsburgh 0: When things aren’t going well, hockey coaches look to shake up their lines. That what Tom Renney did Tuesday, installing Gomez on the Jagr-Straka line and the results were very good. The top line looked like one, scoring twice at even strength and propelling New York to the victory. But, it wasn’t just the top guys. Chris Drury had added two points and the defense held Pittsburgh to 18 shots. Henrik......

Yesterday the NY Post warned non-recyclers that they'd have to don a "scarlet litter" if they didn't clean up their acts. We hoped this "scarlet litter" would be a hat hand-crafted by a Freegan and worn atop the heads of the environmentally-challenged, but instead it's something much more sensible: a clear bag for all of your garbage that leaves little to the imagination. New York, we don't really want to see your trash, so please......

In November, Charlie Rose sat down with rapper and entrepreneur Jay-Z. The musician is originally from Brooklyn and late in the interview Rose queries about the expected success of the Nets once they move to Kings County. Jay-Z is very enthusiastic about the potential of the team and the virtues of the borough, as he prefaces every statement about Brooklyn with the words "we" and "ours." It is unintentionally comedic then when Rose immediately......

Riders hope that low grades for the G line will eventually lead to improvements, while plans are in place to make the G a more usable line. Despite being the two largest boroughs in New York City, there is only one train line dedicated to getting people from Brooklyn (2.5 million people) to Queens (2.3 million people). All other passages must make their way from one borough, through Manhattan (1.6 million people), and then on......

I'm Not There Nails It We went into seeing I'm Not There yesterday afternoon kind of expecting to hate it, thinking it would be vague and pretentious and a chore to absorb. But boy were we wrong! The movie avoids many annoying biopic clichés, presenting 6 separate, yet surprisingly straightforward stories based on the life of Bob Dylan. While non-linear, the narratives are complete and engrossing. The film is shot beautifully, and needless to say......

Sacramento 123 Knicks 118 (2OT’s); You weren’t dreaming, that really was Stephon Marbury playing defense. Marbury didn’t start, but he had a nice game off the bench as Isiah went to a three-guard lineup in the fourth quarter. With Crawford and Robinson sharing the point, Marbury took over at the two and did well. Eddy Curry had a huge game with 27 points including a game-tying rebound and layup with 10 seconds left in regulation,......

The health scare of the season continued this week with news of an outbreak of the methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) "superbug" at an Upper East Side hospital's children's ward. The New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center said that nine infants were infected with the drug-resistant strain of bacteria that killed a New York 7th Grader last month. Omar Rivera Jr. was felled by the staph infection on October 14th after being misdiagnosed at Kings County......