vip in the city

Love is the Message

At the cool LITM in Jersey City tonight for MLF’s birthday celebration. This Newark Avenue hot spot was named for an album by Philadelphia funk rock band MFSB, and has been a fixture of downtown’s “Restaurant Row” since it was opened by the JC-native sibling team of Jerome and Jelynne Jardiniano in October 2003.

For the occasion, LW had reserved the back space of this bar-lounge-gallery, on whose walls she had mounted an exhibition of about 20 of her beautiful photographs, all featuring the woman of honor.

Over the course of the evening, we each were given the opportunity to title the piece of our choice. Originators of the best titles, as judged by the artist, may see a new photo in their future. Fingers crossed!

Always good times celebrating with MLF, and reconnecting with old friends.

In addition to the occasional private party, LITM features Sunday night film screenings, live music performances, and rotating art exhibitions. (On display tonight: paintings by local self-taught artist Ken Bastard.) And perhaps most importantly, to accompany all those potent potables: good tunes.

Just wait ‘til tomorrow
I guess that’s what they all say
Just before they fall apart

— New Order, Regret

Tags: birthday party, Jersey City, LITM

Extra Virgin territory

One of the venues CL, CSF and I had considered for dinner tonight was the brand new Bar Boulud, but we decided in the end in favor of the more established Extra Virgin. None of us had been yet to this “little gem of a restaurant,” so to borrow a phrase from NBC’s 1990s summer reruns campaign, it was new to us. Bar Boulud’s menu looks interesting, though — charcuterie and cheese, terrines and pâtés — so I hope to make it over there one evening soon.

Executive chef and co-owner Joey Fortunato (formerly of Layla, Scarabee, and the Tonic), together with partner Michele Gaton (former general manager of The Coffee Shop), opened Extra Virgin in the old Titou space in 2004. Their Mediterranean bistro proved so popular with West Village locals and destination diners alike that it expanded into the store next door in 2005, adding an extra 30 seats to the dining room.

Three years later, the restaurant still draws crowds every night, and knowing its reservations policy — none for parties smaller than 6 — we planned an early arrival, and managed to score one of the tightly packed wooden tables with hardly a wait. It was a case of good timing: by the time our food arrived, the dinner rush had set in, with patrons packing the long bar area and spilling onto West 4th Street. Extra Virgin offers the option of a few sidewalk tables: highly coveted in warmer months, but seemingly utilized even on chilly evenings like this one, by the intrepid (or impatient) few.

Under a faux burl wood panel — which CSF remarked, reminded him of his parents’ basement — we dipped our crusty bread slices into a plate of excellent olive oil: extra virgin, no doubt. The warmly appointed room was a charming mix of soothing blues, exposed brick walls, pressed tin ceilings, and oversize, gold-framed mirrors. Flickering candlelight makes for pretty dining companions, but not for good food photography.

No snapshots, then, of our Fritto Misto — a generous platter of hot and crispy calamari, rock shrimp, clams and zucchini, served with a spiced tomato dipping sauce. Very good, even if I accidentally bit into what I thought was a battered round of squash, but which turned out to be a deep-fried lemon slice. (The dining room really was quite dark.)

From the daily-changing “Classics” section of the menu, I chose the Oven Roasted Leg of Lamb with twice baked potatoes and green beans. The meat was hearty yet tender, and arrived medium rare without my specifying so. I’d be interested in sampling some of the other day’s specials, which include a coq au vin on Tuesdays, and Thursday’s whole roasted branzino, a fish which Fresh Direct describes as “a little like a perch, with a similar white, firm flake and a mild sweetness that will remind you of fresh scallops.” (Ooh, scallops.)

Really, though, this evening was more about catching up with old friends than about lingering over food. (The anxiously hovering servers made the latter nearly impossible, anyway.) We paid our tab, and set off into the night.

Tags: Extra Virgin, West Village

New Year’s Rockin’ Eve

We convened after work at Grand Central Terminal for tonight’s gathering in Tudor City. Are kooky glittered “2008” glasses required to ring in the new year properly? Indeed they are.

En route to the party, we made a stop at a surprisingly crowded Goodburger for — what else? — burgers. Make that a turkey burger for me, as I’d already exceeded my beef quota for the week. With the works, minus mayo: pickles, lettuce, tomato, onion, ketchup and mustard. Really good, but for me, Westville‘s version still tops my list, and not just for hot dates.

Then on to MC’s where a group of revelers had gathered to unleash their inner rock stars on this last night of 2007. I’m referring, of course, to Harmonix “Rock Band,” a.k.a. the Best Party Game Ever. Sorry, “Guitar Hero,” but though the thrasher battles can be cool to watch, the ability to include other band members in a collaborative jam session makes for far more fun. “Rock Band,” which was released for PS2, PS3, and Xbox 360 on November 20, 2007 — three weeks after the launch of “Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock” — allows players to perform in virtual bands by providing up to four would-be rockers with the ability to play the peripheral of their choice (mic, guitar, bass guitar or drums). The “instruments” are used to simulate the performance of actual rock songs by hitting scrolling notes on-screen.

The song selection is what you’d expect: as a group, we put together some rousing renditions of the Rolling Stones’ “Gimme Shelter,” David Bowie’s “Suffragette City,” The Ramones’ “Blitzkrieg Bop,” Rush’s “Tom Sawyer,” (check out this crazy Rock Band drumming action), The Clash’s “Should I Stay or Should I Go,” Metallica’s “Enter Sandman,” Nirvana’s “In Bloom,” The Beastie Boys’ “Sabotage,” The Killers’ “When You Were Young” … and a whole lot of songs I didn’t know. Yes, I have an embarrassingly large gap in my musical repertoire when it comes to classic rock. I pitched in on vocals on Radiohead’s “Creep“ until on a lark, I took up the wooden sticks and discovered that I may be a drummer at heart. Not a good one, mind you, but a drummer just the same.

Me, banging the skins — a mini drum kit with four color-coded, pressure-sensitive heads and a simulated bass pedal:

Play well enough and the “crowd” gets into the act by singing and clapping along, as in an actual concert. Play badly, and the song will be cut short. There are ways to drive up the cumulative score (with bonuses and multipliers for consecutive correct beats/notes/phrases, or by playing in unison), but I was concentrating too hard on just getting through my sections, which was both frustrating and exhilarating at the same time.

And oh yes, before the night was through, there was also a very respectable performance of Blue Öyster Cult’s “Don’t Fear the Reaper” that really could only have been improved by more cowbell.

At ten minutes to midnight, we switched over to the live broadcast of Times Square, where Dick Clark was hosting the countdown for the third time after recovering from his 2004 stroke. Along with an estimated one million spectators in Times Square and over a billion people throughout the world, we watched as the new Waterford Crystal/LED-lit ball dropped to commemorate the final dwindling seconds of 2007.

To new beginnings. Happy new year, everyone!

Tags: Dick Clark, New Year's Eve, Rock Band, Times Square, XBox