BusinessEntertainment

Top 10: H&M’s Marketing Extravaganza, Porch Stomp Entertainment, New HBX Flagship

Top 10: H&M’s Marketing Extravaganza, Porch Stomp Entertainment, New HBX Flagship
Good Morning & Hello Friday!
  • Highlight of the week has to be the H&M Hotel Hennes Pop-Up in Freeman Alley (#1, 2 below). I spent endless hours plotting how I could circumvent security and VIP Lists to get in early for some interior shots – to no avail! Security prevailed! But then yesterday, I FINALLY did get in! Creatively it is one of the best pop-ups I’ve seen. No detail has been overlooked and they’ve clearly spared no expense. Rumor mill also has it that H&M will be opening a store on the LES soon.
  • Another impressive opening is the new Hypebeast HBX flagship (#3). It’s located in Chinatown but I would call it Dimes Square adjacent (the hottest, trendiest neighborhood in NYC).
  • Finally, on the entertainment front, two great new discoveries: Porch Stomp (#4) and comedian John Crist (#8). Love his podcast and I just got tickets for his City Winery show in August.

And with that, please scroll down for this week’s Top 10. Enjoy!

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BusinessEats & Drinks

TOP 10: NYC Hospitality Is Really Stepping Up Its Game – So Many Next Level Experiences!

TOP 10: NYC Hospitality Is Really Stepping Up Its Game – So Many Next Level Experiences!
Good Morning & Hello Friday!
  • So much going on in NYC at the moment. I am eating out EVERY day and still not getting caught up on all the new places I want to check out.
  • Big highlight this week was the opening of Nine Orchard’s Lobby Lounge and Corner Bar Restaurant and meeting Chef Jason Pfeifer. (#1 below)
  • Another major highlight (and I know this may seem odd to some of you), was a Moonlight Tour of Green-Wood Cemetery. A small group of us got tickets (it was SOLD OUT), and we were accompanied by two accordion players and a historian. Absolutely magical! (#9 below – PLS watch the short video)
  • Also, must do a shout out to Parasol Projects. This full-service pop-up agency on the Bowery manages (beautifully I might add) at least 10 storefronts in Nolita/LES. The one on my block always has something major going on. This week it’s been turned into Din Din, a pop-up supper club. I’m booked for Friday dinner – will report back. (#2)
  • And finally, I’m taking a slightly different tack with my videos. I’m switching it up from being a recap to making it more “forward looking.” Doing it while I’m in public feels a bit weird to me but hopefully I can make it work and keep it interesting. Let me know what you think. (#10)

And with that please scroll down for this week’s Top 10. Enjoy!!

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BusinessEats & Drinks

Top 10: Posh eats at VERONIKA, and check out the new DASHMART Pop-Up – it’s super cool!!

Top 10: Posh eats at VERONIKA, and check out the new DASHMART Pop-Up – it’s super cool!!
Good Morning & Hello Friday!
  • Incredibly scrumptious week with wonderful meals all around town from the preview dinner for the reopening of Veronika in the Fotografiska Building in Gramercy (#1 below) to an outstanding brunch, with gorgeous views, at The Fulton in the Seaport District, to an exceptional night of cabaret and dining at Neue Galerie’s Cafe Sabarsky on the Upper East Side.
  • Pop-Ups should always be fun and the new DashMart in Nolita does not disappoint. In fact, it’s one of the best I’ve seen. Opened yesterday and clearly a hit with the crowds. (#3 below)
  • The recap video this week (#10) comes from the beautiful Elizabeth Street Garden just around the corner from DashMart. Weather and time permitting, I’m planning to do the recap videos from different spots around the city, especially when I’ve scouted something cool nearby.

And with that, please scroll down for this week’s Top 10! Enjoy!

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BusinessTravel

Top 10: Bozeman’s Cool LARK Hotel, NYC’s New Tin Building, and Elon’s Way ANTI-Remote!

Top 10: Bozeman’s Cool LARK Hotel, NYC’s New Tin Building, and Elon’s Way ANTI-Remote!
Good Morning & Hello Friday!
  • Compared to last week, I am once again in good spirits (as I discuss in the wrap up video – #10). I don’t know who to thank for this ability to “move on” when things get me down but it is one of my best traits.
  • Also, thrilled to be traveling again (even though it’s all domestic). Have trips planned for later this month to LA, Nashville in July, and Bozeman, Montana (at a super cool hotel) for my birthday in August. (#1, 2).
  • And HUGE gratitude to Dr. David Middaugh of El Paso Manual Physical Therapy for providing the most helpful exercises for hip arthritis. I’m back to walking 20K steps (7 miles) a day. It’s pretty amazing (#9).

Please scroll down for this week’s Top 10 (#5 will undoubtedly be controversial but bear with me)!!

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Art & DesignBusiness

Top 10: Daniel Boulud’s Fab New Restaurant, Cultural Pop-Ups, Thrifted Weddings

Top 10: Daniel Boulud’s Fab New Restaurant, Cultural Pop-Ups, Thrifted Weddings
Good Morning & Hello Friday!
  • New favorite restaurant – ate there twice this week!! Kudos to Daniel Boulud for installing Le Gratin into McNally’s old Augustine space. The food, the scene, the staff, the room – all fantastic!! (#2 below).
  • Also, raves for the Vuitton + Nike + Abloh experience at the Greenpoint Terminal Building (#1). If you’re in NYC, you must check it out this weekend (running thru 5/31).
  • My recap video is at the end of the blog this week (#10) with a not-so-great update on my Green Card saga. Total screw-up by my immigration lawyer! Looks like I’ll be only traveling domestically for a good while longer. Send me recos for cool spots to hit up!!

And with that please scroll down for this week’s TOP 10. Enjoy!

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Art & DesignTech

Dialing Up the Cool Factor: Murakami’s NFTS, Anime Girls, and New Word Alert: Expography!

Dialing Up the Cool Factor: Murakami’s NFTS, Anime Girls, and New Word Alert: Expography!
Good Morning & Hello Friday!
  • This week (actually this whole month) has been epically “arty” in NYC. And I’ve been closely watching the co-optation of all-things Metaverse within the art scene. A perfect example is the current show at Gagosian which is a mashup of RTFKT + Snapchat + Takashi Murakami and, of course, the gallery (#2).
  • Learned a new word: Expography. Got on my radar at the absolutely stellar Casa Brasil pop-up. From what I’ve been able to glean online, expography roughly translates to storytelling via physical spaces, be it retail or any kind of exhibition (#3).
  • Finally, biggest surprise of all: looming pushback to “wokeness.” Whether it’s Diddy uncanceling the cancelled at the Billboard Music Awards, or Netflix’s culture guidelines to employees, or even Snoop Dogg backing Rick Caruso for Mayor of LA over Karen Bass, something has shifted (#9).

And with that, please scroll down to read this week’s Top 10. Enjoy!

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Art & DesignEats & DrinksTravel

Top 10: Cynthia Rowley Rocks It at Marfa, Getting Reacquainted with Brooklyn, New App Watchout!

Top 10: Cynthia Rowley Rocks It at Marfa, Getting Reacquainted with Brooklyn, New App Watchout!
Photo: Matteo Prandoni
Good Morning & Hello Friday!!
  • This week was way more action packed than usual. So many new restaurants and bars to check out and getting myself back out to Brooklyn was major. I have to thank both Laser Wolf and the soon-to-open Google Store for providing the impetus. (#3, 4, 7)
  • Major week for Brad as well. His new show just opened in Chelsea at Garth Greenan (his new gallery). He’s had an absolutely stellar year with 2 big museum openings and now the show in Chelsea! (#10).
  • The biggest news of the week for me, however, was finally cancelling the Faroe Islands trip. Sad to do it but at least I’m no longer stressed by USCIS’ interminable delays in issuing green card renewals. And I did get a full credit (albeit not a refund). But I am happy with the outcome. I’m already planning several domestic cultural tourism adventures! And, btw, for anyone needing to renew their passport, please prepare yourself for some major backlogs. This is an informative article on just how dire the situation has become, even for Americans.

Please scroll down for this week’s Top 10. Enjoy!

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Eats & DrinksEntertainment

2022 Summer Pulse: NYC Feeling All Kinds of Trippy, New Restaurant Openings, MAJOR e-Commerce Reset!

2022 Summer Pulse: NYC Feeling All Kinds of Trippy, New Restaurant Openings, MAJOR e-Commerce Reset!
Good Morning & Happy Friday!
  • This past week provided a great preview of the summer. Especially loved the trippy music events happening all around NYC, from the LES where the Abracadabra Trip bus, helmed by the amazing Laura Newman, entertained the crowds outside of the New Museum, to Central Park where the Robot Heart Foundation’s Fare Forward played for a ginormous burner crowd (#2 below).
  • Also exciting to see so many new restaurants opening on the Bowery. Two worth noting: Belse (plant based), opens next week, and it looks beautiful; and Ainslie, in the old Vandals space, scheduled to open late-Spring. But most exciting is Gjelina (out of LA) opening on Bond St. later this summer (#3).
  • And finally, keep an eye out for the dreaded e-commerce reset. Already happening among once high-flying pandemic-brands – and, of course, accompanied by a string of layoffs (#10).

To find out more, please scroll down for this week’s Top 10.

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