Weekends

Friday evening Nick was in town from Los Angeles and we caught up over dinner at some Hell's Kitchen joint called HK. There was lots of concrete and lights in the floor and straight lines and lagging service. Nick and I spit the details of our latest life back and forth and traded stories of our days in LA. It was nice to catch up, he's a good friend, it almost covered up the lackluster service and mediocre food. I got the bacon cheeseburger and while the presentation was good the meat didn't hit home. Craving something sweet and wanting to get the hell out of HK we hopped a cab downtown to Billy's Bakery. Billy's is an explosion of yellow and icing. Just smelling the place can give you a cavity. Everything is moist and soft and caked with I-just-gotta-lick-it frosting. Nick got a slice of the Red Velvet cake and I the blueberry cheesecake. Needless to say, five minutes later we were sitting outside, stomach bloated spitting sugar out of our teeth and I dying for a cigarette. We remained there for awhile before Nick was meeting a friend at the Eagle. I escorted him there had a beer and split. The cheesecake had done me in.

Saturday I woke up and grabbed brunch with Eric the roommate and Randee at a new Italian/Mexican fusion restaurant across the street from my apartment. This place serves a brunch like no other. It's not your typical omelet and French toast fare. In fact, New York Time's Magazine says, "What do you get when a Tuscan chef marries a Mexican one? In the case of Matilda, a quirky new Alphabet City restaurant, you get wood-burning-oven-baked focaccia with your guacamole, prosciutto and basil in your quesadilla, and filet mignon alla Fiorentina in your tacos.." The brunch menu alone had so many interesting choices that it became the first time in a long time I had tothink further than eggs or pancakes. Check this place out.
Afterward Eric went home and I Randee and I jumped to Mud Cafe to say hi to Brooklyn and borrow her long board. Soon enough Randee and I were thrashing our way over to the West side where we spend many weekend afternoons. The weather was gorgeous and we took our time heading over and up. We started at 9th st. and 2nd Ave. Headed up 5th to 20th and skated over to 8th where our friend Sasha just moved in. We stopped by, met her parents, wished her luck on unpacking and headed back out to the West Side Highway bike path and down to the Christopher St. Pier. The sun was just hitting that early autumn 4pm peak giving way to a golden-pink sunset and a breeze which made us feel sedate. We went out on the pier skating a few yards in and spotted a fur patch of friends. Frank, Tony, Danny, and Andy greeted us with smiles and made room for us on their sheet. Something about those piers, the weather, Jersey City sparking across the river and probably the feeling of soft green grass under my toes makes me incredibly energetic and I pounced on my friends like a kitten to cat nip. Soon enough we were all rolling around, throwing grass and piggy-backs at each other. We enjoyed ourselves and the particularly odd warm weather until the sun grew tired and Randee and I hungry. The gang split apart, Randee and I jumping on our boards once again and eventually finding dinner of nachos and fajitas with Eyal and Brendan. It was just the perfect cap for a Saturday so filled with warmth.









Sunday started off pretty lazy. I didn't get up until noon and started answering some questions Michael Crawford a contributor from Bilerico.com had asked me after taking an interest in my HIV/AIDS Public Service Announcement. They were questions based primarily on my experiences in the community as a young gay man, what influences motivated me to be outspoken and whether or not I have any answers to solving the HIV-still-matters issue and the generation non-communication gap. I had fun answering his questions. I answered in complete honesty and really reached within myself to find the root causes of why I care. Can it be simply that I just do? It's hard for me to conceptualize the idea that some people don't. I finished half the questions and got ready to head out, after all it is New York Leather Fest. I strapped on a Sam Brown, picked up Randee and we jetted to the West Village to check out the leather fest, not because I'm particularly even into leather, but because I care that events like these continue having the right to exist. Randee and I got there and I introduced her to my posse and other fellow tribesmen. I met up with Alex, one of my fiercest buddies, who was assigned the role of Leather Weekend Photographer and we bought some drinks and enjoyed the leather strapped, snap, crack and whap exhibitions. The crowd was mostly tame, easy going and the street wasn't even packed but it still ended up being fun day in the sun. A new reason to just get together with friends and people once again before the autumn officially begins. Before late, low and behold, the Dugout was packed to the walls with men enjoying themselves. Randee grew tired of being a delicate seashell in the ocean of men and retired to her board and a peaceful night. I ran off with Alex, uptown to the Eagle to finish off another night and another week.

Burger Review- Westville East

Westville East- East Village, NYC

8.5 out of 10.

I ventured to Westville East restaurant with Eric, the roommate, and my other bros Max and Ira. Of course I, amongst the many tasty and inviting options on the menu, caved in and ordered a Bacon Cheese burger. Not bad.

Not bad at all. Aside from being served on an English muffin which makes it difficult for a burger to stay together it was pretty satisfactory. "Chic" but not entirely winning. Comes with fries or salad which is always a perk.














Max (left) Eric (middle) Ira (right)

Burger Review- Corner Bistro

Corner Bistro- West Village, NYC

7.8 out of 10.
Great price, better than status quo but NOT an amazing burger. When fries are "extra" that's immediately one point off. Burger was pretty fierce but for a place which boasts itself on it's burgers they should be a bit larger in size.

Listen Up!!

This is a hamburger!

Chat N' Chew- Union Square, NYC

This delicious monster was purchased and enjoyed to the point of human snail-trail at Chat N' Chew near Union Square.

Here's a burger enjoying tip: Be aggressive with the handling of your burger. The second you think you can get by and hold it by pinching it together without getting ketchup or grease on your hands, you've lost the battle. Take control of the burger. Own it! Don't let the size, or amount of toppings intimidate you, just take the palm of your hand and squeeze down on the bun while using your other hand to prevent, lettuce, tomato, pickle from sliding out the sides. Mold the bread like clay to your fingers and really grip it. Don't pinch. Hold. Own. Master.

oh and- there's napkins, relax.

I just don't under"stand" it

That's not a burger!

As I delve further and further into the quest of finding New York's best hamburger I consulted the latest New York Magazine Cheap Eats issue. In this issue they have a feature, "The Year in Burgers: The City's Best New Beef.

Yesterday, as I walked aimlessly throughout the city I realized I was close to Stand, one of the Best Burger restaurants featured in the article. The article awards Stand two ketchup bottles out of five amongst the best in the city. The write up: "A fine burger, but a case of the sum not being quite as great as the parts. Getting the too-sturdy bun and patty to play nice is like shoving the positive poles of two magnets together."

Ok, I didn't excatly have a problem keeping my burger together but I will say the presentation outweighs any tastebud delight. Served with no lettuce or tomoato the Bacon Cheese Burger I got was "eh" at best. The actual burger was great. Tender, full of flavor, moist, juicy. But that's all you get. You don't get the lettuce-tomato-burger crunch with each bite and it doesn't come with any fries or sides. This is a gourmet burger- not a real classic American Burger. It should be treated as such and fed to those looking for a sandwhich and not a classic burger. For $10 dollars you just get this modest sized burger and 2 minutes later you're finished. Please.

NEXT!