Box Office - Twyla Tharp, Sunday, March 16 @ 2 PM. City Center, 131 West 55th Street, orchestra, row G 110 & 111. Best offer.
Saturday, February 22, 2025
America’s Loveliest Nephrologist left us this afternoon even though I was inclined to throw myself in her path to prevent her from leaving. However, since she was returning to the Oakland Heartthrob, I could not interfere. She has now lived in the Bay Area for more than a decade and has made keen observations. She opines that the Holy Land is unrivaled in pastrami, pizza and bagels. Respecting her point of view, I bought bagels from Zucker’s Bagels & Smoked Fish, 273 Columbus Avenue, and their superb whitefish salad for our lunch.
Sunday, February 23, 2025
Sadly, not everyone appreciates high quality pastrami, pizza or bagels. A new report shows that New York lost population in 2024.
please supply the indignation on your own.I have mixed emotions as to the other side of the equation, where people are moving to. Texas and Florida have the biggest gains by far. On the whole, people who want to live in Texas and Florida should, wrapped in mean spirited public policies delivered with hypocritical sanctimony. There are notable exceptions and you know who you are.
. . .
We decided to go out for dinner and I chose a well-reviewed Indian restaurant uptown, Baazi, 2588 Broadway. In fact, I myself gave it a very good review when we ate there last October which I completely forgot. The place was undeservedly unbusy at 6 o’clock.
I had Dumpukht Gosht (lamb) Biryani, one of the finest Biryanis that I have ever had ($22). Served in the vessel that it had been cooked in, the lamb juices permeated the rice. It was covered by a naan-like crust, resembling an Indian potpie. Madam enjoyed Kofta Paratwala, layered vegetable dumplings on a sweet corn curry ($20). We shouldn’t forget Baazi again after this good meal.
Monday, February 24, 2025
Stony Brook Steve and I went to Pastrami Queen, 138 West 72nd Street, for lunch. Even though it is Monday, we both skipped the Monday Special pastrami sandwich. Instead, Steve had a bowl of mushroom barley soup ($11) and a pastrami egg roll ($8.95).
I had a junior brisket sandwich, a little more than half a regular sandwich ($12.95), and two pieces of kishke ($12.95). And what is kishke, you may ask. It is best considered as Jewish chitlins, a tubular stuffed animal part. Until the 1960s, a catered affair for local Eastern European Jews automatically included kishke, politely labeled stuffed derma, on the menu and then there was none. How gross, how déclassé. The increasingly successful doctors and lawyers of suburbia, a big step removed from their grandparents’ tenements, altered their appetites along with their noses and their family names.
Out of step, I continue to order kishke when the opportunity presents itself, expecting to be disappointed by what is served. I was not disappointed, therefore, when it arrived cold and, after returning from the kitchen, had the taste and feel of mortar aiming for a brick wall.
Tuesday, February 25, 2025
I could fill this space everyday with impassioned screeds about the conduct of the new administration, whether the notoriously inadequate qualifications of some appointees or the sudden alliance with Russia and North Korea in foreign affairs, for example. However, such persistence will likely bore you while keeping me in a constant state of agitation. So,
At
first, I was bothered that Pam Bondi, Attorney General of the United
States, too often wore a prominent cross. I have since been reassured
that she is trying to ward off the vampires surrounding her.
Thursday, February 27, 2025
Two things brought Terrific Tom and me back to The Corner, 698 Ninth Avenue, this afternoon, excellent Chinese food and a Groupon coupon which knocked more than $20 off the bill. He had a bowl of hot and sour soup ($4) and then we shared sweet and (not so) sour mango chicken ($22), (not really) spicy rock shrimp with scallion pancakes ($19) and beef fried rice ($13). Even though the food was not so edgy, it was delicious and served in large portions. The lunch specials, $12, $14 and $16, looked good, but were not subject to discount. Together, we offer four thumbs up for The Corner which is very convenient to Broadway theaters for your future reference.
On Tuesday, I seemed to retreat from paying close attention to our national politics. In fact, I started this afternoon watching a Spring Training game on television, Mets vs. Nationals. Unfortunately, once the Mets took a solid lead, I switched over to CNN and MSNBC and saw Trump and Vance in a meeting with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy repeating the lies and misinformation usually coming from Putin. Instead of reaffirming our commitment to Ukraine in its battle against Russian aggression, our leaders were hostile to its beleaguered position. It was a terrible spectacle; not only was Zelenskyy degraded, but the integrity of the United States in world affairs was seriously compromised.
