Brooklyn, I'm Trying

Brooklyn, I'm Trying

an urban lifestyle + travel blog by liz norment.

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the weekend guide | 4-7 august 2016.

things i’m doing this weekend. rooftop wineries and hot tubs in bushwick, immersive art experiences, immersive dance experiences, fermented vegetables and fermented fruit festivals, free arrancine and pricey melty sundaes.

let’s do it, together.

THURSDAY

this view thursday night at rooftop reds. just add wine and pizza and billy crystal and meg ryan.

this view thursday night at rooftop reds. just add wine and pizza and billy crystal and meg ryan.

Pizza Wine Movie Night at Rooftop Reds, Vinegar/Clinton Hill.
some pleasures are so great that they must be experienced in public, aloud, with billy crystal directly in front of you. outdoor movie are amazing, outdoor movies on a rooftop vineyard in brooklyn with pizza and wine are fucking orgasmic. come see a new york original at rooftop reds in the navy yard thursday night. $30 gets you two slices of il porto pizza and a glass of wine, plus all the rest of the wine that you’d like to purchase. tickets here, 7-11pm, in the navy yard at sand and navy st. you’ll have what she’s having. 
Brooklyn Pizza: The Search for Authenticity. City Reliquary, Williamsburg.
there is room for discussion in pizza exploration. there is. and it’s important. all i’m saying is that this is a panel discussion. about finding pizza in brooklyn. that is literally devoid of pizza entirely; a discussion by brooklyn’s top pizza makers, who will inevitably smell like pizza, but there will be none to eat. so go and be enlightened and slice apart the history but do not go hungry. stop in at any of my favorite brooklyn pizza spots first so that you can digest the discussion while you… digest the subject. just, don’t go to two boots. because they will smell that slutty ass pie on you a mile away and will not let you in. (don’t say i didn’t warn you). 7-9pm, $12 tickets here. 128 pierrepoint st,
because the search for pizza ends, this time, in… a meatless denouement.

 

NY_Jive_at_Kinfolk94
was this picture taken last week or in the 70s?
NY Jive at Kinfolk 94, Williamsburg. 
you’ve been waiting all week to get loose and this is how you’ll be doin it, baby. NY Jive at Kinfolk thursday night spins that old school ish, funk soul and hip hop, all night. $15 gets you in the door. and all proceeds go to support sudanese filmakers. get down to support a cause. tickets, here and at the door. 9pm, 94 wythe ave, what it is jive turkey.

FRIDAY

el diablo tacos
Heaven for Real Record Release, Union Pool, Williamsburg.

we all could stand to do something (vaguely) angelic this weekend. let’s head to the magnificent backyard at union pool to celebrate (and rock out to) heaven for real’s album release party. the taco truck is waiting for you, brooklyn. and so am i. all info is here, show is free. 484 union ave.

 

shoestring_studio
Shoestring Studio Launch Party, Prospect Heights.

On a budget? of the shoestring variety? there is free food. and booze. And shoe strings and string theory and maybe even string cheese and those creepy gummy stringy candy things I don’t know!  but what I do know is there will be no discussion of the food. just hanging with your neighborhood homies and celebrating the launch of this mega rad event space. 6-10pm, no tickets just come to 640 classon st. no strings attached. (but maybe rsvp!)

 

i can't tell where you end and i begin. (no really.)
i can’t tell where you end and i begin. (no really.)
House of Love at House of Yes, Bushwick.
what is it, house of yes- have you not gotten enough attention lately? so you have to come up with some ridulously edgy and outlandish event and dare us to come? thinking we’d shy away from the rooftop cest pool hot tub? that we’re still unvajazzling our vajazzies from two weeks ago? you so don’t know us. we’re all jazzed up (link to hillary’s speech) and coming for you and all of your promise of sensual biss. friday night, 9-430am. tickets here, $15-35 which they will put into a big pot for shared child support for all of us in the future. when all of our babies are named YES. 2 wyckoff ave at the house of yes– they put the sensual in concensual.

 

SATURDAY

surrealist-painter-rene-magritte-637-4

The Enchanted Realm of Rene Magritte, Governors Island.

because the only way to get inside his head seems to be to get outside your own, governor’s island brings us a uniquely immersive dive deep into the complex subconscious of rene magritte, surrealist visionary and artistic genius. or mad man. of which there is little difference, of course. opening weekend is this weekend, the exhibit runs through 25 sept. $15 tickets and info here, at house 17, nolan park, governors island. one thing you won’t regret this weekend- magritte.

 

 

ps1_summer_warmup
PS1 Summer Warm-Up, Long Island City.
This LIC summertime party institution also has a permanent residency on my weekend guide, from now through labor day. so i recommend checking the schedule and either choosing based on the tunes or your own availability (this is not a “oh i have a few hours, i’ll check it out” kind of affair. it will take all of your saturday and at least 3/4 of the mental space of your sunday. and it will all be worth it.) tickets here. i’m already heatin’ up.
oh and don’t forget to check out the tent of secrets, located in the back of the arboretum in the sculpture garden.
this is the tent of secrets.
this is the tent of secrets.
birre_ballz_archestratus_books
look at that adorable and apprehensive little arrancine ball. look at it.
Birre Ballz at Archestratus Books, Greenpoint.
because brooklyn has already exhausted and nearly perfected the single-entity approach to businesses, we’ve started to dream up these funky hybrids that reel you in out of curiosity and inevitably leave you wondering why the hell we didn’t think of that before. a bowling-alley-concert-hall-restaurant? sure, no problem! a laundromat-arcade-speakeasy? yes, yes, and yes. enter archestratus books into the equation, a bookstore-cafe-restaurant that is competing in the supper club space. owner paige limpari draws from her sicilian roots to present events such as weekly sicilian “blue plate” dinners, build-your-own pizza night, and saturday’s shindig which gets you a free homemade arrancine ball with every beer you purchase and let me just say that the balls are amazing, and perfectly compliment an ice cold sorachi ace. see all event listings here and get there as soon as you can. this place is a gem.

 

 

free_sno_cones_for_full_moon_fest

Free Sno Cones at Artists and Fleas, Williamsburg.

this promotional event is a bit of a stretch but free snow cones will smooth things over and get your hot ass there. come get yours, in anticipation of the forthcoming full moon fest, because they’ll have a blue moon flavor available? and because they will moon you. reserve a spot to beat the lines, and the heat. noon until they all melt, 70 north 7th st. at the house of (s)no- where… wait a minute. at artists and fleas, where there’s no business like sno business.

 

only thing saur here is... cabbage.
only thing saur here is… cabbage.
Seasonal Ferments Workshop at Wyckoff Farmhouse Museum, Flatbush. 

ah, a visit to the wyckoff farmhouse museum? I’ve been letting it sit for a while too. and soak. and ferment. and now that I’ve tried a bit my inhibitions are gone and I’m ready baby. seasonal ferment workshop, at wyckoff farmhouse museum. certified fermentationist (as you would imagine, you have to wiat a bit to become one) teaches you to make sauerkraut and “a few of its cousins’ which are either equally as sour or… weenies. $5 covers materials and enjoyment. tickets, here. 1-3pm, 5816 clarendon rd at the wyckoff famrhouse museum, ’tis the hour for sour!

 

tap+cork
Tap + Cork Beer and Wine Festival, Bed Stuy. 
listen, i don’t really know what you do on the weekends- maybe you tap it, maybe you cork it, maybe you prefer a quick, clean screw. come do it, in public, at the tap + cork festival in brooklyn. featuring all of your favorite vintners (think: brooklyn oenology, brooklyn winery, bully hill, and adirondack winery to name a few) plus local eats, 65+ craft beers, music, and friends. good friends. that will become better friends. tickets, $30 can be purchased here. fourth annual tap + cork at restoration plaza, 1368 fulton st. corker?? i hardly knew ‘er!
the backyard, via @threesbrewing
the backyard, via @threesbrewing
Threes Brewing Backyard DJ Set, Gowanus. 
an urban brewery doing it so, so right. and a sprawling outdoor space with games and picnic tables and music and laughter and hotdogs from the meat hook. saturday night is dj tommy virga‘s bi-monthly residency. 10pm, threes brewing, 333 douglass st. get there and get down.

 

Slide the City, Manhattan somewhere. 
THAT BIG SLIDE. it’s back. the big inflateable water slide that inevitably illicits a “did you go to that waterslide??” text from your mother on sunday morning. as you’re just getting into bed. not from the water slide. this happens every year and i want to do it. i do. i love both water and slides and jarring, inflatable objects that embark upon unsuspecting manhattan streets. but this, apparently, is impossible. so i will go like a banchy in the night and pierce it with an arrow and ruin everyone’s fun. (i won’t, but i will be sad.) enjoy it, if you have the patience. all info here.

SUNDAY

Mama’s Bazaar Artisan Market at House of Yes, Bushwick.
i guess they need to repurpose all the beads that either haven’t enteref or fall out of someone’s anise. (that’s how the french say it, which sounds so much more pleasant than… you know.), and this hand-crocheted scarf? sourced from formerly light restraints used in the BDSM dungeon experience. it all happens sunday morning- you can just slide on in when you go pick up your debit card. 2 wyckoff ave, opens at 11am. stay for the variance art fest, below!!

 

variance_fest
Variance Music and Arts Festival, Bushwick. 
variance wants to create your perfect summer day in the city you love. and lets just say they know you very, very well. this festival brings together musicians from all of your favorite genres, and your friends’ favorites too. lost yourself in immersive art installations. eat flavorful (and sustainable!) local fare. relax in the natural beauty of — park. then dance your ass of at house of yes. tickets and all info here, $30-60. daytime fest is noon-10pm at 1820 flushing ave, after party at 2 wyckoff ave. oh yeah and everything is run on solar power. because they know what you like.
sundaes_on_sunday
Sundaes on Sundays at Black Tree, Williamsburg.
i’m not sure what’s going on here. if we’re not paying $12 to discuss the search for pizza, then we’re paying $22 to for make your own icecream sundaes. for make your own icecream sundaes. yes, there will be great chefs there. and yes, the ingredients will include goat’s milk maple and bacon chocolate iceacream and truffle honey and bacon rose.. and that sounds pretty fucking wild to me, but how about we leave the iceacream sundaes as they are, in the $6 realm, and we put the truffle oil on the pizzas and we eat them without saying a fucking word. on sundays. and all of the other days. black tree, 261 metropolitan ave, 3-7pm. tickets here. i’ll be there debating this point while licking sticky savory $22 icecream drips from my dirty hands. and liking it.

 

Kayak Polo, Brooklyn Bridge Park.
i don’t know about you guys, but my balance, coordination, and ability to not freak out when under water is always in tip-top shape on sundays. so this seems extra dangerous and i like it. kayak water polo, which is both exactly how it sounds and way way more complicated. learn how to play and schrimage your hungover friends at brooklyn bridge park on sunday. details here. paddle high five me.
Mister Sunday at Nowadays, Ridgewood, Queens.
a summertime brooklyn institution. this isn’t what non-brooklynites indulgently refer to as “sunday funday”. no no no. this is not for the weak at hearts who boast about their residual rosé headaches around the Keurig machine, proudly bouncing slightly on the low-pile grey office carpet wearing their smart ballet flats on Monday morning. this is for you, brave heart. mister sunday would like to tip his hat slightly and extend his hand to shake yours and then never ever let go. dig? tickets, $20. 3-9pm at 56-06 cooper ave.
birds_with_fleas
Birds with Fleas at Rockwood Music Hall, the LES, Manhattan.
because everyone needs a little taste of home sometimes. when the kid i used to watch bang on drums in his parents garage in high school told me he had joined a band in new york and had a show, coming up, at rockwood music hall, and the band was called birds with fleas and i listened to them, this became more than a friend from home and even more than seeing a decent band on a sunday night. these guys are up-and-coming, so be there while luke can still see you waving from the crowd. listen here. sunday night at 9pm. tickets, $5 here,
and then, we sleep brooklyn.
we sleep.
<3L.

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