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May 9, 2012

Check it Out: NY Burger Week 2012!!!!

Did you know May is National Hamburger Month??? Well to celebrate, Burger Conquest, the ultimate burger blog, is hosting an entire weeks worth of fun celebrating the almighty burger in a week-long series of events dubbed NY Burger Week!

From Sunday, May 13th- Sunday, May 20th Burger Conquest and Thrillist have teamed up to bring some truly unforgettable burger and craft beer events to NYC! Check them out!

All Week Long: Get Booze-Spike Shakes and Off the Menu Burgers at Stand4for $30 (includes 3 sliders, hot fries, tempura bread and butter pickles, 2 craft drafts and 1 spiked shake! Tickets can be purchased here!

Monday May 14th: Off the Menu, Wild Game Burgers and Craft Beers at Pour George for $29.00 (includes 4 rare meat sliders, 4 craft beers, order of fingerling frites)! Purchase tickets here!

Wednesday May 16th: Iron Maiden Beer and Burger Pairing at Idle Hands w/ That Burger for $30.00 (includes 3 full pours and 6 tastes from Smuttynose, Victory and Blue Point breweries paired to Iron Maiden’s Piece of Mind album , 4 sliders from That Burger, and one order of tater tots with off menu dipping sauces)! Purchase tickets here!

Friday May 18th: In conjunction with American Craft Beer Week… enjoy a Locavore Burger Spread-Off at Jimmy’s No. 43 for only $35.00 (includes unlimited mini burgers with an assortment of local artisanal toppings and unlimited samplings of American craft beers)! This event is not to be missed so purchase your tickets here!

Friday May 18th: Beachfront Burger and Beer Bash at Beekman Beer Garden near South Street Seaport with views of Brooklyn and Manhattan! Enjoy 2 craft beers, a custom Pat LaFrieda burger with cheese, and dance the night away with 2 djs and a live band that will keep the party going till 1 am! Want an unforgettable evening? Purchase your tickets asap!

Saturday May 19th: The peeps at iAdventure and Burger Conquest have teamed up to bring New York’s first ever burger crawl!!! This amazing 6 hour afternoon of boozing and burger eating in the East Village may be the best event of the week! Choose from three different ticket options to enjoy this great event ($20, $30 and $40)! Grab your friends and get ready to crawl!!!

Sunday, May 20th: To cap off a great week, Rub BBQ is hosting an exclusive off the menu Burger Bash! Enjoy 4 off the menu burgers, two craft beers, and one order of fries or onion strings for $44.95! Purchase your tickets here!

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May 8, 2012

McKenzie Makes: Zucchini & Tomato Gnocchi Saute!

After a long day full of meetings, bike rides, and conference calls, I had a hankering for one of my favorite comfort foods… pillowy soft gnocchi slathered in butter and cheese

So with a few items in the fridge I concocted this simple and satisfying meal. It was just what I needed after my long day and eating this while sitting on the couch watching my backlog of dvr shows brought me such joy. I hope you enjoy eating this as much as I did

Ingredients:

1 lb gnocchi
3 small zucchini, thinly sliced into “ribbons”
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium shallots, chopped
zest of 2 lemons
2 TBL butter
1/2 cup grated parmesan
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
salt and pepper

To Make:

Bring water to a boil and cook gnocchi until they float till the top
drain, rinse with water and set aside
melt butter in skillet over medium high heat and cook butter until brown (about 2 minutes)
add shallots and zucchini and cook until softened (2-3 minutes)
add tomatoes, salt and pepper and cook until tomatoes are about to break down (2 minutes)
stir in parmesan, parsley and gnocchi and toss to coat
enjoy!

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May 7, 2012

Deal of the Month: The Great American Shake Sale!!!

Shake Shack (Photo credit: thenewyorkbroker.com)

Get to your nearest Shake Shack pronto for The Great American Shake Sale! From now until May 31 all Shake Shack guests who donate $2 or more to Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign will receive a complimentary shake, valued at $5, on their next visit!!

So ya not only do you get a $2 milkshake but you also help benefit No Kid Hungry, which aims to raise awareness and funds to end childhood hunger in America.

Share Our Strength (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

One hundred percent of the donations will benefit No Kid Hungry, and the amazing folks at Shake Shack has committed to raising a minimum of $25,000!

***Offer available at all Shake Shack locations in NYC (not Citi Field), Miami, DC, and Connecticut

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May 4, 2012

McKenzies Recommenzies: Fried Pizza at La Montanara!!!

Fried pizza… it’s all the rage in New York now. Of course I had to taste it for myself and thus went with three of my favorite foodie friends to check out La Montanara, sister restaurant to Forcella in the East Village and Williamsburg.

Well not only is the pizza fried, nearly everything on the menu is fried in some way or another! Although it’s called fried pizza, the only thing that is fried is the dough… which is flash fried for 30 seconds then topped with sauce and various ingredients and finished in the oven. The result is pretty darn good but the hands down best part of this entire pizza is the dough…the only criticism I have is that the house made mozzarella cheese on my pizza hadn’t fully melted but had on others. But the fried crust is fantastic…. its crunchy, chewy and doesn’t taste greasy.

The pizza at La Montanara is deliciously different. Next time I find myself drinking on the LES or in the East Village… I’m heading straight for them! This my friends is the PERFECT drunk food

La Montanara

168 Ludlow Street (between Stanton and Houston Streets)

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May 3, 2012

Check it Out: Derby de Mayo!

image via brotherjimmys.com

Put on your fancy hats and sombreros because this Saturday, May 5th brings together two fun and exciting celebrations into one helluva day! All across the country people will be downing margaritas and mint juleps side by side as we ring in the 138th Kentucky Derby and celebrate the crushing of Napoleon and the French Army in Mexico.

Still in need of a place to celebrate? Check out these Derby Day and Cinco de Mayo Specials going on all around the city….

Cinco de Derby: Celebrate both events at Studio Square where they are hosting a 2 for 1 special in their outdoor garden from 12-close! Enjoy live music, a bonnet and sombrero contest, mint julep and margarita specials, door prizes and a dj all day/night long!

Derby de Mayo: Brother Jimmy’s celebrates Derby de Mayo with a bottomless shindig from 5-7 features 2 hours of bottomless drinks and a bbq buffet! Get your tickets via Thrillist here!

Kentucky Derby:

Lowcountry: Watch the race while sipping down $38 Julep pitchers!

The Bell House: It’s a down home derby day party at the Bell House! Wear your finest (prizes will be given out to the best dressed) and dance the day away with a live dj and $6 mint juleps!

Maison Premiere: Enjoy a Derby Day soiree from 3-7pm with a barbecue, mint juleps, and music from the house band. But instead of screening the race, they will do it old school by broadcasting through an old fashioned radio!

Brooklyn Winery: The Brooklyn Derby party at Brooklyn Winery may be the best party in town! For just $75 you can party like you’re in Louisville with a 4 hour open bar and buffet while watching the race on the large screen outside in their courtyard!

Southern Hospitality (Hell’s Kitchen): Run for the Roses from 1-7pm with $3 Abita Drafts, $6 Frozen Mint Juleps and Fried Chicken Specials during the race!

The Brickyard: Dress up in your race day finest (prizes will be given out to the best attire) and head to Hells Kitchen where you can down $5 Mint Juleps all day long.

Cinco de Mayo:

Pampano: $6 margaritas and cocktails and $4 cervezas from 5pm-close!

Gran Electrica: Party outside all day at their new back garden that overlooks the Brooklyn Bridge with live music and tasty mexican eats!

Mex Fest at South Street Seaport: Pay as you go food truck festival of Mexican infused eats, treats and drinks from the likes of Luke’s Lobster, Souvlaki GR, Frites n Meats, Kimchi Taco, Milk Truck, Eddie’s Pizza and More! $5 ticket gets you a sombrero, and voucher good for 1 beer, 1 michelada, 1 shot of tequila, 1 margarita or 2 tacos! $25 gets you a sombrero and 5 tickets to the above items.

Rocking Horse Cafe: Enjoy 3 specially made Cinco de Mayo cocktails and tasty comidas (think mexican tapas) while you dance like you’ve never danced before with the mariachi band on hand all night long!

Rosa Mexicano: 10th Annual Festival includes a special menu, live music, prizes and giveaways!

675 Bar: Starting at 6pm celebrate with a mustache and sombrero party featuring margarita specials!

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May 2, 2012

My Latest Obsession: Cake Man Raven!!!

Of course, the minute I make the declaration that I hate cake and cupcakes, I find a cake that makes me weak in the knees! Last week I biked to Manhattan for a series of meetings and after biking close to 20 miles felt I deserved a sweet treat.

After dodging tourists left and right on the Brooklyn Bridge I began to sort through the places en route home that could satisfy my craving. I’d heard of the great red velvet cake at Cake Man Raven many times but being that I prefer pie, never ventured in. So when I passed it and hadn’t come up with a substitute in mind, figured why not taste this celebrated treat!?

It’s a simple storefront with display cases FILLED with slices of red velvet cakes in see-through plastic boxes. I inquired as to their other cakes and found that the only other option (for that day) was a pineapple upside down cake (their selection includes a yellow cake, chocolate, and coconut). But Cake Man Raven is known for its southern style red velvet so I went with their most popular slice. At $6, you get a piece of cake that is nearly bursting out of the package… this thing can feed two people easily!

Before departing, the lady at the counter gave me a tip that I MUST share with you all. I planned on walking out to a nearby bench and digging in but she suggested I microwave the cake for 10 seconds (and not a second more) to really enjoy my slice. So I took her advice, biked home and sliced the cake in two (I had to do a taste test!). While the cake is great at room temperature, it is absolutely amazing warmed up a little bit. The creamy frosting melts just a smidge over the moist dough which literally melts in your mouth with each bite.

After getting one bite of the slightly warm slice I quickly popped the room temp cake into the microwave for 10 seconds and went to town. My boyfriend would have been abhorred at the sight of my blissful happiness as I ate every last bit of this monstrous piece of cake. Thankfully, he was at work

Cake Man Raven

708 Fulton Street (between S Oxford St and S Portland Ave) *Fort Greene

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May 1, 2012

Deal of the Week: Early Bird Special at Kefi!

Kefi (Photo credit: duluoz cats)

Make like your grandparents and head to Kefi on the Upper West Side for a great early bird special! Enjoy a 3 course meal everyday from 5-6pm for only $16.95!!

Choose from a variety of greek specialties including their famous meatballs with roasted garlic and tomatoes, mussels with gigante beans and feta, tubular pasta with greek sausage, grilled branzino, pork medallions with spicy peppers and caper, rice pudding, walnut cake and more!

Kefi

505 Columbus Avenue (between 84th and 85th Streets)

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