Zaytoons (594 Vanderbilt Ave between Bergen St & Dean St) is a Middle Eastern style restaurant that strives on ambience and authentic dishes. Each dish was so descriptive and hearty sounding on the menu and they meant what they wrote. Make sure to get the Pita bread (or maybe 2), they are so fluffy, airy, and flavorful that I couldn’t believe I was eating bread. They served it immediately after baking it too, so it was still fresh and hot! Their pizzas are great, and my lamb and rice plate was filled to the edges and filled with flavor, as all of the rice dishes here are. There’s a nice garden for when the weather gets nice and you want to eat outside as well; don’t forget to stop by Zaytoons after a hearty visit to the Brooklyn Museum for a hearty taste of the Middle East!
Nearest Transit:
7th Ave (Q, B)
Grand Army Plaza (2, 3)
Clinton-Washington Aves (C)
The NY Aquarium happens to be around Coney Island, which makes it a great place to visit. After a long day at the aquarium, what better way to relax than to walk down the boardwalk enjoying the view of the beach? While you’re at the boardwalk, be sure to pick up one of Nathan’s famous hot dogs. You won’t regret it.
It just wouldn’t be New York City without the Halal Food Carts! I’m probably the biggest halal food enthusiast you’ll ever find. I’ve had halal food from just about anywhere in New York City, and at just about any time of day. And I can tell you with confidence, that this is definitely one of the best, if not the best halal food stand in New York City. Just a block from the MoMA, the 53rd and 6th food cart is definitely a must eat. And at six dollars a platter, how can anyone resist?
Nearest Transit:
7th Ave-53rd St (B, D, E)
5th Ave-53rd St (E, V)
57th St-6th Ave (F) Hours: Mon-Sun 7:30 pm – 4 am
Just look at all the people on line for that halal food!
J G Melon (1291 3rd Avenue between 74th St & 75th St) is a comfy but classy restaurant, most known for their burgers and fries. You have not lived until you’ve tried their burgers (especially the bacon cheeseburger), moist, juicy, cooked exactly the way you ask every time, and perfectly sized; not too filling, but just enough to satisfy you (or have you wanting more.) On a college student’s budget, I wouldn’t frequent here everyday, but if I could, I sure would. It’s a bit of a walk from the MET, but close to the Whitney Museum. Perhaps you could hit up the Whitney, go for lunch or dinner at J G Melon, then walk off the meal towards the MET to finish your artistically delicious day in Manhattan.
Nearest Transit:
77th St (6) Hours: Mon-Sun 11:30 am – 4 am
E.A.T. (1064 Madison Ave between 80th St & 81st St) is a quaint little bakery and deli that is pricey, but has some pretty delicious pastries under $8. After anxiously choosing between the fruit tart, the breads, and the danishes, I went for the cheese Danish. It wasn’t a complete Halal food cart platter, but for $4 after a long day at the MET, it was a tasty little splurge.
I was born and raised in Jackson Heights, and I wouldn’t change that in a million years. Growing up in Jackson Heights has been nothing short of incredible. The best way that I could categorize Jackson Heights to you would be to imagine a Chinatown, except for Bangladeshi/Indian/Pakistani people. Jackson Heights is a cultural hotspot and has a lot of cultural history behind it. The area, although at one point inhabited primarily by Asians, is now primarily Indian and Bangladeshi. Walking down Jackson Heights, it feels as if you’re in another country. The market place and streets look nothing like New York City normally does.
As you can see, everything in Jackson Heights is very old fashioned. There are plenty of people sitting on the streets selling handmade goods that they made at home, and there are plenty of markets which resemble markets you’d generally see in a country like Bangladesh. Being a cultural hotspot, Jackson Heights has some really amazing restaurants which feature authentic Indian food. One of my favorite restaurants is Spicy Mina. Here’s a menu of the restaurant:
I’d recommend the chicken curry, which is probably one of the best chicken curry you’re ever going to have. As you can see, everything there is actually really cheap too, so it won’t even break your budget! After having an authentic Indian dish, there are also plenty of Indian bakeries in the area. Most of these bakeries sell authentic Indian sweets which are hard to come by elsewhere. My favorite bakery in the neighborhood is the Delhi Palace Sweets.
I’d recommend getting the rassgulla, which are paneer balls dipped in sugar syrup. It might sound a bit weird, but trust me, it’s delicious.
Additionally, Jackson Heights was also one of the first neighborhoods to have halal food carts. There has been halal food available in Jackson Heights in quite some time, but many of the actual carts originated from Jackson Heights. So if you’re looking for good quality halal food, you’ll have plenty of options. However, any Jackson Heights native will tell you that the best one is “Sammy’s Halal Food,” on 74th street, a block away from the Roosevelt Ave train station.
If you’re not looking for food, just walking around Jackson Heights can be a great experience. Just walking down the streets, you’ll see many things you won’t really see anywhere else. Traditional type of dresses, people speaking different languages, and a very traditional way of buying and selling things. It’s truly a great cultural experience.
Although Jackson Heights doesn’t really have any museums, a lot of the stores and scenes almost make it seem as though you’re in a museum. Walking around in my neighborhood is just entirely different from walking around any other neighborhood. There’s actually a small clothing store that my mom goes to pretty often called “Neena Sari Palace.” Theres plenty of traditional types of clothing and this store will surely make you more knowledgeable about Indian culture. If you’re interested in checking it out, theres a link here:
Another nice thing about living in Jackson Heights is the Roosevelt station. The Roosevelt station is one of the largest train stations in NYC. It has the 7, R, M, E, F, and G trains, making it really busy and really convenient to get to.
When I found out that we had to pick a museum on our own, I really had no idea where I wanted to go. I’ve never been a huge fan of museums, so none of the museums really stood out to me. As I visited the three mandatory museums, I began becoming more interested in museums and all the different exhibits that they offer. However, I wanted to do something outside of the artistic realm that the three prior museums revolved around. I started looking for museums that would be more educational in a cultural sense. As I researched museums, the Jewish Museum stood out to me. Seeing how I was raised in an Islamic household, I didn’t know much about the Jewish culture. Therefore, I decided to visit the Jewish Museum as my own personal museum.
Walking into the Jewish Museum, the first exhibit that caught my eyes were the many Hanukkah lamps. I soon found out that the Jewish Museum actually has the largest collection of Hanukkah lamps in the Western hemisphere. As I walked around, I saw hundreds of different Hanukkah lamps. Each of them unique in their own way. The museum also had many little subtitles which explained fundamental Jewish culture and educated the visitors about Hanukkah.
As I walked along the museum, I found myself infront of the Houdini exhibit. Houdini had always been one of my favorite magicians as a kid. As I grew up, I was completely enthralled by magic. I loved the sense of illusion and mystique it gave off. That made Houdini a must see exhibit for me.
Through impossibly daring feats Harry Houdini (1874-1926) captivated audiences worldwide, and his legendary escapes instill awe to this day. The museum featured many of his magic apparatus such as his strait jacket, handcuffs, and milk cans. The exhibit also talks about how Houdini was a magician in two different aspects. In one aspect, he was incredible in escaping physical constraints. However, in another aspect, he was also incredible in escaping the metaphysical constraints. Houdini was able to leave Budapest all the way to New York and was able to succeed in New York.
Overall, I enjoyed going to the Jewish Museum a lot. It was a great experience for me to be exposed to another religion’s ideas and holidays and really widened my knowledge about Jewish people. It has some really incredible exhibits, and the Houdini exhibit is a definite must see for any magic lovers!
Roy Lichtenstein is definitely one of my favorite artists, known most famously for his Pop Art paintings in comic book style. I was actually introduced to his paintings when I visited the National Museum of Art in Washington D.C., and I’ve loved his work ever since. Lichtenstein captures these cartoon scenarios and makes them larger than life as well as tranforms them into a more realistic context, as if these comic book characters and speech bubbles represented snapshots of a regular person’s daily life struggles.
In order to paint in a comic book style, Roy Lichtenstein’s 1963 Drowning Girl,for example, is illustrated with a half tone. A half tone is a reprographic technique that contains a continuous tone of the same color broken into binary images, or what you see as these dots. All of the dots are the same color, but when they vary in size of spacing, the “half tone” creates the optical illusion of different shades and values of color.
Lichtenstein’s dots look stimulating to the eye both up close and far away in this 67 5/8 x 66 3/4″ oil painting, catching a woman in emotional distress and shouting, “I don’t care! I’d rather sink than call Brad for help!” I love how Lichtenstein controls both the dramatic and the familiar in his style, exposing a scene like Drowning Girlat such a large scale to bring light to some of our trivial problems in everyday life.
In the midst of such accredited artworks at the Museum of Modern Art, I saw a large crowd, gathered around a specific section of a wall. Everyone had their fancy DSLRs and camera phones to get a quick snapshot of the mysterious piece and would immediately leave. Once I made my way to the front of the crowd, there it was. Vincent Van Gogh’s 29 x 36 1/4″ oil painting, The Starry Night hung on the wall in front of me, illuminating in symphonic silence from within the very cypress trees and moonlight sky on the canvas.
Van Gogh had painted The Starry Night in 1889 during his year at the asylum in Saint-Rémy de Provence, the most difficult time of his life. However, through his depression and isolation, this masterpiece swirls into success, a view front out of his window with a lucid dream like quality and comforting application of materials. Each brushstroke on the canvas feels like an intuitive decision that progressed with the painting itself and since it is done in impasto, Van Gogh adds physical movement and body to the piece with his thick application of paint. The yellows shine at the perfect humble volume and the blues and greens danced together across the sky and throughout the village, sweeping our eyes deep into The Starry Night.
The Dinner Party is an important icon from the 1970s. It’s presented as a centerpiece around the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art. The exhibit comprises of a ceremonial banquet on a table with a total of thirty-nine settings, each of which commemorate an important woman from history. The Dinner Party features embroidered runners, gold chalices and utensils, and beautiful china. It’s quite the beautiful piece. Additionally, there are 999 women who’s names are inscribed in gold on the floor. This is a permanent installation at the Brooklyn Museum.
The Dinner Party immediately caught my attention. Not only did it seem extremely sophisticated, but it’s a huge exhibit and is sure to stand out. I remember spending a lot of my time just walking around the table, appreciating all the art and the beautiful utensils and china. Learning about the Dinner Party was a really good experience too because it allowed me to educate myself on influential females in history.
Kehinde Wiley (1977) is known for painting members from urban neighborhoods in very regal settings. While traditionally, the people in Wiley’s paintings would be looked at as troublemakers or “shady” characters, Wiley’s work helped paint them in a lighter light. Seeing them float around on clouds and be painted in such vivid colors allows the audience to be more comfortable with their image.
The reason this painting stood out to me was that it was a painting I found myself relating to. Often, we find that we make hasty judgments on people based off their appearances. Every day walking down the street, walking into class, walking into a store, anywhere. I found Wiley’s work a refreshing way to slowly break down our stereotypes and make us more comfortable with all types of people, from all demographics. It was humorous to see men who would traditionally be called “scary” floating around on clouds, being giddy and energetic, and it was an image that will stay with me for a long time to come.
Walking to the Brooklyn Museum, what surprised me most was that the building was simply gorgeous. The building has a very historic look to it, with grand pillars and sophisticated sculpting towering over the building. It surely makes a great first impression on any prospective visitor.
The piece from the Egyptian art collection at the MET that appealed to me was the “Statuette of a Hippopotamus,” created during 1981-1885 B.C.E. This 4 3/8 inch hippo sculpture is made of a quartz ceramic medium called faience, and is painted in a turquoise color with outlines of nature. The sculpture is not completely naturalistic, but depicts the essence of a delicate and slow but strong and lumbering hippopotamus.
This statuette’s function was similar to that of the Near Eastern lamassus, to protect in the afterlife. Senbi II had this hippo sculpture buried with him in his tomb, along with food, models of boats, and a coffin. The black outline on the hippo’s body represent the nature of the habitat that the hippo lived in, among marshes and plants. The turquoise coloring could represent the hippo’s river habitat as well.
But why a hippo? In Egyptian culture, the hippopotamus was “one of the most dangerous animals in the world.” Because of their large size, hippos were hazards to many people using the waters for fishing, trade, etc. In order to control the hippo from also being a hazard to the waters of the afterlife, the sculptor created this statuette and originally had broken off 3 of its 4 legs, (they have been restored by the MET) in order to prevent the creature from “harming the deceased.” Many of the Egyptian gods and goddesses were also depicted as a hippopotamus because of their reputations to be capable of great destruction as well as carry many things. The Egyptian goddess Tauret represented fertility and childbirth, depicted as a pregnant hippopotamus standing on her hind legs as half human, half hippo. The Egyptian god Seth, evil brother of Osiris was also depicted as a hippo because he was the “god of violence, storms, and destructive forces that made Egypt vulnerable.” This object reflects many of the views in Egyptian culture as many pharaohs have brought tangible objects into their tombs to protect keep them prosperous in the afterlife. For example they believed that if a sculptor were to bury the pharaoh’s fortune and a replica of his entire army with him in the tomb, he/she would continue to be wealthy and militarily strong in the afterlife.
I thought that the “Winged Lion” lamassu stood out to me the most at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, because of the naturalistic environment it was in. While walking into the room, two symmetrical lamassi on either side made the area more regal to walk through. The “Winged Lion” also intrigued me due to its immense sense of power within it. This creature has the face of King Ashurnasirpal II and the body of a lion with the wings of a large bird or angel. The mythical combination of generally powerful figures (a lion, the king, and the creature of flight) adds even more power to the sculpture along with the Alabaster medium that it is created out of. This living rock sculpture stares right at you and transforms from human to mythical creature as you travel around the wall.
The “Winged Lion” lamassu was created in 883-859 B.C. during the reign of King Ashurnasirpal II and was a gift to the Metropolitan Museum of Art from John D. Rockefeller, Jr. in1932. After being excavated from Northern Mesopotamia, this 10 foot 3 ½ inch tall structure was placed in front of gateways within the palace, leading right to the king’s throne. These lamassi were to protect and support the Assyrian palaces, towering over the passerby as they enter the small hallway. This lamassu is plays a poignant role in the Near Eastern, Assyrian culture because it shows one of the many ways that leaders in this time period displayed how much power and protection they had in their present time or afterlife.
I’ve always had a lot of appreciation for dancers and choreography. Seeing how it feels as though I have two left legs, I’m always amazed by how well some people are able to dance. When I heard that we’d have the opportunity to attend Fall for Dance, I was pretty excited from the get go. I walked into the theatre with high expectations for an incredible show.
Fall for Dance began with the Three Movements piece, arguably my favorite piece of the night. I tend to watch a lot of hiphop choreography videos, and the Three Movements piece was very similar to many of the hip hop videos I had seen. This piece did an excellent job syncing the music with the performer’s movements and made it entertaining to watch. The woman’s voice was also interesting, although I wasn’t too fond of her voice, I thought it was interesting that ballet was able to mix so many elements of dance and performance into one piece.
The next piece was the Red Angels piece. I remember watching this in class and being really surprised at how well defined the ballet dancers were. However, in the actual show, the electric violin caught my attention first. It was the first time I had heard an electric violin live, and it was pretty interesting to listen to. However, as the piece went on, I began to notice the dancer’s bodies more and more. I was astonished that they had such muscle definition from dancing, and it made me think about just how much work they must put into practicing for these dances to have such a well defined body. Although the performance wasn’t as entertaining as the Three Movements piece, the Red Angels piece still made for interesting lighting, interesting effects, and an enjoyable mirror performance.
Duet, the third piece of the night, completely lost my interest. The piece was so random and it didn’t really make any sense to me. I didn’t find it interesting in the slightest, and it put me to sleep pretty quickly so I don’t have much to say about this piece.
The final piece, ID:ENTIDADES was completely phenomenal. There were multiple performances going on at the same time. Although it wasn’t as organized as the Three Movements piece, it still managed to be clear and entertaining to me, as opposed to the Duet piece. The dancers had graceful movements, and I found the break dancing to be incredibly entertaining to watch. Having had watched so many hip hop videos, I found it really enjoyable to finally be able to see dancers performing windmills and flares in person.
Ballet isn’t quite what I thought it would be, but it’s a good kind of different. I always thought ballet had to be slow, graceful, boring dancing, but the Fall for Dance completely changed my previously ignorant view on ballet.
I recently had the pleasure of attending Rigoletto at the Metropolitan Opera. Like most of the other students in my class, Rigoletto was the first opera I’ve ever attended. Coming into the show, I had nothing good to say about operas. However, by the time I left, my perception of opera as a form of entertainment had completely changed.
The first thing I noticed about the show was how incredible the set was. It looked completely realistic and it made me very aware of the performance. As the performers began to come out, I immediately noticed their costumes. Each and every costume was completely realistic, and really helped engage the viewers. The music, costumes, and set made me feel completely immersed into the show.
Shortly after, the performers began singing. When I heard how loud and how clear they were singing, I was completely blown away. Although our seats were in the back middle, I was able to hear them perfectly. The power and clarity in their voices could be heard no matter where you were on the stage. Although I had seen some short opera clips on the computer, it wasn’t until I went to a live show that I was able to finally appreciate the skill it must take to be able to project your voice so loudly and powerfully. The more I watched the show, the more I realized that opera was much more entertaining than I had first thought.
As the plot progressed, I started paying attention to the story as opposed to paying attention to details on the stage. As I read the subtitles, I couldn’t help but start feeling as though the story was simply moving forward too slowly. Although the singing was magnificent, the plot simply took too long to move forward. Simple actions took far too long to happen, and I slowly began losing concentration and started to get bored of the plot. Additionally, I noticed that the plot seemed very unrealistic at times. The opera portrayed people as really foolish, and I just didn’t see that opera being realistic in the slightest sense.
Although the opera was unrealistic at many times, I still found it enjoyable to watch. I found myself appreciating many aspects of art and theatre that I had never even considered in the past. Additionally, it was nice to form my own views on opera instead of taking someone else’s word for it. I’m not sure if I’d watch another opera voluntarily, but I’m glad that I can say that I’ve actually attended an opera.
A preview of all the different operas from the MET’s Fall 2010 lineup.
Living in NYC, I’ve always come across small theatres. In particular, I had seen Film Forum quite a few times. Although I’ve always wondered what kind of movies they played and what it was like to watch a movie in a small theatre, I never had the motivation to actually go watch a movie. When I heard we were going to be watching Magnetic Fields at the Film Forum, I was actually pleasantly surprised.
Walking into the theatre, I realized just how different these small theatres were from big movie theatres. I didn’t see long lines of anxious movie goers, I didn’t see any arcades, I just saw a small box office in a modest little room. Going into the movie, I had no idea what I was in for. The only thing I knew about the movie was that it was called Strange Powers.
As the movie begun, I came to understand that the movie was about a band, Stephin Meritt and the Magnetic Fields. I’d never heard of Stephin Meritt before I walked into that theatre, nor had I heard of the Magnetic Fields. However, I soon became very well acquainted with them. As I thought about how there was an actual documentary on a band I’d never even heard before, the movie narrator uttered that “to most, they’re completely unknown.” It was refreshing to see that the narrator was down to earth and understanding of his audience.
I found the documentary itself to be fairly interesting. It gave us insight into the lives of Stephin Meritt and the rest of his band. It was interesting to see how songs came together and how the songs sound before they’re actually ready to be performed in a studio or in public. I wasn’t used to seeing songwriters actually writing their songs. Additionally, it was interesting to get a glimpse into the actual lives of these singers. I have no idea what the artists I listen to are like in real life. However, the documentary added a third dimension to many of the band members and allowed me to understand and appreciate the band more.
Although the movie wasn’t the most exciting movie I’ve ever seen, I still found it intriguing to watch. It was also a great experience being in a small theatre and looking at and appreciating the smaller aspects of the movie business. I’d recommend that everyone watch something at a small theatre – it’s an experience they surely won’t regret.
One of my favorite Magnetic Fields songs. If you look along the right side for the “Related Videos,” you can find plenty of other Magnetic Fields songs.
When I found out that we had to watch an off Broadway show called “Break of Noon,” I wasn’t exactly in the best mood. As I asked around, I found out that the play was going to have both David Duchovny and Amanda Peet in it, my spirits were lifted a bit. I grew up watching David in X-Files, and I remember seeing Amanda in 2012.
As I got to the theatre, I didn’t notice anything special about it. It wasn’t an upscale place or a run down theatre, but just your average, every day, small theatre. As I walked through towards my seat, I had no idea what to expect. The only thing I knew about the play were the actors and the title.
As I anxiously waited the play to begin, I remember being surprised by a loud banging noise. Through the bright lights, I saw David sitting at the center stage. I didn’t really know what he was talking about, but I was actually a little disappointed in his acting. It seemed forced and over exaggerated, but I still found it to be interesting. I guess he wasn’t as effective on an off Broadway play as he is on TV.
One thing that stuck out to me as I watched the show was that there were constantly bright lights and really loud noises. It kept me awake and added to the overall tension of the play.
When Amanda Peet came on stage, it struck me that there were two really famous actors standing just a hundred feet away from me in this little theatre. I thought it was pretty awesome that we had the opportunity to be able to watch these plays, for free at that. What I found interesting was that I was more impressed with the performances of the unknown actors. John Earl Jelks and Tracee Chimo, both of whom I had never heard of before, completely nailed their lines and kept me into the plot for the entirety of the play. Not to mention, John Earl Jelks was beyond hilarious. Without their spectacular performances, I wouldn’t of enjoyed the play nearly as much.
As the play came to a close, what I noticed was that we had very different perspectives on what the ending meant. This, to me, was the sign of a good play. I liked knowing that what I thought about the ending may or may not be correct, and that the ending promoted conversation and reflection. After we got outside, a couple of us actually waited for David Duchovny and Amanda Peet to come out and we even got to take a few pictures with them. It was a great experience, and a great night.
A David Letterman interview with David Duchovny from October 16th. Learn more about David’s experiences regarding the play!
This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
Strictly Necessary Cookies
Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.
If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.
