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July Events

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Summer is well in swing now and there are many free events to keep you busy locally. This includes: movies in the park, Macy’s 4th of July fireworks in the park, Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest, Gluten Free Expo and much more.

For concert lovers there is the Panorama Music Festival, Radiohead, Kimya Dawson and many others.  The weather in Manhattan around this time period usually cooperates too with temperatures ranging from 26 to 29 C (low to mid 80s) during the day and 17 to 21 C (mid to high 60s at night).

Night time adventures in the area include: rooftop parties, Shakespeare in the Park, Midsummer Night Swing and various special events to celebrate July 4.

 

 

The Edison Hotel

Art Comes to Edison

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The Edison Hotel in Times Square is getting a history lesson through art. Three new murals painted by Bronx man show how the crossroads of the world have evolved over the years. Today’s Times Square is very different from what it looked like two-and-a-half decades ago.  Mural artist Arnie Charnick captures this change in a series of murals at the Edison Hotel.

“I proceeded to do three full color big scale drawings of my concept of the history of Times Square in three time periods.  The subject of Times Square when I started to look into it was excessive in data, images and history so I had to decide what to put in there. Some of them are iconic images that a lot of people recognize; some of them are personal, etc.”

The first murals were posted in sepia tones depict the early days of Broadway of Vaudeville. The second recreates he iconic and euphoric kiss when World War II ended.  The third – which Charnick calls the seedy era – viewed through a cab window of X-rated movie houses and peep shows.

Charnick himself however, sees them as “one piece with three parts.”  See for yourself at Shimmie Horn’s Edison Hotel in Times Square.

Triumph Hotels

Garden Parties, Movie Nights and More

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Near to Shimmie Horn’s Triumph hotels – spanning Tribeca, Upper East Side, central New York, etc. – are fabulous spots for enjoying some superb summer events.  Here, we take a brief look at three of them.

The Spring Garden Party – hosted each year by The Frick Collection – opens itself up for locals to check out.  Once a year the amazing garden becomes accessible to those invited to the event.  To get an invite to the event featuring a live jazz band, pop-up bars and more, you have to have made a bit of a name for yourself as a fashionista, musician, restaurateur, or philanthropist. Once you get it, check out the official “off-limits area” on the second floor.

For something lower key that requires you to have zero recognition or award-winning qualities, the  Bryant Park Movie Nights series this year has a wonderful lineup including such classics as Driving Miss Daisy and When Harry Met Sally.  Enjoy the best vendors the city has to offer via the Hester Street Fair offering music, biking, art and film. With a secret show, cinematic shorts, BMX display, a Joyride Art exhibition and more, the annual event that in now in its 18th year, continues to be a “major catalyst for the urban bike movement, one of the most powerful and culturally relevant forces of the last decade.”

Restaurants

BarBacon

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BarBacon is going to open a second branch in Manhattan.  The eatery – a brainchild of Hell’s Kitchen – already has a presence at 836 9th Avenue in Manhattan.  This one will be between East 12th and 13th Streets and is on a 15 year lease for a 5,837 square foot space.

It is more than an eater as well.  It has a mission, which is to raise the public’s standards and expectations of quality bacon through its “chef-driven bacon dishes,” promoting the consumption of “bacon is an indulgence, the perfect combination of today’s two food taboos, salt and fat.  However, rest assure your indulgence is not in vain, for bacon has a long rich history and by eating it you are supporting much of what makes America great.  Bacon “made in America” has always carried a label of quality, but not all bacon is made equal.  Bacon’s flavor, as with that of any charcuterie, directly reflects the meat is being cured, so great bacon always starts with great pork belly most often from small farms.  There are all kinds of high quality American bacons on the market, smoked with hickory of corncobs, flavored with red pepper on molasses, some sweet, some salty.”

Those concerned about smells wafting around the area need not worry since much attention was paid to the engineering with this in mind.

Frederick Hotel

The Frederick Hotel

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Shimmie Horn’s Frederick Hotel has been featured in Vogue. With its new eatery opening at the beginning of the month, Primo’s has been slated to “bring considered downtown vibes to an area that hasn’t been known for its late-night hospitality since the Odeon defined the city’s after-hours scene in the 1980s.”

With the recent success of new businesses in the area, managing partner Aisa Shelley felt ready to take the plunge with this cool, funky new place. With interiors designed by Camilla Deterre, the place features a “mismatched terrazzo tile floor” within an Italian style art deco and Mediterranean coast.

There is a broad mirror creating an optical illusion if you’ve drunk a few too many and round tables with jewel-colored stools.  Daryl Nuhn is the wine developer, making the beverage  90 percent natural.  For those wanting to eat there you have a choice of going totally healthy (tons of veggies prepared all sorts of ways) or going back to your childhood for sandwiches and pasta.  Of course, no matter what your choice is (healthy or decadent) you simply will not be able to resist the “special pistachio-Pernod scoop in its affogato, with coffee from Brooklyn’s Variety” thanks to a joint project with Morgenstern’s!

Entertainment

Fun on Fifth Avenue

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When spending time in New York, one should make the most of it and branch out to as many activities as possible.

May weather is often really good in New York – perfect for long walks and enjoying nature.  Central Park is wonderful this time of year and the Heart of the Park Tour – Central Park is wonderful.  For some musical delights, check out the Pre-College Symphony which is actually today.

These events are free and provide tourists (and residents alike actually) with a great avenue to enjoy New York city!

Belleclaire Hotel

Central Park Tour

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In this video, the NYC Traveler begins his tour in Central Park, Manhattan. Located close to Shimmie Horn’s Hotel Belleclaire, the NYC Traveler takes us inside one of the world’s largest museums – the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH).

The museum features 28 interconnected buildings which have 45 permanent exhibition halls, a planetarium and a library. There are more than 33 million specimens[5] of plants, animals, fossils, minerals, rocks, meteorites, human remains, and human cultural artifacts; only a fraction of these are on show at any one time, occupying over 2,000,000 square feet.

Entertainment

Pop-Ups Returning to Manhattan

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The summer is on its way and so are new additions to Manhattan’s food scene. Urbanspace is bringing pop-ups Broadway Bites and Mad. Sq. Eats back!  Featuring Empanada Papa and Domo Taco vendors from the past, the latest additions Manhattaners can enjoy are Daa! Dumplings Ramen Buger and Cyro Cream!

Mad Sq. Eats is actually opening today at General Worth Square.  Take a look for yourselves at the 25 vendors including Burger & Lobster, Gotham Poke and Roberta’s pizza.

For Thrillist’s Best NYC Restaurants So Far This Year, click here.

Entertainment

Annual Tribeca Film Festival

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New York City’s annual Tribeca Film Festival was founded in 2002 “by Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro and Craig Hatkoff, reportedly in response to the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the consequent loss of vitality in the Tribeca  neighborhood in Lower Manhattan,” today, in its 17th year it features nearly 100 movies spread out over 12 days in the hub of NYC.

It began 10 days ago but there is still a lot going on.  It featured “high-profile premieres and after-parties” in some of the region’s most luxurious spots.  Included in the top celebrities were: power couple Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker, Lily James and Tessa Thompson, Christina Hendricks and Alysia Reiner.  The “Tribeca Talks” lecture series had Spike Lee and Robert De Niro participating.

Good news for the women too; this year witnessed the largest amount of female feature film directors since the inception of the Festival. And local flavor was very apparent as well.

What a great event for New Yorkers and visitors alike.