Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a power outage on Beach Channel Dr. in Queens, a shooting on Nostrand Ave. in Brooklyn, and a car in the water at Rockaway and Brookville Blvds. in Queens. If you think you're buying a super-cheap iPod at a Mom and Pop electronics store, you're probably buying a fake. Some Queens residents will be relieved to know that LIRR trains will no longer blast their horns for 15 to......

October 22-28: Lance Armstrong Week at Hill Country All this week, barbeque restaurant Hill Country is donating a portion of its sales to the Lance Armstrong Foundation, which aids people with cancer and their families. Hill Country, 30 West 26th Street (between 6th and Broadway). 212-255-4544. October 25-November 2: Bon Appétit Supper Club and Café Bon Appétit Magazine opens a “pop-up” café, designed by The Rockwell Group. The café will serve food from notable chefs,......

Did you ever hear the one about the vineyard in Queens, just minutes away from the Little Neck Parkway Q46 bus stop? Even if you haven’t, it’s true. First reported three years ago, the borough is finally set to prove it has terroir in spades with the imminent production of its namesake wine. The epicenter for this oenophile revolution is the Queens County Farm Museum, described on its website as “New York City's largest remaining......

If you haven’t gotten a pumpkin yet for Halloween, head out to Queens. Today you can pick your own at the Queens County Farm. Begun in 1697, this is the only working historical farm in the city. All kinds of vegetables are grown on site, and animals like these piglets are raised here. Today there will also be a haunted house ($4 admission, from 1-7pm) as well as a children’s fall festival with hayrides, a......

Is there anywhere to go apple picking near the city which is accessible by public transit? We're so glad you asked this question, because we are getting ready to kick it into gear for Autumn of Fun 05, which involves getting large-ish groups of people together for autumnal excursions such as apple picking. We found a few orchards that offer apple picking and directions by mass transit: Wickham's Fruit Farm, in Cutchogue, Long Island can......