Or so they say. Well, maybe, maybe not, but regardless, we wanted to give you some options for food and drink-related events on Valentine's Day. Targeted at those out there for whom Valentine's Day is not a welcome occasion, the Sunburnt Cow is having a "No Love at the Cow" party. $25 gets you all you can drink, beer, wine and “Anti-Love” juice, plus a "1980s style disco experience," complete with an ice slide for......

Some people may prefer other bakeries, but from the looks of the crowd at the Magnolia Bakery's new Upper West Side location, people are hungering for some heavily frosted cupcakes. If the treats are available, that is. We stopped by the bakery yesterday, a day after its Saturday opening, and the shop was packed. And many of the customers were victim to the opening frenzy, because Magnolia ran out of cupcakes for a spell......

Easy, sugar fiends - the new Magnolia Bakery outpost on the Upper West Side (Columbus at 69th Street) isn't quite opening at 11AM as Eater reported yesterday. We walked by around 9:30AM and the sign said that they anticipated a noon opening. Magnolia had always been a popular West Village stop for more super-sugary and homey desserts when a seemingly sudden cupcake craze hit the city. Next thing we knew, there were analyses of......

Eater confirmed that cupcake confectioner heavyweight Magnolia Bakery is opening its first branch location on Columbus Avenue and West 69th Street. Magnolia owner Steve Abrams, an Upper West Sider, told Eater, "My friends who know I own Magnolia keep asking when I'm going to open them a bakery up here. So I think it's time." Well, it's probably time and having the right retail space. The store will occupy the corner that Japanese restaurant Lenge......

As it is the week before Labor Day, many area schools are welcoming a new class of students to New York in what is generally known as an orientation week. The New York Sun reports on various efforts schools put into shepherding thousands of 18-year-olds into NYC.First-year students arriving at Barnard, Columbia, and New York University have many activities to choose from this week, including: yoga classes, exclusive tours of the new Greek and Roman......

Perhaps our favorite expression we learned in a recent visit to Rioja, in Spain, is “cojonudo.” It may be slightly vulgar as the etymology of the word has something to do with balls, cojonas, but that is not the only reason we like it. The word is used is to describe something that is really…really good. For example, the banana pudding at Magnolia Bakery can easily be described as cojonudo. As a writer, it is......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a police officer was struck at Varick and Grand Sts. in Manhattan, a pedestrian was struck at 49th St. and 12th Ave. in Brooklyn, and a person was down a hole on Farmers Blvd. in Queens. Al Sharpton is upset with gossip site TMZ.com for referring to Beyoncé Knowles outfit at an awards show as "roboho"; TMZ says they have called many white celebrities ho's. The life-size sculpture of......

Rebecca Charles, NYC lobster roll pioneer and owner of Pearl Oyster Bar will do whatever it takes to protect the formula she has created to make Pearl such a success. She has brought suit in Federal court against Ed McFarland, her former sous chef and owner of Ed's Lobster Bar, claiming that he copied “'each and every element' of Pearl Oyster Bar, including the white marble bar, the gray paint on the wainscoting, the......

- The city and firefighters have come to a contract agreement - and it's retroactive to 2003 - The Transport Workers Union wonders what its members think of the contract - The site of the recently demolished Lower East synagogue is on sale - Okay, let's say it again: Magnolia Bakery is so so so over - Senior newsman and meatloaf (the food) enthusiast Mike Wallace is retiring from 60 Minutes but gets the......

The approximate timeline from Saturday Night Live video, no, wait, digital short, to being "above the fold" on the NYTimes.com website is nine days! We doubt The Lonely Island/SNL gang was up at 8AM to see the "Lazy Sunday" article, "Nerds in the Hood, Stars on the Web," take the prime position on the Gray Lady's Less Gray Website, but Gothamist did. And we love the internet. Apparently the Lonely Island guys, Andy Samberg, Akiva......

HBO is releasing the $299 20-disk DVD set of all Sex and the City episodes tomorrow, and to celebrate that, they've arranged various promotions at different locations Carrie, Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte visited, which you can see here at the SATC's Put Yourself on the Map website. If you think you're getting a real Sex and the City Experience, you'd be wrong, as Barneys, Manolo Blahnik, Jimmy Choo, The Soho House, Tiffany, the Hudson,......

New Yorkers' love for cupcakes have made them a staple snack, sweet treat, or office birthday party surprise as the household names Sugar Sweet Sunshine, Magnolia Bakery, and Billy's Bakery spark visions of buttery sweet frosting, densely rich cake, and the playfulness of a childhood birthday party. Despite cupcakes' trendiness, last weekend when Gothamist was at a wedding, we were still surprised that in lieu of a wedding cake, the husband-and-wife to be opted......

The Magnolia Bakery Cookbook: Old-Fashioned Recipes from New York's Sweetest Bakery, by Jennifer Appel and Allysa Torey (Simon & Schuster) Back during the fat-free craze of the early '90s, Gothamist used to make lots of very-low-fat muffins, where the fat source was replaced with apple sauce, resulting in a not-so-delicious (yet seemingly healthful) treat. But when the anti-carb brigade came along next, we learned of the ills of refined starches and sugars, and that they......

It's that time of the year again: NY Magazine's Best of New York issue is out. This is when already fans of certain establishments must put up with the hordes of people trying to get in on the action. For instance, restaurant Ici in Fort Greene will never be under the radar again. But it is helpful knowing that G+G Cleaners on Grand Street is a great cheap place for alterations and that Simadi Salon......

Peg Williams & Deb Weiner, sugar Sweet sunshine bakery owners...

Gothamist is always in the market for a new cookbook, especially with Thanksgiving just around the corner. Here are a few suggestions that might inspire you to try a new recipe and impress your holiday guests later this week. Jamie Oliver, also known from his early TV series as The Naked Chef, has released his fifth book, Jamie’s Dinners. With an emphasis on family cooking, fast cooking, and fun cooking, his latest book is littered......

The Buttercup Bake Shop Cookbook: More Than 80 Recipes for Irresistible, Old-Fashioned Treats, by Jennifer Appel (Simon & Schuster, 2001) Gothamist's addiction to cupcakes has been well documented. At the risk of turning Gothamist into a cupcakes blog, along the lines of Slice, here's another entry devoted to Gothamist's favorite food. We were thrilled to pick up The Buttercup Bake Shop Cookbook for half price at the Strand, since we always visit Buttercup to pick......

In NYC, there's nothing like taking a successful concept and running with it in every single possible neighborhood. The Times' Michelle Golden digs into the creation stories that most New Yorkers with a sweet tooth have wondered about: What caused the recent boom of cupcakeries. Gothamist was relieved to finally understand the intricate relationships (pleasant or difficult) and the so-and-so "begat" such-such. The lifeline starts at Magnolia Bakery, with Buttercup Bakeshop, Sugar Sweet Sunshine, and......

Rachel Kramer Bussel, Smut Editor/Writer...

For the love of tiny cakes with frosting on top: The Daily News turns sixteen adults and children into cupcake testers to find the best cupcakes in New York, rating them on a scale of 1 (low) to 5 (lovely). Some of the usual suspects include, Magnolia Bakery, Sage in LIC, Sweet Melissa, Crumbs, Magnolia, Amy Sedaris at Joe, and Polka Dot, but remember, cupcakes are subjective, so don't get bent out of shape if......

Jenny Oh, Documentary Filmmaker...

Last night was made for wandering around Greenwich Village to partake in two olfactory wonders of the world: The melony-floral-honey scent of blooming linden trees and the hypnotic smell of Magnolia Bakery's rich buttercream frosting. Of course, Gothamist had to partake in a cupcake (pink frosting, yellow cake; the yellow cake is moister than the chocolate).......