The Employees Only crowd have joined forces with David Waltuck (chef/owner of Chanterelle and 2007 James Beard Award winner) to open Tribeca's Macao Trading Co., a big funky restaurant packed with antiques to evoke "the 1940s portside feel of Macao’s red lantern district." The space is bi-level and the menu's bi too, with Macao's history as a Portuguese colony reflected in both Chinese and Portuguese versions of ribs, bass tripe. Meals are served family-style in......

The new bike lane on Grand Street that a local shop owner recently called the possible "demise of Little Italy" continues to draw attention with complaints that fire trucks are struggling to maneuver around the new setup of the block. Ernest Lepore, owner of Ferrara Cafe who originally talked to Villager, appears to have taken his case against the lane to the Post, telling the paper, "I saw one truck back up four or five......

Prespa: This new bi-level restaurant and lounge is named after two freshwater lakes in southeast Europe shared by Greece, Albania, and the Republic of Macedonia. It's a redesign of what was formerly Prespa Mediterranean Brasserie, and Strong Buzz says Murray Hill gourmands are fervently hoping it'll become a local dining oasis in their mediocre neighborhood. The menu from Executive Chef Richard Farnabe (Jean-Georges, Montrachet) emphasizes Mediterranean tapas, but there are also full size entrees such......

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This is Greenhouse, a new 6,000 square foot, bi-level club that opened last week in Soho in the former Club Shelter space. As the name suggests, they're working the eco-friendly angle here with (deep breath) high-efficiency heating, an LED lighting system, fabrics made from recycled materials, bamboo floor and wall coverings, and furniture made with FSC wood. Owner Jon Bakhshi, who is applying for LEED certification, tells the Times he spent at least 33 percent......

This week Frank Bruni at the Times reviews Double Crown, the new bi-level restaurant and bar in the East Village that, in his words, "ponders the glories of culinary cross-pollination, making a promise of 'British-Indio-Asian' fusion that sounds more like a threat, given that it’s a two-hyphen fusion and that one of the words bumping up against one of the hyphens is 'British.' And isn’t India in Asia? Note to self: bone up on world......

The fourth New York City location of The Palm restaurant opened on Friday in Tribeca. This outpost is located in a luxury condo on 200 Chambers Street, and some residents there are none too thrilled about their proximity to the popular steakhouse. One gripes on the Wired New York board: "The Palm Restaurant is ruining my life...The entire lobby smells of the exhaust of the Palm Restaurant. Also certain hallways in the building and interiors......

At a press conference this morning, MTA executive Elliot Sander announced a "major initiative" that will enable the authority to let riders know how hard their commutes are going to suck with text messaging and email alerts in real time. The MTA has been working toward a real-time update system for several years now, starting out with weekly email updates and sporadic advisories on their website. In a statement, Sander said, "This is a revolutionary......

The Debate Society, arguably New York's most charming theater company, is adept at seducing their audience with the atmosphere of whatever locale they choose to evoke. Their latest work, called Cape Disappointment, meticulously conjures up Gothic worlds of lost highways, traveling salesmen, Eisenhower-era teens, and roadside bandits. Designer Karl Allen has done excellent work transforming the upstairs theater at P.S. 122 into a romantically decayed drive-in movie, even installing vintage speaker boxes throughout the audience. And to complete the scene, free bags of popcorn are distributed—noisy, crinkly bags that maddeningly break the spell just like at the cinema. ...

Boqueria Soho is the spacious new outpost of the decidedly smaller Flatiron district tapas joint, named for a food market in Barcelona and beloved by Times critic Frank Bruni for its "charismatically bustling, remarkably warm scene." The second location keeps the warm vibe while more than doubling in size, with room for 70 diners in the 2,300-square foot room. But the focal point here is the open kitchen, which is surrounded by a 12-seat chef’s......

OH: Don't expect the Times's Frank Bruni to review it—Portfolio theorizes he HATES going to Harlem—but for everyone else, this three story restaurant/bar seems worth a try. Well, maybe not everyone; the top floor is a member's only club where $500 gets you "top notch service" and discount food and drinks. ($1000 gets you "full VIP access" to the cigar terrace.) Greasy Guide has a full review and reports that the menu features mini catfish......

The new bike lane that extends along Grand Street between Varick and Chrystie Streets has been warmly received by many cyclists who like the way it's separated from traffic by a row of parked cars. Not so pleased are business owners through Soho, Little Italy and Chinatown, some of whom fear the bike lane will "hurt business and create a dangerous situation," according to The Villager. Ernest Lepore, owner of Ferrara Little Italy, says, "Last......

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If there was ever a time to open a glamorous new bi-level restaurant in midtown, this ain't it. But you've got to admire restaurateur Rohini Dey for going through with this NYC outpost of her acclaimed Indian-Latin American restaurant, called Vermilion in Chicago and At Vermilion here. If you build "At," they will come—and hopefully they'll still have a line of credit available. Her ambitious new location features a double-height water curtain, a 22-foot metal......

In a well-coordinated publicity stunt, the first cases of Georges Duboeuf 2008 Beaujolais Nouveau arrived in New York City yesterday via Harley-Davidson motorcade, with Franck Duboeuf (Georges Duboeuf’s son) holding it triumphantly aloft from a motorcycle sidecar. According to the Times, some 20 chefs, including David Bouley and Francois Payard, sommeliers, and a posse of Harley-Davidson Hog Club members chaperoned the wine from Battery Park to David Bouley’s new restaurant Secession, where lunch was served.......

Drab and dreary old Times Square is finally going to get some razzle dazzle starting tonight when a massive 17,000-square-foot, three-sided diagonal LED sign is turned on at 1 Times Square, right where the New Year's ball drops. Designed by D3 LED to promote the Walgreen's flagship location—not to mention other publicity-deprived corporations like Kraft, Johnson & Johnson, and Colgate—the "spectacular" display runs off almost 30 computers and uses 12 million energy efficient light-emitting......

When Sam Buffa, co-owner of the Freemans Sporting Club Barber Shops, went on his first impromptu date with his bride-to-be Jean Adamson, who was then head chef at Freemans, their night ended in Vinegar Hill, the quaint little neighborhood bordering DUMBO. So it's kind of sweet that their new labor of love is opening in a 19th century carriage house right where they started, and now reside. They've spent the last four and a half......

Macy's Parade Studio in Hoboken opened its doors yesterday for children from various New Jersey elementary schools to get a preview of this year's eight new floats and four new giant helium balloons. Disney's new Bolt movie was represented, but the real star was a freaky display of Woodland creatures celebrating the first Thanksgiving. (Or celebrating their first acid-fueled orgy?) And if you grew up on the Smurfs, you'll be happy or appalled to know......

This week the Times's Frank Bruni reviews Kurve (pictured), the Thai-centric space-age restaurant in the East Village, which has had a long, rocky road to opening. (After Sarah DiGregorio at the Voice ate there in September, she was informed it "was not yet open.") Bruni awards it zero stars and has fun with his disgruntled companions along the way:"Kurve struts. Until recently it outfitted its servers in proper hats, which prompted associations that changed depending......

Almost one month ago, Representative Anthony Weiner's brother Jason opened a Flatiron district outpost of Almond, his popular Hamptons restaurant. At the time, much was made of the restaurant/lounge's cursed location, which some say is still haunted by the ghosts of Borough Food & Wine, Jeffrey Chodorow’s Caviar & Banana, and Rocco DiSpirito's eponymous FAIL. Although Chef Weiner and his business partner Eric Lemonides have reportedly enjoyed a month of steady business, it's still too......

Dardanel: Salt crusted fish is the star of the reasonably priced seafood menu at this new midtown east restaurant (pictured), named for the strait that connects the Black Sea to the Mediterranean. As such, the high number of seafood dishes are complemented by Turkish classics like halvah pie. The fish is imported daily from the Mediterranean, and entrees include Brook Trout Casserole with grilled vegetables ($19); brick oven baked Black Sea anchovies with rice, pine......

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New York, meet the bike rack of the future. Today the DOT announced that after a lengthy design competition, a jury of six—including sodden cyclist David Byrne—chose "Hoop" (pictured) out of the ten finalists. It's the work of two Copenhagen designers, Ian Mahaffy and Maarten De Greeve. "Constructed of cast metal, the design is elegant yet sturdy enough to withstand New York cyclists’ harsh treatment," the DOT said in a statement. Mahaffy and De......

For anyone out there who still has money to spend at restaurants (congratulations one person; need arm candy?), here's 10 Downing, which officially opened last night in the West Village after a long delay. (It was originally scheduled to open over a year ago.) Chef Katy Sparks, who has developed quite the following at the Upper West Side restaurant Compass—and Soho's Quilty's—is teaming up here with Jason Neroni, whose pedigree includes Porchetta and the Tasting......

Since Amy Poehler had to go and get knocked up, and Tina Fey's return was only temporary, Saturday Night Live has been left with a severe shortage of female cast members. The NY Times reports that two new lucky ladies, Michaela Watkins and Abby Elliott (Chris's daughter), have been added--and they've got awfully big heels (and Palin wigs) to fill. If you're guessing that one of these women might be a minority (perhaps to play......

This week Frank Bruni reviews Market Table (pictured), the market-and-dining venue that now only focuses on dining from chef Mikey Price (who is a principal owner along with Joey Campanaro of Little Owl). And Bruni is taken by its "warm," "soothing," "humble," "unambiguous," and "generous" cooking, attitude and style and gives it two stars. He delights in discovering how "There’s bacon with the skate wing and bacon with the brussels sprouts and pancetta with......

There's a new New Year's Eve ball in town, and it's bigger and brighter than the one of year's past (12 feet in diameter, 11,875 pounds, and containing 32,000 LED lights and 2,668 pieces of crystal). One Good Morning America viewer, where it was unveiled earlier today (video), tells us that while it can "do patterns (sun, water, rainbow, American flag)"...it's "ugly" and lacking the charm that the old school ball had. However, the Waterford......

The Hanger Bar was a beloved dive on East Third Street with a pool table, DJ booth and a vintage clothes for sale up front. It closed some months ago, and owners Jay Schneider and Natalka Burian have given the place a serious face lift while keeping the drinking/clothing consumption combo. Bespoke men's suits will now be sold, but even more eye-catching is the antique sewing machine they've turned into a beer tap. For the......

This is the third Manhattan location for Bar And Books, which first opened in 1990 as a clubby lounge for cigars, scotch, whiskey, vintage port, wine, and other spirits. (They also have a couple in Prague.) This outpost is located on First Avenue and 50th Street, and features a back room for smoking, a front room for breathing, complimentary cigars for ladies on Mondays, and discount whiskeys on Tuesday nights. There's an impressive cheese and......

Indian Express: Dubbed "an expedition to Spiceland," this new Tribeca restaurant boasts two chefs as your tour guides: Alfred Durga Prasad and Alexander Xalxo, of Tamarind and Earthen Oven. (Alfred is regarded at a "Master Chef" of Indian Cuisine, so there's bound to be a some jealousy in the kitchen.) The press materials warn: "Don't let the name fool you...this is anything BUT fast food." Dishes served in the 65 seat restaurant include such items......