Rob & Andrew, aka stuff i DRINK at places

Meet Rob and Andrew...

sheeeeeeeesh. what a way to start a week...this post is going to be about stuff i drink because well, it's worth blogging about. benders are fun to read about, right?? (jk mom/dad/jill/grandma/&co. i did not go on a bender)

MONDAY, June 14th
(i'm gonna stop doing the 'DAY # and just go with the date. is that ok with everyone? great.)

i was plannnnnnnning on being a good girl and not spending any money today (or very little) and spending the whole day looking for a job and/or putting my room together. well, that didn't happen. it all started with the World Cup...

Italy vs. Paraguay. sorry, had to watch it. that's my team. (i know, i know it's a totally unpopular team choice but i dont care. remember the D&G ads from the World Cup 2006???!!! Stephanie, remember the size of that billboard in the Milan Airport!? huge.)

so first i met up with another SF friend Andrew Pettit who is a chef and who i can totally nerd out with about things like produce and cooking utensils...
first things first, food. we went back to Vanessa's Dumpling House and THIS time i got a picture...

Pork and Chive FRIED dumplings this time and the same AMAZING Sesame Pancake with Peking Duck. (you just have to get that every time i think.) also i got a Jasmine Green Iced Tea. $5. alll of that. Andrew accidentally got two orders of dumplings that he didn't even order but didn't realize he had overpaid because they are $1!! score!

GAME TIME!

(those of you who are surprised that i would be so excited about watching the World Cup, please refer to the first paragraph of this post. also turns out soccer is fun to watch!)

we went to a bar called Lorely on Rivington and had some big ol beers and watched the game....
(number 19 is Gianluca Zambrotta and the babest babe of the team of babes. in my opinion)

it was really fun. Italy played like pussies, (sorry family, but they did and there is no other way to describe it) and Paraguay played incredible defense. thank GOD they tied...

after our rousing game of soccer watching and big ol beers drinkin we met up with Rob at Yuca Bar & Restaurant so he could eat and Andrew and i could have a mojito...(i told you this was the stuff i drink edition. don't judge me). it was delish.
and it had a sugar cane stick in it! fun! i had one, Andrew had two, so go ahead and judge him. (jk AP)

onward...

we couldn't think of anything we just HAD to do in Manhattan so we ventured on to Brooklyn- to Williamsburg so that Andrew and Rob could shop for records (if that is not the most hippster sentence to write, i just don't know what is...) so i got bored. i almost bought a Madonna album for $4 but i figured Nate would kill me if i brought that home and tried to play it on his awesome record player...so i went outside and fiddled around on my iphone and then i hear "Bramell? what are you doing here?!" and there is Jenny! the 5th person i know in NY just happens to wander by. this is not as big of a city as i thought...
here is a picture of Rob being super Rob next to an innocent children's clothing store sign...(for shock value) Rob's number is saved in my phone as 'Rob aka the Jerk' but for the record HE put that in there like that. he's not nearly as big of a jerk as he likes to think he is...

so after Rob bought some metal albums and Andrew bought a reggae album we moved on to Radegast Hall & Biergarten which was realllllllly cool. they had a very impressive list and again, BIG OL' BEERS. i decided to chill out so i got half liters but the boys kept going with the liters...

this picture is of the "outside" area that wasn't actually outside because there was no smoking. the inside is just as cool.


so we stayed there for quite awhile and drank more beers. and talked about SF and working in food service (Andrew the chef, Rob the bartender/bar-back and me the server)

then Nate came and somehow i ended up with another liter of beer and i started looking like a ghoulie:




btw, this picture was taken using the Quirky device called Beamer and the Hipstamatic iPhone app so thats why it looks so crazy. that being said, it was totally dark when we took this picture so the Beamer works really well!!

since we had exhausted our fun at the Biergarten and we were starving we headed over to....

The Charleston?? this is where things get confusing...because they were calling this bar The Charleston BUT i think they were also calling it Alligator Lounge??? and we got free pizza..soo... PLUS on the outside of this mystery bar there were signs that said honeysomething...i dont know. but we went there and had free pizza and MORE beer. at this point we were just doing it to do it. in it to win it:

it was a good time. Brett came to meet us with some friends as well but we were sorta toast at that point so we left soon after...

productive day? no sir. FUN? yes yes.

TUESDAY, June 15th

i literally did not leave the house today. i was punishing myself for my indiscretions and irresponsibility of the day before. i stayed in and recovered and heated up left overs and looked for jobs and watched things on my laptop. oh, wait, i did leave the house once. i left the house to have a chat with my parents. i walked around the block because i was feeling pretty gross about being inside all day. also i ordered Indian food which was fun but nothing to blog about.


WEDNESDAY, June 16th

GOOD DAY TODAY!!!

first things first i went to the gym! whoo! i went to the 24 hour fitness in Soho and IT WAS SO FREAKIN' SWANKY. tvs in front of each machine, lockers with digital locks, soooo nice, and so unlike the two janky 24 hour gyms in SF. (nikki won't step foot in the Potrero anymore because she swears it smells like actual shit)
so i was thrilled!! and i worked out and watched the Spain v Switzerland game (which was way more exciting to watch than Italy v Paraguay because both teams were playing HARD)
sadly i learned that my $29.99/mo membership only applies to the janky versions of 24 Hour. this was an "Ultra Sport" and $64.99/mo. and all the gyms in NY are Ultra Sports. sigh. so sad. i was so excited...i put my account on hold until i get a great paying job so i can go back...

i took some pictures of our front stoop and street for you to all see:

i keep trying to get a pic of the whole building but there is ALWAYS big white van parked right in front..i'll get one eventually.

i wandered around the hardware store and got some screws for my shelves and then went home and fiddled around/cleaned/organized and got ready for my interview at 5:30.

I GOT A JOB. I GOT A JOB. I GOT A JOB. I GOT A JOB.
(btw this is 5 for 5 of being hired on the spot after an interview. jus sayin)

its not my DREAM job but its gonna be fun and pay pretty well i think. i'll be cocktail waitress-ing and serving at Oneials. the funny thing about this bar is that it is on the Sex and The City Tour because it is the bar that Aiden and Steve open called Scout...pretty funny. when i was interviewing there were like 20 women all drinking cosmos and the manager, George told me part of the job will be making cosmos for HOURS for this tour..should be verrrrrry interesting...

(im going to keep looking for that 'dream job')

so i wanted to celebrate! Nate and i went to dinner at Freemans Restaurant and had AMAZING cocktails. (check out the menu..) we each started the the French 75 Gin, lemon juice, Champagne in a tall glass with a twist and then had the Freemans Cocktail Rye, lemon juice and pemegranate moasses with bitters. the bartender there incredible to watch and the bar was soooooooooooo cool. this picture doesn't do it justice but you can kind of see...
there was all kinds of taxidermy and there are antlers all over the walls. it had really low lighting (nikki, you woulda been SUPER WEIRD in here). great decor. we were loving it. we sat at the bar for about an hour (but gladly) and then were seated. Nate got Seared Filet Mignon w/roasted onion, mashed potatoes and horseradish cream (which were some of the best mashed potatoes i've ever had...) and i had Goffle Road Farm Oven-Roasted Chicken with grilled romaine and house-made ranch dressing which was meh. i mean, it was really good but it wasn't INCREDIBLE. i loved the grilled romaine and the thigh was perfect but they overcooked the breast. and breasts are usually dry but i expected more...
no matter, it was a great meal and we had fun in there. i applied to work at the new place they are opening and so i tried to schmooze with the manager a bit...

the upcoming days have lots to offer including: my first day of training at the job, a cocktail party with Jenny at a subterranean whiskey cellar in Soho, hopefully a visit with Kate de Ayora (nikki's sister), a rooftop BBQ at Rob and Andrews house in Brooklyn and more eats!

xo, L