Astorian Weekend Edition 21.08.08

The Astoria Park Concert Series continues with Gary US Bonds. Show starts at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Astoria Park Lawn, Shore Blvd between Hellgate Bridge and the pool.

On Friday, join Recycle-A-Bicycle’s Summer Ride Club. Learn on-the-bike riding skills and safe maneuvering in city traffic in this family-friendly event. The session lasts from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at RAB's training center (46th Ave and 5th St). Contact rideclub@recycleabicycle.org for more information.

More music on the weekend! LIC Bar (45-58 Vernon Blvd) continues their outdoor music series. On Saturday come listen to Dave Barckow (folk, powerpop) from 5-7 p.m. From 7-8 p.m. Charlotte Cornfield (folk) performs. No cover and BBQ to boot!

Hell Gate Social (12-21 Astoria Blvd) is putting on what they hope to be a yearly event, the Hell Gate Social Music Festival. The event is on Sunday. They have assembled 8 bands from different music genres; hip hop, electronic, and rock for a full day of music enjoyment.

The doors will be opening at 3 p.m., and there will be a $3 cover. Out back on their outdoor patio they will be BBQ'ing hamburgers and hot dogs for $2 each. Happy Hour will also be extended from 3pm-9pm, along with drink specials with every new band.The schedule is (more or less): Lead the Resistance 4p.m.; Luneur 4:45; Speak Onion 5:30; Puppet Show 6:15; Buddy Hollycost 7:00; Dead by Choice 8:30; D Music Productions 9:15; Sweet Magma 10:00
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Astorian Weekend Edition 07.08.08

There's concert going and work-shopping on Thursday. At 10 a.m. be entertained and make puppets at Queensbridge Park (Vernon Blvd & 41st Ave) then head over to Astoria Park Lawn around 7:30 p.m. for the musical stylings of Joey Dee and the Starliters.

Gas prices are getting people out and about on their bikes; learn safety and other riding skills at Recycle-A-Bicycle’s Summer Ride Club on Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Meet over at their training center (46th Ave and 5th St.) and feel free to bring the kids!

Try the newest Asian eatery in the Ditmars area, East Moon (35-12 Ditmars Blvd.). Some say there are already a ton of them, but this one has a twist: Japanese and/or Thai! Take your pick; chances are you'll find something to your liking.

Sunday earn a medal or two at Astoria's own Beer-lympics!!! The hops laden event was put together by the Astoria Pub Hunters and Why Leave Astoria on Meetup.com. There will be both individual and team events, so you have no excuse to not participate. RSVP in advance and pay $15 for men and $10 for women (or more at the door). The fee goes toward the open bar and snacks, so all in all, not a bad deal. I will be trying my hardest to make this event; I just need to see this for myself! This is a great excuse to try out the new Club 21 (30-09 21st St.) too.

More Queens stuff here.

Astorian Weekend Edition 08.05.08

Well, it's been so nice this week, finally warming up. Thought it will be less terrific this weekend than during the week, don't let that deter you from going out and having fun.

One way to bring some light to your weekend is a meal at Akti. Everything there shines! I ate there for the second time last weekend and it was fab. Had a lovely salad with feta, peppers, tomatoes, cukes, and onions, dressed with a light and simple mixture of oil and vinegar. The feta was some of the best I've had, I must say. Their fish croquettes are awesome too, and the whole fish is also wonderful - we had the red snapper. They serve a Cypriot beer that is light and delicious. I don't think you can go wrong with anything here. Akti Seafood Restaurant is at 34-19 30th Avenue, Astoria, NY 11103. 718.721.3530.

New wine bar Winegasm is doing a happy hour - thisThursday, Friday and Saturday from 5-7 p.m. get 2 for 1 cocktails and a $15 pitcher of delicious summer sangria. I love sangria, so this looks particularly awesome. Winegasm is at 31-86 37th Street, Astoria, NY 11103. 718.932.3331.

There are a number of outdoor events happening this Saturday. First, the Savvy Cyclist presents their intro to cycling program for new cyclists. Saturday the 10th from 9-5 p.m. Registration and deposit required. Recycle-A-Bicycle training center is at the corner of 46 Avenue and 5th Street.

Next, Socrates Sculpture Park presents the first annual LIC Bike Parade in partnership with a whole host of great local and community organizations. It's free and perfect for the entire family. Lots and lots of stuff going on in conjunction with this event, so check out the bikenewyork.org website for additional information. It will happen rain or shine; registration is at 11:30 a.m., workshops from 12-3 p.m. and the parade is from 3-4 p.m. Socrates Sculpture Park is at Broadway and Vernon Boulevard. 718.956.1819.

Last, the Friends of Queensbridge Park are holding their annual Mother's Day Dance fund-raiser to benefit the summer program. 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. at the Jacob A. Riis Neighborhood Settlement House, 10-25 41st Avenue in Long Island City. Tickets are $15. Contact karen.overton@parks.nyc.gov to purchase a ticket.

Build It Green! along with the Office of Recycling Outreach and Education is also holding an event on Saturday from 11-4 p.m.: Stop 'N Swap! From their release:

Our block will be closed off for the whole day! 26th Ave between 3rd and 4th Street in Astoria, Queens right in front of the BIG!NYC warehouse. Bring things you want to get rid of for the free swap! You can also just bring yourself and take things for free! As always the warehouse will be open with all our great deals!

WHAT TO BRING: Items that are no longer useful to you, but can be reused by others. Clothes, dishes, books, dvds, cds, stuff your mom gave you for Xmas. You don't need to bring anything to take anything (though a tote bag might help). Bring friends and family too!

WHAT NOT TO BRING: No furniture/large items, drugs/medications, weapons/dangerous objects, adult movies/magazines or pets/pethair covered items.

Build It Green! is located at 3-17 26th Ave. in Astoria.

This Sunday is Mother's Day. Our own Foodista has some suggestions on where to take mom on her special day.

Astorian Weekend Edition 16.08.07

Looks like a nice, comfortable weekend coming up! Highs in the upper 70s with a little bit of clouds. This will be a great weekend for a couple of bike-related events going on. Friday, it's all about the kids: Teach Your Child to Ride a Bike! That's the name of a class being given from 10am-1pm at ARROW (35-30 35th St.), for kids and their parents (a parent of guardian MUST attend). The class will provide expert guidance on how to balance,start, stop, and steer. It's free, and the NYC Dept. of Transportation will be giving away free helmets, on top of it all. Also, there will be a raffle of donated bikes and scooters from Recycle-A-Bicycle. Pre-registration is required online or by calling 212 932 2453 x159.

On Saturday August 18, from 12-3pm, Recycle-A-Bicycle is having a bike sale at their LIC location (46th Avenue at 5th Street). Six kids through the Summer Youth Employment Program have been working at Recycle-A-Bicycle in LIC for the last 7 weeks to learn basic bike mechanic skills, and this is the final project. There will be adult bicycles and a few children's bicycles- all recycled and refurbished. Cash and credit cars will be accepted, and the sale will take place rain or shine.

There's also fun at Hellgate Social this weekend - music, djing, and movies on the back patio. Always a good time. And speaking of movies, MOMI has some interesting looking films about complex realtionships, including Drive, He Said, Charley Varrick, and Play Misty For Me.

Socrates Sculpture Park continues its pan-arts event,Float. Saturday and Sunday, from 12-7:30pm, come see different kinds of artwork, live performances, and videos by emerging artists Robert Boyd, William Lamson, Ola Vasiljeva, and Shana Moulton. Moulton's Whispering Pines video series ends with a performance on Sunday. Jan Rothuizen's Missing is a tree covered in posters for lost pets, possessions, and people. Sheila Ross and Laura Ten Eyck's installation, Yurt City, will also be on display.

Warm Up at PS1 (22-25 Jackson Ave in LIC) features DJ Spun w/Ben Cook, Eric Duncan, Woolfy Projections, Dewanatron & Ray Sweeten, and Zach Layton, going on from 3-9pm. It's a $10 admission for everyone but locals (bring proof of your Astoria/LIC address/zip to get in free). According to Flavorpill: "Rong Music hosts a lineup that's thick with dubbed-out beat makers, psychedelic incantations, and a proper dash of disco punk. Beyond the spinners, live sets include funk-fueled bass lines, temperamental synths, and all forms of robotic love." Head to Water Taxi Beach afterwards for Akalepse, and great dogs.

Food-wise, there's the aforementioned dogs at WTB. I hear that the pizza at Frankie's (31st Street between Ditmars and 23rd Ave) has changed a bit - an extra garlicky sauce, apparently. I don't necessarily think that's a bad thing. My fave really is Michael Angelo's on 23rd Ave (near 29th Street), which made me a fantastic Marghareta slice the other day. They have a back garden as well, which is so nice in the warmer months. But the place I'm most interested in is the new vegetarian/vegan restaurant run by the same people that run Sai Organics (30th Ave between 36th and 37th Streets), that is finally open!. This new restaurant is in the old Keystone Diner spot, 30th Ave just west of 31st Street. They are serving 100% organic food, too. This is very exciting!

More fun, here.