Another Astorian also won an award...
The Shorts Jury awarded Honorable Mention in Short Filmmaking to fellow Astorian Rob VanAlkemade for his film on Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping:
Preacher With an Unknown God
Art-O-Mat L.I.C. began in 1995 as one of the Internet’s earliest online art projects. Its latest incarnation is an Artisan Store and Gallery in the heart of Long Island City’s Hunters Point. In the short time since the store’s opening in November 2005, the store has sold works from over 50 artists, artisans, musicians, and authors as well as items from local cultural organizations. Art-O-Mat L.I.C. holds community events such as children’s workshops, community folktales (local oral history), and readings. The store also sells unique gift items, items with local flavor, and books. O’Keeffe Illuminated will be Art-O-Mat’s third exhibition in the Gallery space.
Wowsers, was i overwhelmed by how much i loved Kabob and Ali!?!?!?!
Vegetarian Combo thingie (hummus, falafel, babganoush and more)
Fava bean puree with caramelized kinda fried onions and olive oil
Kofta-beef meatballs with potatoes and a poached egg in light tomato sauce
Duck with a honey glaze and rice and veggies"The try-anything looseness of Montiel's meta-literary directing style -- inserting text from the shooting script in between scenes, for example -- is part of its appeal. Each time the veteran cast blows on, however (Dianne Wiest as Dito's mother, Robert Downey Jr. as the adult Dito), the film takes on an actory self-consciousness. When it stays focused on its young cast, "A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints" exudes a scrappy, John Cassavetes-like vividness."
“SAINTS is based on director Dito Montiel's youth during the mid-eighties in the tough neighborhood of Astoria, Queens. All his old friends have ended up dead, as junkies, or in prison; Dito is the proverbial man who got out. For him, the "saints" are the folks he remembers, the ones he left behind. For better or worse, they made him who he is today.”
"It's not like a cigarette," said Gamal Dewidar, who manages his brother's Elkhaiam cafe and Hookah Palace on Steinway St. "There is a little tobacco and honey mixed in, but it's not dangerous."
The project, said the Rev. Mitchell Taylor, chairman of the East River Development Alliance, is intended "to build a city for everyone, to bring people together, to create access and opportunity, to create a merge of people that will create a mosaic of opportunity for all of us." A meeting to solicit public comment on the proposal is scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 25, at 6 p.m. at the ARROW Recreation Center, 35-30 35th St., Astoria.
It's 18,000 square feet filled with tons and tons of stuff you've thrown out, like that pink toilet you replaced with a white one, or those cabinets that you thought were too dated.
If Justin Green has his way, all of those home construction items that could be used again, will be used again. Instead of going to a landfill, they'll come to the Restore-Build It Green warehouse in Astoria. It was opened last March by the Community Environmental Center. It's modeled after similar stores in other cities.
But why would you buy a toilet here and not at a store? Because you can get it for $15, and that's a good deal. What's even better is that Build It Green is a not for profit, the money raised here goes to good causes like Habitat for Humanity
Looking for something to do in Astoria this weekend? Well, here are some fun suggestions!
Enjoy live Brazilian music at Girassol Churrascaria Steak House tonight! Dois Caipirinhas will be playing Bossa Nova and MPB from 8-10pm, and will be doing so each Friday night in January. Girassol Churrascaria is located at 33-18 28th Avenue in Astoria.
Waltz, a lovely cafe located on
On Sunday, come back to Waltz to enjoy some "red hot jazz" at
And there you have it ladies and gentlemen, the first discovery on the Gastronomic Trail 2006/Astoria Edition....
We started off with two cans of chilean pop. Pap (papaya) and a cherry one that i forget the name, something like Biz or something. As Meg pointed out-made with sugar not corn syrup-gud thing .
Then it was time for the dog! Let me remind you that this is a bakery. They make this delicious bread...sooooo yummy. they use this homemade bread toss in a dog then add chopped tomatoes, onions, avocado and mayo on top. They even have these cute little dog trays that hold them perfectly! So half for me and half for meg, down the gullet (with the pebre of course)
On to the next course. Thin pork slices with melted cheese on some slammin bread. Its served simply then you add the bam of the pebre, heaven!
Dessert time. Lemon Pie, better known as meringue. It was to the point of almost being a caramelized candy topping. Nice clean tart filling in a crumbly shell. No complaints from me at all. I just got back from key west were i felt the need to search for great key lime pie, its not that, but different. Definitley gud.
Then the pan cake. This had Meg written all over it. Thin moist slices of some kind of cake with dulce de lece between each sliver. It had a heavy coating of it on the outside that hardened slightly into a caramel ... love love love that. You probably think-ugh sweetness overload. But thats the best part, there wasn't. 
Sometimes it seems like the best places in Astoria are the ones I've been ignoring. They just keep passing through my peripheral vision until I stumble right into them.
It's going to snow tonight. Snow as in white flakes that fall from the sky. Not much of it, but honestly, enough with the hipster Ugg crap. I'm so sick of those things I could puke. Anyway, regardless of your footwear, this will be a nice weekend to take a stroll down to Astoria Park. Should be pretty in white.
Word on the street is that something cool is happening with Astoria Beach near Socrates Sculpture Park. Wouldn't it be great to create more public access to our waterfront, regardless of what it is called? Ahem.
In the space where my beloved yet now-defunct Cravo & Canela once sat is now Jasmin. Don't let it's namesake scare you off. Jasmin is a real deal QNS Columbian cheap-eats arepa place. 
Hey all you Astorians - I know you're planning on voting today. Every one counts!
You know that local foods are all the rage, but we don't exactly have bean fields here in Astoria. Ms. SpatulaLove has reinvented local foods as a community event. Contribute to her meals and follow the exciting outcome.
