A new YouTube video – “Land of Dreams” – featuring Rosanne Cash and other musicians, shows different tourist experiences in the United States.

From Discover America.

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• Visiting Washington, DC

John Brown Smokehouse, web site, 25-08 37th Avenue (Crescent Street), Long Island City, Queens, NY, 718-361-0085 [NY Mag | NY Daily News | PigTrip | Yelp]

photo credit: Dougtone

Set in the middle of nowhere, these are the best burnt ends I’ve had, including Kansas City, and the best lamb sausage I’ve had, ever. The pastrami is the other winner. Quite possibly this is the best barbecue on the entire East Coast and it is one of the better barbecue experiences in the country. Here is one review.

They let me sample about five other dishes, and while they were very tasty they did not compare to the absolute winners cited above.

Me: “I know this is a stupid question, but how come the food here is so good?”

The Pitmaster: “That’s how we make it.”

By Tyler Cowen, originally posted on Marginal Revolution – click to see comments and suggestions.

One can go to the Queens Museum of Art at the Flushing Meadows Corona Park and enjoy the wonderful bird-eye’s view of the tri-borough with all the buildings, airports, rivers, Central Park, etc. … free, no charge and ample parking … just off the Grand Central Parkway, years ago, I would use that as a pit-stop when I am tired driving along the LIE … also, the Flushing Meadow park is wonderful for a stroll, the site of the World’s Fair in the early 60’s … many years ago, I traveled to visit the Bronx Botanical Garden and I was disappointed because it is so similar to Central Park … Central Park is free and the Bronx charges an admission fee, parking, etc.
p/s: my last Con Ed bill was $20 and change for the last 32 days, which is less then $1 a day for electricity, so cut down your energy consumption and you will not have to worry about nuclear generating plants … use less electricity and sacrifice some creature comfort….
Queens Museum of Art, web site, New York City Building, Flushing, NY, 718-592-9700 | directions | wikipedia
New York Botanical Garden, web site, 2736 Marion Avenue, Bronx, NY, 718-817-8700

Francesco, Lucu, Giacomo and I drove to JFK airport to pick-up Mieta from Rome. Afterwards, we drove to Joe’s Shanghai in Flushing for 3 bamboo baskets of very soupy pork dumplings … Shanghai sauteed pork/soy-sauce noodles and a steamed yellow-fish with ginger and scallions … very good food.
Flushing is a great place to enjoy Chinese food and the #7 subway is so very efficient. Three-year old Luca loves soupy pork dumplings with white rice! I can’t wait to go with you to their branch on Pell Street …
Joe’s Shanghai, web site, 13621 37th Avenue, Flushing, Queens, 718-539-3838 [NYT | NY Mag | Gayot | Yelp]
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Spicy & Tasty, 39-07 Prince Street, Flushing, Queens, between 39th and Roosevelt Avenues, 718-359-1601 [Menu from Bridge and Tunnel | NYT | NY Mag | Village Voice | openlist | Yelp]
Previous review July 30, 2006
Finally, Frank Bruni has discovered Spicy & Tasty in Flushing … very hot and delicious … worth a detour from La Guardia airport on your next visit …
“Where Playing With Fire Is Not Taboo,” by Frank Bruni, The New York Times, November 29, 2006

A sight instantly recognizable, the Unisphere was built for the 1964-1965 World’s Fair by U.S. Steel. Made of stainless steel and 120 feet in diameter, the Unisphere is the unofficial symbol of Queens. The site of the Fair is now Flushing Meadows Corona Park, which is also home to Shea Stadium, the USTA National Tennis Center, New York Hall of Science, and the Queens Museum of Art.
According to the Queens Courier (August 10, 2005), the Unisphere will be renovated in 2006 to repair the surrounding fountains.

Continue reading ‘Unisphere in Queens’ »

forgotten NY
If you love New York, then you must visit, and bookmark, forgotten NY. Run by Kevin Walsh, forgotten NY includes text and photographs of all parts of the City, new and old … he also conducts walking tours … upcoming tours are announced on the home page …
Some of our favorite pages include

• Journey Through the Past (a subway tour on IRT Low Voltage cars)
• Jamican Red (original red brick pavement in Jamica)
• A Walk on 53rd Street (from the Hudson to the East River)
• Who Are those Guys and Gals and Dogs (The Statues of Central Park)
• Where Brooklyn Began – Fulton Street at the waterfront

An incredibly rich site, forgotten NY will keep you occupied for hours … I bet most of you don’t make it to this sentence …
For more about Kevin Walsh, see the gothamist interview. Thank you, Kevin Walsh, for a wonderful web site.
AGINY Highly Recommended and Top 10

The New York City Dept. of Parks and Recreation has a web site that is very useful for finding out about many free events that take place throughout NYC.
You can start on the Things to Do page, but our favorite is the upcoming Concerts, Performances, and Films page.
Want to learn how to play petanque? (“A close relative of bocce and a distant cousin of horseshoes.”)
How about a two-hour boat ride along the Hudson featuring an on-board lecture by Joyce Gold about the history of the waterfront neighborhoods .. with dinner .. for $20?
Or maybe you’d prefer to “sample regional cuisine from neighborhood restaurants, picnic on the grass as the sun sets over the city, enjoy performances by local musicians and dancers and, as the sky darkens, see exceptional international films on a large format screen – all set against the spectacular backdrop of the Manhattan skyline.”?
These are only 3 among hundreds and hundreds of events listed.
AGINY Recommended.

On the drive out of the City to Southampton and eastern Long Island, stop for a light meal at Joe’s Shanghai (136-21 37th Avenue, Flushing, Chinatown, 718-539-3838) … preferably after 10pm. because of free parking and light traffic on the Southern State Parkway … crab and pork soup dumplings … a bowl of fresh shrimp noodle soup … get back on the car and drive blissfully…
The next day, drive to Brewster’s (the owner has his own high-tech deep-sea fishing boat and he is a very friendly guy) … (Brewster’s Seafood Market, 631-728-3474, 252 E. Montauk Hwy, Hampton Bays, NY) … the freshest raw clams, steamers in a garlic soup, raw oysters, steamed lobsters, smoked sweet scallops and salmon, tuna sashimi, fried flounder, black fish, etc…bring your own wine or beer … on the Montauk Highway and the Shinnecock Canal (across from the Mobil gas station … get the cold beer there!)
Afterwards, drive north to Briermere Farm (4414 Sound Avenue, Riverhead, NY 631-722-3931) for fresh, delicious fruit pies … locally grown peaches, blueberries, etc. …. a great gift for the folks you left behind in the sweltering City….
Heading back to the City on the LIE, take the Queens Blvd. exit (exit 19) … drive a few blocks and turn right onto Broadway, continue till you pass the railroad over-pass … you are now in Elmhurst, Chinatown … where there is an Oriental mall with free parking, on your left …
Park and visit the Vietnamese Pho restaurant (Pho Bang, which is a small NYC chain, 82-90 Broadway (Elmhurst Avenue), Queens, 718-205-1500) … I love the rice noodles with fried spring rolls and grilled pork … great quality. Also try the three-bean ice cold snack … the Penang restaurant (8284 Broadway, Elmhurst, NY 718-672-1185) for spicey roti canai, Hainanese chicken, and laksa … walk to the super-market and buy some groceries for the work week…

Greater New York 2005 … Currently the best museum exhibition in town … PS1 (an exhibition of contemporary art) … through September 26, 2006 … 22-25 Jackson Ave, Long Island City… 718-784-2084 … in Queens…I was there, last Sunday. Pay as you wish…suggested admission…a great bonus… directions
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